Alvin York

"What we done in France, we had to do. And some as done it, didn't come back, and that kind of thing ain't for buying and selling."

- Gary Cooper playing York in the Film Sergeant York (1941).

Alvin Cullum York was born in a two-room log cabin near Pall Mall, Tennessee, on December 13, 1887, the third of eleven children born to Mary Elizabeth Brooks (8 August 1866 - 21 May 1943) and William Uriah York (15 May 1863 – 17 November 1911). William Uriah York was born in Jamestown, Tennessee, to Uriah York and Eliza Jane Livingston, both travelers from Buncombe County, North Carolina. Mary Elizabeth York was born in Pall Mall to William Brooks and Nancy Pyle, and was the great-granddaughter of Coonrod Pyle, an English settler who settled Pall Mall. William York and Mary Brooks married on December 25, 1881, and had eleven children. The York children were, in order: Henry Singleton, Joseph Marion, Alvin Cullum, Samuel John, Albert, Hattie, George Alexander, James Preston, Lillian Mae, Robert Daniel, and Lucy Erma. The York family is of English and Ulster Scots ancestry. The York family resided in the Indian Creek area of Fentress County. The family was impoverished, with William York working as a blacksmith to supplement the family income. The men of the York family harvested their own food, while the mother knitted all family clothing. The York sons attended school for only nine months and withdrew from education because William York wanted his sons to help him work the family farm and hunt small game to feed the family. When William York died in November 1911, his son Alvin helped his mother in raising his younger siblings. Alvin was the oldest sibling still residing in the county, since his two older brothers had married and relocated. To supplement the family income, York first worked in Harriman, Tennessee, first in railroad construction and then as a logger. By all accounts, he was a very skilled worker who was devoted to the welfare of his family. York was also a violent alcoholic prone to fighting in saloons and accumulated several arrests within the area. His mother, a member of a pacifist Protestant denomination, tried to persuade York to change his ways without success.

Despite his history of drinking and fighting, York attended church regularly and often led the hymn singing. A revival meeting at the end of 1914 led him to a conversion experience on January 1, 1915. His congregation was the Church of Christ in Christian Union, a Protestant denomination that shunned secular politics and disputes between Christian denominations. This church had no specific doctrine of pacificism but had been formed in reaction to the Methodists' support for the Civil War and now opposed all forms of violence. In a lecture later in life, he reported his reaction to the outbreak of World War I: "I was worried clean through. I didn't want to go and kill. I believed in my Bible." On June 5, 1917, at the age of 29, Alvin York registered for the draft as all men between 21 and 31 years of age did on that day. When he registered for the draft, he answered the question "Do you claim exemption from draft (specify grounds)?" by writing "Yes. Don't Want To Fight."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Capozzola68_9-0">[ When his initial claim for conscientious objector status was denied, he appealed. In World War I, conscientious objector status did not exempt one from military duty. Such individuals could still be drafted and were given assignments that did not conflict with their anti-war principles. In November 1917, while York's application was considered, he was drafted and began his army service at Camp Gordon in Georgia. From the day he registered for the draft until he returned from the war on May 29, 1919, York kept a diary of his activities. In his diary, York wrote that he refused to sign documents provided by his pastor seeking a discharge from the Army on religious grounds and refused to sign similar documents provided by his mother asserting a claim of exemption as the sole support of his mother and siblings. He also disclaimed ever having been a conscientious objector.

York enlisted in the United States Army and served in Company G, 328th Infantry Regiment, 82nd Infantry Division at Camp Gordon, Georgia. Deeply troubled by the conflict between his pacifism and his training for war, he spoke at length with his company commander, Captain Edward Courtney Bullock Danforth (1894–1973) of Augusta, Georgia and his battalion commander, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G._Edward_Buxton_Jr. Major Gonzalo Edward Buxton] (1880–1949) of Providence, Rhode Island, a devout Christian himself. Citing Biblical passages about violence ("He that hath no sword, let him sell his cloak and buy one." "Render unto Caesar ..." "... if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight."), they forced York to reconsider the morality of his participation in the war. Granted a 10-day leave to visit home, he returned convinced that God meant for him to fight and would keep him safe, as committed to his new mission as he had been to pacifism. During an attack by his battalion to capture German positions along the Decauville rail-line north of Chatel-Chéhéry, France, on October 8, 1918, York's actions earned him the Medal of Honor. Under the command of Sergeant Bernard Early, four non-commissioned officers, including recently promoted Cpl. York,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-16">, and thirteen privates were ordered to infiltrate behind the German lines to take out the machine guns. The group worked their way behind the Germans and overran the headquarters of a German unit, capturing a large group of German soldiers who were preparing a counter-attack against the U.S. troops. Early's men were contending with the prisoners when machine gun fire suddenly peppered the area, killing six Americans: Corp. Murray Savage, and Pvts. Maryan E. Dymowski, Ralph E. Weiler, Fred Waring, William Wins and Walter E. Swanson, and wounding three others, Sgt. Early, Corp. William S. Cutting (aka Otis B. Merrithew), and Pvt. Mario Muzzi. The fire came from German machine guns on the ridge. The loss of the nine put Corporal York in charge of the seven remaining U.S. soldiers, Pvts. Joseph Kornacki, Percy Beardsley, Feodor Sok, Thomas G. Johnson, Michael A. Saccina, Patrick Donohue, and George W. Wills. As his men remained under cover, guarding the prisoners, York worked his way into position to silence the German machine guns.

And those machine guns were spitting fire and cutting down the undergrowth all around me something awful. And the Germans were yelling orders. You never heard such a racket in all of your life. I didn't have time to dodge behind a tree or dive into the brush... As soon as the machine guns opened fire on me, I began to exchange shots with them. There were over thirty of them in continuous action, and all I could do was touch the Germans off just as fast as I could. I was sharp shooting... All the time I kept yelling at them to come down. I didn't want to kill any more than I had to. But it was they or I. And I was giving them the best I had. During the assault, six German soldiers in a trench near York charged him with fixed bayonets. York had fired all the rounds in his M1917 Enfield rifle,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-18"> but drew his .45 Colt automatic pistol<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-19"> and shot all six soldiers before they could reach him. German First Lieutenant Paul Jürgen Vollmer, commander of the First Battalion, 120th Landwehr Infantry, emptied his pistol trying to kill York while he was contending with the machine guns. Failing to injure York, and seeing his mounting losses, he offered in English to surrender the unit to York, who accepted.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-21"> By the end of the engagement, York and his seven men marched 132 German prisoners back to the American lines. His actions silenced the German machine guns and were responsible for enabling the 328th Infantry to renew its attack to capture the Decauville Railroad.

York was promptly promoted to Sergeant and awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his heroism. A few months later, following a thorough investigation, he was awarded the Medal of Honor, presented to York by the commanding general of the American Expeditionary Force, General John J. Pershing. The French Republic awarded him the Croix de Guerre and the Legion of Honor. Italy awarded him its Croce di Guerra al Merito and Montenegro its War Medal.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-23"> <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-nytobit_24-0"> He eventually received nearly 50 decorations.

(From Wikipedia)

Battle vs. John Marston (by Greenberet69)
In the town of Thieves Landing a carriage stops in front of the bar, inside the carriage sits the Famous World War I Hero Alvin C. York along with 3 other American Soldiers and the driver also being an American soldier. York and the 4 American soldiers had just returned from the war in Europe and as soon as they diembarked the ship two government agents had stopped them and talked to them. The Agents had told them about a troublesome outlaw named John Marston who had killed American soldiers when they were "passing by" his farmhouse and heard of the great deed that York had did and wanted him to take him out. The other 4 American soldiers wondered why they were needed and that was because Marston was expecting trouble and had become friends with other outlaws and needed them to backup York. The agents promised York and the other American Soldiers lots of reward money for the death of Marston and the American soldiers and York unwillingly accepted.

Back to the Present...

York and the other soldiers exit the carriage while the driver gets onto the rooftop and uncovers a hidden M1917 Browning machine gun and points it at the doors while York and the other soldiers head to the saloon. Inside the saloon Marston along with 4 outlaws he had befriended were playing a nice game of poker until his name was called out.

"JOHN MARSTON!"

John, the outlaws, and everyone else looked at who shouted the name and as soon as people saw him they all started saying that, that was Alvin York the famous World War I Hero who single handedly captured 132 Germans and took out a lot of MG Nests by himself. John stands up

"Hey now it's the famous Alvin York what are you doing here partner?" Marston asked

"I heard about what you did to those american soldiers who were just passing by your farmhouse and that's unforgivable." York said

Marston soon sees the other American soldiers with York.

"So I'm guessing that you were sent her by some Government agents to kill me weren't ya." Marston said

"Yeah." York says

York and his men raise their M1917 Enfield 's and open fire towards Marston and the other outlaws while everyone else quickly gets down and doing so York with his first shot is able to kill one of the outlaws. Marston and the other outlaws grab their Winchester Model 1892's and return fire at York and the american soldiers. Marston fires towards an American soldier backing up towards cover and manages to hit the soldier in the head. York orders his men outside and they retreat back outside, Marston and the other outlaws give chase after them but as soon as Marston get's to the door he manages to see the Browining M1917 and tries to warn the others but two of them run outside and the American soldier on the M1917 opens fire on the two outlaws and mows them down. Marston and the other outlaw head up stairs and enter a room they had rented and uncover a hidden Gatling Gun and pushes it to the window. Marston takes aim at the carriage and opens fire riddling the american soldier on the M1917 with bullets who falls off the carriage. Marston and the outlaw continue to fire the Gatling Gun at the carriage tearing it apart but York and his men are under the carriage and thus able to dodge the bullets. York takes aim again with his M1917 and fires it taking out the outlaw next to Marston. Marston takes aim with his Winchester and fires towards York and the american soldiers missing some of the shots but as one of the american soldiers tries to crawl out fromunder the carriage Marston fires again hitting the soldier in the back through the heart. York and the other soldier crawl out from the back and fire with their Enfields at the window Marston's at but both miss. York finds his Enfield out of ammo and takes out his Colt M1911 while the american soldier still has 2 more clips to use for his Enfield and both head back into the saloon. Both soldiers head up the stairs and begin to check the rooms, York kicks open one room door and goes in to investigate it but out in the hall Marston jumps out from a room ahead and fires his Winchester and hits the american soldier in the leg and again in the hip and the american soldier cries out in pain as he begins to bleed. York quickly runs out and is applies pressure to the hip wound until he sees Marston aiming his Winchester at him and pulls the trigger


 * Click*

York and Marston hear the sound and York pulls out his M1911 again and fires at Marston who takes out his S&W3 and fires at York but both don't hit one another. Marston then retreats out the back stairs, York patches up the American soldier and tells him he'll be back and goes after Marston. York goes outside and runs down the stairs until a shot rings out and a round hits the wall to the right of him and turns to see Marston who fires another shot but York leaps over the railing and fires two shots at Marston hitting him in the leg but the other shot misses. Marston fires off another shot until he finds himself out of ammo and quickly tries to limp away and reload at the same time. York reloads his M1911 and runs after Marston. He spots Marston trying to run away but York takes aim with his Colt and fires his gun putting a .45 ACP round in Marston's skull. Marston falls down dead and York yells "FOR THE US ARMY!" in Victory and heads back to the hotel to help the wounded American soldier.

 Winner: Alvin York 

Expert's Opinion
Alvin York won this Battle of the Sharpshooters because he was a trained American Soldier against an Outlaw, had faced the powerful German Army in World War I, and had the better weapons.

The original battle, weapons and votes can be found here.