Cleo St. Frances Papers, 1817-1945
- Title:
- Cleo St. Frances Papers, 1817-1945
- Creator:
- St. Frances, Cleo, 1910-1985
- Accession / Call Number:
- 1992.017
- Object ID:
- 1992.017
- Date:
- 1817-1945
- Physical Description:
- 1 box
- Scope and Content:
- The Cleo St. Frances Papers contain correspondence mostly written to St. Frances' family members while he was with the 58th Construction Battalion during World War II. The letters from Cleo St. Frances to his wife, Hazel, begin when he is sent to Camp Allen the U.S. Navy Construction Training Center in Norfolk, VA, in 1942. They follow his various training assignments across the U.S. until he leaves for the Pacific in March of 1943. These early letters contain details of daily life, types of men, and their attitudes. In January 1943, he mentions the prejudice against black mess attendants. Once he is in the Pacific, the letters mention the climate, books he has been able to find, questions and comments on his wife and daughters activities, but because of censoring, he is not allowed to give details about where he is and what he is doing. At the end of the war, in August 1945, he is in Okinawa and is finally able to write as to what his current rank and activities are, but it still takes 4 to 5 months for him to get out and home to Nashua, NH. Edwin P. and Emma (Patterson) Downes in Farmington, NH, receive letters from relatives in Wisconsin. There is also some correspondence of the Drew family and of the Nutting family of Nashua, NH. Much of the Nutting family correspondence is from Levi Nutting's son, Willie, who mentions a strike in Nashua in February 1980 and his enthusiasm for the typewriter.
- Locations:
- Candia, NH
Farmington, NH
Milford, NH
Nashua, NH
Norfolk, VA
Okinawa, Japan - People:
- Downes, Edwin P. , Downes , Emma , St. Frances, Hazel
- Organizations:
- A&P Supermarket
Downes family
Drew family
Nutting family - Credit Line:
- Gift of Charles Apfelbaum Rare Books and Collections on March 10, 1992.
- Restrictions:
- Available for research.
- Level Description:
- Collection
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