The Polar Bears

The Polar Bears (HMSAB)

Location: Troy, MI 48098 Oakland County
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Country: United States of America
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N 42° 35.465', W 83° 9.857'

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Inscription

Monument and Burial Site

In the summer of 1918, President Woodrow Wilson, at the urging of Britain and France, sent an infantry regiment to north Russia to fight the Bolsheviks in hopes of persuading Russia to rejoin the war against Germany. The 339th Infantry Regiment, with the first battalion of the 310th Engineers and the 337th Ambulance and Hospital Companies, arrived at Archangel, Russia, on September 4, 1918. About 75 percent of the 5,500 Americans who made up the North Russian Expeditionary Forces were from Michigan; of those, a majority were from Detroit. The newspapers called them "Detroit's Own,"; they called themselves "Polar Bears." They marched on Belle Isle on July 4, 1919. Ninety-four of them were killed in action after the United States decided to withdraw from Russia but before Archangel's harbor thawed.

(reverse)
In 1929, five former "Polar Bears" of the 339th Infantry Regiment returned to north Russia in an attempt to recover the bodies of fellow soldiers who had been killed in action or died of exposure or disease ten years earlier. The group was selected by the members of the Polar Bear Association under the auspices of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. The trip was sponsored by the federal government and the State of Michigan. The delegates recovered eighty-six bodies. Fifty-six of these were buried on this site on May 30, 1930. The Polar Bear monument was carved from white Georgian marble; the steps, from white North Carolina granite The black granite base symbolizes a fortress, and the cross and helmet denote war burial.
Details
HM NumberHMSAB
Series This marker is part of the Michigan: Michigan Historical Commission series
Tags
Marker NumberL1516C
Year Placed1988
Placed ByBureau of History, Michigan Department of State
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Monday, September 22nd, 2014 at 4:00pm PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)17T E 322423 N 4717677
Decimal Degrees42.59108333, -83.16428333
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 42° 35.465', W 83° 9.857'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds42° 35' 27.90" N, 83° 9' 51.42" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)248
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 603-719 W Long Lake Rd, Troy MI 48098, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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