When World War I came he was a conscientious objector and did everything honorable to keep him from serving the Army. But after searching his soul and the holly Scriptures, he decide to do what his Father and Grandfather did in previous wars. When he single-handedly captured a German machine gun battalion, he became the greatest American hero of the war.
Folks in the Cumberland Mountains of Tennessee didn’t hold much hope for young Alvin York. In the last days of WWI Corporal Alvin C. York’s action in the Argonne Forest would make him an American hero. Cpl. York came marching out of the Argonne Forest with 132 German prisoners.
The Wolf River Valley is located deep in the green Cumberland Mountains of Tennessee. Alvin’s father along with two other companions was the first settler in the fertile valley. Alvin York’s life style was one of a rugged, hardworking, outdoorsman. After his father death Alvin had a hard time becoming the man of the house. He loved drinking and going to shooting competitions with his friends. His mother spoke to him one late night and told him that if he didn’t change his ways he would end up dead. Listening to his mother, he followed her advice and began to serve the Lord. In June 1917, America entered World War I and Alvin York received a red card ordering him to register for the draft. Alvin wrote many letters to the Department of Defense pleading that he be excused from service on the grounds he was a legitimate conscientious objector. Despite his pleads Alvin York received orders to report for active duty in the U.S. Army.
The Germans were on the run, and the Allies were pushing deep into the enemy territory. The American mission was to seize the Decauville railroad that lay between the Aires valley, thus cutting the German supply lines. The terrain consisted of a series of steep cliff like ridges all around the valley. A tough and well-entrenched enemy held all the steep hills. Alvin York’s platoon was on a patrol when...