Seven Indiana heroes followed for upcoming PBS documentary on World War I

Editor's Note: This is the fifth and final part of an exclusive Herald Times series from PBS documentarian Jo Throckmorton. 

Six days. Fifty locations. One thousand six hundred miles. Seven Hoosier Heroes.  Four languages. Three countries. One great adventure.

This is my final dispatch from France, where I am traveling to learn the deeper stories of seven Hoosier heroes. The little Lexus crossover was put through the paces as we traveled nearly 300 miles every day to tape at just over eight locations. Many of those locations were found down what barely classify as wagon trails back home.

What we discovered was so much more than could be found in books. We had the distinct honor of walking in the same lanes, fields and towns as those about whom we had come to learn more.

Cpl. James Bethel Gresham was from Evansville. On Nov. 3, 1917, in a trench in far Eastern France, he became the first U.S. soldier to die in World War I.

Part 1: Bloomington documentarian traces WWI soldiers in France

Part 2: Ernest Duncan Finley, Bloomington soldier, was first local man to die in World War I

Pvt. Laurens Bennett Strain was from Bloomington. He was killed in action just after midnight on June 7, 1918, by a machine gun bullet to the head.

Sgt. Ernest Finley Duncan, of Bloomington, received the Silver Star and the French Croix-de-Guerre. He died in the first large-scale battle fought by American soldiers in the war in the Belleau Wood on June 10, 1918.

Sgt. Louis Carl Rupholdt was from Goshen. He was killed alongside a railroad track on July 15, 1918. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism in the action near Mezy, France, as he held his post on the bank of the Marne River until nearly his entire platoon was annihilated and he himself wounded. After being carried a short distance to the rear, he continued to direct the defense of the position until killed.

Part 3: Laurens Bennett Strain, Bloomington private, example of 'regular soldier' in World War I

Lt. Samuel Woodfill was from Madison. He would become Indiana’s only Medal of Honor recipient for action in World War I. Woodfill overtook two snipers and four machine gun nests on the morning of Oct. 12, 1918, in the small town of Cunel, France.

He used his rifle on many of the emplacements but had to out-draw a German with his his service pistol before moving to the last machine gun nest. He had dropped his rifle and the pistol was not working, so he engaged with the last two German soldiers in hand-to-hand combat, grabbing a German pick axe off the ground and killing them both in a furious fight. He had inhaled gas during his action and was taken out of the remainder of the war that very day.

Pvt. Charles Harrison Forrest was from Veedersburg. He was a typical soldier without much distinction other than having fought in each of the three major battles involving the U.S. forces during the Great War and living through it until less than one month from the armistice. He died along a tree line in the Bois d'Haumont (Haumont Woods) outside of Flabas, France.

Part 4: Evansville's Cpl. James Gresham was first American to die on French soil in World War I

2nd Lt. Aaron Fisher was from Lyles Station. One of the most decorated African American soldiers of the war, he received the Croix-de-Guerre, the Purple Heart and Distinguished Service Cross for his actions on Sept. 3, 1918, in the St. Die sector. Fisher showed exceptional bravery in action when his position was raided by a superior force of the enemy. He directed his men and refused to leave his position, although he had been severely wounded. He and his men continued to fight the enemy until the latter was beaten off by counterattacks.

Lottie May Berry was an American Red Cross nurse from Henry County. She was one of the unsung heroes of World War I. She was one of more than 21,000 nurses who enlisted in the Army Nurse Corps and was one of more than 10,000 who served overseas. Unfortunately, she contracted pneumonia on the trip to Brest, France, and died just after arriving, becoming the first U.S. nurse to give her life while serving overseas in the war.

The upcoming documentary film, “Over There: Hoosier Heroes of the Great War” will be shown throughout the state on the Indiana PBS stations starting this fall. Learn more at www.hoosierheroesofwwi.com or donate to help support this film. These stories will be told in more detail and the viewer will have the opportunity to more fully understand their commitments and their sacrifices. Every Hoosier should be proud of these stories. They represent the best of who we are.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: PBS documentary filmmaker traces stories of Hoosiers in World War I