Sgt. Phillip Olson served in World War I with the 25th Regiment Engineers, United States Army. He enlisted in 1917 and shipped out for France that fall. As an engineer, Olson helped construct docks at the ports and and assisted with building projects at the front near Verdun. His duties also included warehouse and supply work. He was stationed at several locations in France including Brest, Bordeaux, Verdun, and Paris.

Olson kept both a diary and a scrapbook documenting his experiences in Europe during the war. The diary starts in the fall of 1917 when he departed New York on the transport ship Agamemnon. On October, 31, 1917, he wrote this entry:

Read Olson's diary using the item viewer below:

October 31, 1917 entry, page 9 of Phillip Olson's diary

Olson also provided eyewitness accounts to the wartime situation in Europe through photography. As an engineer, he was particularly interested in buildings and ruins, and he kept a scrapbook to hold his pictures. The scrapbook includes photographs of Verdun, as shown below, among other views. Use the + and - buttons to zoom in and out, and the < and > arrows to page through more of the book.

Photographs of Verdun, page 30 of the scrapbook by Phillip Olson, 1917-1919

After the Armistice was signed, Olson took advantage of the fact that he was in Europe to visit places like Monaco and Monte Carlo. (Some photos from this trip made it into his scrapbook). He and his unit also worked on construction and rebuilding projects in war-torn France before they returned to the U.S. in March 1919.

Read the history of Company A of the 25th Engineers Regiment, with details on Olson's service and a directory of members, below:

"A" Company, 25th Regiment Engineers, American Expeditionary Forces, c. 1920

For more personal experiences of World War I, use the page links below.