Rawls Family papers

John and David Rawls were born and raised in Marianna, Florida. Their father died during their youth, and their mother Ruth remarried twice. Both men served in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II, with John working transport in Brazil, and David serving in the Pacific Theater. The brothers had a very close relationship with their mother and wrote several letters to her throughout the war.

David married a woman named Marie by the time he entered the Army, and he talks about her in his letters to his mother. He was part of the B-17 group that arrived over Hawaii during the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7, 1941. In 1943, a shoulder injury caused him to return home on leave.

The younger brother, John, spent the majority of the war stationed in Brazil. Primarily in Natal, he often spent time in Rio de Janiero and Sao Luis. While there, he moved up the ranks until he was one of the senior officers on base. His day to day work seems to have consisted of directing air traffic at the base and managing transports from Brazil to Africa. While he often found this life tedious and the country very foreign, he made many friends and formed relationships with several girls, even adopting a dog. It appears he had an active social life, despite a grueling workload, and he discusses various parties he attended and day trips with friends and girlfriends around Brazil in his letters. After the war, Rawls earned a law degree from the University of Florida and served in the Florida State Senate from 1955-1961, as the Democratic representative of the 4th district. He also served as a judge on the District Court of Appeals, 1st District in the state of Florida.