Tag Archives: genealogy

Birds and Bees (Gladys)

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April 24, 1944 envelope

April 24, 1944, p. 1

Letter transcription:

Kentland Ind.
4-24-44

Dear Daddy –

Another “gray Monday.” It has rained and there is quite a wind today. My neighbor braved the weather and hung out clothes, but I didn’t wash any today.

We came home about 4 o’clock yesterday. After we came back I was going to take David for a walk, but the wind was so strong we didn’t stay out very long. I don’t want to do anything that might not be so good for him if he is taking measles. This is the 8^th day and no signs so far, but I’ll watch him closely. I would like to go to Laf. sometime this week. I didn’t get to town this morning to see Mr. Rinard about my glasses, but

April 24, 1944, p. 2

[page 2] I doubt if he can fix them. I will try to go down this afternoon. I think I’ll wait until J. & M. get home from school, so I won’t have to take David. I don’t want to expose anyone, and we might do that if we don’t keep David home.

Yesterday on the way home Mark asked me how a Dr. could tell when a woman was going to have a baby. I told him a woman had to tell the Dr. first, then he wondered how the woman knew. I was floundering around for a suitable answer and he said, “Oh I get it, after a woman gets married, she gets a seed that grows.” Now the next time you are home I want you to do some more explaining to Mark. That was the first time he had asked such a question and I wasn’t very well prepared to answer him.

David is in bed, but hasn’t gone to sleep yet. His bowels were normal again this morning. I put him on the toidey after breakfast

April 24, 1944, p. 3

[page 3] and he had his stool. So far that has been all today. He wanted to go bye-bye this morning. He could see the car in the garage and would point to it and say “car.” Once this morning he took his overalls off and put them in the drawer. I think he is going to sleep now, after an hour of playing in his bed.

I opened the box of candy yesterday and it is quickly vanishing. Maybe it is just as well for me to have help on it – I might eat too much if I didn’t have help.

I wrote Mrs. Stanish a letter and will get the M.O. to put in it this afternoon. I didn’t mention the flowers. I suppose if Vince wants her to know how they were ordered he can tell her. I wrote Reader’s Digest your new address. Called Monroe & left word for him to come out and look at the belt. So far he hasn’t come.

April 24, 1944, p. 4

[page 4] David is awake and I measured him – he is 33 ¾” – ¾” taller than a month ago.

I am cleaning out the desk and found T. J. Murphy’s letter – his address is 1508 Banks Place – Lakeland Fla. – in case you want to write to him.

I found the coal bills – $25 & $22 – should I pay them? I paid the Hancock Ins. $70.70 and Mrs. Stanich and our balance is $184.00 – However in another week the $200.00 will come and I can dep. $170.00. Maybe we should pay those bills now (?)

I just had a thought, idea or what have you. In case you would find an apt. now and would have to take it in order to get it, maybe we could come up for a week-end, even if you had duty – Just an idea, in case something comes our way. I think I could drive thru without assistance of anyone else. Of course the chances are we won’t get one so soon, but in case we do it would be a pleasant way to spend the week-end.

John & Mark are home and I must go to town –
Love Mother

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/01/27/birds-and-bees-gladys/

Back at the Station (Roscoe)

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April 23, 1944 envelope

April 23, 1944, p. 1

Letter transcription:

Apr. 23 Sun. Eve

Dear Mother,

We arrived at the station about 5:15 after an uneventful trip. Had our chow at the hospital. Joe got all singed in in about 10 min. That is all that was necessary for today. He really could have taken about 6 more hours. Six hours we lost – Too bad. We really did enjoy ourselves at least I did and I hope you did. Hope you didn’t have any difficulty in getting home.

While waiting for Joe abt we were parked out behind the hostess house – I just waited in the car. A sailor and his wife or girl friend came out and engaged in a terrific embrace, or at least she did. He just more or less stood there with his arms at his sides but she didn’t – You know how I mean. Then after two hitches he backed off a little way and got out a big white hankie and wiped his mouth to remove the lipstick. The last I saw of them they were going back into the house he still wiping his mouth. Was that good or was that good?

April 23, 1944, p. 2

[page 2] Joe and I went for a walk but it was cut very short by a storm – or rather thunder and lightning cut the trip short. So far it seems to have missed us, however, and it is now about 9:00 and will soon be bed time. Our radio is going – seems to work good with only a short antennae.

Joe is writing also so maybe you both will get letters Tue. I’m running out of things to write much just now. It’s been only a short time since I’ve seen you and things haven’t happened so much as yet. I guess I should write the Folks one of these days but just can’t seem to get started on such.

Well, hope you aren’t too down in the dumps tonight –
Lots of Love
Daddy

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/01/26/back-at-the-station-roscoe/

Monthly Update – January 2016

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My genealogy calendar began to wind down at the end of 2015, and to be honest, between a heavy workload at school and life in general, I ran out of steam. However, with the arrival of the New Year, several upcoming events and my personal goals, I am looking forward to 2016. It is looking to be an exciting year filled with new adventures and new genealogy friends.

The WWII Project

Instead of having a section devoted to just my book Dear Mother, Love Daddy, I am going to condense this section to everything related to the books and the letters.

About the letters:

Almost 1,200 letters have been transcribed and organized so far (since December 2012). I will continue to post a letter a day (or military related document) until all the letters have been transcribed. I still do not have a final tally of how many letters there are in the collection. According to my records, I have published 1,169 blog posts in which a letter was transcribed. This does not take into account the number of posts that did not contain a letter but rather a transcription of a document from Roscoe’s personal military papers nor does it account for the occasional letter which has been discovered amongst my father’s papers and has subsequently been forwarded to me. Often these rogue letters do not make the blog because they are so far out of sequence or context. It does not make sense to publish them at the time. They will appear in the published volumes of letters however.

Dear Mother, Love Daddy:

The first volume of letters has been in print for exactly 11 months. It is hard to believe that the first anniversary of its publication is quickly approaching, February 24, 2016. This last week I finally prepared several copies for donation to a few of the major genealogy and state library collections. For readers who may live in the Sacramento area, the library owns a copy of the book and it can be requested through the library’s loan system. Otherwise, copies of the book are available for sale through Amazon.com or contact me through the website to purchase an autographed copy of the book.

Lots of Love, Daddy:

I am hoping to have the second volume of letters ready by Memorial Day. I had hoped originally to publish this book around the anniversary of the first book. However, my schedule has not afforded me the time needed to successfully release the book at that time. This volume will also be 150-200 pages longer than the first volume and will include letters written during October through December 1942 while Roscoe was stationed in Noumea, New Caledonia. My first draft of the book is currently 400 pages. This does not include the index, author’s notes, illustration/photo credits, or the cast of characters. I have tentatively engaged the services of a genealogy colleague to be my copy editor for this next volume. I am very excited to be working with her on this project. As the spring progresses, I will make a more official announcement. In addition, I need to begin work with my book cover designer. At this point, I have an idea but nothing concrete.

Sacramento Library

I continue to volunteer one Saturday a month dispensing genealogy advice at my local library branch. Typically, my sessions are on the fourth Saturday of the month. Upcoming dates are January 30, February 27, and March 26. These sessions are by appointment only.

Yesterday, I presented my second lecture – A Beginner’s Guide to DNA & Genetic Genealogy. The audience was wonderful! They asked lots of great questions, and hopefully, I did not confuse them too much. I am looking forward to putting together a third presentation later this spring, likely in April or May.

The Central Branch has their genealogy program schedule published for the year. All presentations are given on Sundays from 1:00-2:30 at the Central Branch on I Street, downtown Sacramento. There are some wonderful speakers on the list, including my colleague, Gena Philibert-Ortega, who reviewed Dear Mother, Love Daddy last fall on her blog. Gena will be presenting a lecture on Finding Institutional Records in July while fellow ProGen alumna Janice Sellers will be delivering her lecture Get Me to the church: Religious Records in June.

Certification

It has long been my goal to become a certified genealogist. In order to achieve this goal, the applicant must submit a portfolio of work to the Board of Certification of Genealogists. This last week BCG president, Jeanne Larzalere Bloom, announced a new application process for certification. Some of the new requirements include evaluation of the applicant’s educational experiences and a limit of 150 pages for the entire portfolio. The new application can be found on the BCG website.

My ProGen Certificate

At this point, I feel fairly confident about my educational experiences. I have completed Boston University’s Genealogical Research Certificate program and the ProGen study group. I will continue to attend local learning experiences, like those offered at the library or the genealogy societies in my region. I still would like to do a couple of the home study courses from the National Genealogical Society, and maybe someday, I will be able to attend a week long institute like SLIG or GRIP. Although part of me is not really thinking of attending an genealogy institute as a student, why not think higher and bolder, like as an instructor?!? But let’s be realistic for 2016…

Another colleague of mine suggested that I blog about my journey to certification (Thank you Jake!). I have long been a fan of Jill Morelli’s blog Genealogy Certification: My Personal Journal. Jill is another ProGen alumna, and I had the pleasure of meeting her in person last year at Jamboree. Jill is already “on-the-clock,” as we like to say about the certification process. She has already submitted her application and currently has 3 months remaining before she must submit her portfolio. As I stated in my year in review post last month, I want to have my plan in place for certification by the end of this year. Most of the advice I have read (from people who have gone through the certification process) recommend having one’s ideas and preliminary research started before submitting the application. Blogging about my progress will hopefully keep me on track for my goal.

Roscoe with his wife Gladys and their sons, John & Mark (circa July 1942 in Kentland, Indiana)

A branch of my family that I will NOT be using for my portfolio!

One of the main requirements for any item submitted in the portfolio is that: “No material in an initial application may have been reviewed, critiqued, or proofread by another individual.” For me, this means that none of my prior work submitted as coursework for Boston University or ProGen is eligible to be used for my portfolio. Over the last few years, I have tried to be careful about not writing and posting about every aspect of my family genealogy for precisely this reason. I had to keep branches of the family dark since they were potential portfolio fodder.

So for January…

One element of the portfolio is a Kinship-Determination Project (KDP for short). Three generations of a family must be presented in a narrative genealogy, narrative lineage, or narrative pedigree format. Within the narrative, proof summaries or arguments must be used, as appropriate, for at least two parent-child relationships. This month (OK this morning…) I think I have decided upon which branch of the family I am going to use for the project. My next step for the project will be to begin analyzing the documents I do have and begin assessing what documents I need to obtain.

Jamboree

Jamboree 2015

This month pre-registration for Jamboree began. I had so much fun last year and I am looking forward to attending this year. Stay tuned for more updates! I have signed up to take one workshop so far. I still consider myself extremely fortunate that Blaine Bettinger was in my ProGen study group. His knowledge of DNA and genetic genealogy is incredible and I looking forward to taking his workshop on Third Party Tools for Autosomal DNA. If you ever have the chance to hear him speak or lecture, do not miss the opportunity!

Until next month….

Walk to Town (Gladys)

1 Reply

April 19 & 20, 1944 envelope

April 19 & 20, 1944, p. 1

Letter transcription:

Kentland Ind.
4-19-44

Dear Daddy –

I wrote one letter this morning but thought I would start one this afternoon while I was thinking about what I wanted to write.

I took David out for a walk and he kept going until we were on Main street so I got the paper & a few articles I needed at the drug store. I saw Coke and she wanted to know about when you would be home. Said they wanted to see you, etc. I asked her about Dr. Baer and he is a MacIntyre. They live in a town close to Great Lakes, but it isn’t Lake Forest. She told me the name but I don’t remember. Maybe it was Highland Park. I am not sure. At any rate coke wants you to see Dr. B. He is a Commander now. I saw Alma and she said the evening we tried to call them was the only evening they were away from home, and on Wed. evening

April 19 & 20, 1944, p. 2

[page 2] before you went to G.L. they didn’t go to the show, but were downtown. We just didn’t see them.

I stopped to see Mrs. Krull and she says the suits wouldn’t make over for John. Says she wouldn’t tackle the job and a tailor would charge $15.00 to do the job. I was wondering if Ralph or Clarence could use a suit or two. Mrs. K. just made one of Nick’s old suits over for Dorothy. I wish I had used one of yours for myself instead of buying the one I did. I still would like to have a black suit and could take the pin strip and have one made for myself.

I stopped at Johnsons and Jimmy had been sick. I saw someone sitting in the living room and opened the door and David ran in. Lucile came and said Jimmy had been sick but was feeling better and temp was normal. He was quite sick last night and had a temp of 104 4/10 (rectally). He had a convulsion last night

April 19 & 20, 1944, p. 3

[page 3] but seemed perfectly normal today. The Dr. thought he might be taking measles or something but evidently not or he would be breaking out. His throat was sore and the Dr. swabbed it. David was with him Sun. & Mon. afternoon and Lucile thinks he was starting a temp Mon. so if he has anything D. has a good chance of getting it from being with him Mon. Of course at the time Lucile didn’t know he had a temp, but we were in the restaurant together and before that she had Jimmy out here, and when she started home from the restaurant with Jimmy, said he got fussy and she had to carry him home. I hope he doesn’t develop anything. Are children who are subject to allergies more apt to have convulsions than others? The thought just occurred to me, because of Jimmy and the Wilson baby, Michael, was like Jimmy when he was small (covered with eczema) and he is subject to convulsions. Or is it due to the high temperatures?

April 19 & 20, 1944, p. 4

[page 4] Bobby came up with 25₵ and asked Mark to buy him a plane to build so Mark is at Funks now making Bobby a plane. John asked me if he should go to a party Sat. nite, since you were planning to come home he wasn’t sure it would be the thing to do, but I told him he could see you Sun. and I thought he should attend the party since he stays home most of the time.

It is 6 PM by the living room clock, so that means chow time for David. He should have a good appetite after walking to town and back. I thought maybe he had walked too much and John said, “Do you realize if he had been home he would be walking around here all the time?”

Thurs. a.m. – the mail hasn’t been delivered yet – I am finishing this for Mark to take as he goes to school. It is cloudy this morning and looks very much like it will rain anytime. I did have ideas of washing some but now have a good excuse not to.

Love Mother

P.S. Highland Park is right.

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/01/24/walk-to-town-gladys/

Strong Woman (Gladys)

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April 19, 1944 envelope

April 19, 1944, p. 1

Letter transcription:

Kentland Ind.
4-19-44

Dear Daddy –

The mail carrier was around earlier than usual – in fact before we had breakfast, so I had your letter mailed yesterday to read before breakfast. It is nice and sunny today. I will have to take David out for a walk. He does love to go out of doors. Martha came over to ask if I wanted anything from town (her mother was going) and David cried when Martha left. I gave him a cookie and that fixed things up pretty fine. I have been upstairs cleaning some this a.m. I didn’t go into spring cleaning, just dusted and straightened and cleaned the bathroom floor. I think I’ll have to get back on my vitamins. I feel a little out of pep after I work a while.

April 19, 1944, p. 2

[page 2] I just have one unicap left. I think I’ll get another bottle. I believe they help me as much as anything I have taken. I think I forgot to tell you I got a heart reaction from the last liver & Vit. B shot I took, so am afraid to try that again for a pick-up.

Our neighbors arrived home from Fla. yesterday. It was nice in the morning but by mid afternoon it had clouded up, turned cool and rained, but the weather is ideal this morning so maybe they won’t feel a chill.

Mrs. Zell had their car yesterday and I went to town with her and got David’s milk. She was having dinner guests (Shanlaubs) so I helped her get ready for them. She didn’t have the house straightened up at 4 PM and I didn’t have anything in particular to do so helped her. She is having a birthday party

April 19, 1944, p. 3

[page 3] for Virginia after school today. It is for the girls in the 5^th grade. This is one party J. & M. will miss, no boys invited.

I think I’ll go see Mrs. Krull today about cutting a suit down for John. I wish I knew someone your size who would buy some of those things and just buy John a new suit. I am going to have to do something soon if he keeps growing because his legs & arms are getting too long for the suit he has now.

Bun Walkup delivered some peat moss to Statons yesterday. I told him to haul our clinkers the next time he hauls trash. He was asking about you. Thought you hadn’t been home long enough to be back on duty. He said Iva Jean wondered how I held up under your being away. I suppose she was greatly

April 19, 1944, p. 4

[page 4] relieved that Bun didn’t have to go. I told Bun to tell her I am a “strong woman” – however I don’t feel that way at all sometimes, but I don’t go around sounding off my weakness. She would find out like anyone else whose husband is in Service who we stand it. It isn’t easy.

So far today David hasn’t had any accidents in his panties, but that isn’t his fault. I have been trying to watch him. He woke up about 1 a.m. and I put him in bed with me. He was wide awake and kept bothering me so I put dry pants on him and put him back in his bed. About 7:45 he woke me and I put him on the toidey. He had a B.M. After breakfast I put him on and he went, then again while I was working upstairs. It is time to check again – He just ran by me and I missed it – pants wet. I made thumbs stalls but didn’t get them just right – he can slip them off – but he hasn’t been bothering his thumb at all so maybe our battle is about over.

Love Mother

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/01/23/strong-woman-gladys/

I’ll Be Home (Roscoe)

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April 19, 1944 envelope

April 19, 1944, p. 1

Letter transcription:

Wed. Apr. 19, 1944

Dear Mother,

No letter again today. I’m just beginning to wonder if you are writing every day as you used to do, etc. I suspect the letters are getting crossed up in the mail and two will come tomorrow, at least I hope so.

Well, it’s all set. I’ll be home Sat. eve. I got the papers all filled out and in my pocket now so I’ll be there for supper but possibly you had better not wait too long as I’m not sure what time I’ll leave here. I’ll try something during the PM but may not get away until after working hours which would be 4:30 and that would get me there by 7:30-8:00.

Nothing much has been different today just the same old measles & mumps or rather German measles & mumps. We get rid of several each day and

April 19, 1944, p. 2

[page 2] get in several new ones each day just to keep things on an even basis.

It’s going to be a close run on the gas tickets but I think I’ll have enough to get the car back. That seems a dirty trick. Bring the car back to you with no tickets. Joe and I together can get a book for his car when he comes up and I’ll make him share a few tickets. When one gets a C card they want someone else to sign that he is riding with the C card owner. I didn’t have anyone else to sign for me and even if I had I couldn’t have signed for Joe – That must all sound very clear. I’ll explain more fully when I get home.

I’ll not write now until I see you again so lots of love, etc.,
Daddy

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/01/22/ill-be-home-roscoe/

Haven’t Any Ambition (Gladys)

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April 18, 1944 envelope

April 18, 1944, p. 1

Letter transcription:

Kentland Ind.
4-18-44

Dear Daddy –

Just finished breakfast and thought I would write you before the mail man comes around so he can take this up when he comes. Mark has gone to school so can’t send it by him. It is cloudy today & forecast for rain. David isn’t going to like this I am sure. He was out so much yesterday. I had him out in the yard in the morning then in the PM. Lucile came out with Jimmy and we walked to town. I banked $235.00. Our bal. according to the bank was $75.00 but surely some check wasn’t in yet because I am sure there was a ck or two I hadn’t put down. Well, I’ll find out when the statement comes.

I saw Al Cast and he told me Socky had seen you and forgotten himself for a minute and greeted you rather loudly. According to Al, Socky was afraid he would be seen by someone who would not approve of his behavior – anyway he was scared for a minute or two. I saw Tibby Tilton and he was inquiring as to your address.

April 18, 1944, p. 2

[page 2] He has to be back Sat. morning and wanted to look you up, so you may have a caller some time Sat. I told him you were coming home after duty Sat. I saw several boys (sailors) on the street yesterday. I think Emory Richards was home and Jr. Morton.

– – Your letters of yesterday & Fri. just came. The one was posted the 15^th and posted again the 17^th at Hobart so must have been mixed up with some other mail. You explained your meeting with Socky in your Fri. letter.

In one of your letters you mentioned something about Joe – I had been thinking about when he would go up and if he is in a hurry to report in, it will cut your visit home short, since you won’t get here until late Sat. nite. Do you want me to contact them and make arrangements for you to go back with Joe? Of course if you can’t come home, I’ll be anxious for Joe to go early, but I am hoping you get to come home if only for a short while.

April 18, 1944, p. 3

[page 3] I think I have a bladder irritation but won’t take any medicine but the water treatment. I will drink lots of water today and I’ll see what that will do. Other than that I feel pretty good. Washed what clothes were dirty yesterday and ironed last night while J. & M. did arith. I was very tired when I got thru but went to bed and slept good all night so feel pretty good now. David is feeling fine this morning. He had 2 B.M.’s before I got him downstairs. He ate a lot of applesauce yesterday. I am going to give him cottage cheese today and try to stop him up a little.

The sun is breaking thru a little so David may get his play out in the yard. His new lower molar is thru enough to show up when he smiles.

I saw Marg Carlson yesterday and I hadn’t sent in the form for her scrapbook. I asked her what kind of a picture she wanted so think I’ll give her the picture we kept on the table, take in Noumea.

April 18, 1944, p. 4

[page 4] That is a good face picture and that is what she wants. I should give her one like you carry in your billfold – (or should I?).

I must get to work – not that I have any particular ambition today – it’s too early in the day for my pep to rise – I missed the mail man so will send this by Mark at noon.

Dorothy is taking Marie S. to Billings this week for a treatment. I was in the restaurant a while yesterday and she was talking about going up. Lucile said she would possibly have their car a day or two this week and if she does we plan to go to Laf. about Fri. and do a little shopping. I tried to get a new collar for the black dress. (I finally got the flowers off) at the dress shop but they didn’t have anything, so I have an excuse to go to Laf.

As I said before I must get busy, tho I haven’t any ambition yet.
Love Mother

Coming Home (Roscoe)

2 Replies

April 18, 1944 envelope

April 18, 1944, p. 1

Letter transcription:

4/18/44

Dear Mother,

No mail today – maybe it takes it longer to get here if you address it to the station but on second thought I guess it’s because it was Sunday when you would have written a letter which should come today so that probably solves the mystery of the missing letter. I mailed one on Sunday but I’m not sure that it leaves the base on Sun.

I had a talk with a fellow who has the rental of houses and he seems to think we will be able to get a house. He took my name & address, etc. I’ll keep looking otherwise myself however.

So far so good on my coming home this weekend. My plea is in to the commanding officer and I believe it will go thru from the way the assistant executive officer talked. If one lives more than 75 miles he has to put in for leave so that in case an accident

April 18, 1944, p. 2

[page 2] or some such he will be legally covered. Then when the leave is over the paper is destroyed so that the leave isn’t counted against you in Washington. Just an old Navy custom.

We had a medical meeting at the base so I just stayed and ate there and it is now after 10 PM. It was a lecture by some Chicago Dr. on infections of the hand. It is one of those you must attend things so I went.

Yesterday I got a letter telling me I hadn’t done my correspondence work in the past two years and a little not was added to the bottom saying this is the second warning. I’ll have to drop in and give them the glad hand or something.

Well, it’s bed time so I must stop and see what I can do about some shut eye
Love Daddy

The Easter Candy (Gladys)

1 Reply

April 17, 1944 envelope

April 17, 1944, p. 1

Letter transcription:

Kentland Ind.
4-17-44

Dear Daddy –

Yours mailed yesterday came this a.m. with the M.O.’s. I will go to the bank this afternoon and deposit the most of it. Will keep out a few dollars for daily use. I am so glad you are planning to come home Sat. Just hope nothing turns up to change your plans. It is sunny so far today but there are grey clouds hanging around and the weather forecast is for rain tonight. I hung out two washers of clothes. Took David out in the yard with me. Jimmy & Martha ran around and played with him and he had a good time. He is still having a time, but in his bed. I put him down just before J. & M. came home from school and he got too much attention when he shouldn’t have had any. He is tearing his bed up but will quiet down and go to sleep after John goes back to school. John is practicing now.

April 17, 1944, p. 2

[page 2] Mark has gone back to school. He always has so much play to get done before the bell rings. John is keeping his report card so you can sign it before he takes it back.

I had a little experience with the Bendix. I was trying to push some soap thru that I had cut up on the grader. I pushed too hard, was using a blueing bottle for the pusher, and the metal screen pushed thru. It dropped to the drain and I got it out thru the little drawer at the bottom, where the drain is cleaned. I didn’t try to put it back in place. Thought I would save that job for you. However I hardly think you will have much time for things around here, since you won’t get home until Sat. nite.

I am wondering if you have done anything about the housing situation and if so what the results have been. I know you haven’t had much time yet.

April 17, 1944, p. 3

[page 3] No mail today except your letter and Colliers. I can’t understand Jim’s silence. I suppose we will hear from him when he gets around to writing. I think I wrote to him about a week after you came home.

– – I resumed my duties such as washing dishes & clothes. Had a few of David’s things to do and didn’t want to do them by hand so gathered up enough others to put in the Bendix. It is all clear and sunny now. No dark clouds hanging around. I feel that way myself. That is what your letter did for me today. What a man.

Have you seen or heard anything about the neighbor’s brother-in-law? I would have thought he would be in the hospital where you are. So far as I know our neighbors are still vacationing in Fla. I suppose they will be coming back soon, now that the weather seems to be warming up. Hope it warms up for you so you can change uniforms. Purely mercenary thought.

April 17, 1944, p. 4

[page 4] David finally went to sleep and is still snoozing. I would like to grab 40 winks myself before he gets awake.

You remember the Easter candy? I took it all out of the box and put it in a desk drawer – to keep the wolves away. I just left the box & empty papers on the sewing cabinet. J. & M. made several trips to the empty box (force of habit). Finally Mark said this box of candy was a gyp. I didn’t say anything. They never did find my hiding place. I knew if they did it would soon be gone – This way I can have a nibble once in a while – Now am I an old meanie?

Shall I send Vince’s wife a check or money order for $34? What shall I say about the money? I don’t believe we settled on that. This mail service is something, eh what? Write one day, you get it the next and vise versa. I’ll not write to Mrs. Stanich until I hear from you.

Love Mother

Movements (Roscoe)

1 Reply

April 17, 1944 envelope

April 17, 1944, p. 1

Letter transcription:

4/17/44

Dear Mother,

Your letter arrived today. The one you wrote after receiving my first. I’ve been away from home now 4 days and received fou two letters – much different than in days gone by.

You mentioned the radio – It would be very nice but I wouldn’t want to deprive you of the one you use in the kitchen, however, if you think you could get along without it I’d appreciate it very much but we will see about that later. Maybe Joe has one he will bring along.

Our movements are somewhat curtailed around the base. Once we enter that gate where we entered we can’t leave without the executive officer’s permission and you remember the bridge going over to the Officer’s Club? We can’t cross that without the executive officers knowing it, etc. We can’t smoke

April 17, 1944, p. 2

[page 2] on the streets of the base so you see we are a bunch of good little boys at times. After 4:30, however, all those restrictions are off. We eat in the basement of that brick building where Joe & I went in for information so there is no real need for crossing the bridge or leaving the gate during working hours.

I loaned one of my white cap covers to a Dr. yesterday. He had sent all of his to the laundry and got bawled out for wearing his blue cover. He was one of the fellows that was with me at Silverstream, a Jewish boy.

The Frenches have a large library and I have borrowed a book “Our Hearts Were Young & Gay” to read. I think I read the condensed version in Reader’s Digest but for want of something to do I think I’ll read the thing. It may seem

April 17, 1944, p. 3

[page 3] a little dull after reading that in the Digest but I’ll see.

The sun was out most of the time today but it sure was cold when the breeze of the lake could hit full blast. We should get that breeze most of the time next summer when it’s good and hot.

John’s report card sounded pretty good and Mark’s wasn’t so bad as I remember so I guess the boys should both get promoted this year.

Well, I’m all run down so good night &
Love Daddy