The Sergeant York Discovery Expedition

Discover the footsteps of SGT. York
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The Sergeant York Historic Trail is officially open!  The dedication and ribbon cutting ceremony took place on OCT 4th 2008 and was a big success.
(see Commemoration Day page for details)

Members of the Boy Scouts and their families have been building the trail and take a "Test Walk" after a hard day of moving timbers to border the trail.

The Sergeant York Discovery Expedition is accepting donations to help improve the SGT. York Historic Trail and Memorial.
Click HERE to learn more.

The Sergeant York Historic Trail and Memorial

The idea for the Sergeant York Historic Trail came from a desire to allow visitors to the area a chance to "follow the footsteps" of the brave men who fought for freedom.   The actual location where York earned the Medal of Honor had never been accurately documented and, with the passage of time, had been lost.  With years of research in the American and German archives complete, The Sergeant York Discovery Expedition was formed to locate and mark the "York Spot" so that it would never again be lost in time.  The trail and memorial are designed to preserve the York legacy in the Argonne and honor all those who sacrificed for the cause of freedom in the "Great War"

Below are a few photographs documenting the building of the Sergeant York Historic Trail and Memorial, Châtel Chéhéry, France 



Malcome Steele checking the memorial stone still in the shipping crate. The memorial stone is a polished lava stone produced locally in France.  SYDE had it produced using the same stone and process used on other monuments such as the information stone on the American Monument in Montfaucon, France.

Wooden directional signs produced through the Grandpre Developpement Department are loaded into the town tractor for distribution along the trail.  Nine signs in all mark the points of interest along the loop trail.       


          

Signs were placed in the ground by members of the Boy Scouts of America and their families during a camping trip to the Argonne.  Nate Eggert was approved to use the building of the trail for his Eagle Scout project



Nate and his father Steve (in the red shirts) proudly stand at sign 5 with the Brown family and Kory O'Keefe

    

After all the signs were placed along the trail route, the next step was to "connect the dots" and border the trail with natural timber from the forest.  All the wood used was first designated as "trail wood" by the local forest manager.

      

Fathers, sons, and moms all worked hard to border the trail over a three day weekend to ensure that no visitor would accidentally stray from the trail and get lost in the Argonne forest.



SYDE volunteers cut nearly 300 meters of trail by hand along a sloped section of the forest. 

    

When the work was complete, everyone enjoyed a "test walk" along the newly created trail.

    

Near the midpoint on the trail, visitors will enter the Memorial Park and can view the plaque while overlooking the exact location where Corporal Avlin C. York fought off the famous bayonet attack and earned the Medal of Honor.

    

Left to right, Kory O'Keefe, Josiah and Doug Mastriano , co-founders of the Sergeant York Discovery Expedition (SYDE) stand at sign one at the beginning of the trail.  Doug and Kory stand at the memorial stone. 
The SYDE team invites you to visit the trail whenever you are in the area to experience the beauty and quiet of the Argonne and reflect on the men and women who sacrifiiced then and now for the freedom we enjoy today.

The Sergeant York Discovery Expedition is accepting donations to help improve the SGT. York Historic Trail and Memorial.
Click HERE to learn more.
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