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Collins, an aircompany soldier, whom Sykes married in 1949.","The letters begin when Dansby joined the Army and started basic training in Camp Shelby, Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Initially he was a member of Company C, 262nd Quartermaster Battalion (Service), one of the many all-black units activated during the Second World War. In April of 1944, he became a member of 4060th Quartermaster Battalion. Towards the end of 1944, he was stationed to the South West Pacific Theatre and most likely spent the war in the Philippines. He was there until after World War II in Asia had ended and then spent approximately three and a half months in Japan. After his arrival to the United States in January 1946, Dansby travelled to St. Louis and then moved to Detroit, Michigan. He never met Sykes again after he had left St. Louis for basic training and their relationship ended in January of 1947.","There are no letters written during Dansby's time in the Philippines and those mailed from Japan do not contain information about the war. Nevertheless, the collection provides a good insight into a soldier's life, contains numerous examples of military censorship of correspondence, and some reactions to the Jim Crow laws in place at the time.","In addition to letters to Sykes and few letters addressed to Collins, the collection contains a certificate of marriage between Sykes and Collins, postcards issued by the War Department notifying Sykes of Dansby's assignments to new installations, and stamped envelopes accompanying almost every letter."],"userestrict_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eBefore reproducing or quoting from any materials, in whole or in part, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Research Center, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"userestrict_heading_ssm":["Conditions Governing Use:"],"userestrict_tesim":["Before reproducing or quoting from any materials, in whole or in part, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Research Center, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library."],"corpname_ssim":["Special Collections Research Center","United Service Organizations (U.S.)"],"names_coll_ssim":["United Service Organizations (U.S.)"],"persname_ssim":["Dansby, James","Collins, Benjamin D.","Collins, Gertha Sykes"],"names_ssim":["Special Collections Research Center","United Service Organizations (U.S.)","Dansby, James","Collins, Benjamin D.","Collins, Gertha Sykes"],"language_ssim":["English"],"total_component_count_is":7,"online_item_count_is":0,"component_level_isim":[0],"sort_isi":0,"timestamp":"2026-08-14T23:00:49.313Z"}]}},"label":"Breadcrumbs"}}},"links":{"self":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/viw_repositories_2_resources_1730"}},{"id":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730_c01_c06","type":"File","attributes":{"title":"Letters and Marriage Certificate, 1945/1951","abstract_or_scope":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/viw_repositories_2_resources_1730_c01_c06#abstract_or_scope","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":"\u003cp\u003eThis folder contains the largest variety of letters of this collection. Some letters are to Sykes and some are to Collins. There are love letters from Dansby to Sykes and from Collins to Sykes, letters from Smith and various friends from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Sykes, as well as letters from Collins's mother and aunt to Collins. The latter, although addressed to Collins only, were actually written to Collins and Sykes as a married couple. In addition to letters, the folder contains Sykes's and Collins's marriage certificate. The first letter of this folder was written by Dansby on 8 November 1945, a little over a year after the last letter of the previous folder, also by Dansby. Dansby explained the last couple of months of this gap in correspondence by his leaving Sykes's address in Manila when he was moved to Japan. He also wrote that he had not been receiving any letters during those couple of months. By the time this letter was written, the war in Asia had ended on 15 August 1945. Dansby's letters reveal he was stationed in Manila, Philippines until September 17, then in Japan, and that he was expecting to go home before Christmas. Regrettably, neither this nor the previous folders from which we find out that Dansby was stationed on the Pacific front, contain any letters describing Dansby's service in the Philippines or Japan. The second letter of this folder was also from Dansby. Dansby wrote it two months later from the Service Men's Telephone Center in Camp Anza, California, after he had failed to reach Sykes via telephone. He informed Sykes that he had left Japan the day after Christmas and that his course was set for Seattle, but was changed to Hawaii due to weather conditions. Dansby docked in San Pedro on 9 January, arrived at the Camp on 10 January, and left for St. Louis, Missouri on 11 January. The third letter was written three months later, on 10 April 1946, from Detroit, Michigan, also by Dansby. One learns from it that he was in St. Louis until 7 April and left for Michigan instead of Los Angeles, where he could have met Sykes. He wrote to Sykes, \"I am wondering if I have been wrong in my decision to come here. I counteract this thought with your decision in going to L.A. If you had cared enough that wouldn't have happened. Someday you and I shall be so sorry for mistakes that will have gone too far to be corrected.\" The above letter is followed by a group of Dansby's letters written between August 1946 and January 1947. During that time Dansby was still living and working in Detroit. In the second part of September, he wanted to travel to Los Angeles to meet with Sykes, but since he did not receive a response from her soon enough, he did not go. In October Dansby lost his job, which put him in a very difficult financial situation. Finally, in January the relationship between Sykes and Dansby seems to have formally ended. In the letter dated 13 January 1947, Dansby wrote, \"Since you have made yourself so explicit. [sic] I guess I may feel relieved of any bond and focus interest in Detroit (...) I am really glad we have this understanding [sic] I can breathe easier. Hope that we may remain friends. (it's more human) [sic].\" This is the last letter of this collection from Dansby. The next letter of this collection was written over two years after Dansby's last letter to Sykes. The letter is from Collins, an Aircompany Veteran (R.V.T.). It is dated 22 May 1949 and was mailed from Fort Lawton, a United States Army post located in Seattle, Washington. The letter is the first of this collection from Collins to Sykes and it is a love note. The next item of the folder is Sykes and Collins's certificate of marriage officiated by a U.S. Army Chaplain, Ernest W. Armstrong Sr. in Ft. Lawton, Washington on 26 June 1949. The marriage seems to have been Collin's and Sykes's second. The way the letters are adressed also points to Sykes having moved from Los Angeles to Seattle, probably in June, before the marriage took place on 26 June. However, sometime between December 1949 and March 1951, Sykes moved back to Los Angeles, California. The following letters are to Sykes from her church friend and another friend from Los Angeles. In the latter, one can learn a little about operations jobs in Hollywood as Collins was looking for a steady job there. There are also letters addressed to Collins from his mother and a letter written to Collins from his aunt, also from Los Angeles. She wrote that on 17 July 1949, Collins's father, other relatives, and she, together with 35,000 others, went to hear Dr. Ralph Bunche speak at the Hollywood Bowl. Bunche was an American political scientist, academic, diplomat, a civil rights movement activist, and the first African American and a person of color to be awarded the Nobel Prize (1950). This collection is closed off by two letters from Collins to Sykes. At tha time, Collins and Sykes were seperated as Collins was stationed in San Francisco and Sykes lived in Los Angeles. The letters were written in March and August of 1951. They indicate that Collins was promoted from the rank of Private he held as of his marriage to Sykes to the rank of Corporal. They show that Collins was very much in love with his wife and give an impression of a happy marriage.\u003c/p\u003e","label":"Abstract Or Scope"}},"breadcrumbs":{"id":"https://search.arvasarchive.org/catalog/viw_repositories_2_resources_1730_c01_c06#breadcrumbs","type":"document_value","attributes":{"value":{"ref_ssi":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730_c01_c06","ref_ssm":["viw_repositories_2_resources_1730_c01_c06"],"id":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730_c01_c06","ead_ssi":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730","_root_":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730","_nest_parent_":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730_c01","parent_ssi":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730_c01","parent_ssim":["Gertha Sykes Collins Papers, 1942/1951","Box 1"],"parent_ids_ssim":["viw_repositories_2_resources_1730","viw_repositories_2_resources_1730_c01"],"title_filing_ssi":"Letters and Marriage Certificate","title_ssm":["Letters and Marriage Certificate"],"title_tesim":["Letters and Marriage Certificate"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Letters and Marriage Certificate, 1945/1951"],"text":["Letters and Marriage Certificate, 1945/1951","Gertha Sykes Collins Papers, 1942/1951","Box 1","Box 1","folder 6","This folder contains the largest variety of letters of this collection. Some letters are to Sykes and some are to Collins. There are love letters from Dansby to Sykes and from Collins to Sykes, letters from Smith and various friends from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Sykes, as well as letters from Collins's mother and aunt to Collins. The latter, although addressed to Collins only, were actually written to Collins and Sykes as a married couple. In addition to letters, the folder contains Sykes's and Collins's marriage certificate. The first letter of this folder was written by Dansby on 8 November 1945, a little over a year after the last letter of the previous folder, also by Dansby. Dansby explained the last couple of months of this gap in correspondence by his leaving Sykes's address in Manila when he was moved to Japan. He also wrote that he had not been receiving any letters during those couple of months. By the time this letter was written, the war in Asia had ended on 15 August 1945. Dansby's letters reveal he was stationed in Manila, Philippines until September 17, then in Japan, and that he was expecting to go home before Christmas. Regrettably, neither this nor the previous folders from which we find out that Dansby was stationed on the Pacific front, contain any letters describing Dansby's service in the Philippines or Japan. The second letter of this folder was also from Dansby. Dansby wrote it two months later from the Service Men's Telephone Center in Camp Anza, California, after he had failed to reach Sykes via telephone. He informed Sykes that he had left Japan the day after Christmas and that his course was set for Seattle, but was changed to Hawaii due to weather conditions. Dansby docked in San Pedro on 9 January, arrived at the Camp on 10 January, and left for St. Louis, Missouri on 11 January. The third letter was written three months later, on 10 April 1946, from Detroit, Michigan, also by Dansby. One learns from it that he was in St. Louis until 7 April and left for Michigan instead of Los Angeles, where he could have met Sykes. He wrote to Sykes, \"I am wondering if I have been wrong in my decision to come here. I counteract this thought with your decision in going to L.A. If you had cared enough that wouldn't have happened. Someday you and I shall be so sorry for mistakes that will have gone too far to be corrected.\" The above letter is followed by a group of Dansby's letters written between August 1946 and January 1947. During that time Dansby was still living and working in Detroit. In the second part of September, he wanted to travel to Los Angeles to meet with Sykes, but since he did not receive a response from her soon enough, he did not go. In October Dansby lost his job, which put him in a very difficult financial situation. Finally, in January the relationship between Sykes and Dansby seems to have formally ended. In the letter dated 13 January 1947, Dansby wrote, \"Since you have made yourself so explicit. [sic] I guess I may feel relieved of any bond and focus interest in Detroit (...) I am really glad we have this understanding [sic] I can breathe easier. Hope that we may remain friends. (it's more human) [sic].\" This is the last letter of this collection from Dansby. The next letter of this collection was written over two years after Dansby's last letter to Sykes. The letter is from Collins, an Aircompany Veteran (R.V.T.). It is dated 22 May 1949 and was mailed from Fort Lawton, a United States Army post located in Seattle, Washington. The letter is the first of this collection from Collins to Sykes and it is a love note. The next item of the folder is Sykes and Collins's certificate of marriage officiated by a U.S. Army Chaplain, Ernest W. Armstrong Sr. in Ft. Lawton, Washington on 26 June 1949. The marriage seems to have been Collin's and Sykes's second. The way the letters are adressed also points to Sykes having moved from Los Angeles to Seattle, probably in June, before the marriage took place on 26 June. However, sometime between December 1949 and March 1951, Sykes moved back to Los Angeles, California. The following letters are to Sykes from her church friend and another friend from Los Angeles. In the latter, one can learn a little about operations jobs in Hollywood as Collins was looking for a steady job there. There are also letters addressed to Collins from his mother and a letter written to Collins from his aunt, also from Los Angeles. She wrote that on 17 July 1949, Collins's father, other relatives, and she, together with 35,000 others, went to hear Dr. Ralph Bunche speak at the Hollywood Bowl. Bunche was an American political scientist, academic, diplomat, a civil rights movement activist, and the first African American and a person of color to be awarded the Nobel Prize (1950). This collection is closed off by two letters from Collins to Sykes. At tha time, Collins and Sykes were seperated as Collins was stationed in San Francisco and Sykes lived in Los Angeles. The letters were written in March and August of 1951. They indicate that Collins was promoted from the rank of Private he held as of his marriage to Sykes to the rank of Corporal. They show that Collins was very much in love with his wife and give an impression of a happy marriage."],"parent_unittitles_ssm":["Gertha Sykes Collins Papers, 1942/1951","Box 1"],"parent_unittitles_tesim":["Gertha Sykes Collins Papers, 1942/1951","Box 1"],"normalized_date_ssm":["1945/1951"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["November, 1945 - August, 1951"],"level_ssm":["File"],"level_ssim":["File"],"component_level_isim":[2],"sort_isi":7,"repository_ssim":["College of William and Mary"],"collection_ssim":["Gertha Sykes Collins Papers, 1942/1951"],"containers_ssim":["Box 1","folder 6"],"has_online_content_ssim":["false"],"child_component_count_isi":0,"parent_access_restrict_tesm":["Collection is open to all researchers. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which the College of William and Mary assumes no responsibility."],"parent_access_terms_tesm":["Before reproducing or quoting from any materials, in whole or in part, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Research Center, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library."],"date_range_isim":[1945,1946,1947,1948,1949,1950,1951],"scopecontent_heading_ssm":["Scope and Contents"],"scopecontent_tesim":["This folder contains the largest variety of letters of this collection. Some letters are to Sykes and some are to Collins. There are love letters from Dansby to Sykes and from Collins to Sykes, letters from Smith and various friends from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Sykes, as well as letters from Collins's mother and aunt to Collins. The latter, although addressed to Collins only, were actually written to Collins and Sykes as a married couple. In addition to letters, the folder contains Sykes's and Collins's marriage certificate. The first letter of this folder was written by Dansby on 8 November 1945, a little over a year after the last letter of the previous folder, also by Dansby. Dansby explained the last couple of months of this gap in correspondence by his leaving Sykes's address in Manila when he was moved to Japan. He also wrote that he had not been receiving any letters during those couple of months. By the time this letter was written, the war in Asia had ended on 15 August 1945. Dansby's letters reveal he was stationed in Manila, Philippines until September 17, then in Japan, and that he was expecting to go home before Christmas. Regrettably, neither this nor the previous folders from which we find out that Dansby was stationed on the Pacific front, contain any letters describing Dansby's service in the Philippines or Japan. The second letter of this folder was also from Dansby. Dansby wrote it two months later from the Service Men's Telephone Center in Camp Anza, California, after he had failed to reach Sykes via telephone. He informed Sykes that he had left Japan the day after Christmas and that his course was set for Seattle, but was changed to Hawaii due to weather conditions. Dansby docked in San Pedro on 9 January, arrived at the Camp on 10 January, and left for St. Louis, Missouri on 11 January. The third letter was written three months later, on 10 April 1946, from Detroit, Michigan, also by Dansby. One learns from it that he was in St. Louis until 7 April and left for Michigan instead of Los Angeles, where he could have met Sykes. He wrote to Sykes, \"I am wondering if I have been wrong in my decision to come here. I counteract this thought with your decision in going to L.A. If you had cared enough that wouldn't have happened. Someday you and I shall be so sorry for mistakes that will have gone too far to be corrected.\" The above letter is followed by a group of Dansby's letters written between August 1946 and January 1947. During that time Dansby was still living and working in Detroit. In the second part of September, he wanted to travel to Los Angeles to meet with Sykes, but since he did not receive a response from her soon enough, he did not go. In October Dansby lost his job, which put him in a very difficult financial situation. Finally, in January the relationship between Sykes and Dansby seems to have formally ended. In the letter dated 13 January 1947, Dansby wrote, \"Since you have made yourself so explicit. [sic] I guess I may feel relieved of any bond and focus interest in Detroit (...) I am really glad we have this understanding [sic] I can breathe easier. Hope that we may remain friends. (it's more human) [sic].\" This is the last letter of this collection from Dansby. The next letter of this collection was written over two years after Dansby's last letter to Sykes. The letter is from Collins, an Aircompany Veteran (R.V.T.). It is dated 22 May 1949 and was mailed from Fort Lawton, a United States Army post located in Seattle, Washington. The letter is the first of this collection from Collins to Sykes and it is a love note. The next item of the folder is Sykes and Collins's certificate of marriage officiated by a U.S. Army Chaplain, Ernest W. Armstrong Sr. in Ft. Lawton, Washington on 26 June 1949. The marriage seems to have been Collin's and Sykes's second. The way the letters are adressed also points to Sykes having moved from Los Angeles to Seattle, probably in June, before the marriage took place on 26 June. However, sometime between December 1949 and March 1951, Sykes moved back to Los Angeles, California. The following letters are to Sykes from her church friend and another friend from Los Angeles. In the latter, one can learn a little about operations jobs in Hollywood as Collins was looking for a steady job there. There are also letters addressed to Collins from his mother and a letter written to Collins from his aunt, also from Los Angeles. She wrote that on 17 July 1949, Collins's father, other relatives, and she, together with 35,000 others, went to hear Dr. Ralph Bunche speak at the Hollywood Bowl. Bunche was an American political scientist, academic, diplomat, a civil rights movement activist, and the first African American and a person of color to be awarded the Nobel Prize (1950). This collection is closed off by two letters from Collins to Sykes. At tha time, Collins and Sykes were seperated as Collins was stationed in San Francisco and Sykes lived in Los Angeles. The letters were written in March and August of 1951. They indicate that Collins was promoted from the rank of Private he held as of his marriage to Sykes to the rank of Corporal. They show that Collins was very much in love with his wife and give an impression of a happy marriage."],"_nest_path_":"/components#0/components#5","timestamp":"2026-08-14T23:00:49.313Z","scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eThis folder contains the largest variety of letters of this collection. Some letters are to Sykes and some are to Collins. There are love letters from Dansby to Sykes and from Collins to Sykes, letters from Smith and various friends from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Sykes, as well as letters from Collins's mother and aunt to Collins. The latter, although addressed to Collins only, were actually written to Collins and Sykes as a married couple. In addition to letters, the folder contains Sykes's and Collins's marriage certificate. The first letter of this folder was written by Dansby on 8 November 1945, a little over a year after the last letter of the previous folder, also by Dansby. Dansby explained the last couple of months of this gap in correspondence by his leaving Sykes's address in Manila when he was moved to Japan. He also wrote that he had not been receiving any letters during those couple of months. By the time this letter was written, the war in Asia had ended on 15 August 1945. Dansby's letters reveal he was stationed in Manila, Philippines until September 17, then in Japan, and that he was expecting to go home before Christmas. Regrettably, neither this nor the previous folders from which we find out that Dansby was stationed on the Pacific front, contain any letters describing Dansby's service in the Philippines or Japan. The second letter of this folder was also from Dansby. Dansby wrote it two months later from the Service Men's Telephone Center in Camp Anza, California, after he had failed to reach Sykes via telephone. He informed Sykes that he had left Japan the day after Christmas and that his course was set for Seattle, but was changed to Hawaii due to weather conditions. Dansby docked in San Pedro on 9 January, arrived at the Camp on 10 January, and left for St. Louis, Missouri on 11 January. The third letter was written three months later, on 10 April 1946, from Detroit, Michigan, also by Dansby. One learns from it that he was in St. Louis until 7 April and left for Michigan instead of Los Angeles, where he could have met Sykes. He wrote to Sykes, \"I am wondering if I have been wrong in my decision to come here. I counteract this thought with your decision in going to L.A. If you had cared enough that wouldn't have happened. Someday you and I shall be so sorry for mistakes that will have gone too far to be corrected.\" The above letter is followed by a group of Dansby's letters written between August 1946 and January 1947. During that time Dansby was still living and working in Detroit. In the second part of September, he wanted to travel to Los Angeles to meet with Sykes, but since he did not receive a response from her soon enough, he did not go. In October Dansby lost his job, which put him in a very difficult financial situation. Finally, in January the relationship between Sykes and Dansby seems to have formally ended. In the letter dated 13 January 1947, Dansby wrote, \"Since you have made yourself so explicit. [sic] I guess I may feel relieved of any bond and focus interest in Detroit (...) I am really glad we have this understanding [sic] I can breathe easier. Hope that we may remain friends. (it's more human) [sic].\" This is the last letter of this collection from Dansby. The next letter of this collection was written over two years after Dansby's last letter to Sykes. The letter is from Collins, an Aircompany Veteran (R.V.T.). It is dated 22 May 1949 and was mailed from Fort Lawton, a United States Army post located in Seattle, Washington. The letter is the first of this collection from Collins to Sykes and it is a love note. The next item of the folder is Sykes and Collins's certificate of marriage officiated by a U.S. Army Chaplain, Ernest W. Armstrong Sr. in Ft. Lawton, Washington on 26 June 1949. The marriage seems to have been Collin's and Sykes's second. The way the letters are adressed also points to Sykes having moved from Los Angeles to Seattle, probably in June, before the marriage took place on 26 June. However, sometime between December 1949 and March 1951, Sykes moved back to Los Angeles, California. The following letters are to Sykes from her church friend and another friend from Los Angeles. In the latter, one can learn a little about operations jobs in Hollywood as Collins was looking for a steady job there. There are also letters addressed to Collins from his mother and a letter written to Collins from his aunt, also from Los Angeles. She wrote that on 17 July 1949, Collins's father, other relatives, and she, together with 35,000 others, went to hear Dr. Ralph Bunche speak at the Hollywood Bowl. Bunche was an American political scientist, academic, diplomat, a civil rights movement activist, and the first African American and a person of color to be awarded the Nobel Prize (1950). This collection is closed off by two letters from Collins to Sykes. At tha time, Collins and Sykes were seperated as Collins was stationed in San Francisco and Sykes lived in Los Angeles. The letters were written in March and August of 1951. They indicate that Collins was promoted from the rank of Private he held as of his marriage to Sykes to the rank of Corporal. They show that Collins was very much in love with his wife and give an impression of a happy marriage.\u003c/p\u003e"],"collection":{"numFound":1,"start":0,"numFoundExact":true,"docs":[{"id":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730","ead_ssi":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730","_root_":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730","_nest_parent_":"viw_repositories_2_resources_1730","ead_source_url_ssi":"data/oai/WM/repositories_2_resources_1730.xml","title_filing_ssi":"Collins, Gertha Sykes, Papers","title_ssm":["Gertha Sykes Collins Papers"],"title_tesim":["Gertha Sykes Collins Papers"],"unitdate_ssm":["1942-1951"],"unitdate_inclusive_ssm":["1942-1951"],"normalized_date_ssm":["1942/1951"],"normalized_title_ssm":["Gertha Sykes Collins Papers, 1942/1951"],"text":["Gertha Sykes Collins Papers, 1942/1951","Mss. Acc. 2011.487","/repositories/2/resources/1730","Camp Shelby (Miss.)","Fort Mason (Calif.)--History","Love-letters","African Americans--History--20th century","Censorship--United States--History--20th century","Courtship--1940-1950","Courtship--United States--History--20th century","Segregation--United States--1940-1950","Soldiers--1940-1950","Soldiers--American--1940-1950","Soldiers--Recreation","Soldiers--Training of--United States--History--20th century","Soldiers--United States--Correspondence","Soldiers--United States--Social life and customs--20th century","World War, 1939-1945--Pacific Area","World War, 1939-1945--United States","Letters (correspondence)","Collection is open to all researchers. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which the College of William and Mary assumes no responsibility.","Arranged chronologically.","Accessioned and minimally processed by Benjamin Bromley in July 2011. Further processed and described by Ania Leska in 2012/2013.","A Guide to World War II Resources in the Special Collections Research Center","Information about related materials is available at http://guides.swem.wm.edu/WorldWarII","Primarily this is a collection of love letters written between 1942-1944 to Gertha Barbara Jean Sykes residing in St. Louis, Missouri and James NMI Dansby, an African-American soldier in the United States Army. There are also letters from two other Army soldiers, Jack Smith, stationed in the Pacific and Benjamin D. Collins, an aircompany soldier, whom Sykes married in 1949.","The letters begin when Dansby joined the Army and started basic training in Camp Shelby, Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Initially he was a member of Company C, 262nd Quartermaster Battalion (Service), one of the many all-black units activated during the Second World War. In April of 1944, he became a member of 4060th Quartermaster Battalion. Towards the end of 1944, he was stationed to the South West Pacific Theatre and most likely spent the war in the Philippines. He was there until after World War II in Asia had ended and then spent approximately three and a half months in Japan. After his arrival to the United States in January 1946, Dansby travelled to St. Louis and then moved to Detroit, Michigan. He never met Sykes again after he had left St. Louis for basic training and their relationship ended in January of 1947.","There are no letters written during Dansby's time in the Philippines and those mailed from Japan do not contain information about the war. Nevertheless, the collection provides a good insight into a soldier's life, contains numerous examples of military censorship of correspondence, and some reactions to the Jim Crow laws in place at the time.","In addition to letters to Sykes and few letters addressed to Collins, the collection contains a certificate of marriage between Sykes and Collins, postcards issued by the War Department notifying Sykes of Dansby's assignments to new installations, and stamped envelopes accompanying almost every letter.","Before reproducing or quoting from any materials, in whole or in part, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Research Center, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library.","Special Collections Research Center","United Service Organizations (U.S.)","Dansby, James","Collins, Benjamin D.","Collins, Gertha Sykes","English"],"collection_title_tesim":["Gertha Sykes Collins Papers, 1942/1951"],"collection_ssim":["Gertha Sykes Collins Papers, 1942/1951"],"level_ssm":["collection"],"level_ssim":["Collection"],"unitid_ssm":["Mss. 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Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which the College of William and Mary assumes no responsibility.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"accessrestrict_heading_ssm":["Conditions Governing Access:"],"accessrestrict_tesim":["Collection is open to all researchers. 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Further processed and described by Ania Leska in 2012/2013.\u003c/p\u003e  "],"processinfo_heading_ssm":["Processing Information:"],"processinfo_tesim":["Accessioned and minimally processed by Benjamin Bromley in July 2011. Further processed and described by Ania Leska in 2012/2013."],"relatedmaterial_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003eA Guide to World War II Resources in the Special Collections Research Center\u003c/p\u003e","\u003cp\u003e Information about related materials is available at http://guides.swem.wm.edu/WorldWarII\u003c/p\u003e  "],"relatedmaterial_heading_ssm":["Related Materials:"],"relatedmaterial_tesim":["A Guide to World War II Resources in the Special Collections Research Center","Information about related materials is available at http://guides.swem.wm.edu/WorldWarII"],"scopecontent_html_tesm":["\u003cp\u003ePrimarily this is a collection of love letters written between 1942-1944 to Gertha Barbara Jean Sykes residing in St. Louis, Missouri and James NMI Dansby, an African-American soldier in the United States Army. There are also letters from two other Army soldiers, Jack Smith, stationed in the Pacific and Benjamin D. 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