Height x Width (2.1, 2.2 and 2.3): 10 1/2 x 8 1/16 in. (26.6 x 20.5 cm)
Type:
Covers & Associated Letters
Place of Origin:
Philippines
Date:
July 24, 1945
Description:
Sergeant Jack Fogarty wrote this three-page letter to his pen pal Mary MacDonald on July 24, 1945 from “Somewhere on Luzon.” He discusses with Mary her recent adventures in real estate, which is also depicted on the illustrated envelope (Museum ID 2012.2006.15.1) that enclosed this letter.
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.
John Fogarty telephone conversation with Lynn Heidelbaugh, Curator, National Postal Museum, 2012.
