This is the 52nd installment of my Lowell in World War One series which commemorates the centennial of the entry of the United States into World War One. Here are the headlines from one hundred years ago for the past two weeks:

April 22, 1918 – Monday – Haig strengthens line while he awaits German blow. Heavy artillery fire in progress on many parts of the front. Lowell “over the top” and then some. $100,000 subscription today by Mechanics Savings Bank. Lowell’s total in the Liberty bond drive is now $3,102,550. More Lowell men are injured in France. Corporal Joseph Thifeault of Co G of the 104th Regiment who lives at 164 Middlesex Street with his wife and four children; Private Harold McDonald, son of Mr and Mrs John McDonald of 15 Crawford street and a member of Battery C, 102nd Field Artillery, and Private Armand Lemieux of Co G, son of Mr and Mrs George Lemieux of 2 Coolidge street, have all been listed as wounded in action.

April 23, 1918 – Tuesday – British warships raid U-boat bases. Canadians raid Hun lines at 7 places with gas and trench mortars. Another Lowell man added to New England’s Losses. Private Manuel Martin of Co G, 104th Infantry, son of Mrs. Marie Martin, 1 Charles street court. Has been killed in action in France. Martin was 20 years old and was well-known among Portuguese-American residents. He had been employed as a carpenter before joining Company G in February 1917. Private Hormidas Desrochers, son of Mr and Mrs Eugene Desrochers of 120 Aiken street and who is 24 years old and has spent the past four years in the Regular Army, was severely wounded in the trenches in France. Also slightly wounded was Corporal Charles Germain, son of Mrs. Laura Germain of 493 Moody street.

April 24, 1918 – Wednesday – Huns renew drive on Amiens. Germans attack on twenty mile front. Another Lowell boy is killed in battle. Private Edmund (or Edmond) Mcnamara, son of mr and Mrs Edmond McNamara of 846 Lakeview ave, has been killed in action in France while fighting with the American legion of the Canadian army. McNamara was 24 years old and had worked at the Saco-Lowell shops and then at the US Cartridge Co. Lowell men qualify for Army officers. The four are Jackson Palmer of 100 Sixth street, Joseph Levin of 149 Chelmsford street, George Paquin of 161 Avon St, and Raymond Pullen of 263 Liberty street.

April 25, 1918 – Thursday – Americans, British and French hold against desperate assaults of Huns. Allies yield slightly at first shock of German attacks south of the Somme. Local men qualify as Second Lieutenants. Charles E Jones, son of Mrs. Della JOnes of 68 Huntington street, and Ralph E Manning, son of Mr and Mrs Charles Manning of North Billerica, have both finished officer training at Camp Upton, New York, and will be commissioned as second lieutenants. Lowell adds $475,000 to Liberty Loan fund. Cartridge Co subscribed $125,000; Cartridge Co employees $250,000; and Frederick F Ayer $100,000.

April 26, 1918 – Friday – Germans gain footing on Kemmel Hill. Heavy fighting along ridge line on Flanders front with peak of Mount Kemmel German objective. Lowell man dies in Naval Hospital. Nelson Nichols, USN, chief electrician aboard the USS New Hampshire, died yesterday while on the operating table at the Naval Hospital at Norfolk, Virginia, after being placed under anesthesia for routine surgery. Deceased was 43 years old and had been in the Navy for the past 18 years. He is survived by his wife, Emma, who lives at 65 Falmouth street. Fuel committee says to order as much coal as possible now so that it is stored in individual cellars rather than in dealers’ yards. Barn burned today in Lilley Ave. A one and one-half story wooden barn in the rear of 109 Lilley ave was destroyed by fire today. The cause of the fire was thought to be improperly disposed of ashes.