Research Catalog

World War II letters from African-American Soldiers

Title
World War II letters from African-American Soldiers, 1940-1945.

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2 Items

StatusContainerFormatAccessCall NumberItem Location
Box 1Mixed materialUse in library Sc MG 429 Box 1Schomburg Center - Manuscripts & Archives
Box 2Mixed materialUse in library Sc MG 429 Box 2Schomburg Center - Manuscripts & Archives

Details

Description
.8 lin. ft. (2 archival boxes)
Summary
The World War II Letters from African-American Soldiers collection consists of letters from African-American servicemen to Elnora (Nora) Bing Williams and her husband, Edgar Thomas (Ned) Williams of Brooklyn, New York. The correspondents are relatives and friends, and the letters describe their social and recreational activities on and off U.S. military bases. The soldiers share news about other family members and friends back home as well as those also in the military. In only a few letters were their lives as African-American servicemen portrayed, or their relationships with white military men or townspeople. The letters from friends also describe training to become non-commissioned officers. All of the servicemen had been drafted; a few men attained the rank of sergeant, corporal and lieutenant. Several were stationed in the Pacific and Europe, and obliquely wrote about general conditions there.
Subjects
Genre/Form
Letters (correspondence)
Source (note)
  • Edgar Thomas Williams
Call Number
Sc MG 429
OCLC
789358103
Title
World War II letters from African-American Soldiers, 1940-1945.
Connect to:
Finding Aid
Local Subject
Black author.
Research Call Number
Sc MG 429
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