Myrtle and Charles DuBois papers

Letters exchanged by Myrtle A. Turner and Charles J. DuBois during and just after his service in the U.S. Army during World War I, together with other papers of the couple (who later married) consisting of army documents, miscellaneous papers, photographs and school papers.

Myrtle Turner's letters to Charles DuBois number approximately 61 items and date from July 1918 to December 1919. The letters were written from Irvington, New Jersey, until August 1919, after which time most of them were written from New Egypt, New Jersey. Among the letters is one in which Turner describes how she heard the (incorrect) news of the armistice ending World War I on November 7, 1918, while attending class at the New Jersey State Normal School at Newark.

Although more were written, Charles DuBois' letters to Myrtle Turner are represented by only four items. They date from October and November 1918 and from February and April 1919. The army documents consist of DuBois' army discharge certificate, September 1919 (with later stamped notations through at least 1921), and a corrected edition of a pamphlet (Soldier's Handbook of the Rifle . . . Model of 1917), 1918.

The miscellany consists of a viewbook for Camp Johnston, Jacksonville, Florida, 1918?, that was mailed to Myrtle Turner (but not necessarily by DuBois); a copy of the couple's wedding announcement, 1931; their marriage certificate, September 2, 1931; a receipt for funeral expenses for Charles DuBois, August 3, 1955; and two letters from the Veterans Administration, 1955.

The photographs consist of what is undoubtedly the couple's wedding picture, 1931; three snapshots, undated, two of which include the couple; and four studio portraits (including a tintype), 1870s-1920s?, each of which depicts or includes at least one of Myrtle's parents. The school papers are Myrtle's and include report cards, 1908-1917, one of which is accompanied by a newspaper article listing honors students; an Irvington High School commencement program, 1917; and a certification of her high school attendance, 1949.