Camp Stewart Revisited, May-June 1944

The Letters of Leon and Mary Grayson

Our maternal grandparents Leon and Mary (Bell) Grayson, natives of Savannah, Georgia, moved to the Nation’s Capital in 1935. Having lived in a half-dozen Washington D.C. boarding houses and apartments in just over four years, the childless couple, then 33 and 30 years-old respectively, finally settled into a 3rd floor garden apartment on Sheridan Street in the Brightwood neighborhood in April 1940.

World War II Family Postings

Leon, a Justice Department lawyer, received a wartime commission in the U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps in November 1942, three months after their first and only child Mary Ann was born. The couple preserved numerous documents and dozens of war-time letters through which we are now able to share in their adventures, joys, and hardships. The family spent five weeks in late 1942 near one another at Leon’s initial duty station of Camp Stewart in their native coastal Georgia, met on occasion during Leon’s ensuing eight weeks at Fort Totten in Queens, New York in early 1943, and spent numerous weekends and even weeks-long periods together during Leon’s subsequent 1-year tour of duty at Fort Eustis in Newport News, Virginia. Mary and Ann shuttled between staying with her parents Joseph and Julia Bell in Savannah, the D.C. garden apartment, and short and longer-term rentals near Leon as opportunities arose.

Over Age in Grade, A Familiar New Assignment

36 year-old 1st Lieutenant Leon Grayson, nominally a U.S. Army anti-aircraft artillery (AA) officer, was named “assistant theater officer” at Fort Eustis VA in May 1943, validating what Leon had written to Mary the previous November: “There doesn’t seem to be much future for the “over age in grade” officers in AA – they are transferring them to other branches and letting them go left and right.”

There is a gap in our documents and letters from November 1943 at Fort Eustis until 12 May 1944, when Leon was granted 5 days leave from a new but familiar duty station – Camp Stewart GA.

In June 1943, a neighbor wrote to Mary in Virginia, “Everything in D.C. is about the same… How are Lee and Fuzzy? It was certainly nice that you had a few days at the beach…. Too bad your apt. is sitting idle, expense still going on. Are you still coming up July 15?” Expenses and Leon’s extravagance having been such an uncomfortable recent topic, it is interesting that Mary hadn’t yet given up the Sheridan Street apartment and moved back to Savannah. Now that Leon was again in coastal Georgia, a subsequent handwritten letter postmarked Jun 1, 1944 indicated Mary had indeed arranged the latter, and had apparently sublet the former.

The Camp Stewart Letters

From: 1st Lt. Leon H. Grayson, 0-264681, Battery D, 12th Bn., AARTC, Camp Stewart, Georgia 
To: Mrs. Leon H. Grayson, 402 East Waldburg Street, Savannah, Georgia 
Wednesday, 31 May 44 "Out in the Wilderness" 

Darling “Sweetheart Mummie,” Back on bivouac – Looks as if I won’t be in this weekend – I thought I might this morning but I don’t think I can get in. Have a pup tent surrounded by pine trees, ants, bugs, mosquitoes, etc. In case you might need me call 12th Battalion Headquarters AARTC and they will relay the message…. That old cot at Stewart will look mighty good. I surely enjoyed talking to you and Ann today. “Puppie” loves his girls more than the world. What did our tenants do? I forgot to ask. I want my sweethearts to have a good time and do anything they want…. Give Daddy, Mother, [Mary’s younger siblings] Betty, Bill, Margaret, [brother-in-law] Max, and the kids my best and I hope to see I will see my hearts the first chance I get. The ‘fighting’ “Puppie” P.S. Write me a line. Xcuse the pencil. All my love “Puppie”

We have two further envelopes posted from Camp Stewart in June 1944, but can match only one enclosure. Note: Though it may have been discussed in person or on the telephone, no mention is made in the letter of the D-Day offensive that had just taken place in Europe or events in the Pacific. Lawrence Morgan, the fiancé of Mary’s 20 year-old sister Betty, waded ashore at Normandy on D-Day+5 on June 12. The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps were simultaneously approaching the Philippines, where Leon’s younger brother Bill had been a Japanese prisoner of war for more than two years. The letter begins (inferred date June 14):

Wednesday, Darling “Mummie,” and Angel Baby, Well “Puppie” won the honor of taking the select platoon over the proficiency course. “Puppie” made a perfect score as well as 75% of the platoon (50). However we were so good that we have to do the 300 yd dash (50 seconds) and the 4 mile hike (full packs + rifles) (50 minutes) again tomorrow – So “the fighting Puppie” – will lose another 20 lbs of avoirdupois ?

Mary was always very slender while 6 foot-tall Leon, though not obese, tended towards being overweight. And who knew he could throw around French terms like avoirdupois? (Though the question mark hinted he wasn’t sure he spelled it correctly.) His letter continued:

The Battery had its farewell party and when I was called in for remarks, I’ve never heard such applause for minutes and minutes before I could make myself heard before the “mike”. Then I shot them the works in about 5 or 6 minutes; lots of laughter, battery talk and baloney. They liked it because they made the same noise as I wended my way back to my beer and sandwiches.

Leon was a naturally joyful and gregarious man. Fourteen years earlier he gave a well-received speech in Savannah in front of some 3000 people. It seems these less formal, more raucous recent remarks gave him just as much satisfaction. On a less cheery note, the “farewell party” made it rather plain that Leon was soon to be transferred yet again. His letter concluded:

“Puppie” will be in this weekend (probably). Henry (He telephoned you, Betty met him) said he would like to meet and have a date (Saturday night) with Thelma [a friend of Mary?] if he gets off and can get in – and we’ll all go out together. Fairly definite. “Puppie” loves you and our precious Ann more than the world. Love to the family and all my love to my hearts Mummie and Ann, All my love to my angels, The “fighting Puppie”. P.S. I love you. Will call Friday night. “Lee”

This is the first time we’ve seen “Lee” in a letter, a sometime nickname Mary and others would call Leon when we knew him. The ubiquitous “Puppie” and “Mummie” somehow morphed twenty years later into Poppa and Mimi, our affectionate names for our beloved grandparents. Leon’s next letter would not be written from Camp Stewart, and it came so soon afterward that it is doubtful whether Henry and “Lee” were able to keep their “fairly definite” Saturday night appointment in town.