Crawfish Jesse: A Soldier's Diary 1893-1918

by Grandson

Ninety-six years ago WW1 began. Years later Jesse's soldier days ended. In 1893 Jesse entered the 7th Cavalry under one of his many aliases. His diary is a testament of the everyday soldier's life.

154 pages, Paperback

First published December 14, 2009

Reviews

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a memoir of Crawfish Jesse Davisson covering his time in the United States Army from 1893 to 1918. The book provides insight into what life was like for a foot and cavalry soldier. Davisson tells about life in the late 1890s American Indian Wars. He served in Troop G of the 7th Cavalry in Texas. He served in the 1898 Spanish American War in Puerto Rico and also in the Philippine insurrection. Jesse tells about his service during World War One; he fought in the Belleau Woods in France where he survived being gassed.

Jesse wrote excellent descriptions of war including its brutality. It is obvious he was not highly educated but his writings are simple and descriptive. Apparently, Alison W. Wilkom is the great granddaughter of Jesse. The diary was handed down amongst her family. Alison added information in separate chapters to provided background information and enhance enjoyment of the story. She also provided a detailed description of Jesse’s military medals. Alison was active in genealogy and published her great grandfather’s diary. This is a great example of the treasure trove of history that could be found by those interested in their family history. I hope this book will encourage more people to publish the stories of their ancestors.

I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is only five hours long. David Leland Horton does a good job narrating the book. Horton is a voice-over artist and audiobook narrator. Just a note, apparently the book format contains photographs that are not available in the audiobook format.

[Julia Simpson-Urrutia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This truly is an amazing recorded diary of a real 19th character who ran out on his wife and became a cowboy. That he likes to write but cannot find any other way to spell their/they're than "there" is funny. A big advocate of whoring! He is a nut and will tell you how scoundrels do their business--especially when it comes to stealing cattle. A treasure trove of weird memories.

[Tracy Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short book based on a real life soldier's diary of his times in the army and in the service. Jesse was the author's great grandfather, and the diary was passed down amongst her family. Jesse served in many wars and in many places, in the United States and abroad. This diary will give you a great idea what it was like back in those times.

I first found out about this book through my Mom-- she sells jewelry at different festivals, and met the author there. We both are members of a genealogy club and Alison spoke at our club because of my Mom letting the club know about her. This work is self published-- I think its so awesome that she had such a valuable heirloom in her family that she can share with everyone who's interested! I think I found her talk a little easier to listen to than reading the book, though. Its not a novel, it isn't written by Stephen King, either. Its Jesse's experiences plain and simple, just as how he remembered them, from a man without much of an education. Plus the typos and errors were distracting to me. All of that aside, I felt like I was in a Western most of this book, as Jesse's main time was served in the desert, protecting the border from Indians and Mexicans. Jesse is like any man-- he loves his drink, women, and gambling! I would have loved to hear more about some of the other places he served, but he was bedridden when he wrote the diary and he only got up to a certain point before he was unable to continue. Overall, I thought it was so cool that someone could share something like this with others, even though it may not be as polished as it could be.