Letters from the past: A personal history of WW II

Kyt · Oct 3, 2007

http://denver.yourhub.com/Centennial/Stories/News/General-News/Story~370828.aspx

Contributed by: Kevin Hamm/YourHub.com on 10/2/2007

In March 1945, World War II still raged in Europe. Germany was making its last stand. V-E day was two months away, and German forces were still fighting fiercely.

At Thorpe Abbots airfield on the southeast coast of England, U.S. Air Force Cpl. John Backus was working to keep the B-17 bombers of the "Bloody Hundredth" group flying for their missions over Germany, all the while watching for German air attacks.

"At 0345 an explosion some distance away, shook me, and immediately afterwards a buzz-bomb flew over - you can't mistake that noise," he wrote in his diary on March 22, 1945. "Must have been on its way toward London. When I got up at 0700, there were 3 fresh vapor trails in the sky left by rockets (V2). Anyhow, this is mild compared to what the Germans are getting every day."

Back home in Tulsa, Okla., Backus' wife Katherine was working long hours as a secretary at the Stanolind Oil Purchasing Company, taking care of the family's affairs while looking for a new apartment, and treating herself to a pair of "very impractical red kid sling pumps," as she wrote in a letter to her husband.

"It has been so long since I bought a pair of devilish shoes that I just couldn't resist these," she wrote. "However, I wish you could hurry home, as I really want to save them for you."

The letters and diary entries have been collected in a book titled We Just Did: The World War II Letters & Diary of John & Katherine Backus. The book was edited and published in 2006 by Centennial resident CJ Backus, John and Katherine's daughter.

CJ didn't know about the letters and diary until she found them in her father's dresser drawer while putting away his laundry a few months before he died in March 2002. At that point he was 94, and the time had passed when they could have talked about them.

"I had missed my window of when we could really have had this conversation," she said. "If he'd been on his game he would have said, 'Put those back and don't touch them.'"

"Grubbing," she said he would have called it, his term for going through people's things without asking first.

CJ's mother died in October 1991, and even after she died her father never said anything about the letters. CJ had heard many of the stories while growing up - the shared stories of a family's history - but reading the letters and diary gave her insight into who John and Katherine Backus were as people, rather than just as parents as their children see them.

"It taught me who they were before we were born," CJ said. "That they were a man and a wife and they found love."

John was the storyteller in the family, and hearing the family stories told in her mother's voice in her letters gave them a fresh perspective, CJ said. She often asked her mother what they did during the war - to go beyond the family stories - but she always got the same answer.

"We just did," her mother would tell her, adding that CJ's generation talks too much about everything, CJ said.

CJ was motivated to put the book together to honor her parents, she said, and to tell the story of the war from the perspective of not only the men fighting in it, but the women back home who were doing things that traditionally were a man's responsibility, such as selling a car as well.

"It tells you what the women were doing and her viewpoint, and it's not all blood and guts," she said. "She was a really strong woman but she acquiesced because of the time, but here she is selling a car and keeping things going and doing well in her job. She missed the point sometimes about how advanced she was."

Now that she's done with the book, CJ, a retired teacher and school administrator, and member of the Columbine Genealogical and Historical Society, plans to start a small business to market and sell it, as well as do research for other people, especially genealogical research.

For her, becoming so intimate with the letters her parents wrote while separated during the war reinforced what she knew all along, she said - that she grew up in a loving family.

"The biggest thing was just their terms of endearment back and forth and how much they loved each other, how much they missed each other," she said. "It just cemented why we had a nice life."
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Kyt · Oct 3, 2007

The Letters

The original letters can be seen at the above link:

'Dearest John'
Following are excerpts from We Just Did: The World War II Letters & Diary of John & Katherine Backus.

Sept. 12, 1944 Lake Worth, Fla.

Letter written by Katherine to her mother while Katherine was living near John while he was stationed near Lake Worth

Sunday we went deep-sea fishing again and now you have a fisher-lady in your family. Believe it or not, I caught and landed a 6 foot 11 inch sailfish, which weighed about 45 pounds. And that is not a tall fish story for we are sending you some of the sailfish, which a man is smoking for us ... A sailfish is the prize down here. I know I worked for it for my arms ache and my wrist is black and blue for about three inches where I held the reel. Several times I yelled for John to help me and to take over but they all said I had to do it myself.

Jan. 7, 1945 Tulsa, Okla.

Letter written by Katherine to John while he was stationed at Camp Kilmer, N.J.

Dearest John,

Over the radio they are singing a song "Into Each Life Must Come a Little Rain" -- Well I guess the rain has come into our life now. I hope it doesn't last long since we have to have some. If that is true I guess our life later will really be rosy. It sure will be fun just being together again for I miss you so much. They are now singing "Dear One I'll be Waiting" -- and that hits home true too -- I'll be right here waiting on you.

Jan. 16, 1945 Camp Kilmer, N.J.

Letter written by John to Katherine after she joined him in New York City on an unexpected furlough just before he's shipped overseas

Dearest Katherine,

It was more than tough to put you on the train last night, knowing that we can't expect any more good breaks like this last unexpected furlough. Anyhow, I'm glad that you had enough spirit of adventure to come a-running, not knowing for sure whether you'd find me in the city. I had so much fun that I don't even feel like seeing NYC for a while, and so turned down the chance to have another pass there tonight. Instead, I expect to stick very close to the barracks tonight ... By now you should be approaching St. Louis, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that weather hasn't held you up. Take good care of yourself, dear.

I love you,

John

Jan. 24, 1945 S.S. Aquitania

Diary entry while John was crossing the Atlantic on the British liner S.S. Aquitania

Regulations are strictly enforced on the Aquitania, especially concerning smoking, and blackouts. Fire at sea is a larger hazard than submarines ... Blackout time starts at 1800 and lasts 'til 0800, and during this time we must stay off, since the light from one match can be seen in a submarine 3 miles away.

Jan. 26

Strong wind and heavy seas, which makes me just as happy: submarines find it hard to operate in this kind of weather. it takes a submarine a minimum of ten minutes to load, aim and fire a torpedo after sighting its target, se we've been changing course every 9 to 9 1/2 minutes, in order to make the ship as difficult as possible to hit.

Feb. 9

Diary entry as John travels to London on his way to his base

Arrived at Euston St. Station in London at 1500, and heard the explosion of a V-2 rocket about a mile away while we were starting out for the Liverpool St. Station. Went by a number of stores where the concussion had shattered plate glass windows, and the glass trucks were already there to repair the damage. Saw plenty of results of the past few years bombing by the Jerries.

March 15

Work was routine and no trouble. Fort (B-17 Flying Fortress) #852 was a mess but got back alright, with flak holes as big around as a barrel. Waist gunner's head blown off. No. 090's tail gunner killed by flak.

Apr. 10, 1945 Tulsa, Okla.

Letter from Katherine to John

Dearest John,

This morning I brought your khaki shirts down to be laundered and they first told me they couldn't run a special on them and that I couldn't possibly get them until a week from Wednesday. Then I started my tale about getting them off to a service man. Oh, then that was a different story -- why of course they would run it special -- some other customers standing by said "why, hold mine up if it is for a service man" -- My, my, all the to-do -- Now I know the system of getting laundry done but I doubt that it will work on my things.

April 13, 1945 Diary entry

Read this morning that Roosevelt died yesterday in his sleep. Quite a blow, at this time, with a man like Truman to take over. latest report is the Yanks have entered Berlin, and are expected to join with the Russians tomorrow. At this rate, there won't be much left to bomb.

May 7, 1945

Letter from John to Katherine

According to the stories I hear, the Germans came to terms this morning, and that the official announcement will be made later on today, and that the King will speak at 9 this evening. Looks as if it might be time this time -- we're all restricted to base, and have had to turn in our firearms -- temporarily -- so that they won't be used for purposes of celebration.

May 8, 1945

Letter from Katherine to John

I am just weak all over since the news came in this morning and a bit numb too. I came down to the office and brought Chuck's small radio ... After President Truman's announcement the whistles started blowing and people started throwin paper out etc. We of course can take the day off if we want to but somehow since I am already here I would just as soon work and not miss my overtime this week -- then too I don't really feel like celebrating now for I want to do my celebrating with you.
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Letters from the past: A personal history of WW II

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