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Catalog Data

Medium:
paper; ink; watercolor
Dimensions:
Height x Width: 4 x 8 11/16 in. (10.1 x 22 cm)
Type:
Covers & Associated Letters
Place of Origin:
Netherlands Indies (Dutch colony)
Place of Destination:
New York
Date:
October 25, 1944
Description:
Corporal Jack Fogarty painted this watercolor for his pen pal Mary MacDonald showing her husband John MacDonald typing by lantern light for administrative support to the 98th Evacuation Hospital. The desk frames the "to" address for this envelope sent via airmail to New York from APO 926 (Morotai, Moluccas, Netherlands East Indies). The cover was marked passed by censor (#31527) and the 6-cent stamp (C25) was postmarked October 25, 1944.
Jack Fogarty served with the US Army’s 98th Evacuation Hospital during World War II. While working in the hospital’s administrative office, Corporal Jack Fogarty (later promoted to Sergeant) struck up a life-long friendship with Chief Warrant Officer John MacDonald and his wife, Mary. Jack and John both wrote regularly to Mary as the war took them to the Pacific Theater. John MacDonald also served as a censor for the unit, and the illustrated covers by Jack Fogarty bear MacDonald’s censor stamp and signature. In his correspondence with Mary, Jack filled the envelopes with scenes in watercolors, ink, and pencil. The illustrated covers show Jack’s life at the Desert Training Center in Yuma, Arizona, and his overseas service in New Guinea, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Japan. In addition to illustrating his personal correspondence, Jack contributed artwork to the 98th Evacuation Hospital’s newsletter, The Bulletin. After the war, Fogarty’s artistic career took him into acting and his prolific correspondence with friends sometimes included illustrations.
References:
Fogarty, John. Little Boy-Short Trousers-Eaton Cap: This I Remember. AuthorHouse, 2005.
Topic:
World War II (1939-1945)  Search this
Covers & Letters  Search this
Object number:
2012.2006.10
See more items in:
National Postal Museum Collection
Data Source:
National Postal Museum
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/hm8cb8f5b67-3efa-4a81-b0d6-07cf1e7873cf
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:npm_2012.2006.10