Reims Cathedral WWI

My photo (top right), is of the exquisite, yet utterly destroyed (from artillery) Reims Cathedral in Reims, France.

The picture on the bottom right was taken at the moment that the destruction began (courtesy of http://www.public.iastate.edu/~kjg/wwi_mod/pics00.htm).

There is no date or info on my picture, yet there are various signs that could reveal the date:

The sailors, along with Yeomen (naval women who performed clerical duties), are American. Americans did not enter the war until April 6, 1917, so this picture dates itself after that. The weather also appears to be cold, which must be sometime in late fall or winter. In August-September of 1917, the German military retreated back and formed the famous Hindenburg Line (just to the north of Reims). In November of 1918, the war ended. The picture, therefore, must be from around the time the Germans evacuated Reims or at the end of the war.

I managed to find other interesting information regarding this photo. A picture found online shows Italian troops standing in the same spot in front of the cathedral. The brick building to the right of them has chimney stacks. In my picture, the chimneys of the brick building are gone. I also managed to find an article from The New York Times written by an American reporter on Christmas, 1916. In the article, he describes the condition of the cathedral inside and out. In his description, the stained glass circle on the facade still had glass on the right half. In my picture, no glass can be seen in any window.

The picture on the top left is the cathedral as it is seen today, taken from almost the same position (courtesy of http://image.rol.vn/Resources/2008/10/14_DOOL_081014_CD_L1_H1.jpg).


The New York Times article can be found at:
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9800E7DC153BE633A25756C2A9649D946796D6CF