NEWS: John A. EVANS in U.S. Transport Service, 1918, of Tyrone, Blair County, PA

Contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Judy Banja 

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JOHN A. EVANS, OF TYRONE, IN UNITED STATES TRANSPORT SERVICE

JOHN A. EVANS [photo]

  John A. Evans, a son of Mr. and Mrs. Nathaniel Evans, of Nealmont, is now 
serving Uncle Sam as a baker aboard the U.S.S. President Grant, a transport 
plying between New York and France.
  The young man spent the past eight years in Los Angeles, Cal., where he was 
employed as a chef in a prominent hotel and at which place he had the 
distinction of preparing menus to tempt the appetites of several of our 
presidents and ex-presidents upon their visit to that city.  He came east in 
November, 1016, and gained his first experience in dodging U-boats when he 
helped to take a cargo of horses to England for the use of the allies.  He 
returned to New York in December, 1916, and went to Palm Beach, Fla., where 
he acted in the capacity of assistant manager to one of the hotels.
  When Uncle Sam declared war on the Hun, Mr. Evans decided to return to 
Tyrone and enlist with the home boys.  On Jun 4, 1917, he enlisted in the 
naval service at Johnstown and was called to Newport naval training station 
on June 29.  After several months of training at this point he was 
transferred to the Brooklyn navy yard.  The land life was too tame for him 
and he asked to be assigned to transport duty where he could see active duty.  
He was accordingly stationed on the U.S.S. President Grant, one of the 
interned German vessels seized by Uncle Sam.  Five trips have been made to 
France and the boat is now in Hoboken, N.J., where it is being overhauled 
prior to departure with another lot of Uncle Sam's fighters.  He has seen 
several thrilling encounters with enemy submarines and has had the 
satisfaction of seeing many of them meet their doom through the unerring aim 
of our crack gunners.

Altoona Tribune, Tuesday morning, August 20, 1918, page 4