Joseph Updyke Collection, World War II Correspondence (MS-674)

Joseph Updyke’s World War II correspondence collection provides evidence of the wartime experiences of several Montgomery County residents, primarily those of Updyke himself, but also of his friends and family. The collection is divided into two series: correspondence and mementoes.

Series I, Correspondence, comprises the majority of the collection and includes letters dating from 1942 to 1945, as well as 1995. It includes mainly of letters that Joseph Updyke wrote to his parents between December 1942 and May 1945. During his time serving at Fort Knox, Kentucky, from December 1942 to May 1944, Joseph wrote to his parents nearly every day, and most of the letters are typed on good quality stationery. He wrote about various aspects of his life, including his work in the personnel office of the Armored Force Replacement Training Center, interpersonal relationships, train travel between Dayton and Louisville, rationing and food shortages, base and barracks conditions at Fort Knox, prisoners (see Apr. 6, 1943), working with members of the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC), and entertainment (especially military themed movies such as Bataan and Behind the Rising Sun). Of particular note are his descriptions of a visit by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to Fort Knox (Apr. 27-28, 1943) and of his sister’s and other female friends’ enthusiasm to become women pilots (see especially June 7, Oct. 20, and Oct. 29, 1943).

Joseph was sent overseas in June 1944, serving first in England (June-July) and then France (August and after). Letters that Joseph wrote during this time period are much fewer, usually handwritten, and on fragile, poor quality paper. He often commented on the weather, historic sites and scenery, holidays, accommodations, and mail service. He wrote less about his military work during this time period. One item of interest is a brief description of V-E Day celebrations in his last letter (May 11, 1945). He does not seem to have written about the Normandy invasion.

The collection also includes letters that Joseph received from family and friends. These date from as early as January 1942 to October 1943. While a few letters are from his immediate and extended family, most are from friends (usually schoolmates from Oakwood High School or University of Dayton). A few letters are addressed to Joseph’s parents but mainly pertain to Joseph. Of particular note is an exchange of letters from March 1995 (the only file not from the mid-1940s) in which Joseph Updyke described his World War II service at the request of a young neighbor, Ann Scorgl.

The following briefly describes the major correspondents, their relationship to Joseph, situation during the war, and sometimes their post-war lives: • Earl Updyke (1887-1948) and Hazel Updyke (1888-1977): Joseph’s parents, residents at 7 Ivanhoe Avenue, in Oakwood. Joseph’s father worked at National Cash Register and was a foreman during the WWII era. • Emma Kathryn Updyke (1910-1987): Joseph’s older sister, usually called Kay or E.K., a schoolteacher in the Oakwood schools. She also contributed to the war effort as a member of the Civil Air Patrol, flying airplanes to the east coast for transport to Europe. After World War II, Kay lived in Hawaii for several years, continuing to teach school and serve in the C.A.P. She never married. • Donald C. Updyke (1923-1990): Joseph’s cousin from Miamisburg; served in the Army Air Forces at Miami Beach, Florida, during WWII. • Edna, Orpha, and Laura: Joseph’s aunts, who all lived in the Carlisle/Franklin area. • Betty Jean Holm (1924-1993): Joseph’s long-distance girlfriend in Kenosha, Wisconsin. She and Joseph never married, but Betty later married twice (Dugan and Meade). • Roy P. Caponi (1922-2020): a U.D. schoolmate from Chicago; also served in the Army during WWII. • Harriet A. James (1922-1981): former next-door neighbor, who had lived at 5 Ivanhoe with Mrs. Ackerman, but in 1943 lived at 221 Oak Street with Mrs. Ada Brice. Harriet worked with Joseph’s father at NCR as a stenographer or file clerk. She later married Thomas N. Bridges. • Mary Ann Ledger (1924-2001): a schoolmate from Oakwood High School and U.D. She later married a man named Simmons. • Peter F. Legler (1924-2006): an Oakwood High School schoolmate who attended Denison University and served in the Army at Camp Wolters, Texas, during WWII. He was later a sales representative for Doubleday Publishing Company. • Firmin A. Paulus (1922-2014): a U.D. schoolmate from Russia, Ohio, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps during WWII, including the Battle of Okinawa. He later worked for Dow Chemical in Midland, Michigan. • Arthur E. Cooper (1923-2006): an Oakwood High School schoolmate who also worked at NCR during WWII.

Series II, Mementoes, consists of a variety of items dating from 1943 to 1944, including a few photographs (a nice head shot of Joseph Updyke, as well as a few outdoor scenes that likely depict Fort Knox); newsletters, including the Fort Knox Extract (scattered issues 1943-1944), Fort Knox News (May 15, 1943), and Entertainment News for the Men in the Armed Forces of the Louisville Area (Apr. 17, 1943); and humor (“Application for a Date with a Soldier” completed by Betty Holm and “Last Will of Adolf Hitler”).