The Iron Division, National Guard of Pennsylvania, in the World War

Pennsylvania's National Guardsmen take the foreground in H. G. Proctor's account of the 28th Division during the First World War. Written in a spirit of local pride and dedicated to the soldiers' mothers, the narrative traces the force's development and its fighting in France. The opening explains how the division acquired its Iron Division name after the second battle of the Marne and describes the scarlet keystone worn by its members.

Alongside the regimental story, Proctor follows individual soldiers through moments of danger and responsibility. Sergeant Meighan endures a long wait in a gas respirator before taking command during an attack, while scenes at Courmont show officers planning amid shellfire. These episodes give the history its scale: the reputation of a whole division emerges through the actions of named men. Readers interested in Pennsylvania's military past will find both campaign narrative and a strongly patriotic account of service and sacrifice.