Call Number:

SCRC 233

Repository:

Temple University Libraries: Special Collections Research Center

Extent:

0.21 linear feet (1 box)

Language:

English and German

Preferred Citation:

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Fleisher and Dolowitz Family Correspondence, SCRC 233, Special Collections Research Center, Temple University Libraries, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Date:

1943-1945 (inclusive)

Creator:

Fleisher, Richard R., 1911-1967 and Dolowitz, David A.

Form:

Clippings, Correspondence, Ephemera, Photocopies, Photographs, and Publications (documents)

Abstract:

Richard Roger Fleisher was the son of David Teller Fleisher and Fridolyn Mastbaum Gimbel and brother to Frances Marie Fleisher. After David Fleisher's divorce from Fridolyn Gimbel, he married Louise Marguerite Warner in 1926 with whom he had one daughter, Mary Louise. During World War II, Richard served in the 17th Field Artillery Regiment and then the 80th Infantry Division in the United States Army, achieving the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Frances' husband, David August Dolowitz, served as a Captain in the United States Army during WWII.

The bulk of the collection contains letters, V-mail, and telegrams addressed to Louise Fleisher in Philadelphia from her step-son Richard Fleisher and her son-in-law, David Dolowitz, both of whom address her as "Aunt Louise" in their correspondence to her. The correspondence from Richard Fleisher, dated July 1944 to September 1945, was written during his service in the 80th Infantry Division (also known as the "Blue Ridge Division") and details his experiences as his infantry moved through England, France, Luxembourg, Germany, and Austria. Correspondence written by David Dolowitz is dated October 1943 to February 1945, and is primarily personal and concerned with Louise's health. Additional correspondence includes letters addressed to and written by other family members including Mary-Louise and Arthur Fleisher and Frances Dolowitz.

Miscellaneous materials in the collection include copies of G.I. newspapers, Stars and Stripes and The Blue Ridger from July and August 1945, newspaper clippings, and printed materials on the 80th Infantry Division; photographs of Richard Fleisher, Lieutenant General Horace L. McBride, Brigadier General James E. Wharton, General George Catlett Marshall and others; and two registration cards in German issued to a Ludwig Meier from Kaufbeuren, including an Ausmusterungsshein issued by the Third Reich to individuals unfit for service in the Wehrmacht.