The full content of this document is only available to subscribing institutions. More information can be found via www.amdigital.co.uk
If you believe you should have access to this document, click here to Login.
| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC09120.438 |
| From Archive Folder | Collection of WWII letters of Sidney Diamond to Estelle Spero |
| Title | Sidney Diamond to Estelle Spero |
| Date | 18 June 1944 |
| Author | Diamond, Sidney (1922-1945) |
| Recipient | Spero, Estelle |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Diamond responds to the series of letters that he has received recently from Estelle. He mentions that he now has a punctured ear drum as a result of being exposed to constant and intense firing. He also writes that he cannot understand Natalie's embarrassment at being Jewish, explaining that his experience has shown him that "the individual of average intelligence won't give a damn and if he does have any ingrained views he'll stifle them once he knows who you are." He continues by stating that although he is "a mixture of paranoia, schizophrenia and various other mental disorders including a terrific inferiority complex" he has "never had any complex about [his] religion." He mentions that perhaps, another reason why he is there, is because America has been so good to his "people": "…we were able put four dresses on a wall and make it grow into a business and now the future of my parents is very bright…" |
| Subjects | World War II Asia Soldier's Letter Love Letters Health and Medical Judaism |
| People | Diamond, Sidney (1922-1945) Spero, Estelle (b. 1924) |
| Place written | Bougainville, Papua New Guinea |
| Theme | World War II; Health & Medicine; Religion |
| Sub-collection | The Gilder Lehrman Collection, 1860-1945 |
| Additional Information | Sidney Diamond (1922-1945) enlisted in mid-April 1942, interrupting the chemical engineering degree that he was undertaking at City College. Diamond was sent to the South Pacific in June 1943, where he served as First Lieutenant to the Eighty-Second Chemical Battalion. On January 29th 1945, Diamond was killed by a Japanese knee mortar while acting as a forward observer during an assault on Fort Stotsenburg, north of Manila. Throughout his time in service, Sidney maintained an epistolary correspondence with Estelle Spero, his sweetheart and subsequently fiancée, the letters from which she preserved. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |