World War I American aviators and pilots

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American Eagles

I recently received this story. If you can help us identify the father at all, we would be delighted. E-Mail Us

Dear Sir, I have a request for you. Perhaps you could help me.

It concerns my mother. She is an old woman. She was born at the end of May 1920.

She would like to have information about the identity of her biological father, since she knows her father was not her biological father. It has always been a shameful secret in her family.

All her family was from Issoudun (ed. home of the 3rd AIC Issoudun - the largest USAS training base in the world). My grandmother’s husband (Mr. Berthelot) married my grandmother Eugénie Riffault (born in 1885). They were parents of 7 children: 4 boys and 3 girls. The last daughter was my mother, but she was not Mr. Berthelot’s biological child. The only information she has obtained in 1959 (!) from her aunt was that her biological father was an American soldier (maybe a Canadian?) whose last name was William.

Each summer, my grandmother’s husband was an agricultural worker in farms, and he left grandmother alone. In summer 1919, she met a soldier. Life and “love”(?) passed on their ways.

When my grand father knew his wife was pregnant, he quickly understood he was not the father! He was furious. He looked for the soldier. It seems that they fight together with knives. We got some information that newspapers of Issoudun wrote about this story. Considering the local scandal, we know with assurance that the American HQ transferred William to another town.

Berthelot repudiated my grand mother before they divorced. He kept with him his four boys. My grand mother went away from Issoudun to Paris in autumn 1919. There, she was received by her elder sister, and there she delivered my mother.

Finally, as my grandparents were not divorced on time of my mother’s birth, her grandmother’s husband had to acknowledge her as his daughter. As a result, her name is Berthelot as are her brothers and sisters.

As my grandmother did not want my mother, and she had to work for live, my grandmother came back to Issoudun when my mother was 2 months old. My mother was left with my grandmother’s youngest sister to be raised. She never knew Mr. Berthelot. Her brothers never talked with my mother, even if they lived in Issoudun and knew that she lived in the same town. When my mother was approximately twelve years old, she asked herself why she was raised by her uncle and aunt. At school, she heard a lot of suggestions and bad imprecise allusions about her birth by some schoolgirls. However, nobody answered her questions about the subject.

She was 39 years old before getting some little information from her aunt. Now my mother is 90 years old and she is wounded by that! How could you help her?

My mother would like to know the name of her father and some details of his life before her death. How old was he? From what town and state did he come?

We do not want to claim anything to his family and his descendents. We think that William had never known he was the father of a French girl!

Perhaps you could obtain the family name of William in your archives? If you could give us an answer to this, you will give a lot of happiness to an old woman. It would be marvellous and I will be you very grateful.

I apologize for my bad English. I hope it is sufficiently understandable for you.

I hope to hear you soon.

Best greetings

Alain Tchapla

List of Books about American aviation:

American Eagles - The Illustrated History of American Aviation in World War I
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Lafayette Escadrille: America's Most Famous Squadron
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"American Eagles - The Illustrated History of American Aviation in World War I" ($19.95, paperback, 400 pages, 8.5"x11", black and white, $5 for shipping and handling (US) or free download):

American Eagles is packed with 220 photos, new maps and beautiful artwork by Michael O'Neal. It is the story of American World War I combat aviation, the aviators, their planes, their aerodromes, their stories and what happened to them after the war. Read about the first American fighters, bombers and observation planes, the Lafayette Escadrille, United States Naval Aviation, United States Marine Aviation, the United States Air Service, now the USAF, and more.

"I wanted to tell you what a great job you have done with your book! I have been totally enthralled reading through it!"
Gary Duhaine

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"Lafayette Escadrille: America's Most Famous Squadron" ($14.95, 204 pages, digest size, black and white, $5 for shipping and handling (US) or free download):

The Lafayette Escadrille is about the brave Americans who volunteered to fly for France and the United States 103rd Aero Squadron during World War I. Read about Raoul Lufbery, Bill Thaw, Kiffin Rockwell, Norman Prince, Charles Biddle and the early days of American World War I military aviation before it was known as the United States Air Force. These men flew Nieuports and Spads against Fokkers and Albatroses. This book has lots of new research and is thoroughly well-documented. 204 pages, 62 photos and maps.

"You write so well! I thoroughly enjoyed it and learned a lot."
Cynthia Pullin

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Learn more: 1st Observation Group, 1st Pursuit Group, 1st Bombardment Group, 2nd Pursuit Group, 3rd Pursuit Group, 4th Pursuit Group, and 5th Pursuit Group. See the really cool Google Map we've made just for you.

File under:

1st Observation Group - 1st aero squadron, 12th aero squadron, 50th aero squadron
1st Pursuit Group - 27th aero squadron, 94th aero squadron, 95th aero squadron, 147th aero squadron, 185th aero squadron
1st Bombardment Group - 96th aero squadron, 11th aero squadron, 20th aero squadron, 166th aero squadron
2nd Pursuit Group - 13th aero squadron, 22nd aero squadron, 49th aero squadron, 139th aero squadron
3rd Pursuit Group - 28th aero squadron, 93rd aero squadron, 103rd aero squadron, 213th aero squadron
4th Pursuit Group - 17th aero squadron, 25th aero squadron, 148th aero squadron, 141st aero squadron
5th Pursuit Group - 41st Aero Squadron, 138th Aero Squadron, 638th Aero Squadron