Beschreibung:

Over 100 letters related to Paul Dieter Masling. Some of the earliest documents are in German from 1924 and 1925, and appear to be annual registration documents. At some point the family got out of Germany. Their primary location after that was on Peachtree Street, Atlanta, GA. They also might have had relatives in Havana, Cuba, since over two dozen letters were directed to them there. Lot includes Army Soldier’s Service and Pay Book, 4 x 5“, brown cloth. First pages include his service number, name, birth date (1923), religion (Jewish), enlistment information (London 1942), description (ht., wt., eye color, etc.), and ID photo. Next page lists his training (shooting, gas chamber, etc.). Other pages list next of kin, followed by a blank will that is not filled out, but apparently he did file a will. Other pages have clothing sizes, medical information, etc. Back cover with pockets for additional papers. [He first enlisted in the Pioneer Corps, then a combat unit, the Hampshire Regiment.] There are letters to his family, addressed to "Dad, Mum, and Larry," presumably a brother. A number of letters are from Margery Cook in Somerset, England, where Dieter was staying while in school. One letter dated 1939 indicated that he had been living there for a year at that point, and apparently was also working. Early letters and references he signs as "Dieter." Starting in about 1942, he starts signing as "Paul." (Possibly related to military service??) Then came the notifications - one dated 15 July 1944 informs the family of Dieter's death on 11 July 1944 at the Battle for Normandy. There are other notices, 27 July, a letter from his commanding officer dated August (who knows how many letters he had to write!), and more. There is a series of condolence letters from friends. One letter from Mrs. Cook is dated 6-6-45. After lamenting that letters and packages do not seem to be crossing the Atlantic on a timely basis, she writes: Now dear Mrs. Masting, our Dieter has been gone now 1 year by the time you receive this letter. It doesn’t really seem possible. He is never out of our thoughts. Monday we shall be thinking of him landing in Normandy…I can only trust you will find peace & comfort to your mind knowing it was far better than for him to be taken by the Nazis. She also expresses hope that Larry will return home soon, so apparently he enlisted, also. There are several letters from the 1950s and 1960s to England in which Mrs. Masling is trying to apply for a pension. She writes that her husband (Charles) died in 1951, and she no longer has her son to care for her (we could find no record for Larry - did he die also?). Apparently she received copies of Dieter's will, etc. to file as part of the application process. The certified copy of the will from the British military names Larry as his executor and his father, Charles, as the recipient of all of his possessions. There is a small note (4 x 5.5 in.) that accompanies a couple of medals: The Under-Secretary of State for War …has the honour to transmit the enclosed Awards granted for service in the war of 1939-45. The Council share your sorrow that Pte. P.D. Masting, in respect of whose service these Awards are granted did not live to receive them.” Verso with descriptions of medals, including 1939-45 Star and a War Medal 1939-45. Slip indicates 3 medals were enclosed, but only the above 2 are with the lot. Also a Royal Signal Corps tally and another tab (handwritten note indicates a leadership tab?). There are five photos, approx. 3.5 x 5.5 in., four of Dieter in uniform, the fifth of him standing with a couple of buddies in the snow. There is also a smaller picture of a younger Dieter, apparently a school picture. In addition there are a number of notices and letters from the Graves Registry beginning in 1946 notifying the family that Masling was disinterred from his temporary grave and reburied in Bayeux British Cemetery, 16 miles north-west of Caen, France (Plot XI, Row L, Grave 17).