The wartime letters of Margaret C. Roos |
During WWII, it was not uncommon for one woman to write letters to numerous soldiers and maintain a
number of friendships throughout the war. Margaret C. Roos was such a woman. In many cases, a
simple letter written to a young soldier stationed far from home by a pretty girl back in the states,
provided an invaluable morale boost. For many of these young soldiers, this was their first experience
of being far from the comforts of home and family. With the wartime shifting of soldiers from post to
post, many of these young men were lonely and didn't have the opportunity to make stationary friends.
A letter from a pretty girl helped to make military life more bearable.
Many times, the letters were exchanged merely in friendship. Sometimes the letters resulted from a
wartime romance. With the morals and beliefs of most in the 1940's, most of these relationships were
very innocent. The profession of love and desire was nothing more than youthful exuberance, and the
hope of something stable and loving from back home.
Recently, I obtained approximately 500+ letters from the estate of Margaret C. Roos. These letters
were all written to Margaret throughout the course of the war from various soldiers in different
branches of service. Some soldiers wrote a handful of letters to Margaret over a short period of time,
while others wrote hundreds of letters, extending over the course of the war. As indicated above,
some of the letters were simply a correspondence of friendship. In some cases, the letters reflect a
wartime romance. In the case of the later, it would seem Margaret maintained a romantic, written
relationship with several soldiers, with overlapping dates. There were proposals of marriage, offers of
financial assistance for Margaret and many professions of love. In the end, none of these relationships
resulted in marriage to Margaret. The letters show evidence that Margaret's relationships with the
various soldiers helped to make the difficulties of home front life more bearable for her and her
family, through the generosity of these soldiers, many of whom sent her money on a regular basis. Some
surviving family members of the soldiers involved have speculated that Margaret used these men for
her own personal gain. To this statement, I can not prove or disprove the claim. However, the letters
reveal a personal insight into many aspects of wartime military service and the experience of the home
front.
Out of respect to the individual soldiers, details of the individual letters will not be revealed and
detailed at this time. Possibly in the years to come, the details and contents of the letters may make an
interesting book. For now, this page was established to share the photographs of the individual soldiers
and other minor aspects of these letters.
A special thank you to Gary Hunt for allowing the history behind these letters and the brave men who
wrote them possible.
number of friendships throughout the war. Margaret C. Roos was such a woman. In many cases, a
simple letter written to a young soldier stationed far from home by a pretty girl back in the states,
provided an invaluable morale boost. For many of these young soldiers, this was their first experience
of being far from the comforts of home and family. With the wartime shifting of soldiers from post to
post, many of these young men were lonely and didn't have the opportunity to make stationary friends.
A letter from a pretty girl helped to make military life more bearable.
Many times, the letters were exchanged merely in friendship. Sometimes the letters resulted from a
wartime romance. With the morals and beliefs of most in the 1940's, most of these relationships were
very innocent. The profession of love and desire was nothing more than youthful exuberance, and the
hope of something stable and loving from back home.
Recently, I obtained approximately 500+ letters from the estate of Margaret C. Roos. These letters
were all written to Margaret throughout the course of the war from various soldiers in different
branches of service. Some soldiers wrote a handful of letters to Margaret over a short period of time,
while others wrote hundreds of letters, extending over the course of the war. As indicated above,
some of the letters were simply a correspondence of friendship. In some cases, the letters reflect a
wartime romance. In the case of the later, it would seem Margaret maintained a romantic, written
relationship with several soldiers, with overlapping dates. There were proposals of marriage, offers of
financial assistance for Margaret and many professions of love. In the end, none of these relationships
resulted in marriage to Margaret. The letters show evidence that Margaret's relationships with the
various soldiers helped to make the difficulties of home front life more bearable for her and her
family, through the generosity of these soldiers, many of whom sent her money on a regular basis. Some
surviving family members of the soldiers involved have speculated that Margaret used these men for
her own personal gain. To this statement, I can not prove or disprove the claim. However, the letters
reveal a personal insight into many aspects of wartime military service and the experience of the home
front.
Out of respect to the individual soldiers, details of the individual letters will not be revealed and
detailed at this time. Possibly in the years to come, the details and contents of the letters may make an
interesting book. For now, this page was established to share the photographs of the individual soldiers
and other minor aspects of these letters.
A special thank you to Gary Hunt for allowing the history behind these letters and the brave men who
wrote them possible.
The following is a listing of soldiers who authored letters to Margaret during the war:
1) Felix D. Barton - United States Army
2) Mickey DeMaria - United States Marine Corps
3) Thomas G. Jones - United States Navy (USS Indianapolis)
4) Max. M. Swanson - United States Army
5) Otto Koenig - United States Army
6) Joy Rodee - United States Navy (USS Louisville)
7) Harvey M. Wainer - United States Navy (USS LST 84)
8) Joseph "Bill" H. Connelly - United States Army Air Corps
9) Charles H. Gayhart - United States Navy
10) Raymond Summey - United States Army
11) M. Eugene Anderson - United States Army
12) Harold Solarz - United States Army
13) Walter R. Kiesner - United States Army Air Corps
14) Ludwig C. Kehr - United States Army Air Corps
15) Robert H. Dutch - United States Army
***If anyone has any additional information concerning any of these gentlemen, I would enjoy hearing
from you.***
1) Felix D. Barton - United States Army
2) Mickey DeMaria - United States Marine Corps
3) Thomas G. Jones - United States Navy (USS Indianapolis)
4) Max. M. Swanson - United States Army
5) Otto Koenig - United States Army
6) Joy Rodee - United States Navy (USS Louisville)
7) Harvey M. Wainer - United States Navy (USS LST 84)
8) Joseph "Bill" H. Connelly - United States Army Air Corps
9) Charles H. Gayhart - United States Navy
10) Raymond Summey - United States Army
11) M. Eugene Anderson - United States Army
12) Harold Solarz - United States Army
13) Walter R. Kiesner - United States Army Air Corps
14) Ludwig C. Kehr - United States Army Air Corps
15) Robert H. Dutch - United States Army
***If anyone has any additional information concerning any of these gentlemen, I would enjoy hearing
from you.***
Ludwig C. Kehr - United States Army Air Corps
Walter R. Kiesner - United States Army Air Corps
Harvey M. Wainer - United States Navy (USS LST 84)
| Charles H. Gayhart - United States Navy |
Left to right: Walter R. Kiesner (AAF), Walter R. Kiesner with a soldier believed to
be Joseph H, Connelly (AAF), Connelly and Kiesner with Margaret Roos.
be Joseph H, Connelly (AAF), Connelly and Kiesner with Margaret Roos.
PAGE UNDER CONSTRUCTION
An official United States Navy photograph showing the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) off the Mare Island Navy Yard,
California, April 20, 1942, following her first wartime overhaul. On 30 July 1945, while in transit from Guam to
the Philippines, USS Indianapolis was torpedoed and sunk by the Japanese Submarine I-58. She was the last major
U.S. Navy ship to be lost in the Second World War. Of 1,196 men on board, approximately 300 went down with
the ship. 900 sailors were left floating in shark-infested waters with no lifeboats and most with no food or fresh
water. The ship was never missed, and by the time the survivors were spotted by accident four days later only 316
men were still alive. Many of the survivors succumbed to shark attack, after having survived being torpedoed and
the sinking of their ship.
The photograph above was taken at the approximate time when Thomas G. Jones served as a member of the USS
Indianapolis' crew.
California, April 20, 1942, following her first wartime overhaul. On 30 July 1945, while in transit from Guam to
the Philippines, USS Indianapolis was torpedoed and sunk by the Japanese Submarine I-58. She was the last major
U.S. Navy ship to be lost in the Second World War. Of 1,196 men on board, approximately 300 went down with
the ship. 900 sailors were left floating in shark-infested waters with no lifeboats and most with no food or fresh
water. The ship was never missed, and by the time the survivors were spotted by accident four days later only 316
men were still alive. Many of the survivors succumbed to shark attack, after having survived being torpedoed and
the sinking of their ship.
The photograph above was taken at the approximate time when Thomas G. Jones served as a member of the USS
Indianapolis' crew.
Above: Photographs of Ludwig C. Kehr during
his training as an aviation cadet.
Left: A wartime photograph of Ludwig Kehr
sitting in his 1937 Ford. The back of the
photograph reads: "Honey, here is what we
needed while I was in California, 25 miles to
the gallon, not bad. Chris." The photograph
is dated 7/4/43.
his training as an aviation cadet.
Left: A wartime photograph of Ludwig Kehr
sitting in his 1937 Ford. The back of the
photograph reads: "Honey, here is what we
needed while I was in California, 25 miles to
the gallon, not bad. Chris." The photograph
is dated 7/4/43.
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