Alphonso Primis (May 8, 1894–September 27, 1948)

By Harrison Smith

Early Life

Alphonso Primis was born in St. Augustine, Florida on May 8, 1894,¹ to his mother, Maggie Hart.² Primis was biracial; one parent was African American the other was white.³ He could read and write but unfortunately, much of Primis’ early life is unknown before his entrance into Military Service.

Military Service

List of Men Ordered to Report to Local Board

The United States entered World War I in 1917, after the discovery of the Zimmerman Telegram and the sinking declaration of unrestricted submarine warfare. Congress passed the Selective Service Act in May of 1917, which required all American men aged from twenty-one to thirty-one to register for the draft. At this time Primis resided in St. Augustine, Florida, and worked as a laborer for the Florida East Coast Railway.⁴ The Florida East Coast Railway was a railroad system that connected Jacksonville to Miami and was primarily constructed during the 1880s and 1890s. Primis registered for the draft on June 5, 1917 in St. Augustine, Florida.⁵ By 1918, Primis had relocated to Tyrone, Pennsylvania, possibly for work; he was inducted into the Army on August 3, 1918 in Pennsylvania and was sent to Camp Custer in Michigan for training as pictured here.⁶

After arriving to Camp Custer, Primis was assigned to the 160th Depot Brigade for basic training, he was then moved to Company A of the 543rd Engineers on August 19, 1918.⁷ Most African Americans who served in World War I were part of non-combatant units that worked as engineers, pioneers, or quartermasters. Just after a month of training, Primis set sail to France alongside his company. They departed from New York aboard the S.S. Rochambeau on September 18, 1918.⁸

U.S. Army Transport Service, Passenger List, 1910-1939

Upon arrival to France, Primis and his company would’ve worked primarily as a labor force close to the front-lines. He and his unit were assigned to the 2nd Army before and after the Armistice. They would construct the necessities the Army needed such as, bridges and roads to transport essential supplies like rations and ammunition. The units would also create trenches for troops. They were sometimes assigned the duties of grave-diggers; which meant that the units were given the dangerous task of retrieving whatever remained of their fallen comrades scattered around no-man’s land and then burying them. These labor units were expected to do anything help the Army’s efforts in defeating their enemies. After the armistice was signed on November 11, 1918, Primis and his company waited to return to the United States. After seven long months, Primis departed France aboard the S.S. Antigone, shown here, on June 7, 1918 and arrived in Newport News, Virginia on June 18, 1919.⁹ Primis was honorably discharged on July 5, 1919.¹⁰

Legacy

By 1920, Primis had moved back to St. Augustine and was living alone working as a Boiler Operator.¹¹ Over the next two decades, he continued to reside in St. Augustine, working a variety of different jobs such as a farm-hand¹² and shoe-shiner.¹³ Alphonso Primis died on September 27, 1948 and was buried at Saint Augustine National Cemetery. He is located in Section D, Grave 75.¹⁴ He was fifty-four years old.

© 2018, University of Central Florida