The 4000 letters in this collection center on Gordon T. Kinder (1919-2009) and Ann Cary Stuckey Kinder (1922-88). Both had Ohio roots dating to the 1790s: Gordon in Belmont County along the Ohio River and in Warren and Putnam Counties along the Indiana border, and Cary in Summit and Cuyahoga Counties around Cleveland.
The letters begin in 1941 with Gordon’s graduation from university and his commissioning as an Army artillery officer and with Cary’s second year of college. They take the reader through their meeting in 1942; courtship against the backdrop of war; marriage in 1943; training for the invasion; six months in England; ten months of combat in France, Germany and Austria; and seven months in an Army of occupation.
Both were prodigious letter-writers, as were their families who wrote them regularly. Most letters run more than 600 words.
On the homefront, the Ohio River floods; travel and communication suffer the war’s burdens; childhood diseases come in waves; difficult pregnancies don’t end well; the businesses of law, light manufacturing and coal continue; family gatherings continue but with less and less meat and butter; the casualties mount; and, suddenly, the dreams of peace meet harsh realities.
For the compiler, Gordon & Cary’s oldest son, Peter, reading these letters was like renewing conversations with people long dead. For the most part, the letters read as their writers spoke. Their sensibilities bring back to life family dynamics experienced in the 1950s.
Filters
DATE: 08/03/1943
SENDER: Ann Cary Stuckey Kinder (CSK) SEND LOCATION: New York, NY
RECIPIENT: Gordon Thomas Kinder, Jr. (GTK) RECIPIENT LOCATION: Ft. Sill, Lawton, OK
SUMMARY:
On very shaky train from Ft. Sill. Approaching Cleveland. Wonders about GTK’s orders for Indio, CA. Reflecting on how the changes in her life have affected how she observes people while traveling. Love letter.
DATE: 09/13/1943
SENDER: George D. Kinder (GeoDK) SEND LOCATION: Cleveland, OH
RECIPIENT: Gordon Thomas Kinder, Jr. (GTK) RECIPIENT LOCATION: Ft. Sill, Lawton, OK
SUMMARY:
Magnificent vegetable garden; massive feats of canning. Jane Crofut Kinder pregnant and not able to do much. Pregnancy still a secret. Very curious about GTK’s new assignment and transfer. Life magazine article on July 19 about it. Can’t believe GTK is in the Army given his vision problems, much less a combat unit. Very funny letters from John Campbell Kinder (JCK) about conditions at Ft. Bragg, including bed bugs. Can’t get accurate information about JCK’s unit. Angus, the Dachshund, arrived in Brookside
DATE: 10/16/1943
SENDER: Ann Cary Stuckey Kinder (CSK) SEND LOCATION: Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY
RECIPIENT: Gordon Thomas Kinder, Jr. (GTK) RECIPIENT LOCATION: Desert Training Center, Camp Iron Mountain, Twentynine Palms, CA
SUMMARY:
On message center duty. Rainy day in Poughkeepsie. Critical of how GTK conveys important information like the maneuvers will end in December. Very anxious about seeing him for Christmas. Planning trip to California before then. Very curious about what he’s learning, what he’ll do after maneuvers. GTK is at the Desert Training Center (DTC).
DATE: 10/19/1943
SENDER: Ann Cary Stuckey Kinder (CSK) SEND LOCATION: Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY
RECIPIENT: Gordon Thomas Kinder, Jr. (GTK) RECIPIENT LOCATION: Desert Training Center, Camp Iron Mountain, Twentynine Palms, CA
SUMMARY:
Many Christmas present questions. Getting ready for musical performance.
DATE: 10/20/1943
SENDER: Ann Cary Stuckey Kinder (CSK) SEND LOCATION: Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY
RECIPIENT: Gordon Thomas Kinder, Jr. (GTK) RECIPIENT LOCATION: Desert Training Center, Camp Iron Mountain, Twentynine Palms, CA
SUMMARY:
Waiting to go on at the Poughkeepsie H.S. auditorium. Their performance going on as P’K orchestra is rehearsing. Much noise and confusion. Shakeup in Bob’s battery GTK is involved in.