Mr. William Groff worked for the Hamilton Watch Company, a major manufacturer of watches in the historic city of Lancaster in southeast Pennsylvania.
The successor to three earlier watch-making enterprises, Hamilton Watch was founded in 1891 and grew rapidly as the preferred purveyor of watches to railroad companies.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamilton_Watch_Company
In August of 1917, William received a postcard from his friend, Ben.
Ben posted the greeting from Indianapolis, the capital city on the White River in central Indiana.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indianapolis
Indianapolis was the site of a newly-created Army encampment, Fort Benjamin Harrison.
The Training Camp was built on the grounds of an Army Post (which replaced an Arsenal in downtown Indianapolis) that had been established in 1901.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Benjamin_Harrison
The military draft that followed US entry into the First World War mobilized millions of young men for wartime duties.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_Service_Act_of_1917
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The face of the postcard is a photograph of a “Field Hospital” at “Fort Benjamin Harrison”.
We see two soldiers squatting beside a litter; they appear to be preparing bandages.
Their work is observed by a seated person, presumably an instructor, who is holding a notepad or checklist.
This exercise is being conducted outside a tent; other tents are visible nearby and in the distance.
In the background, one can faintly discern the shape of a horse – a reminder that the First World War still depended upon literal horsepower.
https://www.nam.ac.uk/explore/horse-power-first-world-war
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On the reverse, Mr. Groff is greeted as, “Friend Shorty”.
Unfortunately, the postcard seems to have been pasted into a scrapbook – and much of the written message is obliterated.
Ben seems to be describing an assignment that he will be performing – the last clear lines indicate that “I …will get back to our regiment again.”
One hopes that Ben succeeded in his training and his mission, and that he returned safely to his friends after the Armistice of 1918.
