New York (not Wyoming) Guardsmen entraining, June 1916. Similar scenes, however, would have taken place near Cheyenne. These troops, by the way, have a real mix of gear, as photos of Wyoming's troops do as well, as more modern canteens hadn't caught up with them yet and they were still using bedrolls, frontier campaign style, rather than backpacks. In terms of the scene, we see Guardsmen caught in the moment between the style of Frontier campaigning and modern warfar.
When I originally posted this item it read:
Two additional battalions of the Wyoming National Guard depart for the Mexican border.This might be right, but frankly what I think is may be the case is that the historians who suggest this have the departure dates confused. But maybe not.
These units had been under orders since June.
It's possible that the entraining took place on the 27th and 28th, but it seems possible that it took place all late in the night of the 27th. Still, the "two additional" battalions items does raise some questions and its not impossible that the Guard entrained over two days.
Raising more questions, 642 Wyoming National Guardsmen were mobilized in the Punitive Expedition. The first newspaper reports on their departure only indicated that a little under 150 left on the night of the 27th. Assuming that's correct, the bulk of the men were still encamped near Cheyenne. And if that's right, and it may well be, that means that is perfectly possible that more left over the next two days on additional trains, or at least that more left on a separate train on the 28th.
If you know, let us know.
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