Personal Narrative Manuscript/Mixed Material Photo, Print, Drawing Joseph George Farris Collection
Veterans History Project Service Summary:
- War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
- Branch of Service: Army
- Unit of Service: Company M, 3rd Battalion, 398th Infantry Regiment, 100th Infantry Division
- Location of Service: Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Camp Croft, South Carolina; France; Germany; European Theater
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/97101
Serving with the 100th Infantry Division in France and Germany, Staff Sergeant Joseph George Farris wrote letter after letter to his parents and brothers back home in Danbury, CT. In most, he reassured them that he was "getting along swell"-despite spending more than five continuous months in combat along the Maginot Line. While a few of his sketches depict the darkness and violence of combat, Farris also chose to draw European street scenes, houses, and churches; these pieces evoke peaceful domesticity, a sharp contrast to the suffering that he witnessed on the battlefield. Following the end of hostilities, the Army sent Farris to an art course in Biarritz, France; post-war, he became a professional artist, illustrating cartoons for the New Yorker.
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About this Item
Title
- Joseph George Farris Collection
Names
- Farris, Joseph
- Farris, Joseph George
Home State
- Connecticut
Headings
- - Farris, Joseph George
- - World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
- - United States. Army.
Repository
- Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Gender
- Male
Race
- White
Status
- veteran
Service History
-
World War, 1939-1945
- Branch of Service: Army
- Unit of Service: Company M, 3rd Battalion, 398th Infantry Regiment, 100th Infantry Division
- Location of Service: Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Camp Croft, South Carolina; France; Germany; European Theater
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Dates of Service: 1943-1946
- Entrance into Service: Drafted
- Military Status: veteran
Materials
- Manuscript: Clippings [51 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1943-1946)
- Manuscript: Correspondence [406 items] -- Handwritten document (collected 1943-1946)
- Manuscript: Creative works [136 items] -- Handwritten document (collected 1943-1946)
- Manuscript: Diaries and journals [5 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1944-1945)
- Manuscript: Maps [15 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1943-1946)
- Manuscript: Memoirs [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 1943-1946)
- Manuscript: Periodicals [17 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1944-1945)
- Manuscript: Unit histories [15 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1943-1946)
- Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [34 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1942-1946)
- Manuscript: Printed matter [58 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1943-1946)
- Photograph: Original photographic print [225 items] -- Photograph (collected 1943-1946)
- Photograph: Digital print [9 items] -- Photograph (collected 1943-1946)
- Photograph: Negatives [90 items] -- Photograph (collected 1943-1946)
- Photograph: Duplicate [267 items] -- Photograph (collected 1943-1946)
Collection Number
- AFC/2001/001/97101
Cite as
- Joseph George Farris Collection (AFC/2001/001/97101), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Online Format
- image