Fun Fact!
Did You know that the American ambulance was the top choice for the French High Comission?
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Hello! I am the American ambulance that served in WWI. Let me tell you my perspective on things, because I’m sure you’ve heard everyone else’s opinion! You see, way back before I was even used wounded soldiers would be transported by train. I know! Such a hassle. But then, this man named A. Piatt Andrew convinced the French military to allow some of the Hospital’s ambulance units to serve closer to the front. Instead of transporting wounded soldiers from train stations in Paris, the ambulance drivers would drive us ambulances to and from some dressing stations that were pretty close to the battlefield. Those roads were tough! They were shell-torn, and sometimes, we would even have to be driven right through the line of fire. But I guess that is okay because I was built to handle it. I was built tough. The Ford Model T ambulance, built on the Ford Model T light truck chassis, was the first pick for French High Commission in charge of medical affairs. They chose us because we are super light, but durable at the same time. The ease also earned us the superior choice. One man even said that “our Fords could go over shell-pitted roads and torn terrain.” I think his name was William Seabrook. The French ordered 2400 ambulances and the U.S. an additional 5,340. That number was pretty high, really high. Finally in 1917, my kind was incorporated into the United States Army Medical Department, renamed the United State Army Ambulance Service and continued serving the French for the rest of the war. I was pretty happy about this. My job was making everything easier and I was helping so many people and saving their lives. That feels pretty good. Anyways, now I am in the National WWI Museum and Memorial in Kansas City. Everyone gets to see me now and gets to hear a little bit of my story.
Click to see Anna Crawford's Object Oratory!
The American Ambulance's Perspective