1934-1941

 

Here are letters and documents that provide a sense of what American life was like coming out of The Great Depression and into another World War. In 1934 Leonard takes a trip from Iowa to California in to visit his Uncle Louis and Aunt Stella in Long Beach, California. 

 

He leaves college to run a business in Crystal Lake, Illinois. Men who work for and around him are drafted. 

 

Finally, in July of 1941 he enlists in the Army Air Corp (today the US Air Force) and enters military service at the age of 23.