To this day he holds his own display at the National Museum of American History, and can be visited by anyone. Stubby was there for the duration. Join Slate Plus to continue reading, and you’ll get unlimited access to all our work—and support Slate’s independent journalism. The accounts collected in Conroy’s scrapbook broadly sketch the narrative of Stubby’s service that became familiar in the immediate postwar years. When did Sgt Stubby die? On St. Patrick’s Day, bells and klaxons, the signal of a poison gas attack, rang out along the hillside in the Marne where Stubby and Conroy were stationed. He was the jaunty little creature who could be trotted out for parades, appear with politicians and military brass in photo opportunities, and was guaranteed to stay on message. The book is crammed with documents and ephemera: fan letters, poems, drawings, an invitation to the White House from President Wilson. In response, the Times reported, the solider “licked his chops and wagged his diminutive tail.” Sergeant Stubby, a short brindle bull terrier mutt, was officially a decorated hero of World War I. Photo by Sgt. The process of demobilization was protracted, and troops stayed on for several months after Armistice. The 102nd Infantry headquarters were set up near a dangerous spot 1½ miles north of Mandres-aux-Quatre-Tours. Stubby’s ears are pointed up, and he wears a gruff expression. Getting Stubby to Europe would be a more daunting challenge. J. Robert Conroy and Sergeant Stubby at the capitol in Washington. Sergeant Stubby was a pit bull type dog that was found and “enlisted” by Private Conroy during World War I. Here are some interesting things to know about this four-legged hero. Surely some measure of his popularity in the postwar period was due to the novelty of a canine hero. Ann Bausum, author of Stubby the War Dog: The True Story of World War I’s Bravest Dog, writes that J. Robert Conroy, a 25-old private from New Britain, Connecticut, forged the closest bond with the mutt. His glory was even hailed in France, which also presented him with a medal. Once there, the dogs hauled ammunition, aided soldiers in the work of laying communication lines, and helped transport wounded soldiers to field hospitals. A machinist onboard fashioned Stubby his own set of metal “dog tags.” By the time the troops disembarked in the port of Saint-Nazaire on France’s western coast, Stubby was the 102nd Infantry’s unofficial mascot. After the war, he worked as a bureaucrat, first for the Bureau of Investigation (predecessor to the FBI) at the Justice Department, then with military intelligence and finally on Capitol Hill as secretary for a Connecticut congressman. Sergeant Stubby and J. Robert Conroy, March 1919. France, Britain, Belgium, Germany, and Russia all recognized the value of trained dogs on the battlefield. He was officially given the promotion to Sergeant by the infantry commander himself after the incredible capture of a German spy. All contents © 2021 The Slate Group LLC. Another well-known military dog was Sergeant Stubby, a Boston Bull Terrier who served in World War I. Sgt. While the rank is obviously not recognized by the military on paper, it’s not unheard of for these well deserving dogs to be awarded with medals, recognition, and sometimes even funeral ceremonies (as we now know, thanks to Stubby the war dog). In 1917, Stubby, a Pit Bull puppy with a “stubbed” tail, was living on the streets of New Haven, Connecticut near an Army training camp at Yale University. Stubby’s provenance is unknown. The occasion was a ceremony honoring veterans of the 102nd Infantry of the American Expeditionary Forces’ 26th “Yankee” Division, who had seen action in France during the Great War. He became the first dog to be given rank in the United States Armed Forces. The story of Stubby the war dog begins in the year of 1917, in Connecticut during WW1. A French sergeant and a dog, both wearing gas masks, on their way to the front line. He looks like a ramrod sergeant: tough, unsmiling, no nonsense, with a coat covered in medals. Correction, May 8, 2014: This article originally misspelled author Ann Bausum’s first name. He is the only dog that has been promoted to Sergeant through combat. But the very fact of Stubby’s celebrity itself enlightens our understanding of the war and its aftermath. Private Robert J. Sgt Stubby – The War Dog The story of Stubby the war dog begins in the year of 1917, in Connecticut during WW1. When Conroy went to study law at Georgetown, Stubby became the university’s official mascot, a predecessor to the Hoya bulldog of the present day. According to Bausum, the two reportedly shook “hands.” Four months later, on April 29, 1919, Stubby and Conroy were demobilized at Camp Devens, Massachusetts. Stubby was like a character out of Horatio Alger, or a sentimental one-reel silent movie: an orphan who made his way in the world with perseverance and pluck. For capturing an enemy spy, Stubby was put in for a promotion to the rank of sergeant by the commander of the 102nd Infantry. Many dogs, including Red Cross dogs, performed heroically. For capturing an enemy spy, Stubby was put in for a promotion to the rank of Sergeant by the commander of the 102nd Infantry. For his valorous actions, Stubby is recognized as the first canine ever promoted to the rank of Sergeant in … Pershing made a short speech, noting the soldier’s “heroism of highest caliber” and “bravery under fire.” The general solemnly lifted an engraved solid gold medal from its case and pinned it to the hero’s uniform. On April 20, near Seicheprey, the Germany infantry led one of its first attacks against American troops. When Conroy studied law at Georgetown University, Sergeant Stubby became the official mascot of the Georgetown Hoyas- shortly before his death in 1926. A labrador, perhaps? He was not an impressive sight: short, barrel-shaped, a bit homely, with brown and white brindled stripes. Stubby’s rage at the sight of a German was reportedly so “savage,” in the words of an Associated Press account, that “it was found necessary to tie him up when batches of prisoners were being brought back, for fear that trouserless Germans would be reaching the prison pens.”, In the Argonne, Stubby sniffed out a lost German soldier hiding in nearby bushes. Usually closed doors were flung open for Stubby. 18th Infrantry, Machine Gun Battalion passing through Saint-Baussant, France, in advance upon Saint-Mihiel front, Sept. 13, 1918. By February 1918, the 102nd was bunkering along the lines of Chemin des Dames, the French-held “ladies path” on the Western Front, nervously anticipating the Germans’ launch of a spring offensive. The dog gave chase, eventually dragging the soldier back to the 102nd. Stubby was made a member of the Red Cross and the American Legion. Sergeant Stubby was the most decorated dog of World War I. Stubby’s temperament and personality enchanted all of the men, but one soldier in particular by the name of Robert Conroy declared Stubby as his own. If you value our work, please disable your ad blocker. Many of the countries involved in World War I had war dog training schools in place prior to the conflict. Robert Conroy decided to bring Stubby … The raw troops of the 26th Division were brought to Neufchâteau, in the Lorraine region of northeastern France, to train with more experienced French forces. The setting for Stubby’s debut was the Yale Bowl in New Haven, Connecticut. For his keen instincts and fierce loyalty, Stubby is still recognized today as the most decorated canine in American history and the first promoted to the rank of Sergeant in the U.S. Army. Courtesy of Division of Armed Forces/Smithsonian National Museum of America History. Siberian huskies, naturally, were relied on for transport. When you think of a military dog, what breed comes to mind? Dogs were also a key part of the Red Cross’ aid efforts, and every country had its own unit. In the Middle Ages, knights outfitted dogs with canine armor; Napoleon used trained dogs as sentinels in the French campaign in Egypt. When the war ended on Nov. 11, 1918, Stubby was in Meuse-Argonne. The stories are mostly written in a breathless tabloid tone that suggests the truth was less important to their authors than a good yarn: We can feel confident about certain details that emerge from the journalistic record: Stubby served in France, he was the beloved mascot for the 102nd, he was wounded at Seicheprey. The story of dogs in warfare is an old one, stretching back to antiquity. Stubby appeared in dog shows for this still-evolving breed, and he was often reported to have been an American bull terrier, one of the early names for the new breed. Stubby’s story begins in 1917, when a young private, J. Robert Conroy found a brindle puppy with a short tail at Camp Yale where his unit was undergoing basic training, according to the Smithsonian. Pvt. And you'll never see this message again. While there is very little written record about Stubby’s keeper, J. Robert Conroy, we do know that from 1913 on, his life was very much intertwined with the U.S. government. Heavy winter snows in the Vosges Mountains were holding back French supply lines; mules and horses couldn’t breach the impasse to move artillery and ammunition. He endured an injury from a surprise grenade attack, and proceeded to bravely undergo surgery. It is a truism that World War I was the first modern war, but it’s easy to forget what that meant 100 years ago. He even captured a German soldier. Like Rags, Stubby was a stray, and fell in with some soldiers drilling in New Haven, Conn. Cpl. He was so popular that his actions were well-documented in contemporary American newspapers. Stubby was later injured by a grenade, but he survived the large amounts of shrapnel in his chest and leg. Photo courtesy Carole Raddato/Flickr Creative Commons. Baldy sired 28 of the sled dogs sent to France by Allan during WWI. In fact, he earned the rank of sergeant in combat. For a full 24 hours, German gas shells rained down. While it may seem surprising, a small terrier mix known as Stubby, is described to be one of the most decorated war dogs in the history of the US military! Today I found out about Sergeant Stubby, the most decorated war dog of WWI. Some say that he was a brindle bull terrier mutt, or pit bull mix, and others believe he was a Boston Terrier mix. He’s a decorated WWI Hero, friend to presidents, and a total looker. Out of hiding and free to roam the freighter, Stubby proved popular with the crew. Stubby got his first war wound at Seicheprey, when a German shell fragment lodged in his left foreleg. Stubby single-handedly captured a German … He was a dog of uncertain breed, described in early news stories as either a Bull Terrier or Boston Terrier, with a short stature, barrel shape and friendly temperament. His taxidermied remains are on view at the Smithsonian, in a crowded display case alongside a mannequin doughboy and another World War I military animal celebrity, the carrier pigeon Cher Ami. Red Cross dogs, also called sanitary dogs or Sanitätshunde by the Germans, negotiated battlefields and no-man’s lands to aide wounded men. Stubby was an American pit bull terrier, pit bulls used to be smaller until they made a larger and buffer version by combining bigger and more muscular dogs into the mix. Before he became the most decorated war dog in American history, Sergeant Stubby was homeless: unwanted, unwashed, unloved, and scrounging for scraps on the streets of Connecticut. We would like you all to meet Stubby, Sergeant Stubby to be more accurate. The New York Times describes how Conroy eluded the ship guards by concealing Stubby in his Army-issue greatcoat. It was said he could sniff out poison gas, barking warnings to doughboys in the trenches. There are sepia-toned photographs showing the dog in the French countryside, surrounded by soldiers on a wooden Ford Model T ambulance. He was excellent in locating the wounded soldiers and getting them help. The ceremony was presided over by Gen. John J. Pershing, commander of the American forces in Europe during the war. Seicheprey sustained the heaviest losses in the Saint-Mihiel sector. This practice is to ensure due regard for these special dogs, as well as aid in the prevention of any possible abuse. Stubby lingered around Camp Yale after that first appearance. The regiment’s leader, Col. John Henry Parker, was a gruff, intimidating man, a veteran of the Spanish-American War and an expert machine gun tactician who eventually received a Silver Star for extraordinary heroism. Courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of American History via Carl Malamud. When it came time for the outfit to ship out, Conroy hid Stubby on boar… In this environment, Sergeant Stubby was an ideal World War I hero, because he was ideally stoic. He met Presidents Wilson, Harding, and Coolidge. According to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, he was the first dog ever given rank in the U.S. Army. The Royal lion hunt reliefs from the Assyrian palace at Nineveh, about 645-635 B.C., housed at the British Museum. Slate relies on advertising to support our journalism. He served with distinction during WWI and had the honor of being the war’s most decorated war dog. Allan managed to transport, in secret, more than 400 sled dogs from Alaska to Quebec, where he and the dogs boarded a cargo ship bound for France. Courtesy of Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History. You can cancel anytime. Stubby was described in contemporaneous news items as a Boston Terrier or "American bull terrier" mutt. 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