Summary Information
J. Clyde Haney Papers and Photographs
1943-1995
WVM Mss 1233
0.4 linear ft. (1 archives box) of papers, 0.1 linear ft. (2 folders) of photographs.
Wisconsin Veterans Museum (Map)
Papers and photographs documenting the World War II service of J. Clyde Haney (Joseph), a Janesville, Wisconsin resident who served with the 193rd and 194th Glider Infantry Regiments of the 17th Airborne Division, and was killed in action during Operation Varsity on March 24th, 1945. Haney saw action at the Battle of the Bulge, was posthumously awarded two purple hearts and the bronze star, and is buried at Margraten Holland/Netherlands American National Cemetery. All of the manuscripts are photocopies of original documents and include letters, certificates, newspaper articles, and biographical material. The bulk of the manuscripts are letters that were written by Haney to his wife, son, mother, and in-laws during basic training and serving on the European Front. In the letters, he describes his daily military activities, social events, sites in Europe, and his overall welfare. The letters to his wife, Vera, also include a sense of homesickness. He describes in several letters how he missed being with her and their son, Richard. Haney also shows concern for the welfare of his family, often asking how everyone was feeling and making sure that they are eating enough food. After entering combat, his letters also mention the horrors of war without going into detail. In one letter (January 8, 1945), he says, "Sherman was certainly right," and in another (January 18, 1945) he says, "I've seen and been through a lot, but want to forget it as soon as I can." The letters to his in-laws and mother discuss much of the same elements as the letters to Vera, but often they include more details about what he was training for and how dangerous missions would be when he entered combat. One letter (March 7, 1944) to his mother describes his role as a combat intelligence and reconnaissance soldier, but tells her not to discuss the dangerous aspects of this role with Vera because he didn't want her to worry. Haney devised a code system with his family and would occasionally include coded messages within his letters. These codes generally relay his location in Europe and missions he was about to partake. His son, Richard, explains the code system his father developed in more detail in his book "When is Daddy coming home?" There is also a collection of letters written to Haney from Vera that were returned after he was killed in combat. In them, Vera describes how she and Richard are doing, events and happenings in Wisconsin, and life once the war is over and the family is back together. They also include descriptions of her concern for Haney's safety and how it was affecting her. In one letter (February 28, 1945) she states that she was relieved to hear that he was not seriously wounded after she had received a telegram stating that he was and that the stress had been causing her to have headaches. The collection also includes letters written to Vera from the War Department and commanding officers expressing sympathy for her loss, and documents discussing the determent of his remains. Vera eventually decided to keep his remains interned in Europe. The newspaper clippings are of Richard in a preschool class, the announcement of Haney's death, an account of Vera's first trip to visit his grave in Europe, and Richard's account of his father's service in three separate articles. The biographical information includes a list and brief family biography and guide to the codes that were hidden within them. He also included copies of two articles about the history of the 17th Airborne Division and the 194th Glider Infantry Regiment as it made its assault during Operation Varsity, and certificates for his purple hearts and bronze star. The photographs are reproductions of the originals and include images of Haney with his family before being drafted, during his training, before leaving for Europe, and in uniform right before his death. There are also images of Vera and Richard at his gravesite during three different visits to Europe.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.wvm-mss01233 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
J. Clyde Haney (Joseph) was born on September 2, 1912 in Dakota, Minnesota. As a child, Haney moved to Madison, Wisconsin to be raised by his grandparents. After graduation, he began working for the local theater in Madison and eventually took a job in marketing with the Fox Entertainment Corporation. Vera Wolferman was born on September 12, 1918 in Madison, Wisconsin. She attended the University of Wisconsin, Madison, played the violin in the UW Symphony Orchestra, and earned a degree in accounting and finance. Haney and Wolferman met while she was a student at the university and eventually married in early 1940. The couple had their first child, Richard C. Haney, in November, 1940, and moved to Janesville a year later.
After the United States entered the war, Haney was an active member of the war effort at home. He helped raise a large portion of money for the Rock County, Wisconsin Red Cross, and conducted War Bond Drives in Janesville. Haney was drafted into the Army in February, 1944 after the exemption keeping pre-Pearl Harbor fathers from being drafted was dropped. He received basic training at Fort Blanding and was selected for advanced training in Intelligence Reconnaissance. Once Haney was in England, he underwent airborne training and was then attached to the 193rd Glider Infantry Regiment, 17th Airborne Division. During the Battle of the Bulge, the division was selected to help relieve the 101st Airborne Division under siege at Bastogne. He was treated for frostbite during the battle, and was declared wounded. However, he recovered from this and was sent back to his company. The 17th Airborne Division was also selected to participate in Operation Varsity, the codename for the airborne crossing of the Rhine River. On March 24th, 1945, Haney was killed when his glider crashed during the opening phases of the assault. He was buried in the United States Military Cemetery at Margraten, Netherlands.
After the death of her husband, Vera remained in Janesville and worked to support herself and her son. She remarried in 1950. In 1972, she traveled to Europe to visit the grave of her husband. Richard attended the University of Wisconsin, Madison and earned a PhD in history. He specialized in 20th Century history and taught at the University of Wisconsin, Whitewater. In 2005, he compiled the correspondences his father had sent home in the book "When is Daddy Coming Home?" an American family during World War II.
Scope and Content Note
The J. Clyde Haney collection is divided up into two series: Papers and Photographs
Papers (1944-1995) are photocopies of letters, newspaper articles, certificates, biographical information, and other materials pertaining to his service and death. They consist primarily of letters written by Clyde Haney to his family while he was serving in the Army. They generally describe his life in the Army and how he wanted the war to end so he could return home to his family. He often complained that the mail delivery system was slow, and would request for certain items such as soup to be sent in packages. There are a few letters that he wrote and addressed specifically to Richard. However, some messages to his son were included in letters written to Vera. The letters to his mother often show concern for the health of his wife and son. He remarked in some of his letters that he hoped the stress of him being off at war would not be a burden on Vera. Both the letters to his mother and in-laws provide more detail of what he was training for and what missions he would undertake, but they also become fewer once he is sent to the front in Europe as compared to the number of letters he wrote to his wife. Haney would sometimes include things in his letters such as paper money (the original letters still have it taped to the letters and was included in the photocopying), and a sketch of his combat expert infantryman's badge (February 25, 1945). The code system for him to communicate information past the censors was developed and agreed upon prior to him leaving for training, and is described in the notes included in the collection provided by Richard.
Photographs (1943-1985) include reproductions of original images of Haney with his family prior to leaving for Europe and in uniform. They also include images of Vera and Richard visiting his grave in Margraten Holland/Netherlands American National Cemetery. Vera first visited Haney's grave in 1972, with Richard making trips by himself in 1972 and 1978. The two made the trip together for the first time in 1985. All of the photographs include contextual information provided by Richard on the back.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Presented by Richard C. Haney, Whitewater, WI, 2008. Accession Number: Mss 2008.18.
Processed by Andrew J. Baraniak in 2009
Contents List
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Series: Papers
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Box
1
Folder
1
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17th Airborne Division Information, 1947, 1986
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Ov
30
Folder
2
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Articles by Richard Haney, 1994-1995
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Box
1
Folder
2
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Biographical Information, undated
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Box
1
Folder
3
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Birth Certificate, 1929
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Box
1
Folder
4
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Casualty and Death, 1945-1946
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Box
1
Folder
5
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Coded messages from letters, notes, undated
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Subseries: Letters
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Clyde Haney
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Box
1
Folder
6
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From Vera Haney
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Box
1
Folder
7
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To Carl Bunce, 1944
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Box
1
Folder
8
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To Chauncy Wolferman, 1944-1945
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Box
1
Folder
9
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To Rev. Charles Puls, 1944
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Box
1
Folder
10-22
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To Mae Haney, March 1944-March 1945
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Box
1
Folder
23
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To Richard Haney, 1944-1945
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Box
1
Folder
24-34
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To Vera Haney, February 1944-December 1945
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Box
2
Folder
1-3
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To Vera Haney, January 1945-March 1945
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Vera Haney
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Box
2
Folder
4
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From Lutheran Memorial Church, 1945
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Box
2
Folder
5
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From War Department Sympathy of Loss, 1945
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Box
2
Folder
6
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From War Department Disposition of Remains, 1945
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Box
2
Folder
7
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Military Certificates
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Series: Photographs
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Subseries: Clyde Haney
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Ph
22
Folder
15
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Family [10] , 1943-1945
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Ph
22
Folder
16
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Grave visit [1] , 1972
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Color Ph
3
Folder
39
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Grave visit [6] , 1972-1973, 1978, 1985
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Paper Print
3
Folder
44
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Grave visit (paper prints) [6] , 1972-1973, 1978, 1985
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