Iowa Time Machine ⏰: On May 20, 1913, Harvey T. Rimel of Glenwood enlisted in the military in the hopes of serving the United States. Killed in Action while serving in France during World War I, Rimel died while under enemy fire on May 15, 1918.
Born on a farm near Tabor on February 8, 1893, Rimel’s parents relocated the family to a farm near Glenwood early in his childhood. Following his childhood in southwestern Iowa’s Mills County, Rimel enlisted in Company I, Third Iowa Infantry, Iowa National Guard (formerly 55th Iowa, U.S. National Guard) at Greenlee Hall on the northside of Glenwood’s town square. A charter member of Company I, Rimel served three years and achieved honorable discharge in May of 1916.
After a year in which he joined the local I.O.O.F. and helped on the family farm, Rimel again answered the call of Uncle Sam when the United States declared war on Germany. Reenlisting in June of 1917 with his former unit, PFC Rimel sailed for France during October of 1917. Rimel distinguished himself while serving on the battlefields of France, earning a promotion from Private First Class to Corporal soon after arriving on the western front. His commanding officer, Lieutenant L.F. Logan noted Rimel’s ability to rapidly adapt to circumstances as they changed around him. During an enemy engagement on May 15, 1918, Rimel gave the ultimate sacrifice.
Following the return of Corporal Rimel’s remains to the United States, local minister Edwyn Evans presided over funeral services at the Glenwood Cemetery. To memorialize the fallen soldier, Glenwood immortalized their local hero by naming the Glenwood American Legion Post 141 in Rimel’s honor in 1919. #IowaHistoryDaily #IowaOTD #IowaHistoryCalendar
ates Army in order to serve in the Spanish-American War.