In an unmarked box I found in the archives of the San Bernardino County Museum are the souvenirs of when Joseph L. Diessl was sent off to war. I was first puzzled by a curious silver dollar-sized metal object in the box that had Diessl’s name and military unit stamped on it and was attached to a l eather string. Then I realized it was an early-day dog tag, an identification badge worn around the necks of all soldiers, though a bit different from the one I had years later in the Army. Diessl, a naturalized citizen and native of Switzerland, wore the dog tag for five months in 1916 serving on the Mexico border with a couple hundred members of the Inland Empire’s four National Guard companies. They were there in the middle of a mostly forgotten episode of tenseness over border security between the U.S. and Mexico, something that somewhat resembles the atmosphere there today. He was a corporal for Company K of the National Guard’s 7th Infantry. That company, headquartered in San Bernardino, was activated in late June 1916 with all state units, including Company D in Pomona, Company G in Redlands, and Company M in Riverside. This military action, which saw not a shot fired in anger, involved the local National Guard units guarding the border town of Nogales, Arizona. This came following the March 9, 1916, raid on Columbus, New Mexico, by Pancho Villa’s army. As many as 80 people died during the cross-border assault and gun battle there with American soldiers. President Woodrow Wilson then sent U.S. troops into Mexico under Gen. George Pershing in an unsuccessful attempt to capture Villa. While that was going on, National Guard troops were ordered activated and sent south to protect Nogales and the border. On June 25, 1916, the local companies left their respective communities, first going to Sacramento where all the state’s units assembled for a week to prepare for their active-duty assignments. On July 4th, the four companies left by rail for their duties in Arizona. When the Southern Pacific train stopped for 15 minutes in Colton, hundreds crowded the depot hoping to see military relatives or friends inside. Once in Arizona, the four companies set up tent communities. It was a relatively convenient locale as they could easily get supplies and find entertainment in nearby Nogales. But “it is frightfully hot and some of the militiamen have been stricken as the result of the heat and the high altitude,” reported the San Bernardino News on July 10. During their stay on the border, they also had to endure occasional heavy rains that plagued the area. Diessl’s fellow Company K members quickly assembled their 30-foot by 60-foot mess hall and kitchen. “The men can now eat in peace and without the help of flies,” wrote the News on Sept. 1. But at the start, some of the rations were less than perfect, due to the brief preparation time available for this assignment. “We have used some corned beef that was labeled 1913, and although it was not tempting, it made none of us sick,” wrote Capt. Charles P. Rowe of Company D to the Pomona Progress on July 13. Some of the other rations in the first days on the border weren’t much more appealing. They included “hard Army bread, canned horses and perhaps canned beans.” The Pomona soldiers had guard duty July 12, “and it rained throughout the night but the guys took a swim after they were relieved at daybreak and turned in feeling tolerably comfortable,” said the Progress. “They’d rather have it rain than be sweltering hot.” While at Nogales, the National Guard companies did not take any offensive actions. Just two miles away on the south side of the border was a camp of several hundred Mexican soldiers. “The Mexican soldiers come over to Nogales to buy all their supplies,” wrote the News. American trains even brought supplies ordered by Mexican forces, who crossed the border to pick them up from the Southern Pacific warehouse there. The weeks in Nogales were mostly full of boredom for the soldiers. Diessl was the top Company K sharpshooter during drills. Two of his marksmanship medals were also stored with his dog tag in the museum archives. Baseball was also popular in off-hours. Riverside’s Company M lost a 5-3 game to Long Beach’s Company H, reported the Long Beach Press-Telegram, July 17. In early September, the National Guard companies were ordered to undertake a multi-day 72-mile march. Most companies had a few less-well-conditioned members drop out during the long hike. Riverside’s Company M and Santa Ana’s Company L were the only units in which all members made it successfully through the ordeal, reported the Santa Ana Register, Sept. 19. Patriotism aside, some Redlands families impatiently wanted their men returned home. A petition by six wives of Company G soldiers asked that married men be released from service in Nogales. “We want our husbands back,” was the women’s plea, wrote the News of Aug. 4. “Their jobs are open for them and we need them. Help us get them back.” The Redlands City Council even passed a resolution making that request. It was sent to the Army commander at Nogales but it apparently didn’t get any of the married men sent home any sooner. But finally in late October, the National Guardsmen were informed their service was soon to end. They first went to Los Angeles for a number of days before being mustered out. Members of the units were loaded on two trains and arrived in their home cities Nov. 11, greeted with banquets honoring their service. Once home, personal issues soon took precedence. Only five days after Riverside Guardsmen returned, soldier Julius Thomas of Arlington wed Gladys Shaver of San Pedro in Los Angeles. Diessl returned to his wife Daisy, whom he married seven months before leaving for the border. He also resumed his job with the Santa Fe railroad.  He would work as a stores department official for the railroad, retiring in 1955 after 45 years. Some of the local National Guardsmen who returned from the border would see service in Europe a year later after the U.S. entered World War I. One of those was Company K’s Capt. Leo Stromee of San Bernardino, who became a part of Army legend as a member of what was known as the Lost Battalion. His unit wasn’t actually lost but was surrounded by Germans for five days in 1918 in France’s Argonne Forest. Maj. Charles Whittlesey, commander of the 250 trapped men, received an enemy message to surrender. Instead, he responded in a way that’s still remembered in Army lore, yelling,  “Go to hell!” The unit was eventually rescued. Stromee suffered a shoulder wound from artillery fire during the battle. He would return to San Bernardino where a crowd of 3,000 people welcomed him at the Santa Fe station on Jan. 6, 1919. He later became a San Bernardino councilman. Company D’s Capt. Rowe, upon arriving in France, was given a command with the 372nd Infantry, one of the few all-African American combat units in the war. Because of the U.S. military’s unwillingness to have Black soldiers fight alongside White soldiers, the 372nd was assigned to the French Army. Related Articles Who is the ‘unnamed’ wife buried with B.D. Burt at Riverside’s Evergreen Memorial Historic Cemetery? San Bernardino historian Steve Shaw loved his hometown and its history W.C. Fields made crack about Cucamonga in 1934 comedy Riverside Tamale Festival isn’t just about food. It’s about saving the Trujillo Adobe Gene Hackman was born in which San Bernardino hospital? Rowe was wounded in 1918 while leading a charge of his unit through barbed wire. He was treated for his wounds and appeared on the way to recovery. However, 11 days after war’s end, his wife in Pomona received a wire from France that he had died of bronchial pneumonia, an apparent victim of the deadly flu epidemic that killed millions throughout the world during that period. His service is remembered in the Charles P. Rowe American Legion Post in Pomona. Architecture A talk on “Italian Architecture in Riverside” will be offered Sunday, April 6, by the Riverside Historical Society. The talk by architectural historian Jen Mermilliod will be at 1 p.m. in the downstairs conference room at Riverside Medical Clinic, 7117 Brockton Ave., Riverside. History Day The Inland Empire History Day will be held April 19 at the Norton Air Force Base Museum parking lot at 105 N. Leland Norton Way, San Bernardino. The free event, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., will have a variety of booths by historical societies, museums and local authors. There will be music by the Redlands Fourth of July Band, pioneer craft demonstrations and gold panning. It is presented by San Bernardino International Airport, the Highland Area and San Bernardino historical societies and the Norton Air Force Base Museum. Information: sbhistoricalsociety.com Joe Blackstock writes on Inland Empire history. He can be reached at joe.blackstock@gmail.com or Twitter @JoeBlackstock. Check out some of our columns of the past at Inland Empire Stories on Facebook at www.facebook.com/IEHistory. ...read more read less