This memento, which I believe is made of guttapercha, is an example of a standard issue item provided for soldiers who were Roman Catholic, with crucifix and rosary. Below there is a separate heart-shaped compartment containing a relic. I assume this to be a personal item, although it is suited exactly to the size of the compartment. There is also a photo of a young man behind the Sacred Heart medal below the crucifix. The young man is not my grandfather, nor has he been identified by anyone in the family - perhaps he was a friend from the front. The printed and hand written tag below the medal reads in case of accident or severe illness notify nearest Catholic Priest. Below is written my grandfather's name and below it Mrs George J Hunt 48 Evans Avenue, Trenton, New Jersey as next of kin. || My grandfather, born on 12th July, 1891 in County Sligo emigrated to the United States, probably in 1910. He married, and his first wife died in childbirth shortly thereafter, whereupon he married my grandmother, Anna Roche, born in County Mayo. They lived in Trenton New Jersey with several of their siblings, on Evans Avenue. George Hunt joined the US army in part because serving in the armed forces would confer upon him and his wife automatic American citizenship. He enlisted at Camp Dix in New Jersey and was a Private in Company C 153, 348 Infantry. Service number 3673202. Discharged November 15, 1918. He survived the war and was employed as a prison warder in the New Jersey State prison, dying young in 1936. His eldest son, also, George Joseph, 91, was my father and lived in Trenton, Browns Mills and finally Moorestown, New Jersey. He died in August of 2012. He recently gave this to me to keep and to pass on within the family. My grandfather was one of thousands of recently arrived European immigrants who fought in the American services during the Great War. It is noteworthy that my grandfather in the first war, and my father in the second (Patton's Army) were in many of the same places, my father retracing his father's steps in Belgium and France. || || Memorabilia || This pocket rosary case, which also served as a means of identification for notifying next of kin, was in the possession of my father, George Hunt, whose own father (of the same name) served in the US army shortly after emigrating to the United States from Ireland. It is of great importance to my father in particular as he served in the European theatre in WWII, in much the same geographical area in which my grandfather's unit fought in France and Belgium. It is now in my possession, and in an historic twist, both I and my daughter now live in Ireland, where the story began. || pocket religious artifact

Item One: A letter written by John Cunningham to his sister Mary at the end of World War One. John describes himself as 'in the best of health', comments on the death of his mother and enquires after the health of his father. He also explains that he had not written sooner because he did not want his family to know that he was in the army: 'i thought it would make you worry for me'. The undated letter is addressed from Shorncliffe, Kent, England and includes John's regimental number, 229349. Item Two: A photograph of the birthplace of John Cunningham at Moyvoughley, Moate, Co. Westmeath. || John Cunningham was born at Moyvoughley, Moate Co. Westmeath on 12 July 1884 to Michael Cunningham and his wife Marcella, nee Carney. The Cunninghams were a Catholic family and Michael was employed as a shepherd on the Maher Estate in Moyvoughley. John entered Moyvoughley National School in 1889. In the 1901 Census John was returned as a 'scholar'. He emigrated to Canada before 1911. Three of his brothers, Thomas, James and Joseph, also emigrated to North America. On 12 June 1915 John enlisted in the Canadian Overseas Expeditionary Force. He was a resident of Winnipeg, Manitoba, and he was described in his enlistment papers as a farmer. The same source notes his existing attachment to the 106th Regiment, Winnipeg Light Infantry. This regiment was raised by Daniel McClean. It became part of the 10th Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force. The battalion was awarded twenty battle honours for service in France and Flanders. John served on the Western Front during World War One. His regimental number was 229349. He returned to Canada after the war. He worked for Canadian Rail and died about 1956. He received a mention in a chapter on World War One soldiers in the local history book Moyvoughley and its Hinterland, published by the Moyvoughley Historical Committee in 1999. John's grand-nephew Peter Cunningham currently resides at Moyvoughley with his family. He is a grandson of John's elder-brother Michael. Three of John's nieces and one of his nephews are living as of April 2012.

Story: Joseph Roberts was born in 1894, the son of Robert and Margaret Roberts, South Main Street, Wexford, Ireland. He married Annie Walsh in 1915 and they had one daughter, Margaret (contributor Anne Kirwan’s mother). They lived at 9 Bride Place in Wexford town. He joined the army at age 22, signing up to the South Lancashire Regiment in Birkenhead, Cheshire, England, service number 31442. Joseph is mentioned on the family gravestone in St Ibar’s Cemetery, Crosstown, Wexford as having been killed in France. His body was not recovered but Anne Kirwan discovered his name on the Ploegsteert Memorial in Belgium. However on visiting the area she found that Joseph had been killed in action on Ravensberg Hill near Bailleul, near the French-Belgian border, on 14 April 1918. Joseph’s war record was never mentioned in the family, perhaps because in Ireland during and after the War of Independence, there was a sense of unease about family members who had served in the British Army. || Photograph of Joseph Roberts in uniform; Death Plaque || || Photograph || Joseph Roberts in uniform || Joseph Roberts || Joseph Roberts in the uniform of the South Lancashire Regiment. || || Death Plaque, Joseph Roberts || Joseph Roberts || Medal