RICHARD A. HOPPIN:
An Inventory of His World War II Papers at the Minnesota Historical Society
Manuscripts Collection
OVERVIEW
| Creator: | Hoppin, Richard A., 1921-, creator. | |
| Title: | World War II papers. | |
| Dates: | 1942-1946, 1951. | |
| Abstract: | Letters (originals and typed transcripts) to his parents in Minneapolis from a World War II meteorological cadet (1942-1943), weather observer (1943-1944) in Mississippi and Florida, and aircraft spotter (1944-1945) with the U.S. Army Air Forces in Kunming, China. His letters home are supplemented with a number of photographs, a few newspapers, and some service documents. | |
| Quantity: | 0.5 cubic feet (1 box). | |
| Location: | P2475. |
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Richard Arthur Hoppin was born is St. Paul, Minnesota in 1921. He grew up in Minneapolis and attended the University of Minnesota, where he earned a bachelor's degree in geology. After being drafted into the Army Air Corps in August 1942, he was sent to Sheppard Field, Texas, where he was given aptitude tests to see what sort of technical training he would receive. He was then transferred to the Army Air Forces Technical School at Chanute Field, Illinois, where he studied weather observation, and later taught a few entry level classes. After receiving exemplary marks, he was appointed as an aviation cadet at the Weather Training School in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he studied meteorology. After intensive and draining study, he graduated with high marks.
He was then transferred in September 1943 to Key Field in Meridian, Mississippi where he worked as a weather observer for several months. In November 1943, Hoppin was sent to Orlando, Florida, where he received training to be a Controller Fighter Interceptor, which consisted of identifying enemy aircraft, and directing anti-aircraft fighters to destroy them. After his training he was sent to Seymour Johnson Field, North Carolina, to await orders to go overseas. His last stateside base was Camp Patrick Henry, Virginia, where he shipped out for duty in the Japanese theater. His travels took him through Oran (Algeria), Bombay, and Calcutta, to finally be stationed at the 322nd Fighter Control Squadron in Kunming, China in July of 1944.
In Kunming, Hoppin worked as a Controller Fighter Interceptor from July 1944 until the end of the war in the Pacific in August 1945, eventually supervising 25 men responsible for locating incoming enemy aircraft and dispatching fighters to intercept them. He finally was allowed to start the journey back to Minneapolis in late September and sailed from Calcutta to Tacoma, Washington on the first troopship to arrive there. He was discharged as a captain at Fort McCoy in Wisconsin, and was home in time for Christmas 1945. Hoppin also served a 17-month stateside tour in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War after completing his graduate work in geology at the University of Minnesota. After his release from duty in 1952 he moved to Iowa City with his wife Marge and their son Art, and began his teaching career at the University of Iowa.
The information in this sketch was taken from the papers.
SCOPE AND CONTENTS
The Richard A. Hoppin World War II Papers consist primarily of a set of 197 letters detailing Hoppin's experiences as an officer during World War II, including a word processed set of transcriptions by the author with added information enclosed in brackets. The letters were written by Hoppin and sent home to his parents who resided in Minneapolis. Also included in the collection are 35 photographs Hoppin took while in the army, three newspapers from the Weather Training School in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and some miscellaneous items such as Hoppin's military identification card, a newspaper clipping recording Hoppin's promotion to first lieutenant, several pieces of paper currency from Morocco, Algeria, and China, and several certificates of service.
ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
Availability:
The collection is open for research use.
Preferred Citation:
[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Richard A. Hoppin World War II Papers. Minnesota Historical Society.
See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples
Accession Information:
Accession number: 15,729
Processing Information:
Processed by: Anna M. Nelson, December 2001
Catalog ID number: 990017373270104294
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
| Box | |||||||||||
| P2475 | 1 | Correspondence, 1942-1945. 5 folders. | |||||||||
| These very articulate letters were written by Richard Hoppin and sent to his parents in Minneapolis during his service in World War II. The letters come in several formats: handwritten, telegrams, and V-mail. In his letters, Hoppin describes his life and daily activities. He relates the process of getting into Weather Observation School in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and then also describes the grueling routine of study at the school. He describes the military bases to which he was assigned and several of his roommates and the friends he makes. He tells his parents about the movies he has seen, the books he has read, and the girls he has dated. When he leaves the country to travel to China, he describes his impressions of Algeria, Morocco, and India, without divulging his specific location or duties. He also describes China, his military base, and the surrounding villages and towns with great detail and observation. Also included are some philosophical ideas about war, his future, and life in general. When the war is over, Hoppin describes the reactions of his fellow soldiers in China and his plans for returning home. | |||||||||||
| Letter transcripts, 1942-1945. 4 folders. | |||||||||||
| Richard Hoppin transcribed his World War II letters home in this series. The transcripts also include additional information added by the author to enhance the information in the original letters. Such information includes exactly where he was stationed in China and details about his work during the war. These pieces of information would have been censored during the war, and were therefore not included in the original letters. The series of letters also includes a preface and an epilogue written by Hoppin. | |||||||||||
| Photographs, 1942-1945. 1 folder, containing 35 images. | |||||||||||
| A set of black and white photographs that detail Richard Hoppin's life during his service in World War II. They include pictures of Hoppin at home while on leave during the winter of 1942-1943; Chanute Field, Illinois, where Hoppin attended Weather Observer School; Mengtze and Kunming, China, where Hoppin was stationed; Oran, Algeria; and Tacoma, Washington, where the troopship that returned Hoppin to the United States docked. | |||||||||||
| Ephemera, 1942-1946, 1951. | |||||||||||
| This folder contains Hoppin's Separation Qualification Record and several certificates of service, detailing his duties and ranks during his time of service in World War II. Also included is a newspaper clipping recording Hoppin's promotion to first lieutenant, his armed forces identification card, and several pieces of paper currency from Morocco, Algeria, and China. | |||||||||||
| Newspapers, 1943. | |||||||||||
| Included are three complete issues of The Forecaster, a newspaper published for the personnel of the Weather Training School in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Hoppin sent these issues home to his parents in Minneapolis. The papers contain no specific information about Hoppin; rather they are more useful in understanding life at the Weather Training School. | |||||||||||
CATALOG HEADINGS
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:
- Aircraft spotting -- China -- Kunming.
- Airplanes -- Recognition.
- Military meteorology -- Study and teaching.
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Aerial operations.
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Campaigns -- Japan.
- Organizations:
- United States. Army Air Forces. Fighter Control Squadron, 322nd.
- Places:
- Kunming (China).
- Document Types:
- Photographs.
- Occupations:
- Soldiers.
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