Collection Title: E. W. Riley Papers
Series Number: MS12-08
Processed and Cataloged by: Processed by Dieter C. Ullrich on August 16, 2012.
Date Listed: August 16, 2012
Date Span: 1918-1986
Size of Collection: 0.10 linear feet.
Number of Boxes: 3 letter size file folders.
Type of Material: Correspondence, photographs, newspaper clippings and ephemera.
Condition of Material: Good.
Arrangement: Organized by format of material; Chronological arrangement.
Biographical / Historical Information: E. W. Riley was born on June 1, 1892 in Golo, Calloway County, Kentucky. He attended local public schools until the eighth grade. While in his late teens he worked at his family’s rolling mill in Graves County. He married in 1916 and in August of 1918 he was drafted into the United States Army. From September to December of 1918, he trained at Fort Zachary Taylor and served with Battery B of the 70th Field Artillery Battalion at Fort Knox. His unit was demobilized on December 21, 1918. In 1930, he and his brother opened a grocery store at Kirksey, Kentucky. Seven year later, Riley opened a grocery store across from Murray State Teachers College (presently Murray State University) which he and his family operated until 1956. He died July 26, 1986.
Scope and Content: Collection consists of correspondence written by Private E. W. Riley to family members in Mayfield and Farmington, Kentucky from September 8 to December 10, 1918. The letters discuss camp life and training activities at Fort Zachary Taylor and Fort Knox. Included with the correspondence are newspaper clippings from a 1986 interview and photographs of Private Riley in uniform.
Subject Headings / Descriptors:
Riley, Ezra Walton, 1892-
World War, 1914-1918 – Personal narratives, American.
Soldiers – Kentucky – Mayfield.
United States. Army. – Military Life.
