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Denton Crocker while in training in New Orleans [ca. 1943]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 31st Malaria Survey Unit, Medical Department
  • Location of Service: New Guinea; Morotai Island (Moluccas); Philippines; Okinawa Island (Ryukyu Islands); Japan
  • Highest Rank: Technician Four
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/392

View full service history

"When I wrote you about getting married five days after I come home, I was more stating what I would like if there were no other considerations. I realize there are certain plans & arrangements to be made ... How about one month at the most?" Letter to Jean-Marie, September 9, 1945

When malaria severely disabled troops in the South Pacific, the Army formed several units headed by scientists and science students to identify disease-carrying mosquitoes and to educate servicemen on preventive measures. Biologist Denton Crocker's memoir, My War on Mosquitos, contains letters he wrote to his parents and his fiancee Jean Marie, evocative photos, and a journal kept by comrade Robert Roecker. Crocker and Roecker spent the war exploring the jungles of New Guinea, the Dutch East Indies, and the Philippines in search of an enemy as deadly as the Japanese.

Interview / Recording

More Resources

View 82 images in sequence.
[ Photo Album ]
View 311 images in sequence.
[ Memoirs: "My War On Mosquitos, 1942-1945" ]

About this Item

Title

  • Denton W. Crocker Collection

Names

  • Crocker, Denton W.

Home State

  • New York (State)

Headings

  • -  Crocker, Denton W.
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 31st Malaria Survey Unit, Medical Department
    • Location of Service: New Guinea; Morotai Island (Moluccas); Philippines; Okinawa Island (Ryukyu Islands); Japan
    • Highest Rank: Technician Four
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1945
    • Military Status: veteran
    • Service History Note: The 31st Malaria Unit later became a detachment and often served with units of the 5th Air Force. He also notes that before and during his service his permanent residence was in Swampscott, Massachusetts.

Materials

  • Manuscript: Memoirs [1 item] -- (collected 1997)
  • Manuscript: Clippings [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2004-05-30)
  • Photograph: Original photographic print [81 items] -- Photograph (collected 1943-1945)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/392

Cite as

  • Denton W. Crocker Collection (AFC/2001/001/392), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Crocker, Denton W. Denton W. Crocker Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.00392/.

APA citation style:

Crocker, D. W. (1942) Denton W. Crocker Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.00392/.

MLA citation style:

Crocker, Denton W. Denton W. Crocker Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.00392/>.