Charles A. Buhl

Submitted by: Judith Rauh {granddaughter}

Charles A. Buhl served in World War 1 with the United States Army. The dates of service are: Known 8/23/1917-6/25/1919.

 

Remembering a Soldier

By Judy Rauh

On April 6, 2017, we marked the 100th anniversary of the United States entry into the Great War, World War I. Among the Bronx, New York men who joined the Army to fight in the war was Charles August Buhl, my grandfather.

Charles Buhl was the youngest of 13 children of Peter and Pauline Buhl. He was born on Jan. 13, 1892 in New York City. He enlisted in the Army on Aug. 23, 1917, at the Enlistment Recruitment Center on Governor’s Island, NY. He was sent to Fort Dix, NJ on Nov. 19, 1917 and joined the 303 Wagon Company.

He was promoted to Sergeant on Dec. 12, 1917. He served overseas in France from Sept. 8, 1918 to June 22, 1919. He was honorably discharged from the Army on June 25, 1919.

He married my grandmother, Veronica (Vera) Roche, in December 1917. He and his wife originally lived in the Bronx with their daughters Veronica (Vera), my mother, and Florence. They moved to Schofield Street on City Island in 1925, and bought the house at 314 King Avenue in 1930 with his World War I bonus. They had two more daughters: Marian and Dorothy.

Charles Buhl was an early member of the American Legion Leonard Hawkins Post 156 on City Island. He was active in the post for many years, and served as its commander in the 1940s. I remember him working one of the betting wheels at the Legion’s annual bazaars. I remember that his hands trembled, which my grandmother said resulted from the gases he was exposed to during the war.

Charles Buhl died on Aug. 6, 1961. He and his wife Vera are buried in Pelham Cemetery, City Island. His daughter Dorothy Bunyan, grandson Mike Bunyan, and me, his granddaughter, still live on City Island. There are six more grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and seven great-great-grandchildren who also carry on his legacy.