Name/Title
Spalsbury: #64 Letters Home December 20, 1943Entry/Object ID
2021.2.308A-HScope and Content
Letter Home from Pvt. Robert Spalsbury, 17135556, Btry B - 778th AAA Bn, Camp Haan, California to his parents Mr. and Mrs. George C. Spalsbury, 806 South Eleventh, Saint Joseph 10, Missouri. Post Marked DEC 20, 1943, 4:30 PM, Camp Haan, Calif., embossed in orange ink in the upper right corner of the envelope is a 6 cents U.S. Postage via Air Mail symbol.Context
Sunday Afternoon -
19 December 1943
Dear Mom and Pop -
Gee, it seems like almost a week since I last wrote you! I'll bet you're worrying your heads off, thinking all sorts of things about what's happened to me. Well, I'm O.K. I have kept pretty busy the past week, though, and so haven't had much time for letters. I did get a letter off to Duane last night. I had a letter from him several days ago, with his new address. I'm sorry he doesn't like his new field as well as Twentynine Palms. I imagine being separated from most of the other fellows is pretty hard to take, too.
I fired the M-1 Transition Course one day last week. It's required of any soldier before he's sent overseas. The M-1, you know, is the standard rife the Army uses. It was invented in 1933, and is much more efficient than the M1903 (the Springfield - the old Army Rifle). At Callan we all had our own Springfield, and fired it for qualification on the rifle range. We only fired about ten rounds with the M-1. I still have to fire the M-1 for qualification here (have to score 140 out of a possible 210), and will probably go to the range here at Haan someday this coming week. For this transition firing I spoke of, two other new fellows and I in our Battery arose at 3:30 a.m. and left in a truck, together with other guys from the Battalion, at 4:30 a.m. We headed for Camp Irwin, where the Transition Course is. Camp Irwin is about 140 miles from here, close to Barstow, and out in the Mojave Desert. Man, it was cold that early in the morning, riding in the back of that truck!!! I had on my long johns, besides my heavy G.I. overcoat, woolen gloves and cap, etc., and leggings. It took us a little over four hours - we got there about 8:30 a.m. We left at 4:15 that afternoon and got back about 8:30 that evening. It was chilly then, but not so cold as the morning ride.
From 6 p.m. Friday to 6 yesterday evening I was on Guard duty, the first I've had here. You're on two hours and off four, so it's not so bad. We eight fellows in Baker Battery had the third shift, so we walked our posts from 10-12 p.m., 4-6 a.m., 10-12 a.m., and 4-6 p.m. It rained part of the time, so we wore our raincoats, with our field jacket or over coats under them, as the case might be.
About Christmas gifts. I'm not going to send any money toward Duane's watch. Instead I sent him a 2-lb box of Choice Dates, gift wrapped and postage paid, which cost $1.97 altogether. I thought that would be nicer. I also sent a box to Warren, Kathleen, Barbara, Grandma Whinery, and to you folks. However, due to the Christmas rush, it may not reach you kids until a week or so after Christmas. I'm enclosing the three bucks, Mom, for the shirt and tie for you-know-who. Tomorrow I'm mailing a small package for you. Say, did you ever go to Smith's to see about the fountain pen?
Your box hasn't arrived yet. However, the notice about the Readers' Digest came the same day as your letter. I got my first package yesterday. It was a nice box of delicious home-made cookies from Aunt Nell and Uncle Charlie. They insured the box. There was a little fudge, peanut butter cookies, oatmeal cookies, and choc. nut cookies. I passed 'em around, naturally, so they're all gone now. I had plenty, though. Believe me, I eat a lot of the other fellows' stuff, too. They've been getting so many packages for the last week or two.
I had a Christmas card from Frank Hanlin at Loyola, with a note on the back. He and Haglund and I are going to get together in L.A. some weekend. Also had a card from Nora Nelson and Mrs. Leonard, one from Mrs. McReynolds, and one from Dorothy Schmidt, with a note on the back. The church posted the addresses of the boys in the Service on the bulletin board.
Thanks for sending the snapshots. Yes, the Spanish-looking building is the Dorm Bldg. of Loyola University, which also contains the Chapel and two small mess halls, one of which was a chapel previous to we ASTPers' arrival. The dorm bldg. is the prettier of the two at Loyola. The classroom building, in which I lived, is a square, box-like looking building. Yes, the tents are those of Co. A, 66th Rep. Bn., at Camp Roberts. You're looking down the Company street toward the latrine and wash sink. I sent these two pictures to Duane - thought he might be interested in 'em. I hope he sends 'em back, 'cause I want to keep 'em with me. I didn't think much of the three snaps of me, nor of the one of you. I'd like to see the good one of you and the one of Pop. I'll send 'em back if you want 'em. Are you having some developed to send to me of the ones I asked you to? I guess you've been pretty busy. Mrs. Montgomery has the negative of me standing in my O.D. uniform in Balboa Park in San Diego that Warren took. I'd like some prints of that and of the upright one where I'm holding my barracks bag. It's better than the one where I'm holding my barracks bags that's horizontal. ( ).
I've been seeing a lot of movies here at Topside. They're very cheap (only 12 cents with an Army Movie Book - 10 tickets for $1.20). T-5 Kurtz ( - Corporal Technician, sometimes called) and I went about every nite last week. We were going to hitchhike into L.A. this weekend, but I had Guard until 6 p.m. Saturday, and Bill had C.L. from 5:30 p.m. Saturday until 5:30 today. So maybe we'll go in this weekend. I'll have to go down to Haan and see Haglund this week. I haven't seen him since that Tuesday night I came back from furlough. We're planning to go into L.A. some weekend [NOTE "and get drunk." is crossed out] That nice-looking Pope boy hasn't come by. He seemed very nice. I saw Speer over at the Service Club at a dance the other nite. He was carrying some old bitch around on his arm.
Pvt. Charlie Gross (from Pa.) and I went to the Protestant Service at the Topside Chapel this morning, and this afternoon went down to the Haan Service Club No. 1, where we ate, I wrapped a small package for you, and we sat around the piano and sang.
Guess what. I played a set of tennis yesterday at the four courts at lower Haan. Kurtz beat me 9-7.
All my love, x Spals
[NOTE: along the left side of page 2 "P.S. - Most of the Battery got their ration money the other day. Those who had 15-day furloughs got $9.15. I'll get mine before long. I haven't been back long enough as yet."]
[NOTE: along the left side of the back of page 3 "P.S. - I hear the 778th may leave for 2 weeks at Camp Irwin (the desert)Jan. 3rd. Guess I'll buy a sleeping bag - they're 10 bucks at the P.X.Lexicon
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Letter Home from Pvt. Robert Spalsbury, 17135556, Btry B - 778th AAA Bn, Camp Haan, California to his parents Mr. and Mrs. George C. Spalsbury, 806 South Eleventh, Saint Joseph 10, Missouri. Post Marked DEC 20, 1943, 4:30 PM, Camp Haan, Calif., embossed in orange ink in the upper right corner of the envelope is a 6 cents U.S. Postage via Air Mail symbol.Description
Handwritten letter home to parents back in St. Joseph after being called up to serve in the US Army during WWII. Pvt. Spalsbury, at the time of this letter, has completed Basic Training at Camp Callan, California, was stationed for a short time with a STAR Unit for ASTP (Army Specialized Training Program) soldiers in Pasadena, CA then moved to engineering training at Loyola University in Los Angeles, CA. After flunking out of the ASTP program, Robert was briefly stationed at Camp Roberts, located in central California assigned to the Infantry Replacement Training Center. At the time of this letter, Robert is stationed at Camp Haan in southern California, a U.S. Army training camp for Coast Artillery Anti Aircraft gunners.
This letter is three pages, front and back, written in blue ink on Camp Haan stationery. Camp Haan stationery is printed with blue and red images at the top. This includes the Anti Aircraft insignia, two red capital letter As in a blue circle on the left hand side. To the right of the insignia a desert sketch in blue ink features a 40 mm Bofors Anti-Aircraft Gun with crew in the forefront with an additional one in the back ground. Below the sketches, in red ink reads Camp Haan (star) California. The paper is folded in thirds.
The envelope is edged in red, white and blue hash marks with dotted return address lines in the upper left hand corner. Above the dotted lines, printed in black are the words "After 10 days, return to." Below the dotted lines, printed in black are the words "CAMP HAAN, CALIFORNIA."Dimensions
Height
10-1/2 inWidth
6-1/4 inCondition
Overall Condition
Very GoodRelationships
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Person or Organization
Robert C. Spalsbury
