The Snapshots in Time Collection

Handwritten Letter from Pvt. Willis W. Wagener to His Father, WWI Army Camp Correspondence, 1918

Handwritten Letter from Pvt. Willis W. Wagener to His Father, WWI Army Camp Correspondence, 1918

This handwritten letter from Private Willis W. Wagener to his father offers a firsthand account of everyday Army camp life during World War I, including the ever-present threat of illness such as scarlet fever, life in camp isolation wards, and abruptly changed unit orders. Personal letters like this preserve the voice of the ordinary American soldier, illuminating the human side of the war experience far removed from the battlefield. Project: 218171