Walter Page was the son of Mr. & Mrs. Henry Page, and entered the Bloomsburg State Normal School in September of 1915, as a student in the Special Course.  In June, 1917 he passed entrance examinations for the military, and was accepted as a musician in the infantry and went to Fort Slocum, New York.  He first became a member of Company I, later Company A, 9th Infantry, which was sent over to France.  In October he wrote to a former classmate of his in Bloomsburg:

     "Arrived in France at last, reaching port Thursday evening.  It was fifteen days on the beat and glad to stand on solid ground again.  I was not very sick, only missing a few meals, but some of the fellows were pretty bad.  I haven't seen much of the country yet, but it is just like the stories of ancient times.  They seem to be about 75 years behind time, and are in the "bicycle age" yet.  The girls don't walk; they ride bicycles and there are only a few automobiles."

     "I have been homesick a thousand times already to get back to school again.  It did seem hard the day school opened.  I could imagine you fellows coming up the front walk and shaking hands, and I wasn't in it!"

     "You ought to see what an appetite I have now.  Believe me, if I could strike the old strings and mattress we had last year I would sleep for a week.  I haven't slept in a bed since I came in the army.  We sleep on the ground and it is as hard as a rock.  I lie on one side until I get sore and then roll over.  Talk about getting tough!  I'll carry a tooth-pick in my Sunday vest pocket when I get back."

But Walter Page never did get back to Bloomsburg.  He was severely wounded on July 18, 1918, and listed as "missing in action" on August 12.  It was not until March 5, 1919 that his father received official word from Washington that his son had died of his wounds the previous July.

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Updated 11/5/02