Personal Narrative Film, Video Manuscript/Mixed Material Photo, Print, Drawing Software, E-Resource Normand Henry Carleton Collection
Veterans History Project Service Summary:
- War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
- Branch of Service: Army
- Service Unit/Ship: 423rd Armored Field Artillery Battalion, 10th Armored Division
- Location of Service: Fort Benning, Georgia; Camp Gordon, Georgia; European Theater
- Highest Rank: Technician Five
- Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/90151
Poised to marry his sweetheart, Lora, in 1942, Normand Carleton was told by the Army that his chances of being drafted were slim (thanks to his poor eyesight), and thus he and Lora decided to risk tying the knot during wartime. Two months after they were married, he was called up. Serving with a tank battalion in the European Theater, Carleton used the long nights he spent on radio duty to keep a daily journal, and also to illustrate the envelopes of the letters that he sent to Lora. The funny and poignant sketches surely brought a smile to her face, and may have eased the pain of the newlyweds' nearly two year separation.
Interview / Recording
Transcript
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PlayDeciding to get married; promised by Army that he wouldn't be drafted due to poor vision; eventually, passing a physical and entering the service. 00:01:15.0 - 00:02:17.0
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PlayLanding in France; encountering first a neighbor from back home and then his brother. 00:10:10.0 - 00:14:44.0
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PlayServing as a driver and radio operator in a tank; keeping a diary while on radio duty at night; a near miss. 00:16:31.0 - 00:18:21.0
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About this Item
Title
- Normand Henry Carleton Collection
Names
- Weisel, Robert J.
- Carleton, Normand Henry
- Central Connecticut State University
- McGuckin, Briana
Home State
- Connecticut
Headings
- - Carleton, Normand Henry
- - 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
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World War, 1939-1945
- Branch of Service: Army
- Service Unit/Ship: 423rd Armored Field Artillery Battalion, 10th Armored Division
- Location of Service: Fort Benning, Georgia; Camp Gordon, Georgia; European Theater
- Highest Rank: Technician Five
- Dates of Service: 1942-1946
- Entrance into Service: Drafted
- Military Status: veteran
Materials
- Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of video recording (collected 2014-05-07)
- Video: DVD [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 2012-11-15)
- Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2012-11-15; 2012)
- Photograph: Digital print [110 items] -- Photographs (collected 1943-1946)
- Manuscript: Clippings [4 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1944-1995)
- Manuscript: Correspondence [4 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1944-1946)
- Manuscript: Creative works [29 items] -- Handwritten document (collected 1944-1945)
- Manuscript: Diaries and journals [1 item] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1944-1945)
- Manuscript: Military Papers [14 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942-1945)
- Manuscript: Printed matter [4 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942-1945)
- Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Electronic file of manuscript (collected 1942-1945; 2013)
- Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Multiple types of electronic files (collected 1943-1945)
Collection Number
- AFC/2001/001/90151
Online Format
- image
- online text
- video