Research Guides: Armed Conflicts &amp; the Military in the Special Collections Research Center: Korean War

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Special Collections Research Center Access Tools: There are a variety of tools available to guide you in finding materials in the Special Collections Research Center (SCRC). Don't forget that you also may come into the SCRC in person. Please email spcoll@wm.edu to make an appointment.

Korean War Sources in the Special Collections Research Center

Walter F. Wescott Diary
Contains the diary of Walter F. Wescott, 1952-1954, while stationed on board the USS Comstock (LSD-19) during the Korean War. In the diary, Wescott writes about the various places he was stationed, inspections on the ship, the sinking of USS Sarsi in 1952, getting a tatoo and watching films, and receiving letters from Bobbie back home. The diary contains daily entries from June through December 1952, and then one entry for 1954. At the end of the diary, there are financial accounts kept by Wescott for purchases, debts he owes, and outcome for playing poker and dice per pay day. There are loose slips of paper containing a message in either Vietnamese, Thai, or Cambodian.
Kenneth Brady Letters
Letters, 1951-1953, written by Kenneth Brady to Mary Brady, his mother, during his service in the Korean War. He serves at Ft. Bragg, Camp Drum, Ft. Hood, Ft. Eustis, and finally Sokcho-ri, Korea, as part of the Transportation Corps of the 8th Army.
Joseph Agee Military Artifacts
Military uniform, dog tags, National Defense" Medal and other artifacts which , belonged to Joseph Agee who served in the Korean Conflict, 1951-1953. Described at https://scrcguides.libraries.wm.edu/repositories/2/archival_objects/172986

https://scrcguides.libraries.wm.edu/repositories/2/archival_objects/173022

https://scrcguides.libraries.wm.edu/repositories/2/archival_objects/173144

https://scrcguides.libraries.wm.edu/repositories/2/archival_objects/173145

https://scrcguides.libraries.wm.edu/repositories/2/archival_objects/173146

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James Poirier Letters
Letters, 1947 and 1951, of James Poirier, a soldier in the United States Army. The first letter, written in 1947, is written from Japan. The rest of the letters, dated 1951, are written from Korea. Discusses, among other things, suicide, front line combat, and the destruction of Seoul. Also includes a piece of Korean money, which Poirier sent to his family.
Henry Clyde Ross Letters
Letters, 1953-1955, of Henry Clyde Ross to his fiance, Ella Brown, while the former was a private in the United States Army. Letters primarily detail Ross's life at basic training at Fort Lee, Virginia, his trip to Fort Lewis in Washington, and then his service in Korea. In the last few letters, Ross writes that he is worried that something is wrong and that he has been hearing things from other people who write to him. In the penultimate letter, it seems as though Brown had written Ross a "Dear John" letter, and sent with it her engagement ring.
Phillip Coddington Letters
Letters, 1951, of Phillip Coddington, a Captain in the United States Army, written to his wife. Most of the letters are written from Germany, while some are written from Texas and New York. Coddington served as a dentist during the Korean War, but it seems that he was never stationed in Korea itself.
John Dillinger Photograph Album
Photograph album, circa 1950s, of John Dillinger. Primarily contains picture of Dillinger in the United States Army, with handwritten annotations by his unnamed brother. Includes pictures from the United States as well as pictures from what seems to be Korea.