Tag Archives: World War II

Canning Peas (Gladys)

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: June 23, 1943 envelope

: Letter from the Indiana Medical Association

: June 23, 1943, p. 1

: June 23, 1943, p. 2-3

: June 23, 1943, p. 4

Letter transcription:

Kentland Ind
June 23, 1943

Dear Daddy –

David is nine months old today and balances the scale at 20 lbs. I traced his weight course on a chart given in a baby manual and he done a little better than average baby should do. He isn’t gaining so fast now – but he is so active he works his fat off. Of course 20 lbs at 9 months is plenty. He has a good appetite – takes a can of milk & egg yolk a day besides cereal, vegetables & fruit. It has been so hot today he has only his diaper & shoes

[page 2] on. I wouldn’t put shoes on him but he stands up so much & walks around his pen or bed and his shoes help him keep his feet steady.

Mark has gone to take a piano lesson & John is practicing. John used up the accumulated egg whites from David’s formula and made an Angel Food cake this A.M. He is going to be an expert if he keeps up.

Arlene came up yesterday about 5:30 P.M. to borrow the pressure cooker – had a bu. of peas to can. I asked her if she knew how to use it and she didn’t – I told her I couldn’t tell her how to use it, I would have to show her – so I was to

[page 3] go at 7 P.M. and we were to start – well as it usually happens when one wants to get started – bill was late for supper and we didn’t get started so soon. I had to stay until one cooker was finished – also stayed to get the second one on – It was 9:45 P.. when she started to time the second batch – and had two more cookings to do. I came home at 10 – and was so tired – Had been canning peas with Mrs. Zell in the afternoon – so after a shower I got to bed – had to feed David at 6 this A.M. then went back to bed and slept till the mail came and there was a letter from you dated June 9 – had

[page 4] one yesterday of June 10. I feel fine now that I got caught up on my rest. It is hot & sultry today. Of course not as bad as where you are but it is pretty much for this climate. Mother hasn’t felt well since this intense heat started. It has rained almost every day for so long – I can’t remember how long – then between rains the sun is so hot. One day the humidifier was as high as it will go – 80⁰. So much for the weather. Back to the peas – It was 3 A.M. this morning when Arlene finished the peas and in addition to everything – Donnie was sick in the night and she had to give him a enema – I told her I remembered once when she stayed up till 3 A.M. to decorate for a Christmas party.

I am enclosing a greeting from the Ind. State Med. Assn –
Love Mother

©2014 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2014/08/29/canning-peas-gladys/

A Little Irked (Roscoe)

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: June 22, 1943 envelope

: June 22, 1943, p. 1

: June 22, 1943, p. 2

: June 22, 1943, p. 3

Letter transcription:

Lieut R.S. Yegerlehner
Navy 60 F.P.O. San Fran. Calif.
June 22, 1943

Dear Mother,

I’m a little Irked this AM. It’s just one of those mornings when everyone wants to complain of a headache and one can find no apparent cause, and everyone seems to want something and seemingly they don’t have need for it – So much for family affairs. Just like a morning at home when everyone was up late the night before.

Got all my laundry dry yesterday in good condition so I am set for another week. My shirts are getting

[page 2] pretty thin. Went to scratch my back the other day and poked a hole right thru the shirt. I bought two since I’ve been here and should have enough to last for a time at least.

After a pause – Maybe I feel better now – nature called results obtained.

Yesterday was the Skipper’s birthday and everything was all set at evening chow. Cuttin’ meat, a cake, ice cream and he didn’t show up – went out for chow – was a little disappointing

[page 3] but the cake was saved until today. Either for lunch or dinner, I don’t know which.

No mail yesterday but it’s hardly time since the Sunday delivery came and the letters were fairly recent ones.

Had to survey some food this A.M. We always have some spoilage – The cans get bumped and wet and then spring leaks, and in order to receive that amount it has to be passed on by the medical profession. Canned meats are the worst thing because they sure stink when they spoil.

Well, I’m all written dry.
Love Daddy

Russell Islands
Image by Kelisi at Wikipedia.com (Wikipedia Commons license)

©2014 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2014/08/28/a-little-irked-roscoe/

Wind & Lightening (Gladys)

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Letter transcription:

MRS. R.S.YEGERLEHNER
KENTLAND
INDIANA
6-22-43

Dear Daddy: Yours of June 10 came today – Five came yesterday – I’ll repeat again all three checks came. We had quite a storm last night – lot of wind & lightening – Took the top out of the tree by Foulke’s terrace and the tree back of Zell’s house. Just took branches off ours, but the whole yard is a litter with leaves. Zell’s were going to a pea field and glean where the picker had been and asked me to go along. We went but the rain last night made the field so muddy we didn’t do much. People had been going out & pulling up vines and getting quite a lot but we went at the wrong time – However we got about half a bushel and didn’t stay but about an hour. John & Mark are helping Mrs. Z. & Virginia hull peas now. We pulled up the last of our pea vines last night. We have tomatoe vines in bloom, also potatoes are in bloom. Mrs. Roberts called me to tell me Joe had had direct word from you, then in your letter today you mentioned hearing from him. She has been getting late mail recently. The storm kept me awake a while last night and I am rather sleepy – My eyes feel so heavy I think I’ll have to have a nap before the day is over. Mother has David and in the yard but it is about nap time for him. when he wakes me in the morning for his 6 a.m. bottle he is up walking around his bed. John has gone now to take a music lesson and it’s time to start lunch.

Love Mother

©2014 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2014/08/27/wind-lightening-gladys/

The Crazyiest Letter (Roscoe)

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: June 21, 1943 envelope

: June 21, 1943, p. 1

: June 21, 1943, p. 2

: June 21, 1943, p. 3

: June 21, 1943, p. 4

Letter transcription:

Lieut R. S. Yegerlehner USNR
Navy 60 F.P.O. S.F.C.
June 21, 1943

Dear Mother,

Yours of June 2, 4 & 5 came yesterday. I just wonder if that of the 3^rd was v-mail and if so it is a little late. It seems from your letters that the bunch of mail along about the time I mailed the last two checks is delayed but I still have hopes.

Mark was home when you wrote the last letter so that was a relief. You mentioned something about not having too much pep – watch that garden work – yard

[page 2] work and all the other duties you have to do. No need of getting down for the sake of a small garden.

This is the first day of winter and it’s hot as the devil. Really I don’t expect any snow at all here maybe we’ll have to use the sheet and bed spread instead of just the sheet at night.

You haven’t made any mention of the bank acc. for a few days. In fact I think it was the first of May. If you could remember a word around the first of each month would keep me informed. Not that

[page 3] I could help any but it would give me an idea of how things were going.

You said Mark’s Adenoids weren’t bad but the tonsils were only the letter describing them I guess was the one of June 3^rd which did not arrived.

I got a letter from Hicky yesterday and also the note that was sent up personally. I had sent a letter back to him that was 2/3 cut away by the censore so he wrote me another which was OK, and nothing cut out. Said he must have pulled a boot in the previous one.

There was also the crazyiest

[page 4] letter from the Indiana State Med. Assoc. It was in the way of giving advice as to health – diet, exercise, etc. I would sent it to you but I want to send it back with some modifications and additions. One thing they suggested was to sleep 8 hours every night regardless let nothing interfere. They haven’t been where I’ve been. Another was to diet –Eat only white meat of chicken & pheasant. The red meats are too fatening. They just haven’t eaten any field rations. And so the paper ran. I’ll fix it and send it back to them if I don’t lose my ambition

Love Daddy

Russell Islands
Image by Kelisi at Wikipedia.com (Wikipedia Commons license)

©2014 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2014/08/26/the-crazyiest-letter-roscoe/

Left A Hankie (Gladys)

4 Replies

Letter Transcription:

MRS. R.S. YEGERLEHNER
KENTLAND
INDIANA
6-21-43

Dear Daddy – Five letters today. One May 27 – the rest in June – latest June 6. I repeat rec’d all the cks – Paid off J. H. Ins. loan and have receipt. It is a beautiful June day – had a hard rain that cooled things off yesterday. Have lots I want to do today but not getting much done. Just wrote an answer to a letter from Helen H. I stayed there the night I took Mark to St. E. and left a hankie so Helen returned it in a letter. Said she wasn’t hearing from Dan so much at present & doesn’t know his location. The Readers Digest came and John has it going from cover to cover. I think he reads it thru every month. Mark just got up and has had breakfast. Since his tonsillectomy I let him sleep as long as he wants to sleep. I think he is much better – in the way of nervous habits. I think if I can get him to eat & sleep enough he will get over twitching. John said he thought Mark is better & he watches him rather closely. David supposed to be taking a nap but I hear him singing. It will soon be time for him to have a bath. I woke at 5 a.m. to see him walking around his bed – I got up at 5:30 & got his bottle – I feel sleepy from waking so early – Maybe I can get a nap some time but I doubt it – I sent you several pictures June 12 – let me know when you get them. Will send more next week.

Love Mother

©2014 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2014/08/25/left-a-hankie-gladys/

Father’s Day (Roscoe)

1 Reply

: June 20, 1943 envelope

: June 20, 1943, p. 1

: June 20, 1943, p. 2

: June 20, 1943, p. 3

: June 20, 1943, p. 4

Letter transcription:

Lieut R. S. Yegerlehner USNR
Navy 60 F.P.O. S.F.C.

Dear Mother,

Sunday A.M. and sorta loafing around just like a nice summer A.M. at home. Even had a late breakfast. I think the cooks must have had a rough Sat. night possibly down at the corner drug store or in Joe’s Bar room. I doubt if anyone knew or cared whether yesterday was Sat., etc. It’s really funny sometimes about the arguments as to the day of the week. Sometimes one is off as much as two days.

[page 2] Just got a note from Hicky. He gave it to a passer by and it came to me this A.M. It was written yesterday. He always wants me to come and see him but our modes of travel are not for visiting purposes. It sure would be fine to talk to someone from home and someone who appreciated Indiana and it’s “corn” as much as I do. Of course, every state takes a beating in turn. We think Reno will soon find out about the war because the stage coach is due there now that spring is here and

[page 3] the roads are passable – and so it goes.

According to the calendar today is Father’s Day so will have to add a little something to my letter home to the folks. Of course it should have been done several days ago but I just forgot it.

Just stopped to take on a cake of chewing gum. W With that you sent Christmas and with what Mom sent I still have quite a supply.

It seems funny to hear some of the new fellows talk – all about the “zoot suits” and the

[page 4] color of the Ration cards and the different cards in use and also about some of the latest shows and new books. We don’t get those commonplace news and you folk back there think nothing of it because it’s just a gradual process.

In some of the latest magazines there are jokes and cartoons regarding shoe rationing which are a little hard to understand. I guess we won’t have any trouble catching on to those things – anyway just give us a chance –

No mail again yesterday
Love Daddy

Russell Islands
Image by Kelisi at Wikipedia.com (Wikipedia Commons license)

©2014 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2014/08/24/fathers-day-roscoe/

Father’s Day (Gladys)

1 Reply

: June 20, 1943 envelope

: June 20. 1943,p. 1

: June 20. 1943, p. 2

: June 20, 1943, p. 3

: June 20, 1943, p. 4

: June 20, 1943, p. 5

: June 20, 1943, p. 6

Letter transcription:

Kentland Ind
June 20 – 1943

Dear Daddy –

Sunday and rain again. John has kept check on the rain on Sunday’s since Easter and this is the 8^th Sunday. It rained on Easter and he wanted to see if there was anything to the old adage about rain for seven Sundays – I think he said today disproved that because this is the 8^th. It hadn’t rained for a few days so I think this rain was beginning to be needed. However some of the farmers will need to replant corn because cut worms have ruined entire fields of corn around here. Washburn’s lost one field and everyone was so late in getting corn planted due to the continued rains. The cut worms

[page 2] have kept Mr. Zell on the jump. He has helped us with our garden and the boys in turn help him around his place. They moved the lawn for him last week and Mark helped him plant late potatoes last week. I don’t remember you ever ridging potatoes in our garden, but that is his method so he run the garden plow thru our potatoe and J. & M. hoed up the ridges. Now they will help him ridge his. They haven’t a pressure cooker so I took our cooker over and helped her can peas one night this week. We didn’t raise enough peas to can but I have been buying canned peas each month with our points. I bought some canned pineapple last week – and a medium size can takes 24 points – or half of one’s ration points for a month.

[page 3] Oranges are 55¢ a dz. – but we don’t use many because David hasn’t been able yet to take orange juice and J. & M. don’t care for it all the time. I still give D. Vit. C tablets. I tried to give him juice one day this week and he threw it up. We have a Baby Care Manual that was given to me at the hospital and in it are listed the achievements of 3-6-9 & 12 mo. olds. We checked on D. and he can do some of the 12 mo. things – like walking around his pen. It doesn’t say anything about a baby standing up in the buggy & holding on to the top. That’s one thing he has on the book. He tries to climb out of his play chair and got so I couldn’t feed him he was always twisting and squirming around and climbing over the side so yesterday I decided it was time to do something about the situation and I spanked.

[page 4] He cried and kept on so I spanked again – he cried a while then settled down and had his breakfast as nice as he should – now we have no trouble at meal times. John & Mark were both present at the time and both agreed it was the thing to do. They are both very much attached to David but agree he must be corrected when necessary. John said we corrected him when he was small and must do the same with David. J. & M. say they don’t want David to be a “mean little kid.” John is entertaining him now. He woke up too soon from his nap and has been a little cross and it’s getting near his 2 P.M. feeding.

I went to church this morning. Mother said she didn’t feel like going. It was getting cloudy when we got out of church and a few

[page 5] minutes after we came home it was so dark we had to turn on the light, such a black cloud in the north spread over and then it poured down for a while – now it just a steady sprinkle.

After our garden work yesterday we cleaned up and went to town – I told John it was silly for town people to go to town on Sat. nite – I wanted to get a gal. of wax – I got it at Childress – He had his office open but he wasn’t selling gas. We parked the car there. He closes every evening at 6 P.M.

I rec’d 18 letters last week – the latest being June 5 – Also the 100⁰⁰ ck – I paid the Ins. loan. At present I have a bal. of 189.70 but will have to pay ins prems. Next month $83.66 altogether, also have some other bills amting to 21⁰⁰ – However I will get 200 the first of the July & your Ins won’t have to be pd till after I get that – also will have to pay Link for the bicycle – The auto ins. will be due in Aug but will have two cks before it is due. David has had his vegetables and is asleep now.

Love – Mother

(over)

Just came from Arlene’s – she told me Marie Steinbaugh’s breast operation proved to be a very deep cancer – they took off her breast and cut into her arm. She will have to take radium treatments now – also Rosemary is in the hospital for an appendectomy – her baby is 7 wks old.

“Nuthin” About Gardens (Roscoe)

1 Reply

: June 19, 1943 envelope

: June 19, 1943, p. 1

: June 19, 1943, p. 2

: June 19, 1943, p. 3

: June 19, 1943, p. 4

Letter transcription:
June 19, 1943
Lieut R. S. Yegerlehner USNR
Navy 60 F.P.O. S.F.C.

Dear Mother,

Well, it’s been some time now since the above was written – just sitting trying to think of something which might be slightly interesting.

I see someone working in my garden – probably pulling weeds and I think it will probably be a wreck because one of those fellows thinks he knows but he don’t know from “nuthin” about gardens. One time he gave his experience in horticulture – which was one lilac bush planted and someone

[page 2] stole it before it had a chance to grow but he still insists he knows so that the reason I’m afraid the whole project will be ruined. I’ll make a report on that later.

My chief pharm. and corpsman sometimes get under my skin always wanting something like a bunch of kids. The chief thinks he should have more men and I tell him to make the boys he has work. The boys want time off and they don’t like where they live, etc. Just a big happy family. Of course, most

[page 3] of the time I just laugh at them and as Dorothy K. would say pass out some sarcasm, and they like it more than somewhat.

By the way – do Krulls still have their car and are their tires still holding out. As I remember both car & tires weren’t so hot when I left. And maybe I’d better ask the same question about our own car. Hope you don’t drive it as much as Alma W. used to drive their car, but I’m not worried about that because the gas rationing wouldn’t allow that. Has anyone been able to get a new car?

[page 4] I talked to a Dr. yesterday who left the States in Apr. 43. I just sorta stared wondering what it was like. Then he stared back when I told him it was Aug. when I had last seen the States. I also asked him if he had heard of how long our stay out might be and he had nothing to offer in that respect.

The chief was back again for some more dope but no requests this time so we parted good friends –

Excuse this letter please
Love Daddy

Russell Islands
Image by Kelisi at Wikipedia.com (Wikipedia Commons license)

Happy Father’s Day (Mark)

1 Reply

Letter transcription:

MARK YEGERLEHNER
KENTLAND
INDIANA
6-19-43

Dear Daddy, tomorrow being “Father’s day” we forgot to send you a card in time to get it. Mother is going to send you a picture of David but it won’t be finished until next weekend. Since my tonsil operation John has had the weed in the garden and hoe around potatoes. I’m still working on my model air plane and if I get one finished I am going to hang it up in Pediatrics. David as you know has two teeth that are pretty well through. My 4-H club is having a picnic June the 22^nd and I think that I will go because I haven’t gone to any picnics this year. The weather is hot we don’t work in the garden now so I wrote you a letter for Father’s Day. Well that’s about all

Your Loving Son,
Markie

P.S. We’re all fine.

Mark (January 1943)

Happy Father’s Day (John)

1 Reply

Letter transcription:

JOHN YEGERLEHNER
E. DUNLAP ST.
KENTLAND IND.
6-19-43

Dear Daddy,

Since tomorrow is Father’s Day I am writing you a letter. I am sorry I didn’t think about getting a gretting off to you in time for you to get it tomorrow. I have had to mow the lawn quite a lot this spring because it has been hot and wet. Mother had David’s picture taken by a photographer. He had his mouth open and maybe his two teeth will show. David can pull up to sitting position and he can take a few steps when somebody is holding on to him. David woke before his map was finished and he is kind of cross. He’s just had dinner so maybe will take a nap.

Your loving son,
John