Postmark: 02/23/1943

Return Address:

Pvt. Vincent Misitano
Co K 342 Inf
A.P.O. 450
Camp Howze, Texas

Dearest Mother,

   Just a few lines to let you know how I am. Well mother yesterday (Sun) the first thing I did was eat breakfast, and then my buddy and I went to church, the 10 oclock mass. After mass we walked around the camp, stopped in the P.X. bought some pop and candy bars and then we went back to our barracks and waited till dinner. After dinner we played mushball till about 4 oclock then we went back to our barracks cleaned up and got ready to go to supper. After supper we walked around went down to the P.X. met Russell Gallagher there, we had a bottle of beer and then went to the movies.

   Mother tonight I'm going to be shot, don't get me wrong, it's just a needle stuck in my arm, I'll get about 3 more and then I'll be through.

   Mother my basic training starts Mon. so if you don't get very many letters from me, please don't worry, because it will be because I won't have very much time to myself while I'm training, but I will try to write as often as I can and every chance I can, and mother please don't worry about me because I'm O.K. and feeling fine.

   Mother I recieved a letter from Rosie yesterday, which is the only letter I've received so far its 7:30 at night now and we just had mail call and I was expecting a letter from you, did you write to me mother? You probably did but it didn't get here yet, I hope I get it tomorrow, at least I'm going to pray that I do.

   Mother, when Rosie comes up to see you, does she come up alone?

   Mother when you write please tell me everything about home and the kids and even the news, here you don't know nothing, or read nothing, there's no papers sold here.

   Well, mother, I'll close now with love to you, daddy and the kids.

   "Love,"

"Jimmy"

(Please Write)

Informational Header on Camp Howze Stationery:



Gainesville, home of Camp Howze, first connected to the outside word as a stage stand on the 3000-mile Butterfield trail between St. Louis and San Francisco, by way of El Paso. Operations, with a stage schedule of 25 days of continuous travel, began in 1858 but were terminated by the Civil War. Like modern airlines, the transcontinental stage routes were subsidized by the government as mail carriers. Horses and mules were well cared for, stage drivers were cocks of the walk, passengers sometimes napped, sitting up, between gully-crossings, bolted fried sowbelly and cold cornbread at the stations.