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Allen Sumner in military uniform [ca. 1918]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1914-1918
  • Branch of Service: Marine Corps
  • Service Unit/Ship: 81st Company, 6th Machine Gun Battalion, American Expeditionary Forces
  • Location of Service: Annapolis, Maryland; Norfolk, Virginia; Quantico, Virginia; Cuba; France
  • Highest Rank: Captain
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/105990

View full service history

I love you so much and do wish I would see you soon, but we have to put this thing through and once it's over we will be so happy together again. (Letter to Mary, September 12, 1917)

A 1904 Harvard graduate and a Marine officer, Captain Allen M. Sumner, Jr. deployed to France in the summer of 1917 as part of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF). There, he participated in some of the war's most infamous battles, such as the Battle of Belleau Wood. Sumner's experiences are chronicled in his letters to his wife, Mary, and his daughter, Margaret, to whom he wrote frequently. Sumner wrote his last letter to Mary on July 15, 1918, in which he described France's beautiful fields dotted with red poppies. Four days later, he was killed during the Battle of Soissons (an Allied counterattack that was part of the Second Battle of the Marne).

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[ Letters of Captain Allen M. Sumner, USMC [April 25, 1917 - July 15, 1918] ]

More Resources

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[ Photo Album ]
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[ Special Order No. 118 ]
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[ Letter from Chief of Staff Preston Brown, enclosing memo from L. W. T. Waller, Jr. relating to the death of Allen Sumner [8/11 - 8/12/1918 ]
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[ Memoir of major Robert L. Denig describing the battle of the Marne, July 18th, 1918, in which Sumner was killed [10/18/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [4/25/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/6/1917] ]

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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/26/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/14/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/17/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/19/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/20/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/23/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/1917] ]
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[ Fragment of a letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/26/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/29/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [8/31/1917] ]
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[ Letter from his mother to Allen Sumner, "Dearest boy" [8/31/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/5/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/6/1917] ]
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[ Fragment of a letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/11/1917] ]
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[ Postcard to Mrs. Allen M. Sumner [9/5/1917] ]
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[ Postcard to Margaret ("Miss Margaret P. Sumner") from Allen Sumner [9/11/1917] ]
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[ Two fragmentary letters from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/12/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/12/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/12/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/14/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/17/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/18/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/22/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/23/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [9/27/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [10/2/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [10/7/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [10/17/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [10/23/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [10/27/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [11/6/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [11/12/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [11/20/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [11/26/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [12/4/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [12/15/1917] ]
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[ Fragment of a letter, page one missing, from Allen Sumner [12/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [12/22/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [12/27/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [12/29/1917] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [1/5/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [1/6/1918] ]
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[ Letter to "My Dearest" from "Nan" (?) [1/11/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [1/12/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [1/24/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [2/1/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [2/4/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [2/13/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [2/17/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [2/26/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [3/2/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [3/10/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [3/21/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [3/25/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [3/30/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [4/2/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [4/5/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [4/10/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [4/15/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [4/16/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [4/24/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [4/27/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [5/1/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [5/5/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [5/8/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [5/19/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [5/17/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [5/24/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [5/29/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [6/14/1918] ]
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[ Postcard from Allen Sumner to his wife [6/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [6/21/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [6/29/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [7/8/1918] ]
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[ Letter from Allen Sumner to "My Dearest" [7/15/1918] ]
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[ Letter to his mother from Allen Sumner [5/5/1917] ]
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[ Letter to his mother from Allen Sumner [5/30/1917] ]
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[ Letter to his mother from Allen Sumner [5/15/1917] ]
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[ Letter to Margaret Sumner from Allen Sumner [12/29/1917] ]
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[ Letter to Margaret Sumner from Allen Sumner [1/28/1918] ]
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[ Letter, unidentified recipient and sender [10/18/1917] ]
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[ Letter to Margaret Sumner from Allen Sumner [2/24/1918] ]
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[ Letter to Allan Sumner from unidentified sender [3/2/1918] ]
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[ Letter to Margaret Sumner from Allen Sumner [4/6/1918] ]
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[ Letter to Mrs. Mary M. Sumner from James Woodburn, a soldier who was nearby when her husband was killed [5/18/1919] ]
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[ Letter to Mrs. Mary M. Sumner from L. W. T. Waller, Jr., [7/27/1918] ]
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[ Letter to "Mary" (?) from "Randolphe" (?) [7/31/1918] ]
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[ Letter to Margaret Sumner from Barbara Hight [8/24/1918] ]
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[ Letter to Mrs. Mary M. Sumner from L. W. T. Waller, Jr., [9/21/1918] ]
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[ Letter from a child to "Daddy" [ca. 1917] ]
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[ Note from Allen Sumner with a bill for room and board [ca. 1917] ]
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[ Letter to Allen Sumner from Howard Ostrabout (?) [11/11/--] ]
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[ Letter from Mary to "My Darling Boy" [ca. 1917] ]

About this Item

Title

  • Allen Melancthon Sumner, Jr. Collection

Names

  • Hinton, Richard F.
  • Sumner Jr., Allen Melancthon

Home State

  • Massachusetts

Headings

  • -  Sumner Jr., Allen Melancthon
  • -  World War, 1914-1918 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Marine Corps.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1914-1918

    • Branch of Service: Marine Corps
    • Service Unit/Ship: 81st Company, 6th Machine Gun Battalion, American Expeditionary Forces
    • Location of Service: Annapolis, Maryland; Norfolk, Virginia; Quantico, Virginia; Cuba; France
    • Highest Rank: Captain
    • Dates of Service: 1907-1918
    • Entrance into Service: Commissioned
    • Military Status: veteran
    • Service History Note: The veteran was killed in action on 07/19/1918 near Vierzy, France, while supervising a platoon during counterattack against German Forces. The USS Allen M Sumner (DD 692) was commissioned in his honor. He served from 03/17/1907 to 01/01/1914 and 04/1917 to 07/19/1918.

Materials

  • Manuscript: Correspondence [78 items] -- Handwritten document (collected 1917-1918)
  • Manuscript: Clippings [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 1918)
  • Manuscript: Military Papers [3 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1918-08-11)
  • Manuscript: Memoir [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 1918-10-18)
  • Photograph: Original photographic print [1 item] -- Photographs (collected 1907-1918)
  • Manuscript: Correspondence [19 items] -- Handwritten document (collected 1917-1918)
  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2009)
  • Computer File: DVD [1 item] -- Electronic file of manuscript (collected 2009; 2017-08-03)
  • Photograph: Copy photographic print [2 items] -- Photographs (collected unknown)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/105990

Online Format

  • image
  • pdf

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:

Hinton, Richard F, and Allen Melancthon Sumner Jr. Allen Melancthon Sumner, Jr. Collection. 1907. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.105990/.

APA citation style:

Hinton, R. F. & Sumner Jr, A. M. (1907) Allen Melancthon Sumner, Jr. Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.105990/.

MLA citation style:

Hinton, Richard F, and Allen Melancthon Sumner Jr. Allen Melancthon Sumner, Jr. Collection. 1907. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.105990/>.