John F. Marshall Correspondence,
Scope and Content
Lieutenant commander in U.S. Navy and member of Admiral Halsey's staff writes from the scene of the Japanese surrender aboard the USS Missouri on September 2, 1945. He describes the surrender ceremony in detail, particularly his impressions of U.S. military leaders and representatives of other nations participating in the ceremony. The letter was written to Floyd McElroy, a friend and former colleague. Also included in the collection is a letter dated October 4, 1945 from McElroy in which he sends a photostatic copy of Marshall's original letter to Ernest M. Bernstein. It is this copy of Marshall's letter that is in the collection.
Dates
- Creation: 1945 - 1945
Creator
- Marshall, John F. (Person)
Access Restrictions
Collection is open for research.
Use Restrictions
Permission to publish material from the John F. Marshall Letter must be obtained from Special Collections, Virginia Tech.
Biographical Note
As reporrted by Floyd McElroy, John F. Marshall's parents were missionaries in Burma prior to World War II and were evacuated to India and then returned to the United States following the Japanese invasion of Burma in December 1941. After the fall of Singapore in February 1942, John F. Marshall enlisted in the Navy and received at least part of his training at Naval Air Station Quonset Point in Rhode Island before arriving for duty in the South Pacific theater. On May 18, 1945, having attained the rank of Lieutenant Commander, Marshall reported on board the U.S.S. Missouri, the flagship of William (Bull) Halsey's Third Fleet, to join the Admiral's staff. He was on the Missouri on September 2, 1945 in Tokyo Bay when he described the official surrender of the Japanese that took place on that ship in a letter to friend and former colleague, Floyd McElroy. McElroy was Vice-President of Loomis-Sayles, & Company, an investment firm based in Boston with an office in San Francisco. Marshall worked in that San Francisco office prior to the war and, apparently returned to work there after the war.
Full Extent
0.1 Cubic Feet (1 folder)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Marshall, a member of Admiral William (Bull) Halsey's Third Fleet staff, offers in a letter written to Floyd McElroy, a first-hand description of the ceremony that marked the formal surrender of Japanese forces aboard U.S.S. MIssouri in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945. The collection also includes a letter from McElroy to Ernest Bernstein less than a month later that contains information about both Marshall and the letter.
Acquisition Information
The John F. Marshall Letter was donated to Special Collections in 1999.
Processing Information
The processing, arrangement, and description of the John F. Marshall Correspondence was completed prior to 2009. Additional description was completed in September 2015.
Topical
- Title
- John F. Marshall Correspondence, 1945
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Special Collections Staff
- Date
- © 2015 Virginia Tech. All rights reserved.
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- English
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections, Virginia Tech Repository
Special Collections, University Libraries (0434)
560 Drillfield Drive
Newman Library, Virginia Tech
Blacksburg Virginia 24061 US
540-231-6308
specref@vt.edu