Collections : [University of Michigan William L. Clements Library]

This collection contains approximately 50 letters that Private First Class George W. Ingram wrote to his mother and siblings in Boyne City, Michigan, while he served with the United States Army between 1943 and 1945. Ingram corresponded with his family while in training in the United States and while stationed in North Africa, Italy, and southern France with a military police unit. The collection also includes a document, 2 postcards, photographs, a photograph album, and ephemeral items.

This collection contains approximately 50 letters that Private First Class George W. Ingram wrote to his mother and siblings in Boyne City, Michigan, while he served with the United States Army between 1943 and 1945. Ingram corresponded with his family while in training in the United States and while stationed in North Africa, Italy, and southern France with a military police unit. The collection also includes a document, 2 postcards, photographs, a photograph album, and ephemeral items.

The Correspondence series contains George Ingram's letters to his family, as well as 2 postcards and 1 document. He wrote regularly to his mother, Sadie Ingram, and less frequently to his siblings, Bob and Guy, between January 1943 and February 1945. In his earliest letters, he commented on his experiences at Camp Grant, Illinois, and Camp McCoy, Wisconsin, where he attended basic training. By March, he relocated to Camp River Rouge, Michigan, and anticipated being sent to military police training. In July 1943, he reported that he had been deployed overseas as a member of the "149th Prov. M.P. Det.," and that he would help guard prisoners of war.

Ingram wrote about his service in North Africa, Italy, and southern France, and he frequently responded to news of friends from home. He occasionally mentioned his religious habits. After his return to the United States in late 1944, Ingram discussed his wife Betty, expressing hopes that his family would approve of her and inquiring about their opinions of her. He shared some of his postwar plans and related his efforts to obtain a medical discharge from the army. Ingram spent much of early 1945 as a member of the Army Service Forces at Camp Peary, Virginia. Throughout his service, he occasionally wrote on illustrated stationery, and he sent his mother 1 postcard from Wisconsin, which includes an image of two Mongolian pheasants. The series holds a "War Savings Bond Pay Reservation Application," signed by George W. Ingram in January 1943.

The Photographs series includes 4 individual photographs, a photographic negative, and 1 photo album. The photo album (52 pages) contains snapshots and portraits taken primarily in and around Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor, Michigan, between 1941 and 1943. Most pictures depict soldiers, young women, and a baby. Other scenes include St. Petersburg, Florida; Niagara Falls; and the United States Capitol.

The Printed items and ephemera series contains newspaper clippings of a poem and an image of a bride, a certificate for Bob Ingram's service in the United States Crop Corps Victory Farm Volunteers program in 1945, and a booklet illustrating methods for creating shadow illustrations with one's hands.

The Realia series consists of a pair of iron ice tongs.

This collection consists of the outgoing correspondence of Robert S. Martin, primarily to his wife Margaret (Roth) Martin, as well as photographs and other materials documenting his service with the United States Army during the Second World War. The papers detail his relationship with Margaret, Army training at Camp Callan, his education with the Army Specialized Training Program at Compton College and Texas A & M University, and his service with the 3483rd Ordnance Medium Automotive Maintenance Company, near Tacloban City in the Leyte Province, Philippines.

This collection consists of the outgoing correspondence of Robert S. Martin, primarily to his wife Margaret (Roth) Martin, as well as photographs and other materials documenting his service with the United States Army during the Second World War. The collection details his relationship with Margaret, Army training at Camp Callan, his education with the Army Specialized Training Program at Compton Junior College and Texas A & M University, and his service with the 3483rd Ordnance Medium Automotive Maintenance Company, near Tacloban City in the Leyte Province, Philippines.

The Correspondence Series includes approximately 2.5 linear feet of Robert Martin's outgoing letters, almost exclusively to Margaret (Roth) Martin from 1941 to 1949 (bulk 1943-1946). Several letters to his parents and Margaret's parents are also present. Robert's correspondence details his Army training at Camp Callan as well as his education under the Army Specialized Training Program at Compton Junior College and Texas A & M University. He described coursework, tests, and comradery among his cohort. Robert and Margaret's relationship is also documented, including their courtship, engagement, and wedding planning. Robert wrote of his voyage across the Pacific aboard the USS Admiral Capps and described daily life in the Army camp near Tacloban City, Leyte Province, Philippines, where the 3483rd Ordnance Medium Automotive Maintenance Company was stationed in a non-combat zone. He commented on his work as company clerk and later as a clerk in the maintenance shop. Robert regularly spoke of recreation activities at the camp, including movies, USO shows, radio programs, reading, and sports. In his free time, Robert worked on constructing boats, repairing Jeeps, and taking and developing photographs. Robert built his own darkroom by repurposing an Australian Red Cross truck. Many of his letters reflect on his relationship with Margaret and his reactions to events at home, including her education at DePauw University and her teaching elementary school upon graduation. He included some commentary on general wartime efforts, reactions to news of the Japanese surrender, the lifting of censorship, local Filipino culture and work, and demobilization efforts. Several post-war letters speak to his work with Caterpillar Tractor Company, including a demanding travel schedule as he attended equipment shows in the American South and along the East Coast.

The Documents Series includes 21 items, dating from 1923 to 2009 and representing Robert and Margaret's personal lives as well as Robert's military service. Personal documents include copies of Robert's birth certificate, educational records and diploma from Purdue University, Robert and Margaret's marriage certificate, and Margaret's license to teach in Missouri. Military documents include Robert's registration and identification cards, training and education records, war savings bonds, documents related to his honorable discharge and pension, and certificates acknowleding his service.

The Printed Items Series includes seven items: a newspaper clipping about Robert and Margaret's engagement, a Camp Callan Antiaircraft Replacement Training Center trainees' guide book, a Texas A & M photo pamphlet of campus with manuscript notations, a clipping from an Army newsletter, a copy of The Amended GI Bill of Rights and How it Worksa newspaper clipping of Robert Martin's obituary, and an in memorium flier.

The Insignia Series features two uniform insignia badges, one for the Antiaircraft Command and the other for the Army Specialized Training Program.

The Photographs Series includes one pocket photo album, with a photograph of Margaret taken while she was a student at DePauw University, and one of Margaret and Robert taken shortly after their marriage in August 1944. Eight loose photographs include three of Robert in uniform, one of Robert and Margaret, and four candid shots of camp life in the Philippines. Two reproductions of a wedding day photograph of Margaret and Robert are also present. Eighteen dis-bound photograph album leaves are also present, featuring images from 1941 to 1946. Photographs represent the Martin family, student life with the Army Specialized Training Program at Texas A & M, time stationed with ordnance units at Jackson, Mississippi, and Aberdeen, Maryland, as well as military life in the Philippines. Photographs from the Philippines primarily document informal camp activities, including men in their tents, posing with vehicles, and at rest. Some images represent local Filipino residents and architecture, Robert's photography darkroom, and two images of Japanese prisoners-of-war. Photographs labelled "?" depict Margaret (Roth) Martin.

The Service Record Series consists of one scrapbook, "His Service Record," documenting Robert's service in the Army. It includes manuscript notations about his personal and military history, six photographs, a newspaper announcement of Robert and Margaret's engagement, and a copy of the February 1944 The Slipstick, a yearbook from the A.S.T.P. at Texas A & M.

This collection is made up of correspondence, diaries, financial records, legal documents, photographs, speeches, and ephemera related to Ziba Roberts of Shelby, New York, and his family. Much of the material concerns his service in the 28th New York Infantry Regiment during the Civil War, veterans' pensions, reunions, genealogy, and estate administration.

This collection is made up of correspondence, diaries, financial papers, legal documents, photographs, speeches, printed items, and ephemera related to Ziba Roberts of Shelby, New York, and his family. Much of the material concerns his service in the 28th New York Infantry Regiment during the Civil War, veterans' pensions, reunions, genealogy, and estate administration.

The Correspondence series (approximately 110 items) includes a group of 17 items (1826-1852) related to the family of James Harland, an ancestor of Cynthia Dewey Roberts. Harland, who lived in Manchester, New York, received letters from his son William, who moved to Clarksfield, Ohio, around 1839. Shortly after his arrival, William described local marshes and discussed his land and the prices of various crops. His later letters concern his financial difficulties and his Christian faith. A letter of September 3, 1841, includes a small manuscript map of property lines.

The remaining correspondence pertains to Ziba Roberts and, to a lesser extent, his wife and children. The first item is a letter from his sister Henrietta dated March 14, 1858. Roberts regularly corresponded with family members and friends while serving in the 28th New York Infantry Regiment between January 1862 and April 1863. In his letters home (around 20 items), he described aspects of military and camp life, including food, hygiene, illness, long marches, and general boredom; several items concern his experiences in occupied Winchester, Virginia, in the spring of 1862 and his treatment after his release from Confederate prison. He sometimes commented on news of the war, expressing confidence in a Union victory. During this period, Roberts occasionally received letters from family members at home, who discussed farming, religion, and family news (5 items).

The Roberts correspondence resumes in 1886 and continues as late as 1937; most date between 1889 and 1912. Roberts received a series of letters from William W. Eastman in South Dakota, who wrote at length about his financial difficulties. Most of his late correspondence concerns Civil War veterans' affairs, particularly related to pensions and reunions. Some writers complained about the difficulty of receiving a pension, the health issues that affected former soldiers, and Roberts's own disability claim. One printed circular contains reminiscences by members of the 28th New York Infantry Regiment (printed and distributed in May 1892). In 1912, Ziba Roberts received letters from fellow veterans regarding the 28th Regiment's annual reunion; most expressed or implied a lasting sense of comradeship with their fellow veterans, though many declined the invitation on account of poor health or other circumstances (with some reflecting on whether deaths would put future reunions in jeopardy).

The latest correspondence, written in the 1920s and 1930s, concerns the Grand Army of the Republic, insurance policies, and Roberts and Sanborn family genealogy. One correspondent returned an essay written by Ziba Roberts in December 1916: "A Brief History of the Methodist Episcopal Church at East Shelby" (enclosed with letter dated February 27, 1924). Minutes of the 28th Regiment's 68th reunion, held in May 1929, note the death of Ziba Roberts and other soldiers.

Ziba Roberts wrote two Diaries between November 14, 1861, and December 31, 1862. His daily entries concern aspects of his service with the 28th New York Infantry Regiment in Maryland and Virginia, including his imprisonment in 1862. He wrote about marches, guard duty, drills, health, and rations.

The Documents and Financial Papers series (74 items) includes legal documents and financial papers dated 1864 to 1940. Correspondence, indentures, and mortgages pertain to land ownership, management of decedents' estates, and a legal dispute between William W. Dewey and Seneca Sprout in the 1890s. Four items are Grand Army of the Republic commissions for Ziba Roberts, dated between 1918 and 1922. One group of tax receipts pertains to payments made by Ziba and Cynthia Roberts as late as 1940.

The collection's account book originally belonged to Ziba Roberts in the late 19th century. Roberts recorded around 35 pages of accounts between around 1884 and 1919, including records related to everyday purchases of food and other goods, a female domestic worker's wages, road construction, and estates. A later owner recorded tax payments for the years 1922-1944.

The Photographs series consists of 2 photograph albums and 8 loose items. Together, the photograph albums contain around 120 cartes-de-visite, tintypes, and cabinet cards. These items consist of studio portraits of members of the Roberts, Dewey, Wolcott, and Sanborn families, as well as additional friends and family members. Most of the pictures, which feature men, women, children, and infants, were taken in New York.

The loose items are made up of photographs of Ziba Roberts, including a heavily retouched portrait and a corresponding print of the original image; portraits of soldiers in the 28th New York Infantry Regiment; pictures of Colonel Dudley Donnelly's tomb; and a group of soldiers posing by the High Water Mark of the Rebellion Monument at Gettysburg. Additional items show a group posing for a souvenir photograph after a "balloon route trolley trip" in Los Angeles, California, and members of the Sprout family standing in front of their home.

The Speeches, Printed Items, and Ephemera series (30 items) includes Civil War materials, such as scores for the songs "We're Marching on to Richmond," "The Passing of the Veteran," "We Old Boys," and "Have You Got the Countersign"; and a printed booklet of war songs issued by the Grand Army of the Republic and related veterans' societies. Other items pertain to veterans' reunions and reminiscences. The series also includes two typed carbon copies of postwar speeches given by Ziba Roberts, "Seeing Lincoln" and "Lecture on Army Prison Life."

Additional pamphlets and ephemeral items concern New York political reforms, cholera, and a meeting of the descendants of Henry Wolcott. One newspaper clipping describes the career of William Ziba Roberts. The series includes a biography of George Dewey and history of the Dewey family (Adelbert M. Dewey, 1898). The final items are World War II-era ration books, with many stamps still attached.

The Genealogy series (21 items) is comprised of records related to the Roberts and Dewey families, and to the ancestors and descendants of Ziba and Cynthia Dewey Roberts. A manuscript volume contains approximately 35 pages of family trees; registers of births, marriages, and deaths; and the military service of Daniel Roberts (Revolutionary War) and Ziba Roberts (Civil War). Other items include additional registers, death notices, and notes.