Will McMurray and Harry McMurray at Camp McKinley, Des Moines, Iowa, 1898

McMurray Family, Benjamin Family (Click for Family Tree)

[Are you related? Yes, if you are a descendant of the Jasper County Iowa McMurray,  Benjamin, or Lambert families. This would include having Dr. Edward A. McMurray, Dr. Herbert McMurray, or Maude “Midge” McMurray Cook as ancestors.]

Today, on Memorial Day, we honor those who have fallen in service to our country. Thankfully, there are few, if any, of our direct ancestors who have made the greatest sacrifice. No one who enters military service knows if they will be called to make that sacrifice, but they march off despite the risk.  For those who survive, any war leaves scars, both physical and mental, that last a lifetime, and their families also pay a price. Please take a moment today to think of all those who have fought for our rights, because they felt it was their duty and their honor to protect them for posterity.

Freedom is never free.

(Continued from yesterday)

We last left Will McMurray, Harry McMurray, Roland “Rollie” E. Benjamin, and E. E. Lambert, all cousins, as they were steaming along the rails across the prairie for the 30-mile trip from Newton to Des Moines, Iowa. Their destination was Camp McKinley, named after the President who had just declared war on Spain in April, 1898.

The Iowa State Fair Grounds had been converted into a staging and training camp.  Our boys from Newton were assigned the amphitheater as their quarters. “They are having a good time and getting used to “army diet”… We’ll bet the boys won’t go hungry,” stated the newspaper report.

Lieut. Col. E. E. Lambert was appointed as the Provost Marshall for the camp of 3,000 men. He was charged with enforcing all camp regulations and was responsible for all the property within the fairgrounds. This was quite an honor- and a huge responsibility- to be appointed to such a position. Each Iowa regiment appointed a detail of 17 men to report to Lieut. Col. Lambert for special duties within the camp.

The Iowa National Guard did not provide enough soldiers for the national quota to be fulfilled by Iowa. The Iowa Governor thus issued a proclamation that any men who had drilled as a National Guardsman or in a military school should provide their name to their local sheriff, who would pass it on to the governor for enlistment.

Will McMurray was a Second Lieutenant in the Guard, so he would have been paid $114 per month for his military service; his brother Harry was a Sergeant, and his pay would have been $17.50 per month. Their cousin, Lieut. Col. E. E. Lambert, would have made about $250/month.

The government provided flags and tents to the men, but according to the newspaper, did not furnish clothing or food. Two men went along with the Newton contingent to work as cooks for them, so it is not clear where there food came from, especially since there was also mention of the Newton soldiers having to get used to “army rations.”

Military camps are of course very regimented, and we know the schedule followed by our ancestors at Camp McKinley:

(To be continued…)

Notes, Sources, and References: 

1. The Newton Record, 28 Apr 1898, Vol. 4, No. 40, Page 1.
2. A Military Tattoo in this schedule is a musical signal that the day is almost ended. Interestingly, the word “tattoo” comes from a Dutch term, doe den tap toe,  from the 1600s. It meant “turn off the tap,” referring to a beer tap. The tattoo would be sounded from the military garrison so that innkeepers/tavern owners near the base would end the service of beer to those in the military. Soldiers should then return to their quarters. Military tattoos have become elaborate musical performances in the years since. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_tattoo for more information.

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