GEORGE A. GAUTHIER:

George A. Gauthier was a son of Alfred T. and Mary E. Gauthier. Siblings included Harry, Willifred, Lawrence, and Genevieve Gauthier. In 1929 he worked in the Sales Department of G. A. Ashton Company, Inc., an automotive equipment business located in St. Paul. He later worked in the Traffic Department of the Northern Pacific Railway Company. He attended the University of Minnesota in 1933 and 1934. In 1933 Gauthier attended Reserve Officers' Training Corps at the University of Illinois, Champaign, Ill. In 1937 he was a Second Lieutenant in the 537th Coast Artillery Corps, Fort Sheridan, Illinois. In 1942 he was promoted to Captain. Gauthier apparently entered active military service in 1941, and after several years stateside he was sent to Europe in the Spring of 1945, serving in Germany during the Occupation. He apparently did not see combat. In the fall of 1945 he was shipped back home for discharge.

Loretta Healy, also of St. Paul, was born around 1906. She was a daughter of John J. and Mary Healy. Her siblings included sisters Veronica, Elizabeth, Margaret, and Norine. She was employed for several years by Land O'Lakes Creameries, Inc., Minneapolis.

George Gauthier and Loretta Healy were married around 1937. The couple had two sons, George Jr. and Greg. After the war they made their home in St. Paul for a few years. They disappeared from the St. Paul city directories after 1951.

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The collection consists of correspondence (and envelopes); some picture postcards; newspaper clippings; ink blotters; birthday and Christmas cards; issues of the Knights of Columbus newsletter Knightland Crier and the Saint Paul News Digest; issues of the Barrancas Breeze, a post newsletter published at Fort Barrancas, Florida; a few scattered snapshot photographs; Federal tax returns (1941); and other miscellaneous items. There are some of Gauthier's personal course schedules showing the classes he was taking at the University of Minnesota in 1933 and 1934.

Early correspondence includes many letters written while George or Loretta were apart, traveling with others in various parts of the United States. A good many of the letters, from the courtship phase of their relationship, might be described as "love letters."

The bulk of the correspondence was written during the years of World War II, when George was on active military duty. His letters from this time period describe his travels and experiences in the military stateside, and eventually his experiences in Germany as part of the Allied occupation. His letters describe his experiences at Fort Sheridan, Illinois; Camp Hulen, Texas; Ragley and Lake Charles, Louisiana; San Diego, California; Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio, Texas; Fort Barrancas, Florida; Camp Pendleton, Virginia; Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas; Camp Robinson, Arkansas; Fort Sill, Oklahoma; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; and deployments at Ehrenbreitstein, Stipshausen, Morbach, Steinbruch, and Regensburg, Germany.

In her letters Loretta keeps George apprised of her activities, goings-on at home in St. Paul, the growth and progress of their children, family illnesses, and her management of the household in his absence.

There are some letters to and from others, including parents and siblings, friends, other military personnel, members of the Knights of Columbus St. Paul Council #397, and Northern Pacific employees.

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Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. George A. Gauthier World War II Correspondence. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession number: 15,948.

Processing Information:

Processed by: David B. Peterson, June 2007.

Catalog ID number: 990064242750104294

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This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics:

Artillerymen -- United States.

Soldiers -- Social life and customs.

Soldiers' writings, American.

World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal narratives, American.

Places:

Germany (Territory under Allied occupation, 1945-1955).

Persons:

Crary, Judson L.

Gauthier, Loretta, approximately 1906-

Healy, Veronica M., approximately 1907-

Organizations:

Knights of Columbus. St. Paul Council No. 397 (Saint Paul, Minn.).

Northern Pacific Railway Company -- Employees.

United States. Army. Coast Artillery Corps, 537th.

United States. Army. Coast Artillery Regiment, 13th.

United States. Army. Field Artillery Battalion, 538th. Battery C.

United States. Army. Forces in the European Theater.

United States. Army. Reserve Officers' Training Corps.

United States. Army -- Military life.

Types of Documents:

Advertising blotters.

Picture postcards.

Occupations:

Soldiers -- United States.

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