WWII Letter Tokyo Harbor, USS Bristol Sep. 13th, 1945

This letter was written September 13, 1945, from Tokyo Harbor, less than 2 weeks after the formal surrender of Japan, by a sailor who was serving aboard the USS Bristol DD-857. Some excerpts from the letter…………

Dearest Mother and Dad,

Here we are in the Japanese home waters. There are a million and one U.S. Navy fighting ships and fleet auxiliaries here: many battleships (BB’s), quite a few large carriers (CV’s), lots of cruisers (CA’s + CL’s), destroyers (DD’s) and patrol craft (PC’s), escort carriers (CVE’s), oilers (AO’s), cargo vessels (AK’s), transports (AP’s), LST’s, LCI’s,LSM’s, mine sweepers (YMS’s), and all kinds of other specialized ships. This is an immense harbor-Frisco is a pee-wee compared to this one………I can see many acres of burned and demolished buildings, factories, houses, pagodas, radio stations, and other structures along the Yokohama and Tokyo waterfronts. Mass destruction by the B-29’s and the American fleet…….The Iowa, Indiana, Alabama, Missouri, Wilkes-Barre, Essex, South Dakota, North Carolina, Hawkins, Higbee, and Bristol are all new ships. The Japs’ ships are at the bottom of the ocean: the greatest underseas fleet in the world! Ha, Ha!………..

WWII Letter 919th Field Artillery Germany March 23, 1945

This letter was written on March 23, 1945, by a soldier who was with the 919th Field Artillery Battalion. He was in Germany at the time he wrote the letter. Some excerpts from the letter……..


Dearest Darling,
Tonight I am of course in Germany, and in a town, and drinking Germany beer which isn’t bad at all. This is about all I can tell you……..Maybe if you listen to the radio or read the paper about the Third Army, you can find out more. At any rate honey, I am feeling fine, although a little scared once in a while, but I guess I will get use to it. Hundreds of others are plenty scared here too, even more than I. One thing I have seen not long ago, and it might sound like a lie or some crazy story, but it is true. I have seen Germans walking back to our lines and surrendering all by them selves. Sometimes five or six, sometimes one or two. They would walk along the road, with a white flag and head to the nearest town where we had plenty more as prisoners.

WWII Letter Morfolden Germany May 1945

Written by a soldier who was in Morfolden ? Germany, during WW2, in May 1945. He was with the 33rd Armored Regiment, and was with the 3rd Spearhead Division. From the letter…….Honey are they saying anything in the states about the men from over here getting out or anything of that sort? I sure hope I don’t have to go to the Pacific. I would just as well stay over here instead of going over there. But I would love to go to the states. Well Dear there isn’t much I can say. I am not sure if we can write of some of the places we have been. We were able to visit Nordhausen when they found that camp. I know the people in the states know about it as you wrote and told me about it. That is where General Rose got killed at. Honey that is one place I never will forget. You can’t tell people about it as they wouldn’t believe it. I guess you have saw some of the pictures that they took didn’t you? Well nearly all camps over here just like that was the same. The was we treat the prisoners in the states is really too good. I wondered a lot of times since I have been over here if they leave them go around just like they did at Knox……...Well if Bob is in the 1st maybe sometime soon we may meet. Well they couldn’t shell around him any more than they did me. I know we had a plenty. I don’t know about the nervous wreck but if I have to go any where else I sure will be……. I got my first bath for almost 4 weeks……..Closing with all the love, kisses and hugs I can send to the best wife, girl friend and sweet heart I ever want to know........