The War Letters: My Father's Correspondence to My Mother Before their Marriage, 1950-1952, During the Korean War

Introduction: 

Dear Redhead -- I hope you’ve written lately but I don’t know. I’m at a different place now begins the writing on a blank postcard without photograph, 1 cent stamp a green profile of Thomas Jefferson, dirty beige color like wet straw, dated Jan 6, and U.S. ARMY POST in circular gray stamped 1951, addressed to Miss Tommy Lowery, 99 Divisadero St., San Francisco, Calif--in careful, elegant cursive handwriting; the return address in the left corner is Lt. John J. Corrigan 0.1184184, Jq. Northern Command, APO 309 ℅ PM. San Francisco. The writer, who is my father, is stationed at a “different place” in Japan, but expects to return to his former address near Yokohama, and encourages the recipient, Miss Tommy Lowery, my mother Barbara (her nickname "Tommy"), to keep writing there, and he hopes to have “a bunch of mail” awaiting him. Your letters have been swell Baby--real swell he ends, and closes, as he does with most of his letters from overseas, with All my love, John.

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Nov 18, 1950. I will reiterate--I am really glad you called last night and I had a wonderful time on Wednesday eve. But you sounded as believing as an atheist in church. I meant all I said and if you don’t believe me--tough. 

Possibly you didn’t, things being as they are, believe I’d write but I’ll leave that up to conjecture--mine. As for loving you--remember baby what the good book says (I’m not sure myself)--we only had one date. But I do find the idea interesting. Possibly you weren’t serious over the phone but I was. And I’ll see you when I return.

Enough of the serious side--I have been issued so goddamn much equipment I need a pack horse. How I’ll ever fit it all into a small plane defeats me. What I would like to fit into the plane is a bed and you. Put the plane on automatic pilot and make love at nine thousand feet. Ingenious, huh?

My only excuse for making this a short letter is that I am leaving in just ten minutes. A Sgt. will (I hope) mail this letter for me. I’ll write next from Japan but in the interim, you write--my address is below. Bye for now--and be damn good.