Document Type

Personal Letter

Keywords

Katherine Trickey; WWII

Rights Management

All rights retained by Bryant University

Abstract

[Transcription begins]

Thurs PM

6.30 19 Oct [1944]

Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia letterhead

Dear Folks,

It is raining very hard – so hard we were soaked by the time we got home. Most everyone is staying in this evening – We have a fire in the stove near my bed and it is very comfortable. The radio is playing nice band music broadcast by one of our bands here on the post.

I got your letter dated Oct 14 last evening, Mother, I’ll try to answer some of the questions.

I think you’re right, Mother, about its breaking up the winter more for me to come later, and I really don’t mind too much as it will be only a few weeks late anyway I expect.

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It’s too bad for Craig to have to stay so long, isn’t it. I’ll try to write him again this week.

As for my new job – it is an expansion of my old one really as I have both the decimal file & the 201 – Minnie is able to do the decimal file herself and likes it better now that I don’t so closely supervise her work! The other girls are OK. There is Cpl. Ida Halfand, a Jewish girl who is nice and works hard; then the two new girls, both Privates, Elizabeth Pope and ? Meeker. – Pope is a young rather uncultured girl who isn’t bad to work with although she is always in trouble about something as she is very scatterbrained and has no sense of right & wrong or of responsibility apparently. She is likeable, however.

Meeker – (I can’t remember her first name) is harder to get along with. She

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is loud & overbearing. She has had one year of college, and is probably quite capable but she won’t put her mind on anything except every body else’s business and her evening dates. – At present she is going to motor school for a couple of days to get a GI license and she may get put on the message run instead of the 201 File. I’ll not miss her, I’m afraid.

The girl (Evelyn Wise) who had the emergency furlough is back although her father is still very sick. She was put back in the Message Center much to my disappointment as she was a very good worker.

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Naturally the 201 Files are not assigned to girls who can do anything else so the girls there are not usually very capable as you can imagine! It is not a very hard job mentally – just alphabetical filing – but does require careful & quick work.

It was nice you & Dad could go up to Uncle Walter’s even if the weather wasn’t so good.

What is Walt’s address? I’m glad he seems to be enjoying it. It will be good for him, I believe. –

Now for the weather. – It was uncomfortably hot up until 2 weeks ago when it turned off really cold and we have shivered with the thermometer about 60-65 with a cold wind mornings – warming up during the day. – I slept with a comforter, 2 blankets, my woolen pyjamas - !

Last night during the night it really

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warmed up but then this rain started at noon and it is cooler again. I guess this is the edge of the hurricane (1) as there is quite a bit of wind – Not bad, however, yet. – No we don’t go swimming anymore. – I’m sending my suit home as I have no place to store it this winter – will you please wash it out well before you put it away. It is very dirty. I’m sending several pairs of stockings. If you can salvage any of them for use around the house, you’re welcome to them; if not, throw them away. –

How old is Beverly going to be Nov 11?

No, I never hear from Miriam. I have written her several times & sent her a birthday present in the summer but never

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have had a word from her since I came back from furlough. She’s queer isn’t she?

I guess this letter is about long enough isn’t it? I didn’t bring my pen home so I hope you’ll excuse this scrawl.

Much love to all of you

Kay

(1) The Cuba-Florida hurricane of October 13-21, also called Pinar del Rio hurricane, was a category 3 storm that struck Florida near Sarasota on October 19, 1944. It killed 318 people (18 in Florida) and caused over $100 million dollars in damage.

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