Men and Women In Service
Thomas R. Martin, son of Mr. and Mrs. J. E. Martin, 2901 Jackson Street; Richard W. Lowder, son of Mr. And Mrs., Bert Lowder, 1617 Summit Street; Clifton A. Syverson, son of Mr. and Mrs. M. A. Syverson, 426 Casselman Street and Robert W. Bower, son of Mr. and Mrs. Paul F. Bower, 616 15th Street, are undergoing a course in the hospital corpsman’s school at the naval hospital at Farragut, Idaho.
Source: Sioux City Journal, May 18, 1943
“Postmark Tokyo”
Sioux City Parents Receive Letter from Son Aboard U.S. Navy Vessel
Mr. and Mrs.Bert Lowder, 1617 Summit Street, have received an ornate letter- “postmark Tokyo.” It is stamped with the special insignia of the U.S.S. Hansford on which their son, Dick, is pharmacist’s mate second class.
The envelope, in addition to the United States naval mark, depicts a worried Jap in an abbreviated kimono, peeping around the “gates of the city,” named in an imitation of oriental script, “Tokyo Bay.” The gates open into a map with the Japanese capital clearly starred.
“Well, here I am, docked at Yokohama in Tokyo,” was the story inside the letter which continued as follows;
“We came in yesterday which was V-J Day and passed right by the U.S.S. Missouri on which the surrender was signed. Overhead there must have been at least 1,000 planes, including the big Superforts. I can see now why the Japs wanted to quit. Sure gives you a swell feeling when you see the might of the United States.”
“We pulled into the dock this morning and they were in pretty good shape. Not very far from us is a Jap carrier which was sunk. So far it has been pretty quiet. Boy, the weather up here is really swell, just like autumn back home. It is so easy to sleep in this weather. Haven’t been able to see Mount Fujiyama yet because it hasn’t cleared up.”
Source: The Sioux City Journal, September 23, 1945 (photo included)
