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NY Soldier’s WWI Dog Tag Found In French Flea Market

France
By NuclearVacuum
France

A World War I dog tag belonging to a soldier from upstate New York has been found by a military memorabilia collector in France.

The Altamont Enterprise reports that a retired French banker recently bought Frank L. Smith's identification tag at a flea market near Chateau Thierry, where Smith's artillery unit served during the summer of 1918.

Internet searches eventually determined the six-digit service number etched on one side of the tag matched the one issued to a Frank L. Smith of Voorheesville, New York. He survived the war and opened a tavern outside Albany that's still in business. Smith died in 1956.

Officials at the Voorheesville Public Library plan to ask the French retiree if he'll donate or sell Smith's dog tag to them for a historical display.

Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.
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