Name/Title
Spalsbury: #79 Letters Home August 10, 1944Entry/Object ID
2021.2.323A-EScope and Content
Letter Home from Pvt. R. C. Spalsbury, 17135556, Hq Co - 216th Armd Engr Bn, A.P.O. 412, Camp Chaffee, Arkansas to his parents Mr. and Mrs. George C. Spalsbury, 806 South 11th, St. Joseph (10), Missouri. Post Marked AUG 10, 1944, 3:30PM, Fort Smith, Ark., 8 cents Air Mail stampContext
Wednesday Evening -
9 August 1944
Dear Folkses -
It's 7:15 p.m. and I'm sitting here on the front steps of the barracks writing this. There's a good breeze blowing and I'm in my undershirt, so am fairly cool. There's usually a good breeze blowing in the evening, which is refreshing after the heat of the day.
It seems odd to hear crickets singing after being stationed in California for so long. I don't remember hearing crickets out there. There were some at Yuma, though.
Since we new fellows missed being paid at the end of the month - July - we're being paid on the Supplementary Payroll tomorrow, which is always paid on the 10th of the month. So, I'll have some more money to send home. Not as much as last time, though, since I'm not getting furlough ration money this time. Take five dollars of what I sent and apply it on Duane's and L. Lee's chinaware, or whatever you see fit to buy. I think five's enough, isn't it?
Every day more new fellows come in. Some of them are transferred to Hq Company from one of the line companies - A, B, or C, and many of 'em come from various camps, most of them from the Engineers previously. Camp Carson, Colorado; Cp Campbell, Kentucky; Ft Knox, Kentucky, and others. -
A bunch of us took a hasty physical examination yesterday. It's called an Empex Physical, whatever that means. I believe it's supposed to be for a reclassification. A lot of the other guys here have taken it. I've seen forms up at Battalion Headquarters.
I have wax in both ears, the physical showed. They've seemed sorta filled up for sometime. I first noticed it at Yuma, when one of them used to be sorta stopped up when I'd get up in the morning. I imagine they'll be taking it out one of these days, when they get around to it.
The P.X. will only sell 3 packages of gum at a time, but it won't take me long to accumulate a bunch of it, old kid. However, I'd better start tonight - I shoulda started when I got your letter.
Laundry came back yesterday. That's fast - turned it in last Thursday, and came back the following Tuesday - only 5 days. At Yuma we turned it in on Tuesday, and it didn't return 'till a week from the following Saturday or Sunday - 11 days. But of course it had to be driven to Phoenix to the laundry and back.
Speaking of sending Barbara Mann one of the snaps of Duane and Laura Lee, it must be mental telepathy. Because I did send her one in a letter I wrote her before I left Yuma. Duane sent me two different snaps, but only one of each one. So I told her to be sure to send it back. Maybe that was stingy. Well, if she wants one, you can send me some extra. I don't believe Barbara knew Laura Lee, at least not very well.
I've seen four or five movies since I've been here, but most of them seem like B pictures. There's a western tonight, as well as last night. Saw Edward G. Robinson in "Mr Winkle goes to War" the other night. Bette Davis in "Mr. Skeffington" was here before we got here, I saw by an old bulletin last week. Doggone, that's one I hated to miss.
I'm still doing routine work up at the Personnel Office. Cutting stencils, typing up Special Orders, Memorandums, etc., and helping Cpl. Cerabie with the Hq Company Service Records, etc. Sometimes my back just about kills me. Largely psychological, probably. So I take it for granted.
Air Mail letters seem to make good time from here, only taking a day or a day and a half. I'll send one free one of these days, and see how long that takes.
Pop, Sunday's paper came this morning, and last Sunday's came toward the end of last week. Thanks.
Kathleen owes me a letter, the rat. I wrote 'er before I left Yuma, and sent 'er a postcard the other day.
My nose is running - I've got a summer cold, I guess.
We had a formal retreat parade last night - it was really sloppy. I don't think much of the officers around here. Most of 'em are loud, bossy, individuals - not real officers that you respect.
Peach ice cream sounds good. The P.X. only sells vanilla - 15 cents a pint - and a sickly sort of vanilla at that. I guess I'd better stop now and go get some before the P.X. closes.
Love, BobCollection
Marshall WhiteLexicon
Nomenclature 4.0
Nomenclature Secondary Object Term
LetterNomenclature Primary Object Term
CorrespondenceNomenclature Sub-Class
Other DocumentsNomenclature Class
Documentary ObjectsNomenclature Category
Category 08: Communication ObjectsArchive Items Details
Title
Letter Home from Pvt. R. C. Spalsbury, 17135556, Hq Co - 216th Armd Engr Bn, A.P.O. 412, Camp Chaffee, Arkansas to his parents Mr. and Mrs. George C. Spalsbury, 806 South 11th, St. Joseph (10), Missouri. Post Marked AUG 10, 1944, 3:30PM, Fort Smith, Ark., 8 cents Air Mail stampDescription
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. Then Robert was stationed at Camp Haan in southern California, a U.S. Army training camp for Coast Artillery Anti Aircraft gunners. During his time at Camp Haan, Robert was transferred from Battery B to Battery A and began working as an office Clerk in Battery A.
At the time this letter was written, Robert had recently been transferred to Camp Chaffee at Fort Smith, Arkansas. He is working as a clerk in the Personnel Office.
This letter makes reference to time spent in Yuma (prior to arriving at Camp Chaffee), presumably Yuma, Arizona and potentially Fort Laguna a few miles west of Fort Yuma (operated by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers). Fort Laguna was one of twelve U. S. Army desert training camps used during WWII. Camp Laguna was deactivated and demolished at some point this same year, 1944.
This letter is two pages, front and back, written in blue ink on plain stationery. The envelope is smaller with red and blue hatch marks around the edge. The pages are folded in half and then again in thirds.Dimensions
Height
10-1/2 inWidth
7-1/4 inCondition
Overall Condition
Very GoodRelationships
Related Person or Organization
Person or Organization
Robert C. Spalsbury
