Stars on the flags

A service flag carried a star for each member of a household or congregation in the service. In June 1918 the ladies of the Berryville Baptist Church presented theirs, with eight stars, for Collins Dakeman, Harry Simonds, Robert Mesmer, Walter Hardesty, Edward Berlin, Ernest Locke, Rice Levi and Malcolm Foley. Rev. H. Parlett East received it for the church, and the pastor's address, the Courier reported, dwelt on "the atrocities committed by the German people."

The same page carried the Methodist church's notice of its Soldiers' Day, Sunday, June 30, 1918, "In honor of our own 13 soldier boys especially." The Virginia War History Commission, writing up the county after the war, put it simply: "The churches of Clarke County held special patriotic, intercessory and memorial services."

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1918
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

The Clarke Courier of June 27, 1918 reported that the ladies of the Berryville Baptist Church presented it with a service flag of eight stars, for Collins Dakeman, Harry Simonds, Robert Mesmer, Walter Hardesty, Edward Berlin, Ernest Locke, Rice Levi and Malcolm Foley, received for the church by Rev. H. Parlett East; the pastor's address set forth "some of the atrocities committed by the German people."

What the source supports

The Baptist church's service flag and the eight men it honored.

Uncertainty

The pastor's address is reported in a sentence; its claims about the war are his, as the paper reported them, and are not this site's.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The flag and its eight names.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 27, 1918, page 3: "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag" and "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-06-27 (publication)

Locator: Page 3, "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag"

Relevant passage
A large Service Flag containing eight stars, the eight stars representing the names of Collins Dakeman, Harry Simonds, Robert Mesmer, Walter Hardesty, Edward Berlin, Ernest Locke, Rice Levi and Malcolm Foley, boys who are doing their bit, or preparing to do their bit in the suppression of Autocracy, was presented to the Berryville Baptist Church by the ladies of that church Friday evening at 8:30 o'clock.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. Received for the church.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 27, 1918, page 3: "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag" and "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-06-27 (publication)

Locator: Page 3, "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag"

Relevant passage
it was received on behalf of the church by Rev. H. Parlett East.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The pastor's address.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 27, 1918, page 3: "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag" and "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-06-27 (publication)

Locator: Page 3, "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag"

Relevant passage
a short address was made by the pastor of the church, in which he set forth very vividly some of the atrocities committed by the German people.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1918
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

The Methodist church at Berryville kept Sunday, June 30, 1918 as Soldiers' Day, "In honor of our own 13 soldier boys especially," the Courier notice said.

What the source supports

The Methodist church's Soldiers' Day and its count of its own men.

Uncertainty

A notice of services to come.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The date.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 27, 1918, page 3: "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag" and "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-06-27 (publication)

Locator: Page 3, "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day"

Relevant passage
Soldiers' Day Sunday, June 30, 1918.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The church's 13 men.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 27, 1918, page 3: "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag" and "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-06-27 (publication)

Locator: Page 3, "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day"

Relevant passage
In honor of our own 13 soldier boys especially and in rememberance of all who serve, let us attend these services.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

Source note: Virginia War History Commission, 1927
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

The Virginia War History Commission's 1927 history of Clarke County says the county's churches "held special patriotic, intercessory and memorial services" during the war.

What the source supports

The Commission's summary of the churches in the war.

Uncertainty

A summary written after the war from the churches' reports.

Source

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. The opening sentence of "Churches in War Time."

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," the opening sentence

Relevant passage
The churches of Clarke County held special patriotic, intercessory and memorial services.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

A newspaper column headed "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag," naming the eight men whose stars were on the flag and describing it carried up the aisle and received for the church by its pastor.

"Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag": eight stars for eight men of the Berryville Baptist Church, June 1918.

What this image does and does not showA crop of part of one page; the rest of the page is not shown.

Clarke Courier (Berryville, Va.), June 27, 1918, page 3. Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Rights Changes: Cropped from the Library of Congress page image to the region of this item: 725 by 1797 pixels, shown at its own 725 by 1797 pixels; re-encoded as JPEG. Nothing retouched or added.

Source: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 27, 1918, page 3: "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag" and "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day" Open the full image

The first son of Clarke

Capt. Lloyd W. Williams of the Marine Corps had been baptized in Grace Church and had gone to its Sunday school as a boy. In July 1918, weeks after he died in France, more than four hundred people filled the church for his memorial service. The Courier called him "the first son of Clarke county to make the supreme sacrifice." The rector read a poem written for him by Rev. J. Herbert Bean, the Methodist pastor.

The rector told how Williams had died and gave his last words as "Don't bother about me; take care of my men." When his family's tablet reached Berryville the next spring, its inscription gave them differently: "Leave Me and Go to My Men." This story gives both.

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1918
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

On a Sunday in July 1918 more than four hundred people gathered in Grace Episcopal Church in memory of Capt. Lloyd W. Williams, U.S. Marine Corps, "the first son of Clarke county to make the supreme sacrifice," the Courier reported; he had been baptized in Grace Church, and the rector read a poem written for him by Rev. J. Herbert Bean, the Methodist pastor.

What the source supports

The memorial service at Grace Church and what bound Williams to it.

Uncertainty

The paper's count of the crowd.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The gathering.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 25, 1918, page 1: "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-07-25 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

Relevant passage
More than four hundred men and women of Berryville and vicinity gathered in Grace Episcopal Church Sunday afternoon at 4 o'clock to lay a wreath of love and respect upon the memory of Capt. Lloyd W. Williams, United States Marine Corps, who was the first son of Clarke county to make the supreme sacrifice

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. Baptized in Grace Church.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 25, 1918, page 1: "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-07-25 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

Relevant passage
Captain Williams was baptized in Grace Church. He attended its Sunday School when a boy of Berryville.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. Bean's poem.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 25, 1918, page 1: "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-07-25 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

Relevant passage
Mr. Taylor read a poem, written by Rev. J. Herbert Bean paster of the Methodist Church, in honor of the memory of this young man.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1918, and one more
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

The rector's address in July 1918, as the Courier reported it, gave Williams's last words as "Don't bother about me; take care of my men"; the inscription on his tablet, as the Courier printed it in 1919, gives them as "Leave Me and Go to My Men."

What the source supports

That the two Grace Church memorials give his last words differently.

Uncertainty

Neither was a witness's own account; this story gives both.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The rector's wording.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 25, 1918, page 1: "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-07-25 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

Relevant passage
These were strikingly shown, he said, when Captain Williams, felled by a German bullet, cried out: "Don't bother about me; take care of my men."

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The tablet's wording.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., April 17, 1919, page 1: "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams Will be Placed in Grace Episcopal Church"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-04-17 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams," the inscription as printed

Relevant passage
'Leave Me and Go to My Men,' were the words spoken by him to an attending Surgeon.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

The opening of a newspaper report headed "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams," describing more than four hundred people gathered in Grace Episcopal Church for Capt. Lloyd W. Williams of the Marine Corps, who was baptized there.

"Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams": more than four hundred people in Grace Church for "the first son of Clarke county" to die in the war.

What this image does and does not showA crop of part of one page; the rest of the page is not shown.

Clarke Courier (Berryville, Va.), July 25, 1918, page 1. Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Rights Changes: Cropped from the Library of Congress page image to the region of this item, then cropped again to the opening of the report: 728 by 1708 pixels, shown at its own 728 by 1708 pixels; re-encoded as JPEG. Nothing retouched or added.

Source: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 25, 1918, page 1: "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams" Open the full image

Rectors in uniform

Rev. Malcolm S. Taylor had come from Woodstock to Grace Church in May 1918. By August he had offered himself as an Army chaplain and left for training at Camp Zachary Taylor, Kentucky. In February 1919 the Courier reported him home from France, where he had served "in Gen. Pershing's Army as a Chaplain," and his parish gave him a reception at the Parish House.

The same month Capt. J. M. Robeson, once rector of Meade Memorial Church at White Post, Christ Church at Millwood and Emanuel Church at Boyce, came back for a short visit as chaplain of the Second Division. He had been wounded in France. On one Sunday he preached at Christ Church in the morning, at Calvary Chapel near the river in the afternoon and at Emanuel Chapel at night.

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1918, and two more
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

Rev. Malcolm S. Taylor, who came from Woodstock to Grace Church in May 1918, left for chaplain's training at Camp Zachary Taylor in August, the Courier reported; in February 1919 it reported him back from France, where he had served as a chaplain, and Grace Church planned a reception for him at the Parish House.

What the source supports

Grace Church's rector in the war.

Uncertainty

The Commission's history calls him "a chaplain with the Second Corps"; the Courier items do not name his unit.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. Off to training.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., August 22, 1918, page 1: "Rev. Mr. Taylor Enters Training"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-08-22 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Rev. Mr. Taylor Enters Training"

Relevant passage
Rev. Malcolm S. Taylor, rector of Grace Episcopal Church, who several months ago offered his services to the Government as Chaplain in the Army, has received orders to report for training and left for Camp Zachary Taylor, Ken., Wednesday morning

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. Came to Grace Church in May.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., August 22, 1918, page 1: "Rev. Mr. Taylor Enters Training"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-08-22 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Rev. Mr. Taylor Enters Training"

Relevant passage
Mr. Taylor came to Berryville from Woodstock to take charge of Grace Church in May.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. Back from France.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., February 27, 1919, page 1: "Mr. Taylor Returns Tonight"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-02-27 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Mr. Taylor Returns Tonight"

Relevant passage
who has just arrived in this country from France where he served in Gen. Pershing's Army as a Chaplain, will return to Berryville tonight.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The reception.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., February 27, 1919, page 1: "Mr. Taylor Returns Tonight"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-02-27 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Mr. Taylor Returns Tonight"

Relevant passage
Members of Grace Church will give a reception in honor of their rector tomorrow afternoon at the Parish House from 3 to 5 o'clock.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. The Commission's "chaplain with the Second Corps."

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Grace Church

Relevant passage
This church subscribed for Liberty Bonds, and twenty-seven of its men and one woman were in the service. The rector, Rev. Malcolm S. Taylor, was a chaplain with the Second Corps.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1919
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

A Boyce letter in the Courier of February 13, 1919 said Capt. J. M. Robeson, once rector at White Post, Millwood and Boyce and now chaplain of the Second Division, had been wounded in France, and that on his visit home he preached at Christ Church, Millwood, at Calvary Chapel and at Emanuel Chapel in one Sunday.

What the source supports

A former Clarke rector's return from the war.

Uncertainty

The correspondent's report.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. His parishes and his post.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., February 13, 1919, page 1: a Boyce letter on Capt. J. M. Robeson, chaplain

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-02-13 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, the Boyce letter of February 12, 1919

Relevant passage
Capt. J. M. Robeson, former rector of Meade Memorial Church at White Post, Christ Church of Millwood and Emanuel Church of Boyce, but now Chaplain of the famous Second Army Division, is back among his old parishioners in this end of the county for a short visit

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. Wounded in France.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., February 13, 1919, page 1: a Boyce letter on Capt. J. M. Robeson, chaplain

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-02-13 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, the Boyce letter of February 12, 1919

Relevant passage
Capt. Robeson himself was wounded in France.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. Three sermons in a day.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., February 13, 1919, page 1: a Boyce letter on Capt. J. M. Robeson, chaplain

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-02-13 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, the Boyce letter of February 12, 1919

Relevant passage
In the morning he occupied the pulpit at Christ Church, Millwood; in the afternoon he delivered a short sermon at Calvary Chapel near the river, and at night he held services and preached at Emanual Chapel here.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

A newspaper column datelined Boyce, February 12, on Capt. J. M. Robeson, chaplain of the Second Division, wounded in France, who preached three sermons in one Sunday at Christ Church, Calvary Chapel and Emanuel Chapel.

A Boyce letter on Capt. J. M. Robeson, once rector at White Post, Millwood and Boyce, back from France as chaplain of the Second Division.

What this image does and does not showA crop of part of one page; the rest of the page is not shown.

Clarke Courier (Berryville, Va.), February 13, 1919, page 1. Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Rights Changes: Cropped from the Library of Congress page image to the region of this item: 728 by 1679 pixels, shown at its own 728 by 1679 pixels; re-encoded as JPEG. Nothing retouched or added.

Source: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., February 13, 1919, page 1: a Boyce letter on Capt. J. M. Robeson, chaplain Open the full image

A tablet and an altar

In April 1919 the Courier reported that a tablet to Williams, given by his family, would be placed in Grace Church, "where this heroic Clarke boy worshipped." As the paper printed it, the inscription gave his birth on June 5, 1887 at Nottingham, in Clarke County, and his death on June 11, 1918, in the Battle of Belleau Wood. The Commission's history says the church held a memorial service when the tablet was unveiled.

At Millwood that July, Mrs. Henry B. Gilpin of "Scaleby" gave Christ Church a new altar and reredos "as a thanksgiving offering for the safe delivery of her family from the perils of war." Both her sons had served in France: Lieut. Kenneth N. Gilpin in the Naval Flying Corps and Capt. Donald Gilpin in the artillery. The parish monthly wrote that such gratitude was "being felt and expressed in one form or another all over our county."

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1919, and one more
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

In April 1919 the Courier reported that a memorial tablet to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams, given by his family, would be placed in Grace Episcopal Church, and printed its inscription: born June 5, 1887 at Nottingham, Clarke County, and killed June 11, 1918 at Belleau Wood. The Commission's 1927 history says Grace Church held a memorial service when the tablet was unveiled.

What the source supports

The tablet in Grace Church and what it says.

Uncertainty

The inscription is as the paper printed it before the unveiling; the tablet was not seen for this story.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The tablet and its place.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., April 17, 1919, page 1: "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams Will be Placed in Grace Episcopal Church"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-04-17 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams"

Relevant passage
A beautiful memorial tablet to the late Major Lloyd Wm. Williams, U. S. M. C., who fell in the Battle of Belleau Woods when the American Marines blocked the Hun's drive to Paris, will be placed on the interior walls of Grace Episcopal Church, where this heroic Clarke boy worshipped and of which he was a communicant.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The inscription's dates.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., April 17, 1919, page 1: "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams Will be Placed in Grace Episcopal Church"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-04-17 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams," the inscription as printed

Relevant passage
"Born June 5th, 1887, at Nottingham, Clarke county, Va.; Killed June 11, 1918, in the Battle of Belleau Wood, France.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. Erected by his family.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., April 17, 1919, page 1: "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams Will be Placed in Grace Episcopal Church"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-04-17 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams," the inscription as printed

Relevant passage
"Erected by his Adoring Father and Mother, Sisters and Brothers."

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. The unveiling service.

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Grace Church

Relevant passage
Grace Church, in Berryville, held such a memorial service in commemoration of Major Lloyd Williams when a tablet was unveiled to his memory.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1919
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

In July 1919 Mrs. Henry B. Gilpin of "Scaleby," whose sons Lieut. Kenneth N. Gilpin of the Naval Flying Corps and Capt. Donald Gilpin of the artillery had served in France, gave Christ Church, Millwood, a new altar and reredos "as a thanksgiving offering for the safe delivery of her family from the perils of war," the Courier reported.

What the source supports

The Gilpin altar at Christ Church.

Uncertainty

The letter quotes the parish's monthly; the altar was not seen for this story.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The gift and the two sons.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 17, 1919, page 1: "Mrs. Gilpin Gives New Altar to Christ Church"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-07-17 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Mrs. Gilpin Gives New Altar to Christ Church"

Relevant passage
whose two sons, Lieut. Kenneth N. Gilpin, of the Naval Flying Corps, and Capt. Donald Gilpin, of the Artillery Service, served in the A. E. F., has given a new altar and reredos to Christ Church, Millwood, as a thanksgiving offering for the safe delivery of her family from the perils of war.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The Parish Call on it.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 17, 1919, page 1: "Mrs. Gilpin Gives New Altar to Christ Church"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-07-17 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Mrs. Gilpin Gives New Altar to Christ Church," quoting The Parish Call

Relevant passage
Such gratitude is being felt and expressed in one form or another all over our county, and we are particularly pleased that our church should be so beautifully adorned.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

A two-column newspaper item with a large headline about a copper memorial tablet to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams for Grace Episcopal Church, and on the right the inscription giving his birth in 1887 and his death at Belleau Wood in 1918.

"Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams Will be Placed in Grace Episcopal Church," with the inscription as the paper printed it.

What this image does and does not showA crop of part of one page; the rest of the page is not shown.

Clarke Courier (Berryville, Va.), April 17, 1919, page 1. Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Rights Changes: Cropped from the Library of Congress page image to the region of this item: 1359 by 1142 pixels, scaled to 1200 by 1008; re-encoded as JPEG. Nothing retouched or added.

Source: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., April 17, 1919, page 1: "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams Will be Placed in Grace Episcopal Church" Open the full image

A newspaper column headed "Mrs. Gilpin Gives New Altar to Christ Church," describing the altar and reredos given to Christ Church, Millwood, by Mrs. Henry Brooke Gilpin after her two sons served in France.

"Mrs. Gilpin Gives New Altar to Christ Church": a thanksgiving offering after both her sons came home.

What this image does and does not showA crop of part of one page; the rest of the page is not shown.

Clarke Courier (Berryville, Va.), July 17, 1919, page 1. Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Rights Changes: Cropped from the Library of Congress page image to the region of this item: 736 by 1560 pixels, shown at its own 736 by 1560 pixels; re-encoded as JPEG. Nothing retouched or added.

Source: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 17, 1919, page 1: "Mrs. Gilpin Gives New Altar to Christ Church" Open the full image

The churches' lists

When the Virginia War History Commission wrote up Clarke in 1927, it took its account of the churches from the clergy's own reports. Grace Church counted twenty-seven men and one woman in service. Cunningham Chapel Parish counted sixteen men in the army, five in the navy, two in the marines and one in Red Cross service, and named all twenty-four. The Methodist church named eleven men in service, two in the Post Office Department and a Red Cross nurse, Miss Cora Shackleford.

At home the war meant work and money. Grace Church's children marched through Berryville each week "with flags, music and singing" and ended with prayers at the church. The Millwood church bought $1,000 of Liberty Bonds and sent $2,000 to Belgian and Near East relief. The Methodists joined three other churches in weekly Red Cross work and sold more than $3,000 of War Savings Stamps at a rally in June 1918.

Source note: Virginia War History Commission, 1927
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

The Commission's 1927 history gives the churches' own counts: Grace Church, twenty-seven men and one woman in service; Cunningham Chapel Parish, sixteen men in the army, five in the navy, two in the marines and one in Red Cross service, of whom it names twenty-four; and the Methodist Church at Berryville, eleven men named, two in the Post Office Department and a Red Cross nurse, Miss Cora Shackleford.

What the source supports

The church lists the Commission printed.

Uncertainty

Lists as the rectors and pastors reported them, not service records; the parish's count of twenty-four matches the twenty-four names it gave.

Source

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. Grace Church.

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Grace Church

Relevant passage
This church subscribed for Liberty Bonds, and twenty-seven of its men and one woman were in the service. The rector, Rev. Malcolm S. Taylor, was a chaplain with the Second Corps.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. Cunningham Chapel Parish's count.

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Cunningham Chapel Parish

Relevant passage
Mr. B. D. Chambers, rector of Cunningham Chapel Parish, reported sixteen men in the army from his parish, five in the navy, two in the marines and one in Red Cross service. It would appear that the men resided in Millwood.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. Its names.

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Cunningham Chapel Parish

Relevant passage
They were George H. Burwell, Jr., J. T. Burwell, Edward G. Butler, Maurice J. Dunlap, Jr., Joseph Eidson, S. Dalman Estep, Walter A. Estep, Harry W. Frost, Donald N. Gilpin, Kenneth N. Gilpin, Holmes Grim, Prescott Huidkoper, Charles A. Jones, Jr., E. S. Tucker Lindsay, James B. Lindsay, Charles Mullikin, Winston S. Lindsay, James H. Nolan, Eston Randolph, Percy Randolph, William F. Randolph, McClure Scott, Joseph Sipe and Marshall C. Willingham.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. The Methodist names.

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 28, "Churches in War Time," on the Methodist Church

Relevant passage
The following men and women were in service from this church: Lieutenant C. H. Iden, Charles L. Roland, Walter C. Hardesty, Sergeant Olin W. Beall, John H. Coleman, Charles J. Enders, Sergeant Ralph E. Galloway, Charles LeRoy Whitaker, Sergeant Wilmer H. Gaver, Frank Barr, and Harry L. Boxwell. Charles A. Blake and Jacob Blake were in the Postoffice Department, and Miss Cora Shackleford was a Red Cross nurse.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

Source note: Virginia War History Commission, 1927
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

At home, the Commission's history says, Grace Church held a weekly procession of children through Berryville "with flags, music and singing"; the Millwood church bought $1,000 of Liberty Bonds and sent $2,000 to Belgian and Near East relief; and the Methodist church joined three other churches in weekly Red Cross work and sold more than $3,000 of War Savings Stamps at a rally in June 1918.

What the source supports

The churches' war work at home.

Uncertainty

Figures as the churches reported them.

Source

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. The children's procession.

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Grace Church

Relevant passage
There was a weekly procession of the children through the streets of Berryville, with flags, music and singing, concluding with prayers at the church.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. Millwood's bonds and relief.

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Cunningham Chapel Parish

Relevant passage
The Millwood Church also subscribed for $1,000 worth of Liberty Bonds, and the sum of $2,000 was sent to the Belgian and Near East Relief.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. The Methodist flag and Red Cross work.

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on the Methodist Church

Relevant passage
A service flag and the national colors were displayed by the congregation of the Methodist Church at Berryville, of which Rev. J. Herbert Bean was pastor. This church united with three other churches in Red Cross work, meeting weekly at workrooms, supplying garments to soldiers and to hospitals, and engaging in local relief work.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Later historical account

Evidence role: supports. The stamp rally.

Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

Locator: Page 28, "Churches in War Time," on the Methodist Church

Relevant passage
rally was held by the church during the War Savings Stamps campaign in June, 1918, and more than $3,000 worth of stamps were sold and $250.00 subscribed by the church societies.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

A printed book page under the heading "Churches in War Time," on Grace Church and its rector, Cunningham Chapel Parish and the twenty-four men it named, and the Methodist church at Berryville.

The Virginia War History Commission's account of Clarke's churches in the war, with the names Cunningham Chapel Parish reported.

What this image does and does not showA crop of part of one page; the rest of the page is not shown.

Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Virginia War History Commission, 1927), p. 27. HathiTrust (wu.89072976269), digitized by Google from a University of Wisconsin copy. Rights Changes: Cropped from the HathiTrust page image (seq. 39) to the "Churches in War Time" section (1693 by 1440 pixels) and scaled to 1200 by 1021; re-encoded as JPEG. Nothing retouched or added.

Source: Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time" Open the full image

Furling the flags

In March 1920 the Methodist church announced a service to take down "the National and Service flags which were hung in the church auditorium at the outbreak of the World War." The sermon was to be "The Patriotism of Peace," and every ex-service man was invited, with the Lloyd Williams Post of the American Legion, which was named for Williams.

Members of the post went to Grace Church that June, two years after Belleau Wood, to hear Taylor preach, and two of them hung a wreath on Williams's tablet. In July 1921 the Courier reported the plans for his funeral at Berryville: his body was to lie in state in Grace Church until the funeral, under a guard of honor from the post that bore his name.

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1920
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

In March 1920 the Methodist church announced a service to furl "the National and Service flags which were hung in the church auditorium at the outbreak of the World War," with a sermon on "The Patriotism of Peace," and invited all ex-service men and the Lloyd Williams Post of the American Legion.

What the source supports

The Methodist church's plan to take its war flags down.

Uncertainty

A notice of a coming service.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The furling.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., March 11, 1920, page 4: "Special Flag Service at the Methodist Church"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1920-03-11 (publication)

Locator: Page 4, "Special Flag Service at the Methodist Church"

Relevant passage
Special services at the M. E. Church South next Sunday morning at 11 o'clock will have as a feature the furling of the National and Service flags which were hung in the church auditorium at the outbreak of the World War.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The sermon and the invitation.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., March 11, 1920, page 4: "Special Flag Service at the Methodist Church"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1920-03-11 (publication)

Locator: Page 4, "Special Flag Service at the Methodist Church"

Relevant passage
The pastor will preach from the subject, "The Patriotism of Peace." All ex-service men are especially invited to attend this service, and the Lloyd Williams Post, American Legion, is expected to attend in a body.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1920
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

Two years after Belleau Wood, in June 1920, members of the Lloyd Williams Post, American Legion, named for Williams, heard a sermon by Rev. Malcolm S. Taylor in Grace Church and hung a wreath on his tablet, the Courier reported.

What the source supports

The Legion post's tribute at the tablet.

Uncertainty

A local news item.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The wreath.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 10, 1920, page 1: "Wreath Placed Over Tablet in Grace Church by Members of Lloyd William Post, American Legion"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1920-06-10 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Wreath Placed Over Tablet in Grace Church"

Relevant passage
After the sermon Dr. R. B. Snapp and Mr. Frank Tappen, two members of the post, hung a beautiful wreath on the tablet.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The post's name.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 10, 1920, page 1: "Wreath Placed Over Tablet in Grace Church by Members of Lloyd William Post, American Legion"

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1920-06-10 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, "Wreath Placed Over Tablet in Grace Church"

Relevant passage
The Lloyd Williams Post is named for the heroic marine officer.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

Source note: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., 1921
✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

In July 1921 the Courier reported the plans for Williams's funeral at Berryville: his body was to lie in state in Grace Episcopal Church until the funeral, with a guard of honor from the Lloyd Williams Post.

What the source supports

The plan for Williams's return to Grace Church.

Uncertainty

Plans reported before the body arrived.

Source

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. To lie in state at Grace Church.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 7, 1921, page 1: the arrival of Maj. Lloyd W. Williams's body and the plans for his funeral

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1921-07-07 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, the plans for the funeral of Maj. Lloyd W. Williams

Relevant passage
The remains will then be taken to Grace Episcopal Church where they will lay in state until the funeral ohur [sic].

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

Reporting

Evidence role: supports. The guard of honor.

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 7, 1921, page 1: the arrival of Maj. Lloyd W. Williams's body and the plans for his funeral

Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1921-07-07 (publication)

Locator: Page 1, the plans for the funeral of Maj. Lloyd W. Williams

Relevant passage
The Lloyd Williams Post, American Legion, named for Maj. Williams, will furnish a Guard of Honor, uniformed and with side arms.

Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

Open source

Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

A short newspaper notice headed "Special Flag Service at the Methodist Church," announcing the furling of the national and service flags hung at the outbreak of the World War and inviting ex-service men to attend.

"Special Flag Service at the Methodist Church": a service to take the war flags down, with a sermon on "The Patriotism of Peace."

What this image does and does not showA crop of part of one page; the rest of the page is not shown.

Clarke Courier (Berryville, Va.), March 11, 1920, page 4. Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Rights Changes: Cropped from the Library of Congress page image to the region of this item: 717 by 719 pixels, shown at its own 717 by 719 pixels; re-encoded as JPEG. Nothing retouched or added.

Source: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., March 11, 1920, page 4: "Special Flag Service at the Methodist Church" Open the full image

A newspaper column headed "Wreath Placed Over Tablet in Grace Church by Members of Lloyd William Post, American Legion," describing two members of the post hanging a wreath on the tablet after a sermon.

"Wreath Placed Over Tablet in Grace Church": the Lloyd Williams Post honors the man it was named for.

What this image does and does not showA crop of part of one page; the rest of the page is not shown.

Clarke Courier (Berryville, Va.), June 10, 1920, page 1. Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Rights Changes: Cropped from the Library of Congress page image to the region of this item: 712 by 975 pixels, shown at its own 712 by 975 pixels; re-encoded as JPEG. Nothing retouched or added.

Source: Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 10, 1920, page 1: "Wreath Placed Over Tablet in Grace Church by Members of Lloyd William Post, American Legion" Open the full image

About the sourcesWhat the evidence says
What the evidence says

Ten Clarke Courier items of 1918 to 1921, read on the Library of Congress page images, and the Virginia War History Commission's 1927 history of the county, read on the HathiTrust page images, describe the churches of Berryville and Millwood in the First World War.

The Courier reported events as they happened, and in two cases plans before they happened. The Commission's lists are the churches' own reports. The two Grace Church memorials word Williams's last words differently, and the story gives both.

  • An account exists✓ Supported by a source

    The Clarke Courier of June 27, 1918 reported that the ladies of the Berryville Baptist Church presented it with a service flag of eight stars, for Collins Dakeman, Harry Simonds, Robert Mesmer, Walter Hardesty, Edward Berlin, Ernest Locke, Rice Levi and Malcolm Foley, received for the church by Rev. H. Parlett East; the pastor's address set forth "some of the atrocities committed by the German people."

    See the evidence
    ✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

    The Clarke Courier of June 27, 1918 reported that the ladies of the Berryville Baptist Church presented it with a service flag of eight stars, for Collins Dakeman, Harry Simonds, Robert Mesmer, Walter Hardesty, Edward Berlin, Ernest Locke, Rice Levi and Malcolm Foley, received for the church by Rev. H. Parlett East; the pastor's address set forth "some of the atrocities committed by the German people."

    What the source supports

    The Baptist church's service flag and the eight men it honored.

    Uncertainty

    The pastor's address is reported in a sentence; its claims about the war are his, as the paper reported them, and are not this site's.

    Source

    Reporting

    Evidence role: supports. The flag and its eight names.

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 27, 1918, page 3: "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag" and "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day"

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-06-27 (publication)

    Locator: Page 3, "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag"

    Relevant passage
    A large Service Flag containing eight stars, the eight stars representing the names of Collins Dakeman, Harry Simonds, Robert Mesmer, Walter Hardesty, Edward Berlin, Ernest Locke, Rice Levi and Malcolm Foley, boys who are doing their bit, or preparing to do their bit in the suppression of Autocracy, was presented to the Berryville Baptist Church by the ladies of that church Friday evening at 8:30 o'clock.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    Reporting

    Evidence role: supports. Received for the church.

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 27, 1918, page 3: "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag" and "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day"

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-06-27 (publication)

    Locator: Page 3, "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag"

    Relevant passage
    it was received on behalf of the church by Rev. H. Parlett East.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    Reporting

    Evidence role: supports. The pastor's address.

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., June 27, 1918, page 3: "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag" and "At The Methodist Church. Soldiers' Day"

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-06-27 (publication)

    Locator: Page 3, "Baptist Church Unfurls Service Flag"

    Relevant passage
    a short address was made by the pastor of the church, in which he set forth very vividly some of the atrocities committed by the German people.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

  • An account exists✓ Supported by a source

    On a Sunday in July 1918 more than four hundred people gathered in Grace Episcopal Church in memory of Capt. Lloyd W. Williams, U.S. Marine Corps, "the first son of Clarke county to make the supreme sacrifice," the Courier reported; he had been baptized in Grace Church, and the rector read a poem written for him by Rev. J. Herbert Bean, the Methodist pastor.

    See the evidence
    ✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

    On a Sunday in July 1918 more than four hundred people gathered in Grace Episcopal Church in memory of Capt. Lloyd W. Williams, U.S. Marine Corps, "the first son of Clarke county to make the supreme sacrifice," the Courier reported; he had been baptized in Grace Church, and the rector read a poem written for him by Rev. J. Herbert Bean, the Methodist pastor.

    What the source supports

    The memorial service at Grace Church and what bound Williams to it.

    Uncertainty

    The paper's count of the crowd.

    Source

    Reporting

    Evidence role: supports. The gathering.

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 25, 1918, page 1: "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-07-25 (publication)

    Locator: Page 1, "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

    Relevant passage
    More than four hundred men and women of Berryville and vicinity gathered in Grace Episcopal Church Sunday afternoon at 4 o'clock to lay a wreath of love and respect upon the memory of Capt. Lloyd W. Williams, United States Marine Corps, who was the first son of Clarke county to make the supreme sacrifice

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    Reporting

    Evidence role: supports. Baptized in Grace Church.

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 25, 1918, page 1: "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-07-25 (publication)

    Locator: Page 1, "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

    Relevant passage
    Captain Williams was baptized in Grace Church. He attended its Sunday School when a boy of Berryville.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    Reporting

    Evidence role: supports. Bean's poem.

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., July 25, 1918, page 1: "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1918-07-25 (publication)

    Locator: Page 1, "Pay Tribute to Capt. Williams"

    Relevant passage
    Mr. Taylor read a poem, written by Rev. J. Herbert Bean paster of the Methodist Church, in honor of the memory of this young man.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

  • An account exists✓ Supported by a source

    In April 1919 the Courier reported that a memorial tablet to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams, given by his family, would be placed in Grace Episcopal Church, and printed its inscription: born June 5, 1887 at Nottingham, Clarke County, and killed June 11, 1918 at Belleau Wood. The Commission's 1927 history says Grace Church held a memorial service when the tablet was unveiled.

    See the evidence
    ✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

    In April 1919 the Courier reported that a memorial tablet to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams, given by his family, would be placed in Grace Episcopal Church, and printed its inscription: born June 5, 1887 at Nottingham, Clarke County, and killed June 11, 1918 at Belleau Wood. The Commission's 1927 history says Grace Church held a memorial service when the tablet was unveiled.

    What the source supports

    The tablet in Grace Church and what it says.

    Uncertainty

    The inscription is as the paper printed it before the unveiling; the tablet was not seen for this story.

    Source

    Reporting

    Evidence role: supports. The tablet and its place.

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., April 17, 1919, page 1: "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams Will be Placed in Grace Episcopal Church"

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-04-17 (publication)

    Locator: Page 1, "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams"

    Relevant passage
    A beautiful memorial tablet to the late Major Lloyd Wm. Williams, U. S. M. C., who fell in the Battle of Belleau Woods when the American Marines blocked the Hun's drive to Paris, will be placed on the interior walls of Grace Episcopal Church, where this heroic Clarke boy worshipped and of which he was a communicant.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    Reporting

    Evidence role: supports. The inscription's dates.

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., April 17, 1919, page 1: "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams Will be Placed in Grace Episcopal Church"

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-04-17 (publication)

    Locator: Page 1, "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams," the inscription as printed

    Relevant passage
    "Born June 5th, 1887, at Nottingham, Clarke county, Va.; Killed June 11, 1918, in the Battle of Belleau Wood, France.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    Reporting

    Evidence role: supports. Erected by his family.

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va., April 17, 1919, page 1: "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams Will be Placed in Grace Episcopal Church"

    Clarke Courier, Berryville, Va. · 1919-04-17 (publication)

    Locator: Page 1, "Beautiful Memorial to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams," the inscription as printed

    Relevant passage
    "Erected by his Adoring Father and Mother, Sisters and Brothers."

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: clarke-courier. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    Later historical account

    Evidence role: supports. The unveiling service.

    Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

    Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

    Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Grace Church

    Relevant passage
    Grace Church, in Berryville, held such a memorial service in commemoration of Major Lloyd Williams when a tablet was unveiled to his memory.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

  • An account exists✓ Supported by a source

    The Commission's 1927 history gives the churches' own counts: Grace Church, twenty-seven men and one woman in service; Cunningham Chapel Parish, sixteen men in the army, five in the navy, two in the marines and one in Red Cross service, of whom it names twenty-four; and the Methodist Church at Berryville, eleven men named, two in the Post Office Department and a Red Cross nurse, Miss Cora Shackleford.

    See the evidence
    ✓ Supported by a sourceAn account exists

    The Commission's 1927 history gives the churches' own counts: Grace Church, twenty-seven men and one woman in service; Cunningham Chapel Parish, sixteen men in the army, five in the navy, two in the marines and one in Red Cross service, of whom it names twenty-four; and the Methodist Church at Berryville, eleven men named, two in the Post Office Department and a Red Cross nurse, Miss Cora Shackleford.

    What the source supports

    The church lists the Commission printed.

    Uncertainty

    Lists as the rectors and pastors reported them, not service records; the parish's count of twenty-four matches the twenty-four names it gave.

    Source

    Later historical account

    Evidence role: supports. Grace Church.

    Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

    Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

    Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Grace Church

    Relevant passage
    This church subscribed for Liberty Bonds, and twenty-seven of its men and one woman were in the service. The rector, Rev. Malcolm S. Taylor, was a chaplain with the Second Corps.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    Later historical account

    Evidence role: supports. Cunningham Chapel Parish's count.

    Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

    Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

    Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Cunningham Chapel Parish

    Relevant passage
    Mr. B. D. Chambers, rector of Cunningham Chapel Parish, reported sixteen men in the army from his parish, five in the navy, two in the marines and one in Red Cross service. It would appear that the men resided in Millwood.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    Later historical account

    Evidence role: supports. Its names.

    Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

    Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

    Locator: Page 27, "Churches in War Time," on Cunningham Chapel Parish

    Relevant passage
    They were George H. Burwell, Jr., J. T. Burwell, Edward G. Butler, Maurice J. Dunlap, Jr., Joseph Eidson, S. Dalman Estep, Walter A. Estep, Harry W. Frost, Donald N. Gilpin, Kenneth N. Gilpin, Holmes Grim, Prescott Huidkoper, Charles A. Jones, Jr., E. S. Tucker Lindsay, James B. Lindsay, Charles Mullikin, Winston S. Lindsay, James H. Nolan, Eston Randolph, Percy Randolph, William F. Randolph, McClure Scott, Joseph Sipe and Marshall C. Willingham.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    Later historical account

    Evidence role: supports. The Methodist names.

    Virginia War History Commission, "Clarke County in War Time: A Community History," in Virginia Communities in War Time, Second Series (Publications of the Virginia War History Commission, Source Volume VII, ed. Arthur Kyle Davis, Richmond, 1927), pp. 27-28, "Churches in War Time"

    Virginia War History Commission; Arthur Kyle Davis, editor · 1927 (publication)

    Locator: Page 28, "Churches in War Time," on the Methodist Church

    Relevant passage
    The following men and women were in service from this church: Lieutenant C. H. Iden, Charles L. Roland, Walter C. Hardesty, Sergeant Olin W. Beall, John H. Coleman, Charles J. Enders, Sergeant Ralph E. Galloway, Charles LeRoy Whitaker, Sergeant Wilmer H. Gaver, Frank Barr, and Harry L. Boxwell. Charles A. Blake and Jacob Blake were in the Postoffice Department, and Miss Cora Shackleford was a Red Cross nurse.

    Checked: Original inspected. A digital reproduction was inspected; no original has been handled.

    Open source

    Source family: virginia-war-history-commission. Multiple passages from one source are not independent witnesses.

    AI-assisted source check (Claude Opus 5.5) · 2026-10-12. How this project checks its sources

Each statement above is assessed on its own evidence. Nothing here is averaged, scored or voted on, and a well-attributed account can be documented while what it describes stays unconfirmed.

Closing notes
What to take awayFor Clarke's churches the First World War was counted in stars on a flag, and remembered in a tablet, an altar and a list: who went, who came home, and the one man from Grace Church who did not.

Source note

This story rests on Clarke Courier items of 1918 to 1921, read on the Library of Congress page images, and on the Commission's 1927 county history, read on the HathiTrust page images; the chapter can be read and downloaded on this site's Books and sources page. The church lists are what the rectors and pastors reported, not service records. The Courier and the Commission print Rev. Chambers's initials differently ("D. B." and "B. D."). The wartime words reported here, the Baptist pastor's on German atrocities and the paper's on "the Hun's drive to Paris," are their own; this site does not adopt them. The men named are on this site's roll of Clarke's veterans.

Open question

Is the 1919 tablet to Maj. Lloyd W. Williams still on the wall of Grace Church, and does its inscription read as the Courier printed it?

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The Clarke Rifles: Berryville's company, 1859 to 1920

The Berryville company of an earlier war, as the Courier remembered it.