Collections

Program from the Alabama VS. Florida State football game on September 23rd, 1967

These photocopies of Civil War papers include a letter from Bird B. Wright of Shepherdstown in Jefferson County, Virginia to his wife Amy R. Wright of Quincy Florida in Gadsden County. The letter dated September 21, 1862, informs her that he has been badly wounded while in combat near Sharpsburg, Maryland and gives instructions how to get to the place where he is and tells her that she or his brother should come to see him. Among other things, he tells her that his Captain was killed the same day he was wounded. Also included is a Certificate of Parole, Waldo, Alachua County, Florida, dated May 20, 1865 to J. A. Tompkins...Private of Co. B. 2nd Regiment, Florida Calvary, and a transmittal letter with further details by Weston Taylor of Tallahassee, Florida to "Mrs. Frost."

This collection relates to Alan and Rita Wold. Alan served as a Staff Sergeant with Company F, 60th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division in the European Theater during World War II. He received the Bronze Star Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge, and Silver Star Medal. Rita Wold attended high school in Cleveland, Ohio during the war. The collection contains photographs, military documents, personal documents, marriage papers, and medals.

Alan Nelson was an aviation radioman for VPB-117 (Patrol Bombing Squadron) during WWII. Later he became a pilot -captain in the U.S. Airforce. He worked in WWII in the Pacific theatre. The collection includes a manuscript with the history of his life from 1924-2004 entitled "Alan, family and friends." In the manuscript from page 10 to page 17, he narrated his experience in WWII. The manuscript included pictures from his friends, family, crew, missions and airplanes among others. It describes in details how he scaled from one position up to another in order to become a pilot and a Captain. He attended Florida State University from 1960-1962. It also contains multiple photos of him in various locations.

Alan May served as a gunner on a B-24 Bomber with the 451st Bomb Group during World War II in Italy and was shot down during a mission to Ploesti, Romania, and became a POW.  May was awarded the Purple Heart, Air Medals, 2 Presidential Unit Citations, and the Distinguished Flying Cross. Included in this collection is a footnoted manuscript diary of missions.

Assorted genealogical papers related to former Seminary West of the Suwannee, Florida State College and Florida Female College President (1897-1909), Albert A. Murphree.  Includes some copies of photographs.

This collection relates to Albert and Grace Swank. This collection contains photographs of Miami celebrity mansions and postcards of Miami Beach, aerial photographs of Miami, Lincoln Road, the Flamingo Hotel, and Ocean Drive. These materials were collected during their honeymoon in Miami, Florida.

This collection includes the correspondence between Albert and Laura Fuhrman with gaps from 1939 through 1947. Albert graduated the U.S. Naval Academy in 1937 and served in the U.S. Navy during World War II on submarines. The collection is especially rich in documenting the American home front during World War II, courtship practices, consumerism, personal finances, public education in southern California, child-rearing, and naval culture in the submarine service. Much of the correspondence in the collection centers of Laura's life in southern California and Albert's deployment in both Atlantic and Pacific with submarine service of the U.S. Navy.

Albert DiVincenzo was a motor machinist mate on LCI (G) 373 in the Pacific Theater. He describes life onboard. He also describes the various types of LCI. The collection includes a manuscript entitled "Pacific Theater World War II 28 April 1944-12 Jan. 1946," which accounts for DiVincenzo's Navy service. He briefly covers Leyte. The Battle of Okinawa and kamikazes are covered in depth. The material is obtained for �Picket ships at Okinawa� by Paul Thurman. Other information was obtained from the Flotilla 6 newsletter of 2 July 1996. The second section covers "Operation Olympic", the planned invasion of Japan. The collection also includes much of LCI�s ship's deck log during October 1944, January 1945, and 24 March 1945 to 18 June 1945; pictures of ships and crew; scans of postcards, personnel records, newspaper clippings, and detailed maps; and anecdotes about shipboard life.