Hudson, Virgil Olville (1909-1980), Papers, 1943-1945 (C4035)

.8 linear feet

INTRODUCTION

The papers of Virgil Hudson, a World War II veteran from Jefferson City, contain personal correspondence from the war as well as photographs, pamphlets, and army documents.

DONOR INFORMATION

The Virgil Hudson Papers were loaned to the State Historical Society of Missouri by The Missouri State Museum on January 8, 2007 for a period of five years (Accession No. 6139).

RESTRICTIONS

Consult the reference staff about restrictions on this collection.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Virgil O. Hudson was born January 18, 1909, in Hartsburg, Missouri. On November 28, 1936, he married Pearl McMillin in Sedalia. In 1943, at the age of 34, Hudson entered into the United States Army leaving his wife, who was pregnant with their first child, in Jefferson City.

Hudson served in Battery B of the 549th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion in the 87th Division and trained as both a soldier and a cook. During his training, the couples’ first son, Donald, was born. After almost 18 months in basic training, Hudson’s division was sent to Europe in October 1944. The division was sent through England, France, Luxembourg, Germany, and Belgium. During his time in the army, Hudson attained the rank of sergeant and was promoted to first cook. In November 1945, he returned to his family in Jefferson City.

Hudson worked at the Tweedie Shoe factory in Jefferson City until its closing and then took a job with the Jefferson City Public Schools in the custodial and maintenance department. Virgil Hudson died September 16, 1980. Hudson’s wife, Pearl, passed away December 30, 2003.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The Virgil Hudson Papers consist primarily of correspondence from Hudson to his wife during his time in the army. The collection also contains some photographs, pamphlets, and official documents that Hudson sent to his wife. The papers are arranged into two series: Personal Correspondence and Miscellaneous Documents.

The Personal Correspondence series comprises letters arranged chronologically. The content of the correspondence primarily concerns the difficulty of basic training and the hardships of being separated from family. Descriptions of barracks life and training exercises are discussed and other army procedures such as weekend leaves and court-martials are mentioned. The series also consists of letters written while Hudson was on active duty in Europe.

The Miscellaneous Documents series includes official army documents with promotion orders and allowance benefits. There are also unofficial documents from army life such as weekend passes, laundry tickets, and information pamphlets. The collection also includes a photographic negative of Hudson as well as a group photograph of the battery and one of the barracks.

• Personal Correspondence
• Miscellaneous Documents

FOLDER LIST

Personal Correspondence Series

The Personal Correspondence series includes correspondence from Hudson to his wife and is arranged chronologically. The series contains letters written from several army training facilities in the United States. They emphasize the loneliness and hard work Hudson faced. He sometimes mentions the training exercises he underwent to become both a soldier and cook. Hudson describes his court-martial procedure in January 1944 that took place after he left the training facilities without permission. The series also contains the letters Hudson wrote while in Europe, although there is no mention of combat. A list of the A.P.O. locations can be found in an appendix to this inventory.

f. 1	Ft. Leavenworth, KS, 1943 April
f. 2	Camp Edwards, MA, 1943 May
f. 3	Camp Edwards, MA, 1943 June
f. 4	Camp Edwards, MA, 1943 July
f. 5	Camp Edwards, MA, 1943 August-September
f. 6	Camp Edwards, MA, 1943 October-10 November
f. 7	Camp Forrest, TN, 1943 16 November-29 November
f. 8	Camp Forrest, TN, 1943 December
f. 9	Camp Forrest, TN, 1944 January
f. 10	Camp Forrest, TN, 1944 2 February-15 February
f. 11	Camp Davis, NC, 1944 21 February-17 March
f. 12	Riverhead, NY, 1944 22 March-May
f. 13	Camp Davis, NC, 1944 June
f. 14	Camp Davis, NC, 1944 July
f. 15	Camp Davis, NC, 1944 August
f. 16	Camp Davis, NC, 1944 September
f. 17	A.P.O. 205, 1944 October
f. 18	A.P.O. 205, 1944 November
f. 19	A.P.O. 205, 1944 7 December-18 December
f. 20	A.P.O. 403, 1944 21 December-January
f. 21	A.P.O. 403, 1945 February
f. 22	A.P.O. 403, 1945 March
f. 23	A.P.O. 403, 1945 April
f. 24	A.P.O. 403, 1945 May
f. 25	A.P.O. 403, 1945 June
f. 26	A.P.O. 403, 1945 5 July-15 July
f. 27	A.P.O. 228, 1945 18 July-August
f. 28	A.P.O. 228, 1945 September
f. 29	A.P.O. 228, 1945 October

Miscellaneous Documents Series

The Miscellaneous Documents series consists of various documents acquired by Hudson and his wife during the war. Included are official documents such as promotion notices and change of address forms. This series also contains brochures and pamphlets issued by the military and the U.S. government.

f. 30	Postcards, 1943-1945
f. 31-34	Pamphlets, 1943-1945
f. 35	Promotion Orders, 1944
f. 36	War Department Documents, 1943-1945
f. 37	Service Letter, 1944
f. 38	Army Base Tickets/Passes, 1943-1945
f. 39	Ration Book, 1943-1945
f. 40	Newspaper clippings and miscellany
f. 41	Photographs, 1943

INDEX TERMS

These index terms are the subjects, people, places, etc. under which this collection is listed in all available indexes at the Western Historical Manuscript Collection-Columbia. If you are interested in a specific index term, please contact the reference staff

Camp Davis, North Carolina	f. 11, 13-16
Camp Edwards, Massachusetts	f. 41 (pictorial image)
Camp Edwards, Massachusetts	f. 2-6, 41
Camp Forrest, Tennessee	f. 7-10
Courts martial and courts of inquiry	f. 9
Fort Leavenworth, Kansas	f. 1
Hudson, Donald (1943- )	f. 1-29
Hudson, Pearl (1916-2003)	f. 1-41
Hudson, Virgil O. (1909-1980)	f. 41 (pictorial image)
Hudson, Virgil O. (1909-1980)	f. 1-41
Soldiers--United States	f. 41 (pictorial image)
Soldiers--United States	f. 1-41
U.S. Army--Handbooks, manuals, etc.	f. 31-38
U.S. Army--Military life	f. 1-41
World War, 1939-1945	f. 1-41