Clayton Carey Ellis (1895 - 1918)

Born 13 Jul 1895 in Somerville, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States

Died 7 Aug 1918 at age 23 in France

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Biography

Clayton Carey was born in Somerville, Massachusetts, in 1895, the son of Charles LaForest and Dora (Smith) Ellis. ^[1] He grew up in Somerville,^[2][3] where he attended local schools and graduated from Somerville High School in 1915.^[4] He went on to study at the Massachusetts Normal Arts School, Class of 1919.

He joined the American Field Service on May 5, 1917, during World War 1. He was deployed overseas the same month. In September of that year he enlisted in the U.S. Army Ambulance Service, with the French Army. He was killed in action by a shell near Reims, France, on August 7, 1918. The Memorial Volume of American Field Service in France notes, "He did not fail or falter once in his service. On the night of August 6th, after midnight, he was carrying wounded through the shadowy, blasted streets of Reims when a shell struck close and a splinter pierced Clayton's head, killing him instantly."^[5] He was initially buried at Seringes-et-Nesles, Aisne, France, but his remains were later transferred to Longley Cemetery in Sidney, Maine.^[6]

He was posthumously awarded the Croix de Guerre with palm, on November 4, 1918., which described him as "an American driver animated with splendid courage, a volunteer for all the perilous missions." The Somerville High School named an auditorium in his memory.^[7]

Sources

1. ↑ "Massachusetts Births, 1841-1915," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FXXQ-GMH : 11 March 2018), Clayton Ellis, 13 Jul 1895, Somerville, Massachusetts
2. ↑ "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M9TF-7Z7 : accessed 2 April 2019), Clayton C Ellis in household of Charles L Ellis, Somerville city Ward 3, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States
3. ↑ "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M2V5-9ST : accessed 2 April 2019), Clayton C Ellis in household of Charles L Ellis, Somerville Ward 4, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States
4. ↑ Diplomas for 282 at Somerville High, Boston Daily Globe, June 25, 1915, p. 16
5. ↑ [https://books.google.com/books?id=nod9V6pAMkIC&dq Memorial Volume of American Field Service in France, by James W. D. Seymour, published 1921, p. 130
6. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #43197071 Longley Cemetery, Sidney, Maine
7. ↑ Report of the Commission on Massachusetts' Part in the World War", by Eben Putnam, 1928, Vol. 2, p. 343

• "United States Passport Applications, 1795-1925," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVJP-SB5P : 16 March 2018), Clayton Carey Ellis, 1917