The Althing

Letter or Postcard – Letter

Sender – Ralph Peterson

Recipient – Phyllis Peterson

Postmark Place – St. Petersburg, Florida

Postmark Date – 24 April 1943

Letter Date – 23 April 1943

Text:

My dearest wife and baby,

Here it is noon and I have nothing to do, so I am going to start this letter now and finish it tonight. Maybe I will have a letter of yours to answer. I have done part of my guard duty last night. I got off at four this morning and go on tonight at four, then I have two four hour shifts. Then I will be off for 24. It’s getting easier all the time. There are three of us  who are corporal of the guards, and they are all in this room. We are all from the same squadron. I wrote a letter to Gilbert last night when I was on duty, so I am catching up on my writing a little. So you are wearing my pants and sweater. You said they was too big around the waist, but I bet your little rear end fills them up. Remember how your mother used to yell at you for that and how mad you used to get? Now that I haven’t nothing much to do I think a lot more of the things we used to do and the fun we had. Now last night we had a little bull session in my room. A guy from Alabama came in and sang some songs. Real sad blues song. I just lay there listening and thinking about you. Boy, can that guy sing. He can almost make you cry. Then we had a little crap game between some guys from Texas. Just for the fun of it, though. If they get caught playing dice in the hotel they can get the guard house. It started to rain again this morning, but as usual it only lasted about an hour. Then it will come out hot as hell for the rest of the day. That’s the kind of weather we have down here. It isn’t at all like home and never will be. I am going to close now until the afternoon mail. Well here I am back again. I just got done with my guard duty and had the mail call. No letter from you, but I got a nice letter and a picture from Alvin. He was telling me all about how he and the rest of them got drunk when he was home, but he said that he and Pappy swore off drinking. I only hope so. You will never have to worry about me drinking anymore because I am not going to touch a drop of beer or whiskey while I am in the army. Believe me, honey, that’s the truth. I don’t want our Bonny girl to grow up and say her daddy was a drunk. I am going to try and make her proud of me, and if you believe in me I know that I can do it. Not much more new tonight, sweetheart, so I have to close and write to Alvin. So until tomorrow night, my dearest Phyllis and Bonny, from your husband and daddy.

PS – I love you and miss you more each day.

Notes: Talk about rolling the dice, Dad makes another fat-butt joke. When they got married Mom had a tiny waist, a fact which is corroborated by her wedding dress. This despite the fact she was already somewhat pregnant. I would love to know who the Alabama blues singer was. Grandpa swearing off drinking didn’t stick but I never saw my Dad drunk.

Letter or Postcard – Letter

Sender – Ralph Peterson

Recipient – Phyllis Peterson

Postmark Place – St. Petersburg, Florida

Postmark Date – 23 April 1943

Letter Date – 22 April 1943

Text:

My dearest wife and baby,

Got your letter and the Argus from your mother today. They must have felt like writing, as they had a big paper. The biggest one in a long time. I am always like to get the paper from the hometown and see what’s going on, but the best part of the mail today, and always will be, was your letter. I am sorry that you thought I didn’t trust you, but when I seen that letter I just didn’t know what to make of it. But I won’t pop off so quick after this. Well I guess I will tell you what I did today. I got up at 5:30 this morning and didn’t do a damn thing all forenoon. I stood guard until four at night. I will now be on guard for the rest of the time I am here. I work four hours and I’m off eight, and every third day I have 24 hours off. I won’t have no drill field work, no KP, or no nothing. It is an easy job but it will only last until I get shipped. The best part of it is I don’t have KP. ‘Course the time off isn’t going to bother me, either. I can catch up on my letters and also some sleep. Maybe then I can write longer letters to you. My shift is from twelve noon until four, and eight hours off. Then from midnight until four in the morning. I have got my pass already that I can go out anytime when I am not on duty. I won’t use it, but they give us all one. It was kind of cool here this morning, but it warmed up during the day. It was way down to 50 this morning, and that is cool for down here. How are you getting along on the money you are getting? I was just wondering if it would be alright if I only sent five bucks home out of my own check this time. I need to buy a few things, and if it will be alright if I only sent that much let me know. I am glad that you and Bonny are getting out some now, as it will be good for you. By the way, has she got blonde hair yet? And send me some pictures as quick as you can, as I want to go to get a look at my daughter. You will have to wait just a minute as they are calling on me to report out to the hotel desk. I just got back from the desk and now instead of being a guard only I am a corporal of the guard. That isn’t any rating, but it will help. I have to wake the guards up and get them at their post and see that they do their job. Kind of a boss at that. I will send you a big picture of myself when I get paid next time. That is, if you care to have a picture of your handsome husband. I will trade you pictures. One of you and Bonny for one of me. Is that a deal, sweetheart? I think it is. It is now seven and I have five hours before I go on duty, so I think I will get some sleep. I will write more tomorrow, honey. Until then, all my love and kisses to my sweetest wife and baby from Daddy.

PS – Give my love to Dad and Mother. Night, my two babies. Pop

Notes: 

Letter or Postcard – Letter

Sender – Ralph Peterson

Recipient – Phyllis Peterson

Postmark Place – St. Petersburg, Florida

Postmark Date – 22 April 1943

Letter Date – 21 April 1943

Text:

My dearest wife and baby,

Here another day has gone by and nothing much happened. Not even a letter from you, but as I got two yesterday I wasn’t too disappointed. I am hoping for one tomorrow. Well I got up at three this morning and went on KP. I sort of figured on a hard day of it, but they must know what a guy has done in civilian life, as I was made assistant baker for the day. No mopping, scrubbing, or nothing. All I did all day was help a supposed-to-be-baker make some biscuits and pies. I knew more about it than he did, but between us we made some nice cherry pies. I guess I could go to school as a baker, but I don’t quite care for it. It was a nice day here today, and the sun went down without a cloud around it, so it will be a nice day tomorrow, I hope. I’m going to stay in tomorrow and take care of a detail of men just to see that they clean up. I will be in charge of this, I think, until I get shipped. It will be kind of a vacation for me. I don’t know when I will get shipped but I expect to be within a week or so. A couple of the guys in my room are trying to sing while I am writing this. They aren’t having much luck. They start and stop, and start laughing. They act as if they are crazy. I just found out that some of our flight got reclassified and are now in the anti-aircraft. They don’t get only four weeks school and then they are liable for overseas duty. I should write about three more letters but I am tired tonight and can’t think of much to write. It is now ten to nine and I have only ten minutes to finish this letter in. Let me know everything you and Bonny do, as I like to hear what you do. This is all for tonight, so I must close with all my love and kisses from Pappy.

PS – Tell Pappy and all hello and will write them later. Night, sweetheart. RP

Notes: This letter kind of breaks my heart a little bit. Dad had already worked a few years for his Uncle Charlie at his bakery in Wautoma. Unseen ahead of him was almost fifty years of work in a bakery. I know this, but when he says, “I guess I could go to school as a baker, but I don’t quite care for it,” he does not. For those who do not know it, baking is hard work, especially back in those days. It usually meant working six days a week and part of the seventh doing cleanup and prep. In our day the back was not air conditioned, which in Florida meant extremely hot work around ovens and fryers. All we had was a ceiling ventilation fan and some oscillating or box fans. We worked 50 weeks a year and took two weeks off in August. Dad was up and at work by one in the morning. It leaves little time for social life. You are tired every day, all year, year after year. I’m not half the man my Dad was but I speak from personal experience. I worked in the bakery for 26 years, the last 12 of those years doing very similar work as my Dad. Understand, baking is not coal mining, and the bakery was ultimately pretty good to my Dad and to our family, although nobody got rich doing it. He never complained, but I think if you were perceptive you understood that working half a century at this job would not have been Dad’s first choice. In a perfect world he would have had some outside job, like a Park Ranger. But a baker he was, and a baker he remained.

Letter or Postcard – Letter

Sender – Ralph Peterson

Recipient – Phyllis Peterson

Postmark Place – St. Petersburg, Florida

Postmark Date – 21 April 1943

Letter Date – 20 April 1943

Text:

My dearest Phyllis and Bonny,

Today was a big letter day for me. I got four of them – two from you and your daddy, one from Billy Pick, and one from Gilbert Rohde. Did I ever have a nice time reading them, especially yours. Gilbert told me all about his camp. The only reason he has got his rating is that he has started school and I haven’t. Just wait until I go to school and the stripes will start to come. I hope. Gee whiz, I wish that I could be home to help you with all the work. You must be awful tired every night. I only hope your mother gets well and helps you with some of the work. Of course if you have that fat little hind end that your Mama said you had I bet it will take it down a little. I’m only fooling, so don’t get mad. I got Pappy’s letter and was awfully glad to see that he wrote something at last. I won’t be able to write him tonight, but I will write him one tomorrow. I will have more time then. Your Dad said Bonny girl was the cutest little bugger he had ever seen, so I guess that makes her the best baby that was ever born in the whole world. I don’t know about baby’s birth certificate, but if I ain’t shipped by the end of the week I will have you send it down. Then I can get that stuff cleared up. If you don’t get a letter saying different, send it down on Saturday. It will help you out a lot more. It’s about time that they had that radio fixed. If I was home I would ride their rear end plenty. If you don’t get it right away just send them a letter, or else better still, go down and see them. As long as you get it back. Tomorrow is going to be a hard day, as I am going on KP again, so I will be up at three in the morning. It will be a long day, as we are going to be at the toughest chow house in the whole post. I guess I can take it, though. Every time you talk about Bonny girl it makes me so awful lonesome. You say she is so sweet and I miss her an awful lot even though I haven’t seen her. I think I had better close, as I need a lot of sleep tonight. I will write more tomorrow. Lots of love and kisses from Daddy.

PS – Give all my love to Bonny, too. You two will have to fight over it. Daddy

Notes: Wow. Fat butt jokes. I guess Ralph liked to live dangerously in his youth.

Letter or Postcard – Letter

Sender – Ralph Peterson

Recipient – Phyllis Peterson

Postmark Place – St. Petersburg, Florida

Postmark Date – 20 April 1943

Letter Date – 19 April 1943

Text:

My dearest wife and baby,

Well, sweetheart, I got another from you today. Boy, I am telling you honey, that is the part of the day that I like best. It makes me feel a lot better after a day out on the drill field. Just keep on like that and it will help pass the time away while we are apart. Did Billy say that he picked out that pillowcase that I sent you? Well, he is full of shit. I couldn’t get out that night but I had it all ordered and all he had to do was go and pick it up. He better not say he picked it out. Maybe you don’t know it, but Bill told me that he would like to take Avis out. I bet that will thrill her. I had quite an easy day today. I was put in charge of a detail of men. I had to make them clean up around the hotel. All I did was just stand around and see that they did their job all right. I don’t know what I will do tomorrow, but it won’t be much as I know the Sarge pretty well. All he does is say, “Whitey, take four or five men and go do this or that.” Then I pick out my best pals and go and do it. There isn’t much to write about today but I will try and write a little more. The bunch of guys that shipped out the other day are now in California. It looks like that is the only place that they are shipping these men from here. Of course about 50 of them got sent to Scott Field, Illinois. I think this is all for now, as I can’t think of much more to write. More tomorrow. Night, dearest wife and baby, from Daddy who misses you both like the devil.

PS – The lights just went out so I will have to finish in the bathroom. Love, Ralph

Notes: Ralph appears to be learning how to work this army stuff. Throughout his life he was the epitome of reliable and responsible. Even as a somewhat goofy sounding teenager – and he was still a teenager – this must have come through.

Letter or Postcard – Letter

Sender – Ralph Peterson

Recipient – Phyllis Peterson

Postmark Place – St. Petersburg, Florida

Postmark Date – 19 April 1943

Letter Date – 18 April 1943

Text:

My darling Phyllis and Bonny,

Well here is number two today to you. I got your letter after I sent my first one, so with nothing to do I thought I had better write to you. Today was one hell of a day. Didn’t get up until 6:30 but the rest of the day was just running after running. Then at noon a guy reported that he had lost $70. They lined us all up out in front and searched us and all of the rooms, but as yet they haven’t found it. If they find the guy who did it he is going to carry a full field pack, which weighs about 70 pounds, for a month straight. Then he will go to jail for 15 years. That’s what I really called a punishment. This is my fifth letter today. I wrote to Don and Marian, Clarence, my half-brother, my brother-in-law, and two to you. Kind of catching up on my writing. I also washed up a lot of my dirty clothes, so instead of Sunday being a off day it is just a day to get all my stuff cleaned up for the next week. In Marian’s letter she wrote how much the baby looked like me, so if everybody says so it must be so. I only wish she would have looked like you. What has Joy done? Left your place and went up to her grandma’s again? I didn’t think she would stay very long. It will be quite a relief to you. You will be able to take it more easy. There isn’t much more to write about now as I guess I told you the most in my first letter, so I guess I will have to close with all my love and kisses to my dearest wife and baby from your daddy.

PS – It just started to rain, so if it keeps up we will have tomorrow off. RP

PPS – I hope so. Ralph

Notes: Perhaps a bit of hyperbole here, with the theft culprit carrying a pack for a month followed up by 15 years in prison.

Letter or Postcard – Letter

Sender – Ralph Peterson

Recipient – Phyllis Peterson

Postmark Place – St. Petersburg, Florida

Postmark Date – 19 April 1943

Letter Date – 18 April 1943

Text:

My dearest wife and baby,

How are my two little girls today? I got your letter and mother’s card yesterday, and was sure glad to get them. Believe it or not I got a letter from Don and Marian, also. I was sure surprised to get one from them. You must know where they live. It is just a block past Bernard’s and Ida’s. It is quite a ways out of town. Marian said she didn’t quite like it of course, but I suppose it will be all right after they get settled. I think the only thing that is wrong is she thinks they are living too close to Bernard. You know how Ida and Marian get along. I wouldn’t be surprised to see them back on the farm before long. She was telling me how big Wayne was, and he could even talk a little now. He must be quite old now, about nine months or so. I also got a card from my little half-brother. He is only about eleven and he wrote me two whole pages. I am writing with the pen he sent me. Boy, is it ever cloudy this forenoon, and I want to wash out some clothes and they won’t dry if the sun don’t shine. That’s the way it always happens. All week it will be good weather then when Sunday comes it clouds up and rains. I am glad to hear that Gilbert got his P.F.C. And about those two stripes that you said I’m going to have. I won’t get them down here, but boy I am going to get them when I am sent to school. You just wait and see. Then you can have something to brag about. I think you would still love me just as much if I was only a private, wouldn’t you? You see a lot of guys that have stripes when they shouldn’t and a lot of them who have not got them and they should have. That’s just the old army game. Either you do or you don’t. I went to the fights last night. A bunch of our boys were fighting, then after the fight three champions of the world gave us a talk. That’s the only thing I go out for, that and the ball games. If I would go downtown I would feel lost without you beside me, so I don’t go. Damn it all, honey, I am getting more lonesome for you every day. I miss you more each day. I found a little poem in the paper down here so I thought I would send it home. It’s more or less for Bonny girl. You can give it to her. She probably can’t read it but you can let her chew it up. I thought it was kind of cute. I can’t think of anything so I think I will close for today. I will send your Mother and Dad’s along with yours. All my love and kisses to the sweetest wife and baby from Daddy.

PS – I hope you get well real soon. Bye now. Ralph

Notes: Of course Don and Marian are Mom’s sister and her husband. I’m not sure who Bernard and Ida were, but Wayne is Don and Marian’s third child and oldest son. He was about nine months old at the time. Dad’s little half brother was Florian (later Scott). Gilbert is probably Gilbert Rohde, who was with Dad earlier in Fort Sheridan. 

Letter or Postcard – Letter

Sender – Ralph Peterson

Recipient – Phyllis Peterson

Postmark Place – St. Petersburg, Florida

Postmark Date – 17 April 1943

Letter Date – 16 April 1943

Text:

My dearest wife and baby,

No letter from you today, so I can’t think of a very long letter. I will try and make it as sweet as I can, though maybe none of them are very sweet. But it is the best I can do. I got a letter from Clarence today, and he has been promoted from buck Sergeant to a staff sergeant. The way he wrote he was pretty proud of it. I only hope that I can go up half as far as he has. This letter will be more scribbly then the others. I am awfully tired. It was a real hard day. I haven’t been shipped yet so I won’t go on till next week because they don’t ship out on Sunday. How is my little baby Bonny coming along? I hope both you and her are well, and you always will be. I know as sweet as a wife as you are wouldn’t let anything happen to our little Bonny. This is all I can think of now, but will write a lot more tomorrow when I have some time. Until then, goodnight my darling wife and baby from Pappy.

PS – This is a funny post script. I love you. I love you. I love you.

Notes: Curious little letter. Either Dad was a bit ticked at not receiving a letter, or he really had a bad day.

Letter or Postcard – Letter

Sender – Ralph Peterson

Recipient – Phyllis Peterson

Postmark Place – St. Petersburg, Florida

Postmark Date – 16 April 1943

Letter Date – 15 April 1943

Text:

My dearest wife and baby,

Got your letter and your lovely card today. Gee whiz, honey, that card was so darn nice that I darn near bawled with lonesomeness when I got it. I showed it to all the guys in my room and they all thought it was real swell. It was sure nice of you to send something like that. It helps cheer me up. I only wish I could send you something like that, but as it is I am sort of on the low side of my pocketbook. In fact, I have enough money for another haircut and that will just about clean me out. If you could send down two or three bucks I could sure as the devil could use it. But if it is going to make you short then forget all about it. I know you can use it but in case you have a couple of dollars to spare you know where to send it. I would have had enough if I had quit smoking, but I couldn’t do it. I don’t smoke so much, but I guess I can’t quit. There was a great big shipment out of here today, but I guess I just wasn’t ready to go. That makes me the last one from Waushara County that is still here. The other two left today. That quarantine I was put on set my shipment back a few days, but I guess I will be out of here next week. At least I hope so. If I stay down here another week I am going to be a drill instructor. That will be training some of these rookies that are coming in. Boy, am I getting to like that. Will I have fun with them. I got the Argus this morning and a card from Avis tonight. I will be the only one that will read the Argus now, but keep on sending it. The card from Avis was a real nice Easter card, but not half as nice as yours. Nothing could be as nice as anything you could send me, even if it was $1,000. I would so much rather get your love sent down to me. Gosh, darling, I can’t think of anything else to write tonight, but will try and write a more interesting letter tomorrow to you. There really isn’t much going on so there isn’t much to write about, so until tomorrow all my love and kisses to the sweetest wife and baby in the whole world from Daddy.

PS – I am glad you and the baby are well. Just keep on that way. Night, now. Ralph

Notes: Kind of pathetic to see Dad bumming a couple bucks off Mom and then blaming his smoking habit. 

Letter or Postcard – Letter

Sender – Ralph Peterson

Recipient – Phyllis Peterson

Postmark Place – St. Petersburg, Florida

Postmark Date – 15 April 1943

Letter Date – 14 April 1943

Text:

My dearest wife and baby,

Just got back from KP and thought I had better write before I got too tired. No letter from you today, but I’m hoping for one tomorrow. Got up this morning at three, had inspection, then went over to the mess hall and started to work. Or at least that’s what I thought I had to do, but I know the mess sergeant and he put me in charge of the whole dining room. All I had to do was boss around 20 men and see that they had the place clean. That was the easiest day I put in on KP. This sarge is a tall, blonde-haired Swede from Minnesota. They call him Whitey, too, so he and I get along real swell. I would work or get the place cleaned up in a couple of hours, then I could take my crew out on the lawn until the next meal. I went to sleep out there for about two hours on my stomach, and I have really got a dark brown back tonight. At least it don’t burn anymore. I don’t know what I will do tomorrow, but I suppose I will find out soon. There is a big shipping list coming off tomorrow and according to some of the guys I know I’m supposed to be on it. I don’t know for sure where we will be sent, but the Stevens Hotel in Chicago, which is a radio technician school, graduate a class on the 19th. Boy, I am praying that I will be sent up there. I can’t let you where I am going as I don’t know, but I will let you know when I will go. I hope it is soon, as I am getting tired of staying here without any chance of getting ahead. I hope your folks are getting along well. Is your mother still in bed or is she up now? Let me know all that happens, as I like to hear what goes on. And you tell Pappy again that I am still waiting for that letter he promised me. You know there isn’t much to write about, although I want to tell you that I still love you with all my heart and I miss you like the very devil. I only hope it won’t be long before I can be home by my wife and baby. This is all for tonight honey, so have to close with all my love and kisses to my sweetest wife and baby from your soldier Daddy.

PS – Don’t forget, I love you and you always love me. RP

Notes: Again, Dad never had a nickname when I knew him. Certainly not “Whitey.” A bit of a spoiler here, Dad did not go to The Stevens Hotel in Chicago, which still exists as the Hilton Chicago.