A Domestic Journeyman of the Great War
By Charles Lowell
Walter Beck
September 11, 1894-May 24, 1967
Walter Arthur Beck was born on September 11, 1894 in Seattle, Washington.[1] As Walter grew into his young-adult days, he pursued what many young American men wanted to or were forced to do, which was enlisting in a desirable branch of the United States Military during the Great War. For Walter this was the Coast Guard.[2] Walter set out for “the great adventure,” as many young men did across the globe.
Crew of the “Cutter” USCGC TAMPA. Department of Homeland Security.
Walter served in the United States Coast Guard Artillery during the Great War, enlisting on December 18, 1917[3] among the growing fears of German U-Boats potentially being spotted off the coast of New York City.[4] While the Coast Guard did not see nearly as much action as those who fought in the Battle of Belleau Wood, the Coast Guard still served an incredibly important service to the United States while engaging the German U-Boats that lurked off the coast.[5] Watchtowers, lookout posts, and Lightships were erected and placed all across the eastern seaboard in order to spot the various Wolfpacks that were threatening the supply line to the forces in Europe.[6] After Walter had enlisted, he was assigned to service in East Orange, New Jersey,[7] where he served for nearly a full year, and the final year of the Great War, until December 7, 1918.[8] Walter had earned the rank of Corporal, meaning that he had some authority over many of the Privates assigned to East Orange.[9] The main responsibilities of those serving in the Coast Guard were to look for any potential enemy vessels, whether they were U-Boats or other larger surface-vessels, as well as potentially being the commanding officer on a vessel, training new cadets, warship commanders, and naval air station commanders.[10] Walter, along with the 9,000 others in the United States Coast Guard,[11] served valiantly during the Great War, with an approximate 200 men and five ships being lost to German U-Boats.[12] Two of the sunken ships, known as “Cutters,”[13] were deemed “Combat Casualties”[14] while accompanying and transporting supplies to the United States naval forces located in Europe.[15] Though Walter did not serve in Europe during the Great War, he helped protect the eastern seaboard from the imminent threat against the merchant ships supplying the war-effort in Europe.
After the Great War, Walter resided in the greater New York City area for several years[16] until eventually meeting his wife, Verna Franico Robben. The couple eloped in Weiser, Idaho, on August 30, 1941.[17] The move away from his place of service was not uncommon, as many veterans found themselves wanting to move post-military service, as part of their effort to reintegrate into society after the war. At times this meant moving closer to where one was raised.[18] This was the beginning of a new life for Walter in which he began to live his elder years closer to his place of birth in Seattle, Washington.[19] Walter eventually moved to his final residence in Denver, Colorado[20] where he would reside until his death on May 24, 1967.[21] Walter was interned to the Fort Logan National Cemetery on May 29th, 1967[22], where he rests today.
Walter Beck traveled across the United States and also served as a Corporal in the Great War as a part of the United States Coast Guard, protecting the U.S. coast from the threats of a German landing on the eastern seaboard. Born in Seattle, serving and living in New Jersey and New York, marrying in Idaho, and living in Colorado, Walter saw more of the country than most people had at the time. While some might downplay the role of the Coast Guard in the Great War, Walter serves as an example that the Coast Guard is an incredibly important branch of the military, essentially serving as the last line of defense against the threat of the enemy. While the German U-Boats claimed the lives of some Coast Guard servicemen, the major threat of the German U-Boat presence toward the civilians and supply lines were greatly lessened by Corporal Walter Beck and the United States Coast Guard.
Footnotes ↓
[1] “Walter Beck,” Idaho, U.S., County Birth and Death Records, 1863-1970, Ancestry Vitals Search Engine, Boise, ID, accessed April 5, 2021.
[2] “Walter Beck,” U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s -- Current, Ancestry Vitals Search Engine, Provo, UT, accessed April 5, 2021.
[3] “Walter Beck,” U.S. Veterans' Gravesites, Ca. 1775 – 2019, accessed April 5, 2021.
[4] Robert G. Skerrett, “Long Range Guns on U-Boats Menace Armed Merchant Craft Must Combat,” The Sun, August 12, 1917, accessed April 24, 2021.
[5] “The U.S. Coast Guard During World War I,” Washington, D.C.: United States Coast Guard and Department of Homeland Security, 2017, accessed April 24, 2021.
[6] “Unrestricted U-Boat Warfare,” National WWI Museum and Memorial (The National World War I Museum and Memorial, November 4, 2020), accessed April 24, 2021.
[7] “Walter Beck,” U.S. Veterans Administration Master Index, 1917 -- 1940, Ancestry Military Search Engine, St. Louis, Missouri, accessed April 5, 2021.
[8] Ibid.
[9] “World War I Commemoration: 100th Anniversary,” United States Coast Guard (United States Coast Guard and Department of Homeland Security's Historians Office, April 6, 2017), accessed April 24, 2021.
[10] Ibid.
[11] Ibid.
[12] Ibid.
[13] Diana Sherbs, “The Long Blue Line: Coast Guard Cutters and WWI Convoys,” Coast Guard Compass (Coast Guard Compass, August 24, 2017), accessed April 24, 2021.
[14] “World War I Commemoration: 100th Anniversary,” United States Coast Guard, accessed April 24, 2021.
[15] Diana Sherbs, “The Long Blue Line.”
[16] “Walter Beck,” U.S., Social Security Death Index 1935 – 2014, Ancestry Vitals Search Engine, Washington, D.C., accessed April 5, 2021.
[17] “Walter Beck,” Idaho, U.S., County Marriage Records, Ancestry Vitals Search Engine, Lehi, UT, accessed April 5, 2021.
[18] These patterns are still commonplace today. See “Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans' Experiences Living with Their Parents after Separation from the Military,” Institute for Veterans and Military Families (Syracuse University), accessed April 24, 2021,
[19] “Walter Beck,” Idaho, U.S., County Birth and Death Records, 1863-1970, Vitals Search Engine, Boise, ID, accessed April 5, 2021.
[20] “Walter Beck,” U.S., Social Security Death Index 1935 – 2014, accessed April 5, 2021.
[21] Ibid.
[22] “Walter Beck,” U.S. Veterans' Gravesites, Ca. 1775 – 2019, accessed April 5, 2021.
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