One reader has offered a variation on this from the memoirs of General Bliss. The General writes that flour [dough? The Pipe Clay theory, championed in our century by Mr. Mencken, has plausibility, but lacks documentation. Besides, the routes the infantry took in Mexico tended to be dry and dusty rather than wet and muddy and this leads us to the final of the four theories.
The Adobe Theory: In a nutshell - in marching over the parched terrain of the deserts of Northern Mexico the infantry stirred up so much dust that they took on the look of the adobe buildings of the region -- hence, [after a few phonetic adjustments] doughboys.
The cavalrymen who rode horses, the artillerists who rode caissons and the quartermasters who rode wagons were all mounted above the worst of the dust cloud. It is also easy to visualize them collectively indulging in a little disparagement at the expense of their suffering colleagues. Americans Marching in Northern Mexico This theory has possibly the best "fit" to the facts of the campaign in Mexico as known, yet it has no backing from the historical record.
It appears to be the product strictly of 20th century speculation. Nevertheless, it is the favorite theory of doughboy chronicler Laurence Stallings and of this writer as well. The modern day Oxford English Dictionary Supplement takes a reverse slant and suggests that the marching infantry pounded their dirt pathways into dough, but that does not quite ring true to anyone who has visited Mexico.
In the northern parts, if it's not paved, it's dusty. From Chapultepec to the Rhine For the next 70 years following General Scott's capture of Mexico City, doughboy , despite its uncertain origins, was used -- sometimes mockingly -- as a nickname for the American infantryman.
It appears in first-hand accounts from the Civil War, the campaigns on the frontier and the Philippine Insurrection. Doughboy Drill became synonymous with close-order infantry drill and supplies of prophylactics for soldiers on pass became known as Doughboy Kits. Far from Mexico A Lone [Marine] Doughboy Guards the Rhine, Yet when the Great War and America's entry into it came, the usage of doughboy changed dramatically and we are left with some additional doughboy mysteries.
Somehow, in a mere nineteen months, doughboy became the universally popular nickname of all the American troops sent to Europe pushing "Yanks" [recall that in the hit song Over There it was the "Yanks" who were coming Also, it became generalized in application, no longer limited to the infantry.
All the army combat branches, aviators, logistical support troops and even the U. Marines [to their chagrin] were individually and collectively labeled doughboys. It seems to have been a bottoms up movement. In their letters home and their diaries volunteers, draftees and national guardsmen of every specialty just began referring to themselves as Doughboys.
Lo, target of American forces driving southwestward from the Cerisy Forest, fully occupied Monday by doughboys who there reached a point 18 miles or more from the landing beaches. First Known Use of doughboy , in the meaning defined above. Learn More About doughboy. Time Traveler for doughboy The first known use of doughboy was in See more words from the same year.
From the Editors at Merriam-Webster. Statistics for doughboy Look-up Popularity. Style: MLA. More from Merriam-Webster on doughboy Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for doughboy. Stereoscope Image - Back. Uniform A Doughboy's uniform consisted of socks, long underwear, a pullover shirt, breeches or trousers, and a tunic with high collar at the neck. Pack In their pack, soldiers were supposed to carry a mess kit, toiletries, extra socks and long johns, tent pieces, emergency rations, an entrenching tool such as a spade, and many other items.
Ammunition Belt The Doughboy's ammunition belt carried 10 pockets, each with 10 rounds of rifle ammunition. Puttee put-tee When the Doughboys first began preparations in the U. Overseas Cap Cheaper, easier to pack in their equipment, and more in the fashion of other Allies' uniforms, the Overseas Cap began to replace the Campaign Hat on the soldier at left later in the war.
Not seeing the interactive image above? Try reloading the page. According to one explanation, the term dates back to the Mexican War of , when American infantrymen made long treks over dusty terrain, giving them the appearance of being covered in flour, or dough. Mencken claimed the nickname could be traced to Continental Army soldiers who kept the piping on their uniforms white through the application of clay. Group portrait of soldiers during World War I. However doughboy came into being, it was just one of the nicknames given to those who fought in the Great War.
Buckles enlisted in the Army at age 16 in August , four months after the U.
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