Category Archives: World War II

Follow Friday – There’s so much good stuff out there

: June 7, 1942 Envelope

: June 7, 1942, p. 1

: June 7, 1942, p. 2

I am pretty new at blogging. I’ve very quickly discovered that if you have an interest, there’s probably a blog for that. I started my Facebook page for Genealogy Lady last July. This was not my first Facebook page. I have my personal Facebook page and one for my fibre arts business (sewing and knitting). I tried starting a couple smaller genealogy pages, mostly dealing with the descendants of one specific ancestor. I consider them to be my stepping stones. I eventually deleted both of them and combined all my genealogy onto one page. Once I started the Genealogy Lady page, I began to look at who else had genealogy related pages. There are other genealogists, genealogical and historical societies, libraries; you name it! I started liking pages that interested me. It’s basically the same thing with blogging. Once I find a blog I like, I want to come back every day and follow them.

The first blog I ever started to follow was The Legal Genealogist. We all know how much she rocks! Since I am going to be starting Boston University’s Genealogy certificate program in January, I feel like I’m getting a head start on some of the legal issues I might run into as a professional genealogist. Judy’s blog is one that I read every day. I’ve even been brave enough to make a couple comments.

Once I started publishing my blog, I developed a small fan base, i.e. MY FOLLOWERS! It still amazes me that someone actually reads what I write every day, or at the very least, occasionally. I’ve clicked on the links to the people who liked my posts. I’ve found several people who have similar blogs to my own, at least in theme and scope. I now follow about 20+ blogs on a daily basis at this point. Two of the blogs I would like to mention are Masako and Spam Musubi and A Hundred Years Ago.

In Masako and Spam Musubi, Mustang.Koji talks about the experiences of his Japanese American relatives who fought on both sides of the Pacific during World War II. I find his blog is a nice compliment to mine. He gives me another perspective of life during World War II. As I write about the experiences of a country doctor from Indiana, Koji writes about the heroism of his uncles as they served their countries,the prejudices they endured as well as the sufferings of the Nisei and the non military members of his family. As a California transplant, the plight of Japanese Americans is a part of our American history that I did not learn about until adulthood. The subject was not covered much in my Massachusetts history classes.

In A Hundred Years Ago, Sheryl transcribes and writes about the entries from her grandmother’s diary. She posts each entry exactly one hundred years after it was written and then includes a modern commentary of the events. She also draws on contemporary sources to document the diary. I wish I had the forethought to align my grandparents’ letters to the actual calendar days that they were written. Since there are so many of the letters, it probably wouldn’t have worked out in the end.

I’m still looking most days for new blogs to follow. I found a great one this morning from a gentleman in Ireland who writes about the foibles of the English language.There‘s so much good stuff out there that it is hard to stop reading.

My grandfather’s letters are in a bit of a loop at the moment. Several of the same themes are being repeated over and over. My grandmother’s impending visit is taking up a lot of paper as well as the attempts to locate Uncle Jim. This letter did provide me with a bit of medical jargon which was surprisingly easy to interpret. There are about five more letters until my grandmother finally arrives in Norfolk!

Letter transcription:

Sun A.M.

Dear Mother,

Received your letter last night about 9:00 P.M. I’ll try and see what I can do with that card and then send it back – so that you may drive down if you can make good arrangements. You shouldn’t try to make the trip too fast. Just take it easy. Of course I’ll be off Sat. P.M. – but you can get here sun if you can’t make it Sat. You can let me know later in the week. Which ever way you come Telegraph me as to about the time you’ll arrive especially if you come on the train. If you should come in the car and get here during the day come to the house first because you can’t come into the base without a pass.

(page 2) you can get 50 gallons of gas per mo. without an X card. So if you inquired ahead and got a big tank full. Then you would have enough to make it on in.

I haven’t been able to contact Jim as yet. I’ve called out there but they can’t locate him by telephone-And on thurs-I wrote him a letter and still no answer. Maybe he has been transferred.

This Mrs. Ahern was getting Theobromine sod[ium] acetate¹, Ammonium Chloride² and digitalis. If Art still has some you might send some but if not return her money and tell her to see a Dr. there. That probably would be the best thing to do.

In case thisI don’t get this registration card back in time go to Joe and have him make out a duplicate. I may write more later

Love Daddy

Notes:

Information on Theobromine sodium acetate can be found here.
Ammonium Chloride is used as an expectorant in cough medicine. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ammonium_chloride)

Emily Hogue (Lawhead) Foster

5 Replies

: Emma Foster, circa 1940s

: Emma with her grandson, John: February 28, 1932 in Terre Haute, Indiana

: Another picture taken the same day; Emma with her grandson John: February 28, 1932, in Terre Haute, Indiana

: Emma Foster with her grandson John, circa 1935-36

: June 5, 1942 Envelope

: June 5, 1942, p. 1

: June 5, 1942, p. 2

: June 5, 1942, p. 3

: June 5, 1942, p. 4

Today’s letter is very special. I believe it is the only letter I have in my collection by my great grandmother, Emma Foster. Chronologically, it falls right after my grandfather’s last letter. The two letters are postmarked the same day. Word is definitely getting around that my grandmother is heading to Norfolk. An added bonus (genealogically speaking) in the letter is that Emma ran into Uncle Wes and Aunt Jessie one night in Terre Haute. Uncle Wes is Silvester Schiele, my grandfather’s uncle. You may recall an earlier post I did on Silvester. His friends and family called him Wes for short. Wes and Jessie must have just come through Kentland on their way down to Clay City from Chicago.

My great grandmother’s story is one that I had to figure out mostly on my own. My grandmother gave me a little information to start with but the rest of the journey was all mine to uncover. Emma was a twin. Aunt Minerva, the one mentioned in the letter, was my great grandmother’s twin sister. One story that my grandmother did relay to me regarding her mother was the story of her naming. Emma Foster was born Emily Hogue Lawhead, daughter of James Henry Lawhead and his second wife, Margaret Allie Rea, on November 14, 1872. The twins were the second and third children of Margaret & James. Margaret was to have four more children, but none survived their infancy. Their oldest child was a boy, Jasper, who was born in 1869. When the twins were born, Margaret did not know what to name them. I suppose Margaret was out of the question as she already had an older step-daughter named Margaret. The story goes that Margaret named her daughters after the first two women who came to visit after the babies were born. I don’t know what Minerva’s middle name is so I haven’t been able to track down her namesake. There was a young woman named Emily Hogue who lived in the neighborhood so there does appear to be some validity to the story.

In 1894, when Emma was 22, she had a child out of wedlock. I have no idea who the father was. According to my Dad’s cousin Juanita, Emma talked about Jesse all the time but she didn’t know who he was. She assumed he was given away. On the 1900 census, Jesse was living with his grandparents, Emma’s parents. If he was given away, it wasn’t very far. Jesse lived with his grandparents and migrated with them to Arkansas. Jesse stayed in Arkansas after his grandmother died and his grandfather returned to Illinois. Another comment made by Juanita in one of her letters was that Emma had grandchildren but they were too far away. Jesse had three children: Alvin, Elwin and Francis. On his death certificate, Emma is named as his mother, but the line for his father is blank. Who knows what happened to this mysterious male in my great grandmother’s life? Was she raped? Did he run away? Why didn’t they marry? I have lots of questions and no solutions for solving this puzzle.

On February 29, 1896, Emma married James Edward “Ned” Foster in Hutsonville, Crawford, Illinois. I would love to say that he was a good man, and was able to accept Emma’s past. I don’t really have an answer to that. What I do know is that their marriage was a rocky one. James was an alcoholic. Over the years, Emma threw him out several times. I assume in the beginning that things were good, but I really don’t know. Love works in mysterious ways, plus it might just have been all about the sex. James and Emma had at least five children. The ones who grew to adulthood were Lydia Allie, Glenn Edward, James Laughead, and my grandmother, Gladys Ruth. Evidence suggests that there was another child Forrest that died young. I have a photograph of a large family grouping. On the back it written: James, Emma, Lydia, Glenn & Forrest. Emma is holding Glenn and a baby on her lap in the picture while Lydia is sitting by her feet . Lydia was born in 1897 and Glenn in September 1900. There is a jump in births before James was born in February 1904. The 1900 census records that Emma is the mother of two living children; this would be Jesse and Lydia as Glenn wasn’t born until after the enumeration. On the 1910 census, Emma is the mother of 6 children, 5 living. The five would include: Lydia, Glenn, James, Gladys and Jesse.

I don’t know where or when baby Forrest died or where he is buried. The family moved back and forth between Crawford and Clark counties in Illinois and Terre Haute during these years. James was a laborer and he moved to where the work was. They were probably pretty poor and couldn’t afford a stone for Forrest’s grave. Both my grandmother and Uncle Jim were born in Terre Haute. After that, I think the family pretty much stayed in Terre Haute. Sometime before 1920, Emma kicked James out for his drinking for good. On the 1920 census, James is not enumerated with the family. Emma’s profession was a pie baker for a Baking company. Cousin Juanita also mentioned in one of her letters that Emma did this along with Aunt Cora. Cora Miller was one of James’ sisters. Apparently at one time, they all lived in the same building (but not on the 1920 census). A couple of the Terre Haute directories after 1920 record James and Emma living together but I think this might have been a smoke screen. Emma and James never divorced. Even on Emma’s death certificate, my grandmother reported that Emma was married.

Emma had a decent life but it was filled with hardship over the years. Any of these events would have broken a weaker person: an illegitimate child, an alcoholic husband, the death of a baby, being a single working mom, her beloved oldest daughter dying young, her grandson being killed in an accident. Her life could be measured by these tragedies but I would rather think of her as my grandmother’s mother, the woman who came to Kentland to help my grandmother while her husband was away at war, during the time after she had the baby (my father). I like to look at her pictures and her elusive smile. Yes, she does look old for her age in most of the pictures, but I look and I see a little part of me looking back at me, and it makes me proud to be her great granddaughter.

In school, Emma achieved a sixth grade education according to the 1940 census. While transcribing her letter I struggled between trying to make the letter readable and making an accurate transcription. If you want to see the actual letter, click on the pictures above.

This letter also mentions that Gladys’ mother-in-law, Lovina Yegerlehner, has not been feeling well lately and that Ruth has been home helping her mother while she was sick. Paired with yesterday’s letter from Roscoe which also mentions his mother not feeling well, that’s a nice bit of documentation from two corroborating sources.

Letter transcription:

6.8.42

Dear children + grandson

Receive your letter this morning. I had to go up to town yesterday afternoon + was walking along + seen a group of folks? standing in front of a restaurant first like that had their dinner, said to myself that look like uncle Wes + stop + look + sure among it was aunt Jessie, Mary Sheperman + some more I didn’t know so stoped + talked to them a litter whin? + they said that they stop at your house + seen you + the boy + that

(page 2) you was going to see Jake next week. Said that they would tell you that way seen me. I have had a letter from James + he never said anythins about seeing Jake yet James has got his insinmet[assignment] + will be there six month or a year he said I sure am glad that Ruth is at home with her mother this week it will help her as much as the medison[medicine]. I thought that I would get down there this week but it has been so hot here it seems to take all of the pep out of me your aunt Minerva is looking for me to come over there + stay

(page 3) a few day but can’t pick up the nerve to go. I am writing you some of her tales of woe. when I got up yesterday morning I felt like going back to bed + giving up the strnge[strength?] + say here lord take me I have a little more pep today. I don’t feel sick + can eat good but is seems like it don’t do my any good hade plenty to eat this is my tail of wo[e] I said to my self this sond like aunt Minera letter.

(page 4)I would like to hear John play at the resite[recital] hope that he comes out first it sure is hot today I hope that you do go + see Jake + get to see James it will cheer him up to see you if I had a place for the boys to sleep they could come + stay with me. I see so many dresses in the window up to down. I told Mrs. Welsere I was going to write + tell you about their that is the seersucker only haha will sign off

Mother love

Wednesday’s Child – Wesley Foster McCammon (1916-1927)

4 Replies

: Emma Foster with her grandchildren, Juanita and Wesley McCammon, circa 1917-1918

: Gladys Foster with her neice and nephew, 1918

: Gravestone for Wesley McCammon and his mother Lydia Allie (Foster) McCammon; Little Flock Cemetery, Shelburn, Sullivan, Indiana, USA

: June 5, 1942 Envelope

: June 5, 1942, p. 1

: June 5, 1942, p. 2

: June 5, 1942, p. 3

: June 5, 1942, p. 4

Wesley was the son of Jesse and Lydia Allie (Foster) McCammon. He died when he fell off the back of a wagon and was trampled to death. His short life was also filled with tragedy. When he was almost three, his mother died. He spent the rest of his life moving back and forth between grandparents’ homes and his father’s house. Jesse McCammon remarried in 1921, and quickly started a new family with his new wife.

My grandmother Gladys was Wesley’s aunt. Part of the time, Wesley lived with my grandmother, great uncle Jim and my great grandmother Emma in Terre Haute. In one of the letters I exchanged with Wesley’s sister Juanita in the 1990s, she talked about how my great grandmother’s sister Minerva wanted to adopt the two of them after Allie died. My great grandmother would not let her. Emma wanted her grandchildren close to her, not over in Illinois where Aunt Minerva lived. It made me wonder, if Minerva had adopted the children, would Wesley have lived? (FindAGrave)

Letter transcription:

Fri.

Dear Mother-

Guess you’ll miss a letter one day because I was on duty and didn’t get a chance to write until about 2300 and that would do no good because no mail leaves the base after that time.

When we are on duty we have to inspect the mess. That is we have to see that things are clean and then we get our own meals there. They serve us meals in a special officer’s mess. They have several colored persons who are in the navy but are training them to be mess boys. Last night at one of the tables across a guy was pouring some ice water to an officer and th a chunk of ice went out with the water and

(page 2) you should have seen the colored boy make a pass for it. The other colored mess boys get tickled and it was a little to break the stiff silence. They really have some service. Meet you at the door-take your cap, pull your chair back and then serve in courses with a finger bowl etc.

The X card won’t do any good because they are calling in all of those already issued and it is doubtful if the Drs. unless they have no other way will g be able to get a card. We had an officer notice to that affect a day or two ago.

So far as I can tell I’d still like you to come down and if you can get here one week from Sat. I’ll

(page 3)have duty on Fri nite before and will be off on Sat. Just like I am this P.M. You had better take a pulman from Cincinatta. And you have to get off the train at Newport News. Rather than Norfolk as I thought. At Cincinatta there are separate gates for pulman and coach passengers so be sure and inquire – they have a man stationed at every gate-And don’t burden yourself with many clothes because there aren’t any places to go without a car. You’ll understand when you get here. I think . Should I get you a room in a hotel or do you want to stay here I’d rather stay in a hotel. If not we would have no time to ourselves. It’s just like pulling teeth to get to

(page 4) our room now. Mrs. Evans has to talk. Has told me about the death of her husband several times etc. Think it over.

I’m going down town to get another shirt or two seems of as if laundry is very slow. And this one is smelling rather badly.

Got a letter from Mom today, said she was up and around some. Well, I’ll wait until this PM. mail maybe there will be something to answer.

I called Jim but couldn’t get him on the phone. So I wrote to him. But I’ve found a way by which I can call him now, going to try to get him to come to town Sat. nite if he can get off.

Just got your Tue letter. The one you started Tue + finished Wed. Guess I have all the questions covered. Will try to keep a letter coming each day.

Love Daddy

SeaBees

2 Replies

: Map of Norfolk, Virginia from 1960. Magnolia Street and Camp Allen are highlighted

: June 3, 1942 Envelope

: June 3, 1942,p. 1

: June 3, 1942, p. 2

I have done some searching today in an effort to discover more about my great uncle Jim’s naval career. I really don’t know what my great uncle Jim did for the Navy during World War II. I don’t know enough about military abbreviations to figure out what Jim’s actual rating or job entailed of as yet. At this point, the major clue I possess is his address in Norfolk in May 1942: Camp Bradford c/o Camp Allen. There are a few more letters from Jim mixed in with all the others that I haven’t unburied. I’m sure the puzzle will unravel itself eventually.

Camp Allen and Camp Bradford were the first bases for the SeaBees in Norfolk. And what, you might ask, was a SeaBee? If you didn’t already know, a SeaBee was a member of the United States Naval Construction Battalions. SeaBee is short for Construction Battalion, or CB. The SeaBees were responsible for building bases and any other military construction projects, often in combat zones. They were also expected “to go all over the world; they were to receive combat training and would be expected to build, fight, evacuate wounded, unload ships, or do whatever other odd jobs might be needed”.¹ Construction battalions were created after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Civilian construction workers could not be used or protected adequately enough in combat zones. On 28 December 1941, the Bureau of Navigation created three Construction Battalions. These original battalions each consisted of 1,073 men and 32 officers.² By March 1942, a new naval training facility for the Construction Battalions was built at Norfolk. By the time great uncle Jim arrived in late May 1942, Camps Allen and Bradford were already overcrowded.

When great uncle Jim enlisted, he was 38 years old. He was 10 months older than my grandfather. Neither my grandfather nor my great uncle seems to have been the typical soldier. Both were older men and they had a skill to offer the military. In my grandfather’s case, his skill was quite obvious. I’m not sure what my great uncle was good at yet though. On the 1940 census, Jim was the assistant manager at a wholesale plumbing company. Ten years earlier, he was a clerk at a plumbing company. I’m betting that my uncle knew a thing or two about pipes. As I further research the probability that Jim was a SeaBee, his rating as CSF(T) on the U.S.S. Sylvania in 1945 becomes a little more clear. He was more likely a Chief Shipfitter instead of a member of the Security Force.

Notes:

The Naval History Blog has a lot of history and additional information about the SeaBees. http://www.navalhistory.org/2012/02/29/seabees-name-and-insignia-officially-authorized
Ibid

Map of Norfolk, Virginia was found here.

Letter transcription:

Wed.

Dear Mother,

Guess I’ve gotten three letters since I’ve written one Tue P.M. and two today, also got a letter from Dr. Roberts. Don’t know if I can answer all the questions or not. I’ll see if I can find Jim this Eve since I know his address now. I’m not sure that I know where Camp Allen is but I guess I can find it.

All I got about the narcotic papers was the tag I had on the wall. You said narcotic papers in Auth[?] letters but that’s the only thing I’ve gotten. I suppose they will come tomorrow.

That bill of Morgans is Ok. I had forgotten what I told him but now that he mentioned it that is what I’ve told him.

Got a letter from m

I’ve written you about the car registration several times but don’t expect anything for the car. Just get someone to take you to Lafayette one week from Fri and I can meet you at the ferry on Sat noon. It looks like I’ll have that Sat P.M. off since I have night Duty on Fri of that week. So plan on that. If we can get around to see the town OK if not we can look at each other. One of the boys from Ill[inois] was transferred to Great Lakes so maybe I can still live in hopes.

I wish you would see what dates I bought the Diver[?] + Uit B from Mass. I believe at that time I was even with them. Then I paid one check after that. Their bill seems a little high but maybe it’s right.

Alma probably has adhesion and they no doubt will cause her some trouble but there isn’t much she can do about them. They will gradually become less bothersome. I’ve been trying to think what I gave or did to Larry Reed the last time I was there, guess it didn’t do so well. That doesn’t sound right-he lived 3 mo. more than most people thought anyway.

You shouldn’t drive the car when that card is on the way. You might get run in.

Well, I’m going to write to Joe. He asked me about uniform etc.

Love Daddy

P.S. I haven’t done anymore about the flight examiner thing. I’m not sure of it being of any value after all.

Amanuensis Monday – June 2, 1942

9 Replies

: June 2, 1942 Envelope

: June 2, 1942, p. 1

: June 2, 1942, p. 2

I think I will be using this theme on Mondays to help log what I have accomplished so far and to summarize what has transpired for my grandparents during the previous week.

My grandfather has been in Norfolk for almost two weeks. I have transcribed fourteen letters from my grandfather. I have also transcribed two letters from my great uncle Jim Foster. Jim also enlisted in the Navy, but not as an officer. He was stationed in the Great Lakes while he was doing his basic training. He has arrived in Norfolk, but at this point my grandfather and his brother-in-law have not made contact. So far in the narrative, none of the letters my grandmother wrote during this period have survived. It is apparent that several of her letters had questions about billing patients and paying bills for my grandfather’s practice. In one letter, she must have suggested that four members of the family were planning to come to Norfolk to visit my grandfather. I am assuming that she was including herself and the two boys. I am not sure who the fourth member of the party would have been, possibly her mother. My grandfather was obviously frustrated by this as he had been trying to find housing for just my grandmother (with no luck in that department).

During the last week, my grandfather had been thinking about the method of transportation for my grandmother’s impeding visit. Should she drive or take the train? If she takes the car, there is the question of gasoline and perhaps acquiring an X card. Gasoline was already rationed in May 1942. The drive from Kentland, Indiana to Norfolk, Virginia is just about 1,000 miles. My grandmother was also 5-6 months pregnant. Speed limits of 35 miles per hour were also instituted during this period. All things to consider before she makes the trip.

My grandfather was sharing a room with another doctor, Dr. Lentz, at a house on Magnolia Avenue. One night during the week, my grandfather was convinced to go out with Dr. Lentz and two other doctors. It quickly became apparent that the doctor who was driving was inebriated. My grandfather concocted an excuse to get out of the car and refused to go on with the outing.

Another issue that was on my grandfather’s mind was his future. He was unsure as to how long he would be stationed in Norfolk, and if he was transferred out, where would he end up.

Letter transcription:

Tue.

Dear Mother,

I’m writing this from the P.O. Had to come down town to get some more clothes.

I haven’t got your today’s letter yet but I got one addressed to Granby St. that you wrote some time ago. I think it was the first Sun. you wrote. The one in which you told me about buying the bond.

I don’t know yet what to tell you about coming down. Lentz hasn’t found out anything about his leave and then as I wrote you last nite I’ll wait until I get the car registration card. I’d say for you to come on the train but I don’t know what you could see or do without the car. This town is long but not so wide and from the middle of the town to the ocean either way it is about 10 mile one way and 18 the other and who want to ride on the street car that far. Of course if you want to stay right in town the transportation is nothing but I suppose

(page 2) you would like to see a few things while you are here. That long a ride in a car isn’t best for you at present either- so there you are. If I thought you I could get a leave in a few wks. I’d say let matters stand as they are and I’d bring the car back with me. Of course But there is the leave condition again. At least I can find out if I can get an X card with the card you send.

Haven’t seen Jim yet. I’m expecting a letter with his address and until then it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

This town is much worse than Chicago to walk or drive in. One is apt to get run over at any point it seems.

I may write again tonite-depending upon what your letter has in it.

Love Daddy

Sunday’s Obituary – Raymond C. Yegerlehner (1902-1922)

Word from Jim

I had a little trouble last night…

4 Replies

: May 31, 1942 Envelope

: May 31, 1942, p. 1

: May 31, 1942, p. 2

: May 31, 1942, p. 3

: May 31, 1942, p. 4

This letter starts casually enough but very quickly gets rather serious. I can only imagine my grandmother freaking out when she read it. I say freaking out because I know I would be if I were in her situation; even if I didn’t know more of the back story. On the surface, I see a pregnant wife with two other children with a husband far away from home. If anything happened to my grandfather, what were the options for my grandmother in that day and age as a widow? It is one thing for your husband to get killed in the service of his country, but to be killed because he was the passenger in the car of a drunk driver is something completely different (and unexpected).

I am impressed by the clear thinking of my grandfather and his ability to not cave to peer pressure. Forgive the expression, but he had some balls that night. My grandparents were not drinkers. What I mean to say is: they had an occasional drink now and then, but they weren’t habitual. My grandfather did keep a stock of hard liquor in a special cabinet in the house. My father can attest to that. When he was in college (I believe), he snuck his first drink from that cabinet. That’s a funny story. I’ll have to get him to write it down for me again. But I digress; my grandparents weren’t drinkers because they knew the risks of drinking.

By the time my grandmother was 15 years old, her mother had kicked her father out of the house for good. One of the reasons I was given was because of my great grandfather’s drinking. I don’t know the exact year that this occurred, but sometime between the 1910 and 1920 censuses. I know very little about my great grandfather’s life. He eventually ended up in Pennsylvania. I know this from his obituary and a letter I have which was written to my great uncle Jim. I have yet to locate him on either the 1920 or 1930 census, but I’m pretty sure the man I found on the 1940 census is him. He was living alone in Erie, Pennsylvania. He gives his place of birth as Illinois and his age as 70. These are both consistent with the other sources I have. He was working as a gardener for a private home. He also gives his marital status as married. I don’t think my great grandparents ever got legally divorced so this would also be correct.

So when I picture my grandmother reading this letter from her husband, I know the role alcohol had already played in her life. I think I also have a pretty good idea about how she felt about drinking. I also appreciate the apparent honesty in my grandparents’ relationship. He felt comfortable enough telling her about this escapade and was able to (hopefully) reassure her that it wouldn’t happen again.

Letter transcription:

Sun

Dear Mother,

Just finished reading the paper and thought best to write now and maybe finish later on in the day. Dr. Lentz is playing golf but I don’t believe I want to start that now or because that’s one habit that grows and I don’t want to buy clubs etc.

Don’t forget to send in the next Income tax installment before June 15. Guess they wouldn’t throw me in the jug but it would mean lots of red tape. Then some day when you have lots of time you can total up the Jan, Feb, March, Apr + May income for next year it should be simple from then on.

Haven’t seen or heard of Jim. I don’t believe you gave me his correct rating because the CK doesn’t mean anything. SK would but the CK seems to be foreign.

I had a little trouble last night. My roommate drove over to 2 other Dr’s rooms and they started

(page 2) hitting the bottle. Then they wanted us to go along to get something to eat which was agreeable but the driver was half tight – drove down the wrong side of a two land highway + honked + wave at everybody, finally when we got near the YMCA I said I wanted to see if there was any mail there and when I came back I told them to go on without me. Where upon they seemed much put out and coaxed etc.-but I got sore and told them I didn’t like their carryings on, and walked away from them. Lentz came in about 1:00 AM and seemed a little ashamed of himself, said he wanted to get away also and the one of the other Drs. Wanted to get out also, but the driver of the car was the one who caused the uproar. He is a bachelor and doesn’t care what happens etc. Has no relatives etc. but from now on I’ll stay out of his car. So much for that. I took care of myself in that situation so don’t worry I can do it again if necessary.

I’m going to ask for leave in a couple of weeks. It’s a little soon but they can’t anymore than turn me down.

(page 3) I guess you have enough money to go one for a while- I thought some of sending home some but I’ll have to buy a blue suit ($45) 2 or 3 more whites $8.50 each and I have about $45 charged downtown so if I keep what I have I can almost clear that up by the June 15^th pay. After that I’ll have an allotment sent home each month.

Kate Smith is supposed to be around here someplace today but those programs are mostly for recruits. There is always a small portion set aside for officers but they sorta frown on too many going. They think we can pay for our entertainment.

After today when we go out in the Eve, we are supposed to war only white uniforms. Even if we go out to eat, but those things get dirty very easy. Anyplace away from the base white is supposed to be worn. The K. is only for work. The overalls so to speak. I’d hate to think what a white suit would look like after I’d ride the train home.

Mark wanted some pictures of the peers etc. Those don’t seem to be available. There are cards with army guns

(page 4) but nothing of anything along the coast. Maybe I can find something to send them again today. We may go out driving this P.M. but only with Lentz and if he gets to acting funny I’ll get out and walk again.

I just happened to remember you asked me the charge on the Henderson baby, it was $30.00. You might let me know the amount of the Bank acc. of course less the first of the month rent which they take out. When you get the bills ready to turn over to Cliff, send me a list of them first. And did you get that old bit you had on that pink sheet of paper. There may be one or two good ones there-probably not. Did you ever write to Shell Luce in Clinton about(the accident. case)? Do you know if Jim or Joe has gone yet? It seems like ages since I was there but its less than 2 wks. So really I guess not so much has happened since I left.

Well, my space is limited. I’ll not sign off just yet however-Guess there is nothing more so [this is written in a different ink]

Love Daddy

James L. Foster (1904-1994)

2 Replies

: James L. Foster, in uniform, circa 1940s

: May 30, 1942 (6:30 post) Envelope

: May 30, 1942 (6:30 post), p. 1

: May 30, 1942 (6:30 post), p. 2

I find today that I am not sure what to write about in addition to posting the daily letter. I’ve looked at all the suggested writing prompts from Geneabloggers for Thursday, but nothing really seems to fit. So I shall take the time to give a quick biography of another family member.

One person that has been already mentioned several times by my grandfather is my great uncle Jim. James Laughead¹ Foster was one of my grandmother’s brothers. My grandmother was the youngest of six children, born to her mother Emily “Emma” H. (Lawhead) Foster. Jim was the sibling closest in age to Gladys. They were both born in Terre Haute, Indiana about 21 months apart. I think they had a fairly close relationship and Jim is the sibling I knew about before I started doing genealogy. Until I started doing my own research, I didn’t know about the other four.

Jim was married twice and had no children. His second wife was Thelma Mayrose and they were married in Terre Haute, December 31, 1934. Like my grandfather, he enlisted in the Navy in 1942. He was also sent to Norfolk for his naval training. Roscoe and Jim did eventually meet up in a few weeks after today’s letter. There are several letters written by Jim to my grandmother that are also included in this collection.

In 1945, Jim was serving on the ship U.S.S. Sylvania (AKA-44). He was a CSF(T). I don’t know what the CSF means. I have come across two separate possible explanations: a staff member assigned to the Center for Naval Security Forces or a Chief Shipfitter. The (T) means temporary.

In his civilian life, Jim worked in the plumbing & heating supply industry. In 1965, he was working for the Eastman Central D, Rawlplugs and Mayfield Manufacturing Co, and his beat was the state of Kentucky. Like Dr. Lentz, Jim also loved golf. After he retired, he became a “snowbird”, spending his summers in Indiana and the winters in Florida. I believe he lived in the Sarasota area, near where Roscoe & Gladys retired in the late 1970s. Jim Foster died in 1994, aged 90.

Letter transcription:

Sat.

Dear Mother,

This was pay day – got $113². I’ll be sending some home I think the first of the week and as quick as I can I’ll have an allotment sent home rather than getting it all here – but it takes at least 30 days to do that.

We have had one of hottest days here that it’s been since I’ve been here and we had a rather hard day. Lots of recruits and lots of shots to be given.

Haven’t seen Jim or Raymond yet. I don’t know where to begin to look for them as there are so many camps around here if you could send me their addresses I’ll look them up.

I think we are going out to the beach for a little while. They say there are some ships in and I sorta like to see them. Don’t think I’ll do any swimming, etc.

Got my second shots todayᶟ. So far they haven’t bothered me, hope they won’t.

I didn’t get a letter today. Guess it was a holiday-but the mailman went the rounds.

Well, I’ll write more tomorrow

Love Daddy

Notes:

Jim’s middle name was his mother’s maiden name. You may notice that it is spelled two different ways in my narrative: Laughead and Lawhead. I tend to spell the surname Lawhead as the contemporary records invariably used this spelling of the name. In the case of Jim’s middle name, it was spelled Laughead. This was the legal spelling of his name so I will use this spelling when referring to him.
Check out this website for rank classifications and pay scales in the Navy during WWII: http://www.cv6.org/company/muster/organization.htm
American servicemen were also inoculated for a wide variety of diseases before being shipped overseas. The most common vaccinations were for smallpox, typhoid, and tetanus, though soldiers assigned to tropical or extremely rural areas were also vaccinated for cholera, typhus, yellow fever, and, in some cases, bubonic plague. (Taken from online article “Battlefield Injuries and Medicine” by David White and Daniel P. Murphy, Ph.D. (http://www.netplaces.com/world-war-ii/the-horrors-of-war/battlefield-injuries-and-medicine.htm)

Wednesday’s Child – Michael Yegerlehner (1940-1940)

3 Replies

: May 30, 1942 Envelope

: May 30, 1942, p. 1

: May 30, 1942, p. 2

: Gravestone for Michael Yegerlehner: Fairlawn Cemetery, Kentland, Newton, Indiana, USA

While my grandfather was busy in Norfolk, Virginia, acclimating himself to Navy life, my grandmother was at home in Kentland, pregnant with her fourth child. In 1940, Gladys had been pregnant with her third child, Michael. This is a child that you will not hear mentioned in any of the letters between my grandparents. Michael only lived for a few days. I don’t know what was wrong with Michael, only that he couldn’t survive. I haven’t gotten around to ordering his death certificate to see if it has any more illuminating details. My uncles John and Mark were 10 and 8 years old, respectively, in 1940. My uncle John once told my father that he remembered how horrible that time was for the family. (FindAGrave)

Both my grandparents were worried about my grandmother’s pregnancy this time around. They had lived through the tragedy of Michael’s birth and death in 1940. They were worried that this pregnancy would end as tragically as the last. Fortunately for me, it did end happily. In May 1942, my grandparents were not blessed with foresight. I can only imagine how frustrating it was for my grandfather to be so far away from his wife during her pregnancy.

Letter translation:

Fri

Dear Mother,

How you folks do talk about 4 of you coming down. In the first place – gasoline. I might be able to get an X card¹ and in the second place where would 4 people sleep when I’ve been trying to think up some way to get a place for you to sleep Just one. I thought I might get you a place at this Hotel I wrote you about but I find today it is full. It’s just a problem which I can’t figure out. I know the boys would get a kick out of seeing the place around here but how. They are better off at home much as I’d like to see them and you. It would be very uncomfortable to sleep in a car or under the sky.

Got my laundry back today-4 shirts-2 underware-6 pr. of socks and 2 hank. $1.45. Now you see why I wear shirts so long at one time. I’m going to send out a K. suit but don’t know where to send it.

(page 2) I’m sorry about the bill to Mrs. Dennis². I remember her paying that. Check the Massengillᶟ bill. That $25.00 is right but I thought I had paid them about ½ and then you had the return. I may not have paid the ½ but I thought I did. I believe I bought the stuff on the day I was examined and he was there once since and I gave him a check that day.

The magnolias are in full bloom and they are quite pretty. It is a big white blossom about 3 inches long and as big around as a banana and is a white bloom, then it opens into a large flower.

We were discussing the room + rent condition and the above that I wrote is secured.

Dr. Lentz is out playing golf but I just got home-he works at a different place than I and he gets off earlier or they don’t check so closely.

We will just have to wait and see about the rent etc for a few days or weeks yet. I guess I’d better write to Clay City⁴ again

Love

Daddy

Notes:

An X card was a type of rationing card for gasoline and automobiles. They were very hard to come by and were usually reserved for police, fireman, civil defense workers & various VIPs. There was a scandal when 200 Congressman were issued X cards.
Mrs. Dennis: The only Mrs. Dennis in Newton County, Indiana was Maria Dennis. On the 1940 census, she was an 81 year old female, born in 1859 in Illinois. She was living with the family of one of her grandchildren, Ira Miller.
Massengill: The S. E. Massengill company was a pharmaceutical company formed in 1898.
Clay City: Clay City is where Roscoe’s parents lived.