Dorchester Illustration World War One Service Member biography: Herbert Henry Darrell
At the Dorchester Historical Society, we are in the process of a year-long project to commemorate the 100th anniversary of World War I. Using a collection of photographs we have of WWI Dorchester residents, we will be featuring servicemen in a number of short biographies throughout the year. At the culmination of the project, we hope to produce an online exhibit that highlights these men and their service to our country.
Our next biography features: Herbert Henry Darrell.
Written by Camille Arbogast.
Herbert Henry Darrell was born at 152 East Broadway in South Boston on February 21, 1894. His parents, Louise and Henry Darrell, were Bostonians. Louise was of German ancestry and Henry was of Irish ancestry. At the time of Herbert’s birth, Henry was an upholsterer.
The summer after Henry was born, his older brother, Harold, died at a year and eight months of Cholera Infantum, a common summer illness with symptoms similar to cholera, though non-contagious. The family was then living at 2 Franklin Street in the Neponset neighborhood of Dorchester. His mother, Louise, appears to have been making and selling lace, that September, Louise advertised “Lace by Order” for sale at a price of 50 cents and upwards.
By 1900, the family, which now included daughter Olive, resided at 20 Fuller Street in the Ashmont section of Dorchester. Margaret, Herbert’s paternal grandmother, was living with them, as well as his paternal uncle, John. John and Henry worked as house painters. A cousin, named Maurice Fencer, an eighteen-year-old apprentice nickel plater, was also part of the household.
Ten years later the Darrells lived at 34 Fuller Street, a two-unit building. Herbert’s family lived in one unit, while John occupied the other with his wife and two young sons. Their grandmother Margaret lived with Herbert’s family. In 1913, Louise and Henry had another son, Clement.
Herbert attended the Gilbert Stuart School on Richmond Street in Lower Mills. He then studied at the High School of Commerce on the Avenue Louis Pasteur in the Fenway, where he was on the crew team. In 1914, he graduated from the Dorchester Evening Commercial High School.
In 1917, Herbert was a clerk with Merchant & Miner Transportation Company at Pier 2 on Northern Avenue in Boston. In June, he registered for the first draft. He offered two possible reasons for exemption from service: a hernia from an operation and having had bronchial pneumonia.
In November, he enlisted at the Staff Reserves office at 21 Huntington Street, joining the Quartermaster Corps. “DISMAL FAILURES THESE AS PEACE NEGOTIATORS” read the enthusiastic newspaper headline above the names of those who enlisted along with Herbert. He reported for duty a month later at Camp Joseph E. Johnson in Jacksonville, Florida. In January 1919, he was made a Corporal; a month later he was promoted to Sergeant. He was discharged on June 10, 1919; he never served overseas.
After the war, Herbert returned to 34 Fuller Street, which his family then owned. He worked as a clerk for the City of Boston. At age 29, he married a woman from New Hampshire, named Laura. By 1930, the couple had moved to 1253 Morton Street. Herbert was a railroad agent for the Rutland Railroad. Boston directories list him as a travel freight agent and a clerk. By 1935, the couple had returned to live at 34 Fuller Street; Herbert’s parents occupied the other unit. In 1940, Herbert was an office clerk in the Boston Tax Collection Department, making $800 a year. In 1942, he reported on his draft registration that he was working for the Quartermaster Corps, US Army, Transportation Division, on Summer Street. A year later, he and his wife had a son they named Ronald.
Herbert died at age 57 on June 30, 1953 at his summer home in Naugus Head, Marblehead. His obituary reported he had worked in the Boston Tax Collector’s Office for 25 years. He was survived by his mother, wife, and son, as well as his brother and sister.
Sources:
Birth Certificate, Massachusetts Vital Records, 1840–1911. New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts; Ancestry.com
Death Record for Harold Darrell, Massachusetts Vital Records, 1840–1911. New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts; Ancestry.com
Classified Advertisements, Boston Globe, 14 Sept 1894; 8
Census Records, Federal, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940; Ancestry.com
“Many Gave Recitations” Boston Globe, 23 June 1908; 7
“To Choose Regatta Date,” Boston Globe, 13 May 1912; 6
“Night Schools Close,” Boston Globe, 3 April 1914; 15
World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, National Archive and Records Administration; Ancestry.com
Service Record; The Adjutant General Office, Archives-Museum Branch, Concord, MA
“Bears Name of ‘Fighting Bob’,” Boston Globe, 3 Nov 1917; 3
World War II Selective Service Registration Cards, National Archives and Records Administration, Ancestry.com
Boston Directories, various years, Ancestry.com
Birth Index for Ronald Darrell, Department of Public Health, Registry of Vital Records and Statistics. Massachusetts Vital Records Index to Births [1916–1970]. New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts; Ancestry.com
“Herbert W. Darrell” Boston Globe, 1 July 1953; 25.