Scope and Content
The Frank Van Pelt collection documents Van Pelt’s United States Army service during World War I. Spanning 1917-1931, materials include correspondence, memoirs, military papers, and photographs.
The correspondence in the collection spans from 1917-1919, during Van Pelt’s service in the United States and France. Letters are sent by Van Pelt to his family. Topics in the letters include camp and military life; references to personal relationships; short anecdotes about visits to federal prisons and food; weather; wheat; Germany; brief descriptions of visits to the front; YMCA and the Red Cross; family relations; and Van Pelt's thoughts regarding the military and war. Most letters span several days of writing. The memoir in the collection was written by Van Pelt to his children, in 1931. It documents his World War I experience and ends with his arrival at home following the war. Topics in the memoir include sentiments towards the war and draft; French society; descriptions of battles and skirmishes; radio/telegram duties; recollection of the death of French and American pilot, Gervais Raoul Lufbery; thoughts on Reba Crawford of the Salvation Army; YMCA sentiments; short anecdotes; and a general overview of his two year military career. A transcribed edition of the memoir created by an unknown person is also included. The transcription contains numerous copy editing changes. Military papers include Van Pelt’s discharge certificate, enlistment record, and pay receipts from the Veterans Bureau. Photographs include a landscape image and photocopies of Van Pelt in uniform and a suit.