Letters from a WWII soldier to his sweetheart offer an intimate picture of love during wartime
Associated Press
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An envelope from a Black soldier stationed in Alabama written to his wife in Nashville in 1942 shows a stamp that says "Idle Gossip Sinks Ships" Monday, Feb. 9, 2026 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Kristin M. Hall)Archivist Kelley Sirko looks at love letters between a Black soldier and his wife during World War II that are part of a digital exhibit on Monday, Feb. 9, 2026 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Kristin M. Hall)In this digital scan of an undated photo provided by The Nashville Public Library, William Raymond Whittaker, left, and his wife Jane Dean Whittaker stand for a photo in Nashville, Tenn. (The Nashville Public Library via AP)A letter from a soldier assigned to the 92nd Infantry Division, an all-Black military unit during World War II, to his wife in Nashville is seen Monday, Feb. 9, 2026 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Kristin M. Hall)Pictures of William Raymond Whittaker and his wife, Jane Dean Whittaker, are on top of letters the two of them wrote to each other while he was serving in the military, photographed Monday, Feb. 9, 2026, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Kristin M. Hall)
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An envelope from a Black soldier stationed in Alabama written to his wife in Nashville in 1942 shows a stamp that says "Idle Gossip Sinks Ships" Monday, Feb. 9, 2026 in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Kristin M. Hall)