Alfred Pugh, the last known combat-wounded veteran of World War I, died in 2004 He was 108, just 10 days short of his 109th birthday. Pugh, who often told visitors the key to a long life is "keep breathing," joined the Army in 1917 and fought in France during World War I with the 77th Infantry Division. In 1918, he was wounded during the Meuse-Argonne offensive. During the battle Pugh inhaled mustard gas in the Argonne forest. It left him unconscious, and with chronic laryngitis. Born Jan. 17, 1895, in Everett, Mass., Pugh played the organ into his 100s and was an avid football and baseball fan. Alfred Pugh Birth - Jan. 17, 1895 Everett Middlesex County Massachusetts, USA Death - Jan. 8, 2004 Bay Pines Pinellas County Florida, USA United States Soldier. He served in the United States Army during World War I, and when he died in January 2004 he was the last living combat wounded veteran from that war. He had enlisted in 1917, serving with the 77th Infantry Division. Because he spoke French, he was used an interpreter in his first days overseas, but was soon thrown into the grind of the 1918 Muese-Argonne offensive. While in combat in the Argonne forest, he inhaled mustard gas that left him unconscious and gave him chronic laryngitis or the rest of his life. He was a recipient of the Chevalier of the National Order of the Legion of Honor given by the French Government in honor of the 80th anniversary of the end of the war in 1998. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=8252111
