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Particularly strong among HSP's 20th-century military collections are those relating to World War I and World War II. Personal papers and organization records document the experiences of those involved in military service as well as the experiences of those on the home front.
Home front activities that are documented include the work of civilian relief and service groups, particularly those staffed by women. The maltreatment of Japanese Americans during World War II is also documented in several significant personal and family papers.
Please note that this is not a comprehensive guide to HSP's manuscript collections relating to the history of war during the 20th-century. It is meant to serve as a starting point to help users locate collections that may be of interest to them.
See the 20th-Century Collections Guide main page.
HSP staff is regularly adding finding aids to the website. Users should click on a collection's title to see whether a full online finding aid is available.
World War I
Allen, Alfred Reginald, 1876-1918; Allen, Alfred Reginald, 1905-1988
Allen family papers, 1837-1971 (Collection 3126) 57 boxes 13 volumes (23.2 linear ft.)
The Allen family of Philadelphia had its roots in Bristol, United Kingdom. Samuel Allen (sometimes spelled Allan or Allin) came to America in 1681 and settled in what is now known as Chester, Pennsylvania. The Allen family papers consist of correspondence, photographs, albums, newspaper clippings, volumes, manuscripts, ephemera, and artifacts collected first by Dr. Alfred Reginald Allen (1876-1918) and then by his son Alfred Reginald Allen Jr. (1905-1988).This collection of Allen family papers is rich in personal correspondence, particularly between Dr. Allen and his father in the late nineteenth century, between Dr. Allen and his wife while he was at the Army’s Plattsburg training camp and overseas, and between Reggie and his mother from the 1920s until her death in 1949. There are also numerous photographs and albums in the collection which are mostly family portraits, pictures of their summer holidays on Lake George, New York, and the family’s many travels abroad. There is also a significant amount of genealogical material in the form of historical biographies, family trees and letters. Dr. Allen began doing genealogical research and Reggie it. While Dr. Allen concentrated on the history of the Allens and the Pomeroys, Reggie expanded the research to include the Howes, the DeWolfs, the Huntingtons, and other related lineages. This genealogical research is particularly interesting as all lines of the family were people who settled in America in the 1600s. The Pomeroys in particular were some of the original founders of the town of Dorset, Massachusetts.
Baile, Ron, Mr.
Howard F. Baile collection of Hog Island Shipyard memorabilia, 1918-1928 (Collection 3578) 1 box (0.3 linear ft.)
In 1917, American International Shipbuilding was contracted by the U.S. government to manufacture ships and build a shipyard at Hog Island, Philadelphia, in an effort to support American soldiers fighting overseas during World War I. President Woodrow Wilson’s wife, Edith, christened the yard’s first completed ship, the freight steamer Quistconck, in August 1918. The shipyard ceased operations in 1921. Howard F. Baile of Gloucester City, N.J., worked as an inspector at Hog Island Shipyard. His collection of related items includes photographs of the yard and ships, including those of the launch of the Quistconck; programs and invitations; a copy of General Specifications: Hog Island Shipyard, Plant, and Property, July 1920; and issues of Hog Island News from 1918 and 1921. Additionally, there are two navy surplus auction catalogues, 1924 and 1928; a liquidation catalogue for the facilities of Wm. Cramp and Sons, undated; a printed hearing before the U.S. Senate of the United States Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corporation, 1919; various issues of Hog Island News, 1918-1921; two issues of Emergency Fleet News, July and August 1918; and a small group of receipts, invoices, purchase orders, and form letters. There is also a pin of the U.S.-E.F.C. 606 Shipping Board.
Emergency Aid of Pennsylvania Foundation
Emergency Aid of Pennsylvania Foundation records, 1914-1980 (Collection 3263) 62 boxes (70 linear ft.)
Emergency Aid of Pennsylvania was a volunteer organization of women which began in 1914, when World War I made foreign and local relief necessary and at which time there was no Red Cross Chapter in Philadelphia. Its purpose, according to the Charter of Incorporation is "to carry on both at home and abroad, emergency and relief work for the benefit of the military forces and the civilian populations of the United States and of their Allies." In World War I the Emergency was the first organization in Philadelphia to forward relief supplies to the military and civilian forces of the Allies and throughout the War sent millions of dollars in money and supplies for overseas relief, having its own distributing centers in each country. In 1917 branches were organized throughout Pennsylvania.
In World War II the Emergency Aid again forwarded relief supplies to the Allies and rendered services for the military personnel of the United States, such as distributing supplies, operating canteens and recreation rooms, and provided housing and information services for enlisted men and women. The organization assigned volunteers to draft boards, hospitals, and numerous other war relief agencies and sold over $68,060,678 worth of war bonds. Throughout the war years and in peacetime, a concurrent local welfare program was carried on, including follow-up care for infantile paralysis victims, unemployment relief, supplemental meals for school children, emergency help and clothing for individuals and families, and help for the disabled, the sick, and the underprivileged. The collection includes monthly bulletins (1928-1960), newsletters/bulletins (1918-1978), bylaws (1943, 1956), World War I printed reports, membership and dues cards (1969-1970), personnel records, financial information (1970s), fundraising (1970s), special events (1970s), and charitable outreach projects (1970s). Also included are a scrapbook, published books, photographs, certificates, ribbons, phonograph records with radio interviews from World War II.
Harper, Clarence L.,
Clarence L. Harper papers on the drafting of Philadelphians by the Selective Service System during World War I, 1917-1918 (Collection 1203) 1 box (0.66 linear ft.)
Papers of Clarence L. Harper on the drafting of Philadelphians for World War I.
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Historical Society of Pennsylvania war posters collection, 1914-1945 (Collection V95) (2.4 linear ft.)
The collection includes over 500 original World War I and World War II posters. The World War I series includes a number of Liberty Loan, American National Red Cross, and the U.S. Food Administration posters, while the World War II group includes American home front posters, many published by the Office of War Information. Other organizations represented in the collection include the War Production Board, the U.S. Shipping Board, Emergency Fleet Corporation, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Coast Guard Women's Reserve ("Spars"), the Y.W.C.A., the Women’s Land Army, as well as branches of the U.S. military. War bonds, rationing, enlistment, vigilance, and conservation of resources are all topics treated by these artworks. The collection includes posters by such famous artists as Albert Dorne, James Montgomery Flagg, E. McKnight Kauffer, David Stone Martin, Norman Rockwell, Ben Shan, and Frederick Siebel. The collection is arranged into three series: World War I, World War II, and Commemorative.
Leonard, Edith Lincoln
Edith Lincoln Leonard collection, 1916-1945 (Collection 2113) 1 box (0.25 linear ft.)
One letter, dated July 23, 1916, from L.P. Wood to J.B. Leonard comments on naval action at the close of World War I. The remainder of the collection is correspondence addressed to Edith Lincoln Leonard, a school teacher during World War II, from Phil Huffman, Alan Grout, Dick Thomas, J.P. Danton, George Dawson Perry, and Warner Bunden. The letters discuss life in the service from training camp through to the end of the men's service. Some topics include: censorship, active duty in the Army, Naval Air Combat Intelligence, west coast and Pacific assignments, the Zoot Suit Riots, Marine life, and Navy life.
Long, George V.Z.
George V. Z. Long papers, 1918-1919 (Collection 1528) 1 box (0.33 linear ft.)
Diary telling of the experiences of George V. Z. Long as Y.M.C.A. secretary with the 89th Division, American Expeditionary Forces in France, 1918, and letters praising his efforts.
Madeira, Edith, 1865-1951
Edith Madeira papers, 1900-1951 (Collection 2053) 2 boxes (0.4 linear ft.)
Edith Madeira (1865-1951) served as the chief nurse for the American Red Cross Commission to Palestine from June 1918 to January 1919. The Commission was formed “to look after the sickness and starvation of the civilian population in the occupied area of Palestine.” The papers of Edith Madeira consist of typescript letters, 1917-1919; her “Report for Nursing Service” detailing the Commission’s work in Palestine; Madeira’s nursing diploma and license; memoirs detailing her voyage to Palestine, by way of South Africa and the Indian Ocean; memoirs featuring her service in Palestine and surrounding regions; and lastly, a scrapbook filled with photographs, memorabilia, and a few plant specimens.
National League for Woman's Service
National League for Woman's Service records, 1917-1920 (Collection 2136) 2 boxes (0.8 linear ft.)
The National League for Woman's Services was the result of a study done by Grace Parker in 1916 on the work of British women during World War I. After completing her observations, she returned to the United States to organize the American version of what she saw. The league was organized in Washington, D.C., 1917, "with the object of establishing through the country, state branches to maintain a Bureau of Registration and Information, under which Bureau organizations may enroll, to be called upon for service by the Government in case of need." The league called for women to enlist their talents such as sewing, skilled labor, and arsenal work as appropriate to each committee. Some of the committees include: War Hospital Library committee, Comfort Kit committee (sending sweaters, socks and other homemade items), Musical Records and Games committee, Canteen committee, Membership committee, Belgian Relief committee, French War Relief committee, and British committee.
The collection includes minutes, 1917-1920, reporting on provisions sent to soldiers, American Red Cross medical volunteer service, instructions to civilians and soldiers, Liberty Loan and Victory Loan Campaigns, and other fund raising efforts; membership lists; Liberty Loan Campaign information; and printed materials on the roles played by the league and its activities and on League for Woman's Service outside the United States.
Noyes, Stephen H., 1881-1932
Stephen H. Noyes papers, circa 1916-1925 (Collection 1472) 2 boxes (0.8 linear ft.)
Captain Stephen H. Noyes served as an aviator in World War I. He was awarded the Croix de Guerre and the Distinguished Service Cross. The collection includes letters, orders, maps, photographs, and instruction books.
Pepper, George Wharton, 1867-1961
George Wharton Pepper papers related to the Pennsylvania Council of National Defense, 1917-1918 (Collection 1551) 3 boxes 2 volumes (1.5 linear ft.)
The Council was established in March, 1917, as a civilian organization to provide safety for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and later became a cooperative agency of the Federal Council of National Defense. This group advised Governor Brumbaugh, promoted civilian affairs, and assisted businessmen in the war effort. George Wharton Pepper served as chairman. Minutes of the Advisory Committee; correspondence file of George Wharton Pepper; publicity information on Pepper's efforts; treasurer's reports, 1917-1918.
Pennsylvania Railroad. Women's Division for War Relief
Pennsylvania Railroad Women's Division for War Relief papers, 1916-1919 (Collection Am .2999) 2 volumes (0.29 linear ft.)
The Pennsylvania Railroad Women's Division for War Relief began as a chapter of the Pennsylvania Women's Division for Preparedness, and changed its name when the United States entered World War I in 1917. The Division included women employees and relatives of employees of the Pennsylvania Railroad. Men were also invited to rejoin the renamed organization. The Division had eight departments. This collection mainly contains records of Department 7, which was responsible for hospital equipments and comfort kits, and includes correspondence, reports, pamphlets, newspaper clippings, photographs, notes, financial records, and other items.
Philadelphia War Photograph Committee
Philadelphia War Photograph Committee collection, 1915-1919 (Collection V03) 4 boxes (4.25 linear ft.)
The collection includes photographs and halftones gathered by the Philadelphia War Photograph Committee to document World War I participation on the Philadelphia home front. The images are arranged in three groups: civilian activities, servicemen and service activities, and war industries. Civilian activities include charitable and service organizations, military and political parades, dignitaries, and activities at local institutions. Servicemen are shown at military training facilities. Also included are images of military vehicles, the U. S. Naval Air Station in Cape May, NJ, and aerial views of New Jersey beaches. Industrial views document employees working in plants, particularly women in the work force. Cramp's Shipyard and Hog Island are depicted. Photographers include Bell and Fischer, Frederick Gutekunst, George E. Nitzsche, J. W. Replogle, G. C. Horn and Company, Henry C. Howland, J. E. Green, and Harry Gruber.
South Philadelphia Women's Liberty Loan Committee
South Philadelphia Women's Liberty Loan Committee records, 1917-1919 (Collection 0217) 4 boxes (1.4 linear ft.)
Corinne Keen Freeman (b. 1869) was the chairperson of the South Philadelphia Women’s Committee, a local branch of the National Woman’s Liberty Loan Committee that was organized in 1917 under the auspices of the national War Loan Organization. During World War I, the War Loan Organization oversaw the sales and publicity of Liberty Loans, which enabled the United States government to finance various aspects of the war by borrowing money on interest from the American people. The South Philadelphia Women’s Committee was composed of several smaller committees that targeted specific groups within the community for loan subscriptions. The committee’s headquarters was located at 329 South Broad Street. During the period of 1917 to 1919 there were four Liberty Loan drives and a final Victory Loan drive. The materials in this collection consist of Corinne Keen Freeman’s correspondence, the administrative papers of the South Philadelphia Women’s Liberty Loan Committee, printed materials, ephemera, and photographs from the fourth Liberty Loan drive in 1918 and the final Victory Loan drive in 1919. The correspondence in the collection provides a descriptive account of the activities of the Women’s Committee, while ward and committee reports offer a quantitative record of their loan sales within the South Philadelphia community. Ephemera and several photographs of Corinne Keen Freeman and the members of the South Philadelphia Women’s Liberty Loan Committee are also included in the collection.
Wallgren, Abian A. (Abian Anders), 1891?-1948
Abian A. Wallgren collection of cartoons scrapbooks, 1917-1947 (Collection 1782) 3 volumes (2 linear ft.)
Wallgren drew cartoons for The Stars and Stripes, the official newspaper of the American troops in France during World War I, for the American Legion magazine, and for several syndicated comic strips. The bulk of the collection is made up of scrapbooks of cartoons and comic strips. There are also clippings about his activities, and letters to him from prominent persons including Walt Disney, Herbert Hoover, and John J. Pershing.
World War II
Beck, Joseph E.
Joseph E. Beck papers, 1902-1988 (Collection 3083) 3 boxes 1 volume (1.2 linear ft.)
Joseph E. Beck (1904-1981), a native of Racine, Wisconsin, was a social worker who helped Jewish refugees during World War II. Having previously worked for various social agencies in Cleveland, Ohio, and Scranton, Pennsylvania, Beck became the executive director of the Jewish Family Society of Philadelphia in 1934. He headed this organization until 1942 when he accepted the executive directorship of the National Refugee Service, in New York City. He left this organization in 1950 and moved to California, where he continued social work and eventually retired. This small yet vivid collection includes correspondence, family records, photographs, clippings, and 16mm films. The majority of the collection is comprised of Beck’s candid and personal writings on a variety of social, political, and cultural topics. Many of these writings were used in Beck’s autobiography, a copy of which is also in this collection.
Biddle, Anthony Joseph Drexel, 1896-1961
Anthony Joseph Drexel Biddle papers, 1912-1961 (Collection 3110) 93 boxes (31.6 linear ft.)
Anthony Joseph Drexel Biddle, Jr. (1896-1961) was very active in Democratic politics, including serving as associate secretary of the Democratic National Convention in 1936. His activity in the political arena led to several appointments as a diplomatic officer. He served as minister to Norway, 1935-37, and ambassador to Poland, (1937-Sept. 9, 1939). After the invasion of Poland by the Germans, Biddle accompanied the Polish government to France, where he served as interim ambassador to France and ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the United States to the governments of Poland, Belgium, Netherlands, Norway, Greece, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, and Luxembourg. He resigned from diplomatic service in 1944, and then served in various positions such as adjutant general (with rank of major general) to Pennsylvania. The collection includes correspondence, speeches, newspaper clippings, photographs, scrapbooks, awards, commendations, and other miscellaneous material. The papers document Biddle's diplomatic career, particularly his time as U.S. ambassador to Poland (1937-1939), and his army career as a junior officer during World War I, a colonel of the cavalry during and after World War II, and a brigadier general (later major general) with the U.S. Army in Europe during the early cold war.
Bradley, Frank Gordon
Frank Gordon Bradley World War II correspondence, 1942-1945 (Collection 3548) 1 box (0.6 linear ft.)
Frank Gordon Bradley was born in Branford, Connecticut and served with the United States Army during World War II. He attended the University of Pennsylvania in the 1930s, where he majored in journalism. In the 1950s he moved to Philadelphia, first to Germantown and then to Mount Airy. This collection consists of approximately 300 letters written by Bradley to his family in Connecticut during World War II. His letters originated from various army bases throughout the country including Fort George Gordon Meade, Maryland; Fort Sam Houston, Texas; Camp Davis, North Carolina; Fort Riley, Kansas, and Camp Crowder, Missouri. In his letters, Bradley talked about family events, requested supplies, and discussed what he could about his daily life in the army. There are also a few scattered letters to Bradley from his family.
Doyle, Jerry Aloysius, 1898-
Scrapbook of Jerry Doyle political cartoons and other clippings, 1941-1944 (Collection 3586) 1 box (0.2 linear ft.)
Jerry Doyle was a cartoonist for the Philadelphia Record. This scrapbook contains a presumably full run of his cartoons that were published in the Record from January to December 1941. In them he covered everything from pre-war international and national matters such as Nazism, the war in Europe, and the “America First” campaign, to regional and local issues like labor strikes, tax reform and water pollution. His post-7 December 1941 cartoons take on a decidedly patriotic tone. There are also a few loose clippings that date up to 1944 that are probably also from the Record, one of which is an article on Doyle and his work.
Hauck family
Hauck family papers, 1930-1999 (Collection 3401) 13 boxes (5.2 linear ft.)
Darthe Hauck (1918-2006), daughter of Elizabeth and Percy LaCriox Charlton of New Jersey, served several cultural institutions in Philadelphia during her lifetime, including the Museum Council of Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley, the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, the Society for the Preservation of Landmarks, the City Parks Association, and the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania. She married Air Force Lieutenant Joseph Bernard Hauck in 1943; the couple had a son, Joseph B. Hauck Jr. about a year later. This collection consists of the papers, letters, and photographs of Darthe Hauck, Joseph B. Hauck, and their son Joseph B. Hauck Jr. of Philadelphia. A significant portion of the collection is made up of Darthe's and Joseph's weekly (sometime daily) wartime correspondence from 1942 to 1945. There are also several photographs from overseas at that time, including those of a USO stop-over. Papers from their son, Joseph Jr. are less in quantity but no less rich. He served as a psychological warfare officer during the Vietnam War and died in 1976 from the effects of Agent Orange. The collection contains many letters written from him to family and friends, his Army application and medical records, and a sizeable collection of photographs taken during his time in Southeast Asia from about 1968 to 1969.
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Historical Society of Pennsylvania collection of World War II papers, 1920-1981 (Collection 1479) 97 boxes 38 volumes (46 linear ft.)
In late 1942, the Historical Society of Pennsylvania solicited materials to form an artificial collection to document the war effort of a number of community and social service agencies in Philadelphia. The bulk of the material donated came from the Office of War Information, the Committee to Defend America by Aiding the Allies, and the United Service Organization of Philadelphia. Smaller donations were made by other community organizations and volunteers such as Mrs. Weber, a member of St. Mark's church who corresponded with servicemen. The collection, which dates from 1938 to 1948, consists of press releases, administrative records, correspondence, financial records, photographs, newspaper clippings, scrapbooks, posters, and ephemera.
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Historical Society of Pennsylvania war posters collection, 1914-1945 (Collection V95) (2.4 linear ft.) See description in "World War I" section above.
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Historical Society of Pennsylvania World War II propaganda collection, 1939-1946 (Collection 3335) 2 boxes, 18 folders (0.6 linear ft.)
The collection mostly consists of World War II posters from a variety of governmental and nongovernmental agencies. These include recruiting posters from the U.S. Coast Guard, Coast Guard Women's Reserve ("Spars"), Marine Corps, Marine Corps Women's Reserve, Army, Navy, WAVES, Air Corps, and Seabees; war bond posters from the Victory Fund Committee and other agencies; U.S. Civil Service Commission recruitment posters targeting women and men; Office of War Information warnings against spreading rumors or giving information to the enemy; prints of Norman Rockwell paintings illustrating Franklin Roosevelt's "Four Freedoms"; and wartime posters from the Railroad Manpower Mobilization Committee, War Food Administration, Federal Housing Administration, Social Security Board, U.S. Employment Service, Internal Revenue Service, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Boy Scouts of America, Children's Bureau Commission on Children in Wartime, and private companies such as F. W. Woolworth. The collection also includes a few British war propaganda posters, posters warning against forest fires, a series of Esso ads featuring "Famous gremlins you should know," World War II-era Christmas cards, magazine ads for war bonds, booklets from the U.S. Army Ordnance Department, magazine pages explaining U.S. military insignia, Pennsylvania Civil Service Commission circulars, part of a 1943 calendar with illustrations by cartoonist Bill Eddy, and other materials.
Keebler, William, 1920-1963
William Keebler papers, 1939-1945 (Collection 2166) 1 box (0.4 linear ft.)
The papers consist of correspondence with his family, personal papers describing life in various stateside army posts, including a stint in 1945 in the Pacific theatre, and ten photographs.
Kolankiewicz, Leon J.
Leon J. Kolankiewicz papers, 1888-1978 (Collection 3071) 6 boxes (2.9 linear ft.)
Leon J. Kolankiewicz (1892-1971) was a Pennsylvania state assemblyman, the first Polish-American councilman at large elected in Philadelphia, and a strong advocate for Polish wartime and peacetime relief. A native Philadelphian, Kolankiewicz worked with various Polish-American associations to educate and inform citizens of efforts to help Poland and its people recover from recent wars. As a councilman, he consistently worked with and among the Polish community to ensure their places in Philadelphia’s social, political, and economic schema. He also worked with other civic leaders to ensure the observance of important Polish events and holidays within the city. Kolankiewicz’s papers are primarily related to his public personas as a city representative and as a Polish relief worker. Included in this richly varied collection are incoming and outgoing correspondence from Kolankiewicz, Judge Robert and Anne von Moschzisker, and Ignace Jan and Helena Paderewski; assorted booklets and pamphlets on such subjects as Polish war relief, Poland-United States relations, and Polish tourism; and publicity photographs of Kolankiewicz. A majority of the items in the collection are written or printed in Polish since Kolankiewicz often communicated with his Polish friends, colleagues, and constituents in their native tongue.
Leonard, Edith Lincoln
Edith Lincoln Leonard collection, 1916-1945 (Collection 2113) 1 box (0.25 linear ft.)
See the description in the "World War I" section above.
Lloyd, Eleanor Morris
Mrs. Stacy B. Lloyd papers on American Red Cross's Allied Prisoners of War Food Packing Service, 1940-1945 (Collection 3467) 2 boxes ( 0.7 linear ft.)
Mrs. Stacy B. (Eleanor Morris) Lloyd, who lived in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, served as the chairman of the Red Cross Prisoner of War Food Packaging Center in Philadelphia during World War II. This small yet remarkable collection of papers relates to her work in which she oversaw the local Red Cross facility that produced hundreds of care packages over several years that were sent to Allied prisoners of War in Europe and Japan. The collection includes letters, dozens of photographs showing everything from the women workers to the contents of the care packages, and many clippings pertaining to the Red Cross and prisoners of war. In addition, there are five photographs that are mounted behind glass.
Lowrie and Derr families papers, 1844-1969 (Collection D1259). 28 containers (25 linear feet).
This collection of family papers documents at least two generations, based largely in Wilkes Barre and Philadelphia. It includes a large amount of family correspondence and photographs; marriage records; diaries; financial records; art work and a manuscript by Elizabeth Derr Davisson; research notes, manuscripts, and published volumes on Philadelphia history by Sarah Dickson Lowrie; and songs, poems, and plays by Thompson Derr. Documentation from 1910-1960 is more robust. Of special interest are materials relating to tourism in the Southwestern United States and Native American art, life in London during World War II, and Philadelphia history. This collection includes an extensive album of tintypes.
Japanese Internment
American Friends Service Committee
American Friends Service Committee, Clothing Committee, Japanese American relocation center card files, 1943-1945 (Collection MSS065) 4 boxes (0.6 linear ft.)
The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) was established in 1917 and is a service agency related to the Society of Friends. The Clothing Committee of AFSC sent gifts of clothing, toys, and other articles to Japanese Americans living in relocation centers during World War II. This collection contains AFSC administrative files for their program with new mothers, consisting of individual index cards for each case. The cards usually contain the name of the woman, where she resided, the sex and date of birth of the baby, and the date that a gift was ordered or sent. Some cards contain additional information. The cards are arranged alphabetically by the mother's surname. In English.
Iwata, Shigezo and Sonoko
Shigezo and Sonoko Iwata papers, 1942-1987 (Collection MSS053) 2 boxes (0.6 linear ft.)
Shigezo Iwata was born in Japan and immigrated to the United States in 1924. Sonoko U. Iwata was born in Los Angeles. The couple made their home in Thermal, California where they farmed and Shigezo was secretary of the Thermal Farmers' Cooperative Association. Separated in the initial part of World War II when Shigezo was arrested and detained by the FBI at the Lordsburg Internment Camp (New Mexico), the Iwatas were reunited in 1943 at the Colorado River Relocation Center near Poston, Arizona. The collection contains letters between the Iwatas and their friends detailing life in the relocation center and the internment camp. There are also personal documents and biographical materials.
Kobayashi, Sumiko
Kobayashi, Sumiko. Papers, 1941-1989 (Collection MSS073) 22 boxes (8.8 linear ft.)
Sumiko Kobayashi was born in Yamato, a Japanese agricultural community near Palm Beach, Florida, the daughter of Japanese immigrants. Her family was relocated from San Leandro, California under Executive Order 9066 and interned in the Topaz Relocation Center in Utah. Sumiko was allowed to leave the camp in order to attend college through the help of the National Japanese American Student Relocation Council, and graduated from Brothers College, Drew University in Madison, New Jersey in 1946. She has been active in many Japanese-American and Asian-American organizations and served as Redress Chair for Pennsylvania of the Japanese American Citizens' League's National Committee on Redress. The collection includes personal correspondence, documents, and photographs relating to the family's time in the Topaz Relocation Center, as well as drawings made by Kobayashi at Topaz and the Tanforan Assembly Center, but it consists primarily of records of the organizations in which she has been active. In English and Japanese.
Kobayashi, Sumiko
Sumiko Kobayashi papers (additions), 1942-2003 (Collection MSS073A) 11 boxes (4.2 linear ft.)
This collection adds to the Sumiko Kobayashi Papers, MSS073. It includes much information about the movement in the Japanese-American community for redress following the World War II mass internment, as well as information on cultural and memorial sites dealing with Japanese-American history. There is also a fair amount of correspondence between Kobayashi and the various organizations to which she was affiliated from approximately 1985 to 2003, with the bulk of the correspondence occurring between 1988 and 2003. There are newsletters, pamphlets, and information that flowed between other organizations to which Kobayashi belonged in this same time period. This collection includes a number of newspaper clippings. Lastly, there are letters from grateful individuals who listened to Kobayashi tell her life story.
Kobayashi, Susumu
Susumu Kobayashi papers, circa 1930-circa 1947 (Collection MSS071) 3 boxes (1.3 linear ft.)
Susumu Kobayashi was born in Hirata, Shamane-ken, Japan, and came to the United States in 1914 to join Yamato, a Japanese agricultural community near Palm Beach, Florida. He later worked as a florist and estate gardener in Chicago, and as a florist in San Leandro, California. He and his family were evacuated under Executive Order 9066 to Tanforan Assembly Center, and later to the Topaz, Utah, Relocation Center. When released from the camp, the family relocated first to Connecticut and then to the Philadelphia area, where Susumu operated a contract gardening business. The collection contains personal and business correspondence, business records including a ledger and daybook, and papers related to the family's relocation which include an alien registration book, an indefinite leave certificate, and a claim sheet for compensable items. Also present are recordings of Japanese music.
Yabuki, Dean
Dean Yabuki papers, 1931-1993 (Collection 3015) 1 box (0.4 linear ft.)
The Dean Yabuki Papers relate to a selection of photographs taken by Dorothea Lange and others at various Japanese-American internment camps during World War II. In 1992, to mark the 50th anniversary of the creation of the camps, Dean Yabuki created, "Captured Memories," an exhibition of Dorthea Lange's photographs, which chronicled the removal of Japanese Americans from California. This collection contains copies of prints by Lange and others used in the exhibit at the Asian Resource Gallery in Oakland, California. The photographs are accompanied by various printed items, pertaining not only to the exhibit, but also the experiences of those who felt the injustice first hand.
Vietnam War
Hauck family
Hauck family papers, 1930-1999 (Collection 3401) 13 boxes (5.2 linear ft.)
See the description in the "World War II" section above.