100 years ago this week, the Armistice of November 11, 1918, officially ended the conflict of WWI. On that same day, an American soldier named Henry Gunther was killed one minute before the armistice was to take effect. Gunther’s was the last American death of the war.
Gunther’s was killed when he charged alone into a nest of German machine gunners. The gunners tried to wave him back, knowing peace was so near, but shot him when he came too close with bayonet raised. He died instantly, and his final charge was remembered as a last burst of loyalty. A memorial plaque was unveiled in 2010 at the Gunther family plot where he is buried, commemorating his contributions during the war and the unique circumstance of his death.
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