Title: Richard J. Johnson Papers and Photographs
Inclusive Dates: 1936-1954

Creator:

• Johnson, Richard J.

Call Number: WVM Mss 115

Quantity: 1.1 linear ft. (3 archives boxes and 2 oversize folders) of papers and 0.4 linear ft. (1 archives box) of photographs.

Repository:

Wisconsin Veterans Museum
Have questions? Contact the Reference Archivist

Archival Locations:

Wisconsin Veterans Museum (Map)

See the catalog entry for current shelf locations and additions.

Abstract:

Papers and photographs of Richard J. Johnson, a private in Company B of the 707th Tank Battalion, 7th Armored Division during World War II. The vast majority of the collection consists of the wartime correspondence among Johnson, his wife, and his parents. Johnson described his armored infantry training at Fort Lewis, Washington and his experiences at war in Europe to his family, while their responses described conditions on the family farm in Wisconsin and the growth and development of Johnson's daughter, Nancy. In one letter, written after U.S. Army censors lifted many restrictions, Johnson described his entire war experience, including his battalion's role in the Battle of the Bulge. A letter written by Arthur Orton, Johnson's cousin and a soldier in World War I, describes his experiences in a French hospital, mentions Johnson's parents, and comes with a YMCA Mother's Day flyer. The collection also includes military ephemera that Johnson picked up while overseas, special orders pertaining to Johnson, 7th Armored Division materials, and some war ration booklets. A large number of photographs detail Johnson's training at Fort Lewis, including many shots of himself and his fellow trainees. There are also photos from his service in Europe, three of which depict German prisoners of war, including some women, being led to a holding facility by Allied troops.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.wvm-mss00115

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Richard J. Johnson was born in Rosholt (Portage County), Wisconsin in August 1916. His family moved soon after to a farm in Larsen (Winnebago County), Wisconsin, where Johnson grew up. He graduated from Neenah High School in 1934, and worked in the area until 1941, when he married Grace Mikkelsen and began working at the Kimberly-Clark Corporation. Johnson was drafted into the Army in 1942, shortly after the birth of his first child, Nancy. While his wife and daughter moved to live with his parents on their farm in Larsen, Johnson was shipped to the Pacific Northwest where he received armored infantry training at Fort Lewis, Washington. In August 1944 Johnson and his unit, Company C of the 23rd Armored Infantry Battalion, 7th Armored Division, crossed the Atlantic and arrived in England. They then went across the English Channel and landed at Omaha Beach, months after the fateful D-Day landing. From there Johnson traveled to Holland, where his battalion saw its first action. As the Allied forces advanced, Johnson's battalion moved through Germany to Belgium, where they settled into the trenches. As part of the 7th Armored Division, Johnson took part in the Battle of the Bulge at the critical St. Vith salient. On January 25, 1945 Johnson was wounded in battle and began a journey behind the lines through various Allied hospitals, all the way to Paris. After recovering, he rejoined his unit at the front and participated in the final push that broke the German army. After arriving home in late 1945, Johnson returned to his pre-war job at Kimberly-Clark; he worked there until his 1978 retirement. He and his wife Grace had four children and were married 54 years before Grace's death in 1995. Richard J. Johnson passed away in January 2002.

The papers of Richard J. Johnson are divided into three series: Correspondence, Military Papers, and Photographs.

Correspondence (1936-1950) consists almost entirely of letters exchanged between Johnson and his family during his wartime training and service. The letters from Grace Mikkelsen (his future wife) to Johnson date from a couple years before the war. They mostly document the growing love between the two, though in 1939 Grace writes that she fears America will be drawn into the growing European war and that Johnson will have to fight. Beginning in 1942, after Johnson began training at Fort Lewis, the correspondence expands to include his parents. While stateside, Johnson described his training in Washington and some of the things that they did during their free time, such as go into the city. His wife and parents wrote of the happenings at home, especially the development of Johnson's daughter Nancy. After being shipped over to Europe, Johnson's letters describe, as much as Army censors allowed, his feelings while at war. He described an incident in which he and other members of his regiment went fishing with grenades. In addition, after the censors lifted some restrictions, Johnson sent a letter to his wife (May 15, 1945) in which he described his travels in Europe up to that point, including the battle in which he was wounded and his subsequent trip through Allied hospitals. Letters from his parents and wife continued to focus on Nancy and happenings at home, including some mention of wartime rationing.

Also included in this series is a letter written by Johnson's cousin, Arthur W. Orton, while he served in World War I. The letter describes Orton's stay in a French hospital for pneumonia and also mentions Johnson's parents. The letter, written near Mother's Day, was sent with a YMCA flyer made specifically for soldiers to send home to their families.

Military Papers (1942-1954) consists of miscellaneous documents relating to Johnson's service in World War II. The 7th Armored Division materials include a "box score," which is a poster sized map that shows where the unit had traveled and fought throughout Europe; it also includes relevant statistics about casualties and awards. The military ephemera includes a war-related matchbook and other paper items that Johnson picked up while fighting in Europe. The war rations books come mainly from Johnson's wife and parents, who had to use them during the war. The special orders include the order granting Johnson a Purple Heart.

Photographs (1942-1945) contains over 150 photographs of Johnson and his experiences during his service. The majority of the photographs were taken during Johnson's stateside training at Fort Lewis, near Tacoma, Washington. These photos include many of Johnson, some while in full uniform, wearing a gas mask. Others show some of the men that Johnson trained with, the surroundings of the camp, and general scenery from the Pacific Northwest. Eleven photos depict Johnson at home with his family during his leave in 1943; one can see Johnson with his toddler daughter, Nancy, as well as his wife and parents. Several of the photographs from the European Theater show a long line of German prisoners of war, including some women, being marched to a holding area. European scenery, along with Johnson and his fellow soldiers can be seen in the other photos of that subseries. Finally, the miscellaneous subseries contains some formal portrait-style photographs of Johnson, as well as thirteen unidentified photographs of soldiers loading onto a large ship and sailing on an unknown body of water.

Acquisition Information

Presented by Martin Day, 2002. Accession Number: TR 1351.

Processing Information

Processed by Russell Horton in 2002.

	Series: Correspondence
	Subseries: To Richard J. Johnson
Box   1 Folder   1-3	From Florence Johnson (mother), 1942-1943, 1945
Box   1 Folder   4-10	From Grace Mikkelsen Johnson (wife), 1938-1943
Box   1 Folder   11	From Others, 1936-1945
	Subseries: From Richard J. Johnson	⇧
	To Edward and Florence Johnson (parents)
Box   1 Folder   12-18	1942-1943
Box   2 Folder   1-10	1943-1945
Box   2 Folder   11-18	To Grace Johnson (wife), 1942-1945
Box   2 Folder   19	To Tobias Johnson (uncle), 1942
Box   2 Folder   20	Miscellaneous, 1942-1950, undated
Box   2 Folder   21	Arthur W. Orton (cousin) to Mrs. W.H. Williams, 1919
	Series: Military Papers	⇧
	Subseries: 7th Armored Division
Box   3 Folder   1	Miscellaneous papers, 1945-1947
Ov   1 Folder   5	"Box Score," 1945
	Subseries: War-related Papers	⇧
Box   3 Folder   2	Church bulletins, 1942-1945
Box   3 Folder   3	Custom's declaration materials, 1945
Box   3 Folder   4	Military ephemera, 1945, undated
Box   3 Folder   5	Personal records (military), 1945, undated
Ov   2 Folder   12	Railroad map to Ft. Lewis
Box   3 Folder   6	Special orders, 1942-1945
Box   3 Folder   7	Wartime ration materials, 1945
	Subseries: Miscellaneous Papers	⇧
Box   3 Folder   8	U.S. flag literature, 1954
Box   3 Folder   9	Veterans' benefits materials, undated
	Series: Photographs	⇧
	Subseries: Fort Lewis
Box   4 Folder   1-3	Action candids [12] , 1943, undated
Box   4 Folder   4-8	Group shots [20] , 1942-1943, undated
Box   4 Folder   9-10	Humorous camp shots [6] , 1943, undated
Box   4 Folder   11-12	Individuals [10] , 1942-1943, undated
Box   4 Folder   13	Mount Rainier trip [5] , 1943
Box   4 Folder   14	Pets [6] , 1942-1943
Box   4 Folder   15-18	Portraits [15] , 1942-1943, undated
Box   4 Folder   19-23	Scenery [21] , 1943, undated
	Subseries: Home on Leave	⇧
Box   4 Folder   24-25	With Nancy (daughter) [8] , 1943
Box   4 Folder   26	With family [3] , 1943
	Subseries: European Theater	⇧
Box   4 Folder   27	Equestrian shots [4] , undated
Box   4 Folder   28	Fishing trip [3] , undated
Box   4 Folder   29	German P.O.W.s [3] , 1945
Box   4 Folder   30	Group shots [5] , undated
Box   4 Folder   31-33	Individuals [13] , 1945, undated
Box   4 Folder   34-38	Scenery [20] , 1945, undated
	Subseries: Miscellaneous	⇧
Box   4 Folder   39	Portraits [5] , undated
Box   4 Folder   40-42	Shots at sea [13] , undated