W.D. Sewell - Kleberg Cemetery - Dallas, TX
N 32° 40.022 W 096° 36.200
14S E 724751 N 3616912
Woodmen of the World monument for William D. Sewell in Kleberg Cemetery, Dallas, TX. Thanks to the Texas World War I Honor Roll site for providing a little bit of biographical information.
Waymark Code: WM13DJD
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 11/15/2020
Published By: K13
Views: 0
This is an interesting one, as these stubby tree stumps generally mark the graves of children who were "cut down" earlier than most, and of course, they have nothing to do with the Woodmen of the World. Here, the organization emblem dominates the front of the stump, and a lamb is in front of it to denote Corporal Sewell's passing at the tender age of ... 29. The inscription reads:
W.D. Sewell
Oct. 23, 1888
Sept. 26, 1918
"He died on Flanders field" is visible below the inscription scroll, and that raises questions: The United States had not yet entered the Great War when the major battles of "Flanders Fields" were fought, and his page on the Texas World War I Honor Roll site indicates that he died in France. It's certainly possible that "Flanders field" was being used generically here, but it's likely that he was an early casualty of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, which began the day he died.