Iwo Jima, Battle of, Japan, 1945

Scope and Contents

This collection contains papers and artifacts collected by Billy Thomas Miner, who served during World War II as a Pharmacist's Mate, 1st Class, U.S.Navy. Miner's service brought him honors such as the Marine Expeditionary Force Ribbon, Point System, Victory Medal World War II, Presidential Unit Citation, Navy Good Conduct Medal, and Asiatic Pacific Medal with 4-Stars.

The collection includes Miners' uniform, metals, ribbons, his newspaper collection, photographs, and his personal papers. It also includes various Japanese artifacts, such as a Senninbari, cloth items, plates, military papers, and manuals.

Content Description

This collection pertains to Francis Bryant Crews, who served as a Boatswain's Mate for the U.S. Navy in the Pacific Theater during World War II. This collections contains various photographs, a two-page manuscript, and a Veteran's Questionnaire. The manuscript details Crews' duties minesweeping and assisting the Navy Photographer on and around the island of Iwo Jima. The photographs included were taken by the Navy Photographer.

Scope and Contents

Douglas Leach served as a U.S. Navy officer during World War II on the U.S.S Elden in the Pacific Theater. His letters of correspondence to family and friends are about his daily life, on the ship and off. His family's letters hold information on how rationing and censorship affected the American family unit during WWII. There are photographs included of Leach's niece and sister.

Scope and Contents

This collection relates to Linville E. Evans who served in the U.S. Navy as a Chief Boatswain's Mate on the U.S.S. San Juan (CL-54) Atlanta-class light cruiser in the Pacific Theater during World War II. The collection includes photographs, documents, a newspaper clipping about the San Juan, a ship's newsletter, and two histories of the vessel.

Scope and Contents

This collection relates to Ensign Madison D. Farnum, a staff member for the commander of the Amphibious Forces, U.S. Pacific Fleet during World War II. Farnum participated in the campaigns for Iwo Jima, Saipan, and Okinawa. Farnum was assigned on the Flagship USS Eldorado under Admiral R.K.Turner in the South Pacific Theater 1944-1945. The collection includes photographs, documents, and letters.

Scope and Contents This unpublished memoir relates to Private John E. Lane who served in the United States Marine Corps, 25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, as a rifleman, runner, and radioman during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II. The collection contains a memoir “Private Lane,” describing Lane's experiences during World War II from 1941 to 1945. The collection also includes 3 portraits of Lane during 1944-1945. In the memoir, he recounts many important aspects, such as the motivation and patriotism at the very moment of Pearl Harbor, training experience, his family bonds, the battlefield, food supplies, Iwo Jima, Japanese soldiers and their humanities, friendships in the camp,...

Scope and Contents

This World War II collection documents the life of U.S. Marine Wilson Koontz in the Pacific Theater from 1941 to 1945, as well as the stories of his ancestry, children, and grandchildren. The collection is mainly comprised of personal papers, letters, and documents as well as a leather pouch and a scrapbook of the family's history. The scrapbook details his post-war experiences through various documents and writings from his daughter, as well as the lives of his descendants.

Scope and Contents

Maxine Newlander served as a U.S. Navy nurse during World War II. Serving in the United States as well as in Guam, Newlander wrote almost daily to her family back home describing her experiences in the Navy and the nature of her work. In letters she sent home to her family during the war, she describes her social life on the island of Guam, her life as a Navy Nurse, and her longing for the war to be over. The letters span from 1944 to 1945. The photographs illustrate Maxine Newlander's life in the Navy.

Scope and Contents

This collection relates to Joseph G. Moretti who joined the U.S. Navy in Jacksonville, Florida in September 1942. He served in the Navy's Construction Battalion (Seabees) and the 8th Underwater Demolition Team (UDT8) until his discharge on August 14, 1945. He was stationed in Fort Peirce, Florida until he transferred to the Aleutian Islands and, later, the South Pacific. His collection includes an oral history recorded in 2000, Moretti's naval logbook, miscellaneous government documents from 1941 to 1957, news clippings from the 1990s, and photographs.

Scope and Contents

This collection consists of items related to Charles F. Pfeifer who served as a United States Marine Corps Private First Class with Company A, 1st Battalion, 26th Regiment, 5th Marine Division during World War II. The collection contains documents, photographs, postwar memorabilia, veteran memorabilia, Marine Corps memorabilia, and Iwo Jima Honor Flight materials.

Content Description

This collection relates to the Reserve Officers Association and the experience of its members during World War Two.

Scope and Contents This World War II collection covers the overseas experience of a sailor in the U.S. Navy aboard the escort aircraft carrier U.S.S. Natoma Bay (CVE 62), Composite Squadron 63 (VC-63). The collection includes sets of uniforms, a bomber jacket, personal papers, medals, awards, and a plaque. His personal papers include personnel documents, two journals, captured Japanese papers, the Bluejacket Manual, Natoma Bay records, and various publications from and about the Natoma Bay Association. The papers primarily document his time spent in the Pacific Campaign, although his records also date his trainings in Rhode Island and Jacksonville, Florida. This sailor also...

Scope and Contents This collection contains personal papers including letters, notes, sketches, newspaper articles, and a radio interview of Mildred Shearer about her work with the United Service Organization (USO) sketching servicemen. Almost 600 photostatic copies and a few original portraits are included as well. The letters are mainly thank you notes in which servicemen and family members of servicemen commend her for her sketches. However, there are a few personal letters from friends and in one case, an entire collection of correspondence with one man in the Marines named Lieutenant Ralph Hunter Bennett. Her letters from Bennett are romantic in nature, unfortunately, they are abruptly cut...

Scope and Contents

This collection relates to Ernest Ivy "Boots" Thomas Jr., who served with the Fifth Marine Division in the Pacific Theatre during World War II. Thomas participated in the battle for Iwo jima, where he served as Platoon Sergeant to the men who raised the first flag atop Mt. Suribachi. He was subsequently killed in action on March 3, 1945 in Iwo Jima. This collection contains letters from Thomas to his mother, as well as photographs from the flag raising on Iwo Jima, letters to Mrs. Thomas after Ernest's death, and military magazines.

Scope and Contents

Adolph Joseph Westheimer served in the US Army Air Corps during World War II in the Pacific Theater. The collection includes personal letters, government documents pertaining to his service, some postcards, tickets, papers with Japanese scripts, and Japanese artifacts. It also includes the oral history transcript of the Westheimer interview and manuscripts giving detailed descriptions and information on living conditions of Air Force members during the war in Japan. In addition, it includes the certificates of his physical conditions.