This one comes all the way from Missouri. A radio host asked for people to submit letters from service men writing to the folks back home for a collection. This particular letter was submitted by Mrs. E.C. Mallett, a West Monroe Mother. It was written by her son Earl from the Pacific theatre during WWII. He describes seeing relatives and life aboard ship. Unfortunately, Earl didn’t make it. Less than two months later, he was KIA at Formosa.
The Missouri State Historical Society has a copy of the letter along with a hand written note from his mother explaining what happened to her son. They can be seen online here:
https://digital.shsmo.org/digital/collection/wwii/id/13139
Earl’s name can be found on the Walls of the Missing at Manila. His Findagrave memorial has a newspaper clipping with a photo of him. He was a fine looking young man.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56761870/earl-clifford-mallette
Ouachita Parish History Tidbits 