Mayo (Lee W.) Collection, 1941-1945

Summary

Title:

Lee W. Mayo Collection

Dates:

1941-1945

Creators:

Mayo, Lee W., 1915-2006

Abstract:

Lee Mayo enlisted in the US Army in October of 1941, just before Pearl Harbor Day. He kept a diary, titled "My Life in the Service" between July 23, 1944 and December 18, 1945, while moving around the South Pacific. He spent most of that time in the Philippines, fighting in the Battle of Manila in 1945, but also visited and wrote about other locations on Luzon and Leyte. He writes about such things as Japanese suicide bombers attacking his ship, Japanese soldiers committing suicide to avoid being captured, civilian populations on some of the islands they stop on, bartering and attending boxing matches with Australian soldiers, and personal illnesses including "jungle rot" and "yellow jaundice."

Extent:

0.21 linear feet

Language:

English

Preferred citation:

For information about citing items in this collection consult the appropriate style manual, or see the Citing Archival Materials guide.

Background

Scope and content:

The Lee W. Mayo Collection includes information of Lee while being enlisted in the US Army in October of 1941, just before Pearl Harbor Day. He kept a diary, titled "My Life in the Service" between July 23, 1944 and December 18, 1945, while moving around the South Pacific. He spent most of that time in the Philippines, fighting in the Battle of Manila in 1945, but also visited and wrote about other locations on Luzon and Leyte.

Mayo starts by listing several of his "Buddies in the Service," and goes on to write about such things as Japanese suicide bombers attacking his ship, Japanese soldiers committing suicide to avoid being captured, civilian populations on some of the islands they stop on, bartering and attending boxing matches with Australian soldiers, personal illnesses including "jungle rot" and "yellow jaundice," his fellow soldiers, K-rations, and the weather. The diary also includes loose and pasted-in ephemera, his "Soldier's Individual Pay Record," and immunization records, with the ending pages filled with pasted-in photographs of a woman and children, many posed in front of a house.

Biographical / historical:

Lee W. Mayo was born in 1915, and lived in Baxter, Pennsylvania with his wife, Dorothy. He enlisted in the US Army in October of 1941, and served until 1945.

Acquisition information:

Purchase, 03/12/2013.

Related resources

Other descriptive data:

Other Information:

This collection was purchased with funds generously donated by Gus and Erika Manders.

Indexed terms

Subjects:

Ephemera
Photographs

About this collection guide

Date Encoded:

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2020-07-01 17:42:46 +0000.

Restrictions:

The collection is open for research use.

Terms of access:

Copyright for unpublished materials authored or otherwise produced by the creator(s) of this collection has not been transferred to California State University, Northridge. Copyright status for other materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Preferred citation:

For information about citing items in this collection consult the appropriate style manual, or see the Citing Archival Materials guide.

Location of this collection:

California State University, Northridge, Special Collections

18111 Nordhoff Street

Northridge, CA 91330, US

Contact:

(818) 677-4594

Website