Great River Road, 2016

December 1942 Letter from Thomas Eugene Davis to "Mom and Pop"

Citation

Davis, Thomas Eugene, “December 1942 Letter from Thomas Eugene Davis to "Mom and Pop",” Madison Historical, accessed November 19, 2025, https://madison-historical.siue.edu/archive/items/show/2430.

Rights

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Description

A two-page letter from Thomas Eugene Davis to Mom and Pop written on December 3, 1942, while in port. The letter mentions his friends Sam and Fred serving on different ships. He finishes the letter by wishing his parents a happy wedding anniversary.

Transcription

  • At port
    Dec 3, 1942
    Dear Mom & Pop
    Well, here I am back in port safe & sound. I would like to tell you about the voyage, but I can't do it just now. I'm feeling fine & tell Berry I've gained 8 lbs. She was interested in my weight the last time I was home. I guess Nora called you right after I called the other night. It sure was good to talk to her. She was just as excited as I was. I found Sam & Fred. We are all on different ships, but we are all in port now. Sam is on the sister ship of mine. Nora was telling Chuck [sp?] went back to his wife & Bob was to be drafted Wednesday. Tell Mary her & Nora can raise [end page 1] cats to-gether now. Did he get a commission when he went in.

    I hope everybody is feeling fine & in good health. Is Pop feeling O. K. Sam and Fred were sure tickled to see me & I felt the same way when I saw them. I didn't ever think I'd see them till after the duration. I'm going to mail this on a [unclear] I can write more than one page that way. I've been eating every-thing I like since we've been in—malted milks, ice cream, etc. I'm going ashore to-nite with Sam & Fred. We all got liberty to-nite.

    Well, I've got to close & go to work. I just finished dinner. There is a lot of work to do in port. Write soon. Love Gene P.S. Happy Wedding Anniversary

In Collection

Subjects

  • government
  • Alton
  • World War II

Creator

Davis, Thomas Eugene

Contributor

  • Admire, Genna

Date

December 3, 1942

Language

English

Type

  • Miscellaneous Document

Format

  • Letter
  • jpg

Original Format

Pen and paper letter

Coverage

  • 1940s
  • Alton, Illinois

Identifier

  • AlbensDavis-D-005
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