THE WAR IN THE PACIFIC, THE WAR IN GERMANY, THE DUTIES STATESIDE, AND NEWS FROM THE HOME FRONT. A COLLECTION OF 54 LETTERS, ALS AND TLS, PLUS A FEW PRINTED DOCUMENTS FROM THREE WORLD WAR II SOLDIERS AND THEIR SISTER, MEMBERS OF A JEWISH FAMILY IN BROOKLYN by [World War II] [Margulis family letters] - 1946

[various places], 1946. A vivid portrait of the war lives of three service members from the same family, and their sister who wrote to them all from Brooklyn. The youngest son Charles Margulis enlisted in the Army at the age of 19 in November 1942, and was sent to the Pacific in late July 1943. Harry enlisted the following March 1943 at age 25 and was overseas in Europe by November 1944. Arthur, the oldest at 31, was in the Army by October 1943, serving his time in various places in the United States. Hannah, affectionately knows to her brothers as "Hank," made it her mission to keep them all in touch, typing out informative one page letters to the brothers, apparently sending each a copy. Many of the letters are accompanied by their mailing envelops, though the stamps have been removed.
Louis Margulis, their father, had emigrated to the United States from Maripole [Mariupol], Russia [now Ukraine] as a child in 1884, according to his naturalization records. He signed his intent to become a citizen of the United States in 1906. Their mother Fanny was born in Lithuania and was not apparently comfortable writing in English, leaving Hannah in charge of the correspondence with her sons. Louis Margulis was a clothing designer and Hannah likewise worked in the garment trade as a secretary and later a trimming buyer, according to census records.
Their Brooklyn neighborhood was the scene of at least one gathering of Jewish War Veterans in the year before the United States entered the war. Included in this group is Hannah's one page typescript record, "Report on Street Corner Meeting Jewish War Veterans July 24, 1940," held at Kings Highway and E. 17th Street. She was in the crowd and described the speakers who included Abe Cohen and Charles Griffin. She had some difficulty hearing all the introductions but believed Griffin was a commander in the American Legion. He was followed by a man possibly named Towle, a past president of the Jewish Federation, and Frank Surrey, President of the Kings County Criminal Bar. Along with another speaker, Rev. Richard Evans, founder of the Congress for Democracy in Florida, they praised the Jewish veteran and encouraged all in the crowd not to take freedom in America for granted. The last speaker was Rabbi Mashioff, Honorary Chaplain of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Chaplain of Coney Island Hospital, and Rabbi of the 183 St. Temple. The crowd was predominantly Jewish, with some African Americans. "The keynote of the speeches of all was Unity in Americanism, and the same type of program will be repeated all thru the country."
With the U.S. entrance into the war, each brother joined the Army, and each one was sent in a different direction. Charles' letters, approx. 17 in number, some 21 pp. of ALS, V-mails, telegrams and postcards, begin in November 1942 and continue until July 1945. In Charles' first letter from Bowman Field in Louisville, Kentucky, where he was assigned to 27 Air Base Squadron, Co. I, he refers to the base as "a concentration camp or just like one." By April 1943, he was at an Army Air Base in Warrensburg, Missouri, with the 55 T.C. Squadron, 375 T.C. Group. He was not any fonder of the service. Informed that his older brother had also joined the Army he says, "As for Arthur, well, I'm prejudiced against the Army because of it's prejudice against my religion. It's tough on the Jews. We're constantly being discouraged about making advancement. I had hoped that Arthur would be able to get into something other than the army." In late July 1943, the family received a brief telegram from him saying simply, "All well." His next communication was a V-mail from New Guinea, where he reported they had cots to sleep on, good tents, showers and good food. Another letter in September asks that Hannah send him some candy and nuts, and a "basque" shirt, something dark that wouldn't show dirt. The next letter is not until June 1944 when he was on a furlough to Australia. He returned to duty, and the next group of letters are dated between March and July 1945. He says he has heard of the death of FDR. He also hopes that Sonny [presumably Arthur] doesn't have to come out to "this place" although "it ain't what it used to be. Now we have air superiority, something we didn't have when I came over and for a long time afterwards. Things won't be too rough out here any more.... I'm glad to learn that the public is aware of the foot soldier and is giving him his due credit. At first the public never thought about the Infantry, because it was an unglamouress outfit that had a dirty job to do. The over-rated Marine Corps used to take all the credit for missions they never did. It was the Infantry. The regular GI Joe." Included in his last letter home is a photo of him with his "pet" praying mantis perched on his chest.
Harry's letters, ten of them, most ALS, one or two TLS, approx. 24 pages, start in March 1943 and conclude in November 1945. He was stateside at Ordnance School at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, and then Camp Maxey, in Texas before going overseas in about November 1944. His battalion moved through England, France, Germany, Luxemburg, and Belgium, before crossing into Czecho-Slovakia in June 1945. He was assigned to the Army of the Occupation there and pens a seven page letter home to Hannah from there. "We loaded up in Duseldorf and it took 5 nights and four days to travel 450 miles... now I know how torn apart Germany is...." He mentions that the civilians and many former German and Russian military men are all on the move. He discusses the point system which will determine how long it will be until he can come home. Apparently he had sent some photos home as he tells Hannah they were taken pre-V-E day: "I'll bet you can see the prayers in our eyes."
Arthur, the oldest, and already a lawyer when he joined the service, wrote much more light-hearted letters home to his sister and other family members, some 11 ALS and TLS, approx. 21 pp., between October 1943 and January 1946. He was posted to Camp Barkeley in Texas, Camp Crowder in Missouri, and Camp Beale in California. His return addresses put him in a Medical Training Group, and later as a Staff Sergeant, Co. D, 1st Battalion. At one point he mentions that the Judge Advocates Office wanted his services. By September 1945 he was turning 34, making it unlikely he would serve overseas. He spends him time trying to track down an Eisenhower jacket at the PX, or considering using DDT on his clothes to keep the moths at bay. Included with his letters are a reproduced typescript of a Christmas Program from Camp Barkeley in 1943, listing him as a member of Company A, 51st Medical Training Battalion, and another program, a reproduced typescript announcing a performance by the 51st Medical Training Battalion, "Sketchbook of 1944," with Pvt. Arthur Margulis as scriptwriter.
Hannah Margulis' letters, between August 1945 and January 1946, 16 TLS, some 17 pp., are addressed most often to the Fellas, or the Kids, or the Guys, and signed affectionately from "Hank," her family nickname. Her first letter, dated August 11, 1945, says she believes VJ Day is just around the corner, mostly because Arthur is home on furlough. She says he is thin, has some hair loss, and needs to have a tooth pulled. Her next letter on September 12 congratulates Charles on his appointment as a Staff Sergeant- his letter from Okinawa was gratefully received. She knows he has 6 battle stars and 84 points and hopes he will be home soon. She also reports that Harry is still somewhere in Europe. Another letter Sept. 16 says she was glad she hadn't known about Charles' battle stars from the Solomons and the Southern Philippines. By her Oct. 1 letter she informs everyone not to write to Charles anymore as he is on his way home, after three years away. Meanwhile, she continues to work, dealing with strikes by the elevator operators in her office building, and attending various protest meetings. She apparently carried on a long distance romance with a soldier she had never met, but was disappointed when he actually came to see her in Brooklyn. He was sweet and good-natured but had "no personality in person." She tried to let him down gently. With Charles home, and Arthur in the States but heading back to California, Hannah continued to write to Harry keeping him up to date on the family: Charles had gained 9 pounds but doesn't want to wear anything but his khakis; he knows he owes Harry a letter, but he just can't settle to write. Hannah says a clearer picture is emerging of Charles' time in the jungle. He often worked 12 hour days and was in charge of handling all the money matters of his squadron. He was readjusting but "you have no idea of his condition when he arrived. He was so badly in need of love and care...." Hannah also asks Harry if she can send any clothes overseas that he can distribute to those in need: "We've been sending clothes right along to our temple to be distributed in relief, but it feels much better to know that what you give is definitely going to certain persons who are in great need."
A telling group of letters showing the effects of the war on a tight-knit family. Charles Margulis' 55 Troop Carrier Squadron, 375 TC Group landed in the Pacific in the middle of the campaign to take New Guinea from the Japanese. Arriving in July 1943, they participated in the airborne assault on Nadzah in September. They were also responsible for moving personnel and supplies to forward areas in the Southwest and Western Pacific. During the next year, the squadron operated Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers as supply aircraft. In February 1945 they moved on to the Philippines and a few months later to Okinawa. [see the brief online history of the 55th Airlift Flight prepared by Carl Bailey]
Harry Margulis, a mechanic by trade before the war, was a member of the 138 Ordnance Co. According to one of his letters the company was redesignated a Heavy Maintenance Company instead of a Medium one in March 1944. It is unclear what actions he participated in as the company moved across Europe but he tells Hannah that he had been writing a column for one of his unit's publications and that he had earned the nickname "Ernie Pyle." He was trying to put together a history of the company with a group of his fellow soldiers while they were on watch along the borders of Czecho-Slovakia in June 1945.
Following the war, Louis Margulis, his daughter Hannah and his son Charles continued to work in the clothing industry in Brooklyn. Harry Margulis moved to Long Island and resumed his career as a mechanic, and Arthur may have returned to California [see 1950 Census records for the family].