When Andrew N. Welch was born on February 20, 1895, in Central Lake, Michigan, his father, Bela, was 25 and his mother, Rosa, was 24. He had two brothers and two sisters. He served in the U.S. Army during World War I as a Private in Company L, 18th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. He died from his wounds received in battle on October 13, 1918 and is now buried in Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery and Memorial, Romagne-sous-Montfaucon, Departement de la Meuse, Lorraine, France. His name is commemorated on the First Infantry Division monument in Saint-Juvin, France but his name's middle initial is inscribed as W.