When we were going through some of my parents "stuff" we found a letter. It is from my Uncle Arthur written to my Dad on January 14, 1944.
Dear brother Jacob,
Received your Christmas card yesterday thanks a lot for it.
I suppose that you already know that I am in North Africa. I suppose you are having a good time there out West. At least I had a good time in Montana boy I wish I was back there.
These natives around here sure live like pig. It sure takes a letter a long time to get here almost a month.
Is Hannah Kangas working in the same factory as you and Walter?
I got a letter from Hugo the other day hes expecting a furlough pretty soon, that boy sure deserves one. Well this paper is getting pretty well filled up so I guess I have to sign off. Take it easy and have a good time.
Your brother Arthur
A few things to note about the letter...
Walter was known as Bee Kangas...Bee was a year older than my Dad...they went out West to work in the shipyards with Bee's Mother Hannah, my Dad worked on the gun turrets when he was 17 years old.
Hugo was Arthur and my Dad's brother who was in the Army.
Note the censors 's stamp in the upper left.
Four months after this letter was written...
Arthur died in the Invasion of Italy May 20, 1944 and is buried at The American -Sicily Rome Cemetery in Nattuno, Italy. He was 23 years old.
Here is a link to more of Arthur's Letters.
Far Side
27 comments:
I am SO sorry for his loss to the family...I hate war...His life was so precious...
hugs
Donna
Wow. With a letter you can look into a person's past. I do love hand written letters. My Aunt sent me a packet of pages from my Grandmother's diaries from the 1970 and 80's ... what she said daily was so revealing about her life.
Thanks for this.
Oh, that is so sad, as are the stories of so many that have served our country.
May they rest in peace and know that we are so grateful to them.
All those young boys who had to become men way too young! I've always tried to imagine what it was like for my dad in WWII, as a 19 year old paratrooper dropped behind enemy lines. He just didn't talk much about the war. I think that was true of most of these guys like your dad and mine.
One of the men in our church spoke about Memorial Day yesterday. He was a battalion leader in the Marines. They got ambushed one day in Vietnam and lost 14 of his "men" on Dec 7. Most were only 19 years old. The oldest was 23. He still carries the pain and loss of them. You could hear it in his voice. He gave the numbers of the Americans who died in all the battles. It was a very reverent service and time of recognizing the price of freedom we experience in this country.
A little piece of the past highlighted so well in this post. Thank you for introducing us, and I am also thankful for his service and ultimate sacrifice.
What a touching, inspirational and fitting letter for today.
Those letters are such a treasure!
I'm sure many sad memories and stories were shared this weekend.
wow....i too found a letter like that, written by my dad in 1944 home to someone in his home town...same army censor etc. also letters he wrote from basic in texas in 1943 before he went to france...precious heirlooms...
Such a precious family treasure to have those letters from Arthur. It's so tragic that so many young boys were lost during various wars. And mankind never seems to learn do we?
Blessings,
Betsy
Arthur was so young, like so many others who lost their lives in the war. You are keeping his memory alive for your family and future generations who would otherwise not know about your uncle.
Two of my uncles were also in the army in WWII, luckily both of them made it home, though not without some injuries. Uncle Bob returned with tuberculosis and was in a sanitarium for some time, while Uncle Wilf had been gassed at some point and later developed emphysema. Wilf was actually sent home when he was struck by an Allied vehicle and had a severe broken leg. By chance, the two were sent home on the same ship, but didn't know it until they were hospitalized here.
It's traumatic to lose a family member in this way. I imagine your dad and his other brother carried that pain all of their lives.
I got a passel of similar letters written by my great uncle who was in the Pacific Theater to various family members. I always enjoy reading them. I have a few through a few other relatives too but just a couple here or there.
We just got back from visiting my grandfather's grave. He fought with the Army in Africa and Italy. Fortunately he made it home.
I thank Arthur for his service and sacrifice.
My dad was in the Navy in Asia. He never talked about it.
This is why I would hate to see handwritten letters disappear!
His letters make him come alive. So young.
Thankful for your uncle’s ultimate sacrifice so we can have freedom today. May we never forget this freedom came at a great cost. RHill, TX
And with that, you have a very personal reason for observing Memorial Day.
Thank you for sharing this. It makes it more personal for me too.
I'm so glad you saved those letters. And sorry for your loss.
This is really interesting!
Such a wonderful find, the writing looks a littl3e small and a bit hard to read
What a treasure to have that old letter but how sad to know that Arthur died so young.
Thank you for your sacrifice, Arthur.
God Bless your dad's brother, Arthur. We honor him and many others today.
God bless them all.
Gosh, what a special, special letter. So horribly hard to lose a brother and son. What My heart goes out to everyone. Thank you Arthur--thank you
Another precious letter. God Bless you Arthur and thank you for your service.
Such a handsome lad and a very precious letter. So many lives wasted in wars.
Wow. That's a treasure. When my aunt's stuff was being cleaned out my cousin found a postcard sent to her when she was a kid, from my dad who was six years older. I have it on my fridge now...my dad's handwriting to my aunt. Both gone now...I like to think they're rereading the postcard every time I do.
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