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Ralph DeForest in uniform

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: A&P Platoon, Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 47th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division
  • Location of Service: North Africa; Algeria; French Morocco; Tunisia; Sicily; Normandy, France; Belgium; Rhineland, Germany
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/12692

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"Up at 7. Got letters from Johnny Draghi, Jack, Mother, and Jen. Also an Easter card from Jen. Yesterday German planes bombed the rear command post hitting two fellows in headquarters company. Washed up this morning and washed some socks." (Diary entry, April 5, 1943, page 80)

Ralph DeForest was in the Army infantry exactly four years to the day, from June 25, 1941 to June 25, 1945. He saw action in North Africa and Sicily, and he landed on Normandy five days after D-Day. In Tunisia he saw the aftermath of the Battle of Kasserine Pass and reported on subsequent action, mixing mundane chores with reports of casualties in his outfit. DeForest kept a running diary of his experiences, but he was asked not to turn it in when he was stationed in England prior to the Normandy invasion. He stopped only for a few months and restarted on D-Day, June 6, 1944. His collection also traces his career through clippings from his hometown paper in Stamford, CT.

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[ Photo Album ]

More Resources

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[ Soldier's Identification Card ]
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[ Honorable discharge [June 24, 1945] ]
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[ Separation Qualification Record ]
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[ World War II Diary of Ralph D. DeForest [October 18, 1942-June 25, 1945] ]
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[ Newsclipping "Doughboy Backs Luce's Proposal for Leave System" ]
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[ Newsclipping and photocopy of playing card "Bradley's Troops Widen Corridor Across Peninsula" ]

Show more resources (13)

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[ Clipping: "Prayer book reveals picture of girl he knew back home" ]
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[ Clipping: "Sgt. Ralph DeForest granted Silver Star" ]
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[ Clipping "One Stamford boy is missing in action" ]
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[ Clipping: "Veteran of Battles" ]
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[ Clipping: "Stamford men complete Camp Croft training" [1941] ]
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[ Clipping: "Pfc. Ralph DeForest wins Purple Heart" ]
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[ Clipping: "Stamford soldier in Germany finds folder about home town" ]
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[ Clipping: Sgt. Ralph DeForest granted discharge with 123 points" ]
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[ Clipping: "Two local soldiers win combat honor" ]
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[ Clipping: "The King looks them over" ]
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[ Clipping: "On African Front" [Monday, December 21, 1942] ]
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[ Clipping: "DeForest's letters describes battles on African front." ]
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[ Clipping: "Two local soldiers win combat honor" ]

About this Item

Title

  • Ralph B. DeForest Collection

Names

  • Johanson, Lorraine
  • DeForest, Ralph B.

State of Birth

  • CT

Home State

  • GA

Headings

  • -  DeForest, Ralph B.
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • White

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: A&P Platoon, Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 47th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division
    • Location of Service: North Africa; Algeria; French Morocco; Tunisia; Sicily; Normandy, France; Belgium; Rhineland, Germany
    • Highest Rank: Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 1941-1945
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: Veteran
    • Service History Note: The veteran was injured by an anti-tank mine.

Materials

  • Photograph: Original photographic print [5 items] -- Photograph (collected 1945 - 2003)
  • Photograph: Copy photographic print [2 items] -- Photograph (collected 1944)
  • Manuscript: Clippings [11 items] -- Typewritten document (collected unknown)
  • Manuscript: Diaries and journals [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 10/18/1942 - 6/25/1945)
  • Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [3 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1941 - 1945)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/12692

Cite as

  • Ralph B. DeForest Collection (AFC/2001/001/12692), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image

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:

Johanson, Lorraine, and Ralph B Deforest. Ralph B. DeForest Collection. 1941. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.12692/.

APA citation style:

Johanson, L. & Deforest, R. B. (1941) Ralph B. DeForest Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.12692/.

MLA citation style:

Johanson, Lorraine, and Ralph B Deforest. Ralph B. DeForest Collection. 1941. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.12692/>.