Lansing (Michigan)

The Joseph K. Pettengill Collection was donated to Florida State University by Robert Sherman Pettengill in 2005, having discovered his father’s letters after retiring in 1999.  The centerpiece of the Pettengill Collection is a series of letters from Joseph Pettengill, an army clerk with the G-3 Section of the 6th Army Group, Hq Special Troops in the ETO, to his mother and wife throughout his time serving in the United States Army in World War II.

This collection relates to Francis W. Purdy who served as a Navigator on B-17 bombers with the 347th Bomb Squadron, 99th Bombardment Group (Heavy), during World War II.  He was stationed in Italy and flew during missions over both Italy and Austria. This collection contains a manuscript memoir written by Purdy which includes pages from training manuals and photographs from Purdy's life.