Author Archives: John
Who the Hell Shipped Him Out There
March 16, 1943. Anna writes to Dad. A letter from Stanley with the news that he is stationed in Salt Lake City and destined to move on from there finally reaches her. Hopes for a furlough sooner rather than later are dashed. The family in Albany is disappointed to say the least. Right off the … Continue reading
I Will Not Be Long in This Place
March 15, 1943. Stanley writes to Dad. He is starting to get used to being at Salt Lake City, although he won’t be there long. “This is only a reception center. Friday when we came in we slept in small barracks only about 25 to 30 guys. Then on Saturday we slept in regular wooden … Continue reading
Wedding Bells for the McCanns
March 15, 1943. Dad’s friend, Anne McCann (nee Moran) writes to him. After a paragraph of perfunctory comments she breaks the news. “Well, we finally up and did it. Paul and I had been going together for five long years and when he knew he was getting his furlough he said let’s get married, so … Continue reading
An Easter Present for Theresa
March 14 & 15, 1943. Dad writes home. Before receiving Stanley’s letter with the news that his brother was shipped to Salt Lake City, Dad writes, “I hope that Stanley gets to an air base near Albany unless they intend sending him to officers training school.” He is also enclosing post cards “of the Mississippi … Continue reading
It Looks Like I Won’t Get Near Home Anymore
Friday March 12, 1943. Stanley writes a quick note to Dad to let him know where he ended up. “Well here I am at an Army Air Base here at Salt Lake City. This is only a reception center. We may stay here from 2 to 10 days before we are shipped out of here. … Continue reading
The Income Tax is High
March 12, 1943. Anna writes to Dad. Apparently in 1943 taxes were due by March 15th instead of April 15th. The first half of Anna’s letter is tax related. She is enclosing Dad’s 1942 tax form which was filled out by an accountant that the family uses. Dad earned $1067.72 and owes taxes of $72.29. … Continue reading
Spring is Here
March 11, 1943. Dad writes home as Lent begins. The day before was Ash Wednesday. After a day of fasting he went to St. John the Baptist Church in Savanna for services and to receive ashes. Afterwards he went to the Savanna U.S.O. club where you could get ”coffee, eats, read magazines, play ping pong, lounge … Continue reading
I Am Shipping
Monday, March 8, 1943. Stanley writes Dad a short letter from Oxford, Mississippi. His school, course has ended and he had his final test in the morning. The test was made up of two parts, a section of true/false questions and a section of multiple choice questions. There were a total of 50 questions in … Continue reading
I Dreamed About You and Stanley
March 8, 1943. Anna writes to Dad. Eddie’s Uncle Smyt, who lived in Cohoes, has passed away. Eddie and Anna are going to the wake that evening. The funeral is schedule for the next day. As Anna is writing, Theresa Marie is “laying in her carriage and chewing on her teething ring.” They are … Continue reading