V-Mail

I found some V-Mail for sale on ebay and wasn't sure what to get, but I came across several lots of letters from the same woman from Lima, OH, who was a prolific writer. I think she may have written her husband every day he was gone, and sometimes twice in one day. I obtained quite a few of them - V-Mail microfilm prints, and some originals. I'm sad I didn't get them all, but there were a lot! It's amazing these letters were all saved, and even more amazing her family let them go. I did a little research and she only died about 10 years ago.
Her letters are sweet, chatty, full of the mundane, but so full of wonderful wartime details. They are such a treasure, and I feel so blessed to have them to study and preserve!
Below are three examples of V-Mail that I got. Two are the prints made from the microfilm negative. The red one is the original V-Mail form onto which the sender wrote or typed their letter.
Here are some close-ups of the microfilm negative prints: The print is pretty tiny and you could get a special magnifier with which to read your letters. Click on the images to see them in a larger size.
Typed V-Mail Print |
Handwritten V-Mail Print |
Here is a close-up of the original form with letter inside:
The front. The envelope and letter are in one. |
The back of the V-Mail form with instructions |
V-Mail from Mrs. Verne Silbaugh |
The National WWII Museum in New Orleans has a fabulous website with information about V-Mail. You can check out the link here to learn more.