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Civilian ItemsWORLD WAR II RATION BOOKSCharles Sandler, U.S. Navy Petty Officer, was a chemist stationed in the Great Lakes region. His collection contains photographs, memoirs, newspaper clippings, military papers, and ration books for himself as well as his brother, Lewis Jacob Sandler. These items were donated by his daughter Rosalind Sandler-Sigman.
President Franklin Delano RooseveltSANDLER AND ROOSEVELTFlorence Rose Sandler, wife of veteran Charles Sandler, acquired this handkerchief exclaiming "We Want Roosevelt" around the first time she could vote in an election. On April 13, 1945, her husband received a memorandum from the Navy informing him of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's death. The news of Roosevelt's death covered the front page of the PM Daily, a New York newspaper, on the same date. Rosalind Sandler-Sigman, daughter of Florence and Charles Sandler, donated the collection.
Miscellaneous
A SOLDIER'S WATERCOLORSWilliam Morris Whitehead, U.S. Navy Aerographer's Mate 1st Class served forty-four months in the Navy. In addition to his memoirs and photographs, he donated four original watercolor paintings. ETA 1828 depicts a plane in flight. Buckshot 0611 depicts planes on a beach runway with a control tower in the background.
Special CollectionsJAMES DONALD MEEKSMAKING FRIENDS DURING WARTIME SERVICE IN FRANCEJames Donald Meeks, Corporal, U.S. Army, was a clerk with the 90th Division, 358th Infantry Regiment. The Meeks collection consists of 252 letters, primarily to his mother, Mary Meeks; 110 photographs; newspaper articles; and miscellaneous items such as holiday cards, military newsletters, and souvenirs. In the July 22, 1944, letter to his mother, Meeks describes the weather and his situation in France. The displayed photographs document Meeks's experiences while in LeMans, France, during 1944. He became friendly with a French family, the Marchals, when his unit of eight clerks pitched their tents in the Marchals' back yard. Madame Marchal brought the Americans food and wine and did their laundry, and the Americans helped her husband, an engineer, improve his English. The photographs in the case show Meeks's ship off the coast of Normandy, and examples, including the enlarged photograph, of soldiers relaxing and enjoying time with their French hosts. James Donald Meeks sent the displayed materials to his mother at Christmas 1944. Included in the display is Meeks's copy of a Christmas card from General George Patton to his soldiers. As the war came to an end, Meeks wrote to his mother: "Well, it is nearly all over--the days and the victories that we have looked forward to for so long are upon us--but I can feel so little." During World War II, General George C. Marshall referred to The Stars and Stripes newspaper "as a symbol of the things we are fighting to preserve . . . free thought and free expression of a free people." Meeks saved this issue that relates Allied progress against German forces after D-Day, June 6, 1944. A safe conduct order allows a person to travel safely through war zones. This one offered Germans an incentive to surrender. The materials were donated by J. Robert Meeks, son of James Donald Meeks.
"FOR THE PLEASURE OF A LITTLE GIRL"James Donald Meeks wrote the majority of his letters to his mother, Mary Meeks, who occasionally submitted portions of his humorous descriptions to the local newspaper. After the war ended in 1945, Corporal Meeks was stationed in the village of Nabburg, Germany, where he became friends with a German family living in the basement of his house. Meeks noticed that their little daughter, Louisa, had outgrown her shoes, and was told there were no new ones to buy. He wrote his mother, "Buy two pairs of shoes, one low ones for Sunday, [and] some high-topped ones for her first year in school that will keep her feet warm when the snow covers the narrow cobblestone streets. We drew around her bare feet--I was more generous with her right foot--the left foot is pretty close." In addition to the shoes, Meeks told his mother, "If there is room, put in a bright blue ribbon, for her eyes are blue--[and] other stuff for the pleasure of a little girl," such as dime store jewelry and soap in animal shapes. "Outdo yourself," he said, "for but for the grace of God, she might be your daughter or mine." Meeks continued the story of Louisa in a later letter to his mother. Unfortunately Meeks was not able to present the package to Louisa personally because he was transferred elsewhere before it arrived. However, he arranged for a friend to give it to her. Meeks's parting from the German family was emotional, with Louisa and her mother in tears. One of Meeks's soldier friends observed, " You come over here to kill these damned people, and you leave kissing them."
WILLIAM JOSEPH O'KEEFE: FAMILY MANLIFE IN THE ARMYPrivate William Joseph O'Keefe, Jr., served in the Army Air Corps during World War II. On display are items from his army days. In the letter, he explains to his wife, Mary Jane O'Keefe, that he is going to take an army exam the next morning. Although he never traveled overseas during his service, O'Keefe found separation from home and family difficult. O'Keefe was stationed in Texas during Christmas 1943. The displayed Christmas card from 1943 details the hearty Christmas dinner menu at the San Antonio Aviation Cadet Center. During his war years, O'Keefe constantly used this stenciled-name duffel bag, which eventually became his family's laundry bag. During his training, O'Keefe was given this pilot rating book that an instructor used to assess O'Keefe's progress in flight training. Three of O'Keefe's uniform patches and his "dog tags," are also displayed.
FAMILY TIESO'Keefe was married and had a young daughter when he went to war in 1943 and tried to keep in touch with his newly formed family. In the displayed photograph, O'Keefe stands with his two-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Maggie, on a wintry day on December 31, 1944, while on leave. O'Keefe came home for good during April 1945. On April 20, he sent a letter to Maggie with illustrations of a train indicating that, as her mother had said, her father would be home soon. On April 29, O'Keefe telegraphed his wife, Mary Jane, to tell her he would arrive around midnight. After returning home, he received information to help with his transition to civilian life, including a guide explaining the G.I. Bill of Rights and a booklet entitled Going Back to Civilian Life. Mary Jane O'Keefe saved William Joseph O'Keefe's collection after his death. Maggie O'Keefe Petersen, his daughter, discovered the collection following her parents' deaths and donated it to the Veterans History Project.
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Library of Congress >> Exhibitions >> American
Treasures Exhibitions Online Survey July 28, 2004 |
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