Sergeant Stubby

Sergeant Stubby
Sergeant Stubby
Born	1916 or 1917.
Died	April 4, 1926 (aged 9–10)
Place of display	Smithsonian - "The Price of Freedom" exhibition
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Army
Rank	Sergeant
Unit	102nd Infantry, 26th (Yankee) Division
Battles/wars	World War I
Awards	Humane Education Society Gold Medal Medal of Honor Wound stripe
Other work	Hoyas' mascot

Sergeant Stubby (1916 or 1917 – April 4, 1926), was the most decorated war dog of World War I and the only dog to be promoted to sergeant through combat. America's first war dog, Stubby served for 18 months and participated in seventeen battles on the Western Front. He saved his regiment from surprise mustard gas attacks, found and comforted the wounded, and even once caught a German spy by the seat of his pants, holding him there until American soldiers found him. Back home his exploits were front page news of every major newspaper.

Early life

Stubby, according to vintage articles from his time (linked below in "references") and this 1921 one in particular, was noted to be a Boston Bull Terrier, which is the old term for the Boston Terrier breed. Stubby was found wandering the grounds of Yale Field in New Haven, Connecticut while a group of soldiers were training. The dog hung around as the men drilled and one soldier, Corporal Robert Conroy, developed a fondness for the Boston Terrier. When it came time for the outfit to ship out, Conroy hid Stubby on board the troop ship. The story goes that upon discovery by Conroy's commanding officer, Stubby saluted him as he had been trained to in camp, and the commanding officer was so impressed that he allowed the dog to stay on board.

Military service

Sergeant Stubby wearing his uniform and medals

Stubby served with the 102nd Infantry, 26th (Yankee) Division in the trenches in France for 18 months and participated in four offensives and 17 battles. He entered combat on February 5, 1918 at Chemin des Dames, north of Soissons, and was under constant fire, day and night for over a month. In April 1918, during a raid to take Schieprey, Stubby was wounded in the foreleg by the retreating Germans throwing hand grenades. He was sent to the rear for convalescence, and as he had done on the front was able to improve morale. When he recovered from his wounds, Stubby returned to the trenches.

After being gassed himself, Stubby learned to warn his unit of poison gas attacks, located wounded soldiers in no man's land, and — since he could hear the whine of incoming artillery shells before humans could — became very adept at letting his unit know when to duck for cover. He was solely responsible for capturing a German spy in the Argonne. Following the retaking of Château-Thierry by the US, the women of the town made Stubby a chamois coat on which were pinned his many medals. He also helped free a French town from the Germans. At the end of the war, Conroy smuggled Stubby home.

After the war

Sergeant Stubby's brick at the World War I Memorial

After returning home, Stubby became a celebrity and marched in, and normally led, many parades across the country. He met Presidents Woodrow Wilson, Calvin Coolidge, and Warren G. Harding. Starting in 1921, he attended Georgetown University Law Center with Conroy, and became the Georgetown Hoyas' team mascot. He would be given the football at halftime and would nudge the ball around the field to the amusement of the fans.

Medals and Awards

• 3 Service Stripes
• Yankee Division YD Patch
• French Medal Battle of Verdun
• 1st Annual American Legion Convention Medal
• New Haven World War I Veterans Medal
• Republic of France Grande War Medal
• St Mihiel Campaign Medal
• Wound stripe, replaced with Purple Heart when introduced in 1932
• Chateau Thierry Campaign Medal
• 6th Annual American Legion Convention
• Humane Education Society Gold Medal

Stubby was also featured in the Brave Beasts exhibit at the Legermuseum in Delft, The Netherlands.

See also

• Cher Ami – Carrier pigeon who is displayed with Stubby in the Smithsonian Institution's Americans at War: The Price of Freedom exhibit.
• List of individual dogs
• Military animal

References

• Richmond, Derek (November 4, 2003). From Mascot to Military, Stubby Left Pawprints on Hilltop and Beyond. Georgetown, Washington, D.C: The Hoya of Georgetown University. http://www.thehoya.com/node/11106. 

• "The Price of Freedom: Americans at War – Stubby". Smithsonian Institution. http://americanhistory.si.edu/militaryhistory/collection/object.asp?ID=15. 
• "Stubby the Military Dog". Connecticut Military Department. July 16, 2003. http://www.ct.gov/mil/cwp/view.asp?a=1351&q=257892. Retrieved March 26, 2010. 
• ""Stubby", World War I Canine Hero 1921". History Wired. Smithsonian Institution. http://historywired.si.edu/detail.cfm?ID=519. 
• Irwin, Tanya (May 27, 2013). "Canine soldiers earn accolades: Exhibit extols virtues of WWI’s Sgt. Stubby". Toledo, Ohio: Toledo Blade. http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2013/05/27/Canine-soldiers-earn-accolades.html. 

• "1921 The Evening World: Stubby, a brindle Boston Bull Terrier...". 1921 The Evening World: Stubby, a brindle Boston Bull Terrier.... http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030193/1921-07-08/ed-1/seq-2.pdf. 
• "Vintage Boston Terrier name "Boston Bull Terrier" (in reference to Stubby's breed)". 1910 Los Angeles Herald Magazine. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85042462/1910-01-02/ed-1/seq-49.pdf. 
• "Visual of the Boston Terrier (aka Boston Bull Terrier) of 1912". 1912 San Francisco Call. http://i.imgur.com/A43lk3v.jpg. 

External links

• Sgt. Stubby - American War Dog
• War Dogs Remembered
• Smithsonian - "The Price of Freedom" exhibition