Search

This collection contains military records, photographs, printed publications, maps, and ephemera related to Horace Mitchell Miner's service with the United States Army Counter Intelligence Corps in North Africa and Europe during World War II.

This collection contains military records, photographs, printed publications, maps, and ephemera related to Horace Mitchell Miner's service with the United States Army Counter Intelligence Corps in North Africa and Europe during World War II.

The Military Papers series (27 items) contains reports, orders, and other material related to campaigns in North Africa and Europe during World War II. The documents pertain to military personnel, orders, intelligence procedures and policies, counterintelligence operations, and the progress of the war in Central Europe. A small group of items pertains to a tea hosted by King George VI and the queen consort, Elizabeth, in November 1943. The series includes Miner's military identification, a translation of a "captured diary" (Lemiers, [Netherlands], September 16, 1944-September 29, 1944); a document promoting Otto Sulzbach to SS-Sturmbannführer of the Waffen-SS, signed by Heinrich Himmler (December 8, 1941), a signed note of thanks by Heinrich Himmler (undated), and a Counter Intelligence Directive for Germany issued by the 12th Army Group headquarters (April 18, 1945). Later items include a 1953 essay by Horace Miner about the actions of the II Corps in Tunisia and Sicily, printed letters from George H. W. Bush and Gordon R. Sullivan (October 1991), and a veterans' newsletter (July 15, 1992).

The Photographs and Maps series is comprised of photographs, printed and manuscript maps, a photographic aerial map, and a group of arranged and mounted photographs and colored manuscript maps.

The group of mounted photographs and maps respect the German invasion of France in 1940. The maps show the Wehrmacht's increasing progress through Belgium, Luxembourg, and France, and the photographs depict German soldiers, military cemeteries, German soldiers' graves, military equipment, destroyed buildings, and concrete bunkers. Some items are annotated in German. Two loose photographs are images of the Buchenwald concentration camp after Allied liberation, and a third shows a plaque donated to Clifton College by former members of the 1st United States Army's Headquarters Regiment in 1991.

The Printed Items and Ephemera series contains manuals, articles regarding military campaigns, propaganda, and other items related to North Africa, Italy, and Germany. One handbook and two manuals concern the Allied Forces' counterintelligence operations. La Favola Vera del Britanno, an illustrated book in Italian, is a work of propaganda in the form of a children's book, negatively depicting Great Britain. Three books about Hitler, the Nazi Party, and the SS were published in Germany between 1933 and 1940. Six items in the series are catalogued separately (see below). Ephemeral materials include items written in Arabic, a humorous poster regarding best practices for civilian blackouts, and United States, United Kingdom, and Romanian flags.

The Peter Mostert papers consist primarily of letters that Mostert wrote to his wife while serving in the 901st Ordnance Heavy Automotive Maintenance Company during the Second World War. The collection also includes photographs and printed material related to Mostert's service, as well as a small copy of the New Testament.

The Peter Mostert papers consist primarily of letters that Mostert wrote to his wife while serving in the 901st Ordnance Heavy Automotive Maintenance Company during the Second World War. The collection also includes photographs and printed material related to Mostert's service, as well as a small copy of the New Testament.

Peter Mostert wrote most of the letters in the Correspondence series to his wife Jeannie in Palatka, Florida, during his time in the army. Peter, who served in a non-combat unit, discussed his life on army bases in the United States, North Africa, Italy, and France. His letters concern the everyday experiences of soldiers serving behind the front lines during the war. Despite occasionally hinting at the relative boredom of his station, Peter remained mindful of his contribution to the war effort and told Jeannie, "We have a good life compared to combat units" (August 13, 1944). Though he focused mostly on his life on base, he sometimes mentioned the progress of the war, particularly near its end. On April 26, 1945, he wrote, "I think the war with Germany is near over.…It may take some time yet to finish it but the main armies are finished. It will take quite some time yet to get them out of Norway Holland and Italy but they are badly beaten" (April 26, 1945). Later, he described the celebrations surrounding Germany's eventual surrender (May 7, 1945). Though he was stationed in Europe, Peter also took an interest in developments in the Pacific Ocean and the potential Japanese surrender. In his final letters home, he recounted his experiences in southern France following the end of hostilities and expected a forthcoming return to the United States.

Other correspondence includes a small number of letters to Jeannie Mostert from her brother, John C. Arnold, who described his experiences in the army. Arnold, who styled himself "Jay" and addressed Jeannie as "Bill," spent the war on army bases in the United States. On one occasion, he commented on racial segregation of army troops (August 15, 1944).

• Eugenia Mostert's application for family allowances (September 29, 1943)
• Birthday card for Mrs. Peter Mostert, signed by Jay [John C. Arnold] (October 1945)
• Printed copy of Westward-Ho! newsletter, published on the USAT Frederick Lykes (November 17, 1945)

The Photographs and Negatives series contains 8 photographs, 1 photograph housed in a cardboard frame, and 2 packages of photographic negatives.

The Soldier's Bible is a pocket-sized copy of the New Testament, once owned by Cornelius Mostert.