This collection consists of 12 letters, 3 telegrams, 2 printed items, and 1 photograph related to Golden J. Wallis ("Goldie") and his wife Roberta, natives of Memphis, Tennessee. Golden Wallis wrote 10 love letters and 1 telegram to his wife while serving onboard the USS Missouri in 1944 and 1945, and the Wallises received 4 additional letters and telegrams from friends and family. Other items are an invitation, a church program, and an unidentified wedding photograph.
In his letters to his wife, Goldie Wallis commented on their separation and expressed his love for her; he also discussed their financial situation, including his attempts to secure her an apartment in New York City. Wallis mentioned traveling to Pacific islands and shared his relief after censorship regulations eased in September 1945. His telegram to Roberta of November 28, 1944, concerns his 3-week leave in San Francisco, California. Roberta Wallis also received 2 birthday telegrams (undated). Golden Wallis's sister, Faye Wallis, wrote 1 letter (undated), as did Billy Burk, an acquaintance who taught school in Clarksdale, Mississippi (April 7, 1943).
The collection also contains a printed invitation requesting Roberta Wallis's attendance at the Missouri's commissioning ceremony on June 11, 1944; a program for a church service held onboard the Missouri on March 25, 1945; and an undated photograph.
Golden J. Wallis ("Goldie") was born in Arkansas on September 2, 1914, the son of Charles T. and Flora Wallis. He had 3 sisters: Faye, Charline, and Martha. He married Roberta Parrish (1909-1993) before 1943. Harris enlisted in the United States Navy during the World War II, serving as a carpenter's mate, 3rd class, on the USS Missouri, where he witnessed the signing of the Japanese surrender in September 1945. After the war, Golden and Roberta Wallis lived in Memphis, Tennessee, where he worked as a contractor and she worked for Sears, Roebuck and Company. Golden J. Wallis died on April 4, 1999.
