At War's End
"Peace Isn't It Wonderful,"
August
25, 1945
Chicago Daily Times Vol. 16, no. 341
Serial & Government
Publications Division (68A.7)
Private First Class William T. Livingston, 34th
Infantry Regiment, to family members
Holograph letter, August 11, 1945
Veteran's History Project (68.7)
Donated by Norton A. Goldstein, June 13, 2003 |
In August of 1945, service members in the Pacific Theater were
dreading an invasion of Japan. Infantryman William T. Livingston
saw fierce action in the Philippines and survived the ravages of
tropical diseases, including malaria and dengue fever. In one of
462 letters home, he describes the elation that quickly ensued
after news reached his unit of the war's end. News of the war's
end dominated the front pages of newspapers coast to coast, as
did the headlines that gas rationing would cease. Private First
Class Livingston would go on to serve as part of the occupying
force in Japan for five months.
|