Barbara Dickoff Papers, 1941-1945 | Carleton College Archives

Barbara Dickoff attended Carleton College from 1943 until 1947.  During that time, she appears to have corresponded regularly with numerous people, many of whom were involved with the war effort.  This collection of her papers consists primarily of letters she received from 1943 to 1945.  There are also documents reflecting some of her coursework in English, International Relations, and History.

      By far the most important part of the record group is the correspondence.  The letters collectively constitute a compelling reflection of the social history of the time.  Dickoff corresponded most regularly with several men (Clayton Duby, Dick Frankini, Harry E. Johnson, and others) who at various points in the war were stationed overseas.  The most strongly recurrent theme in the corpus of letters is social life, e.g., how upcoming furloughs will be spent.  Reflections on the war constitute a lesser portion of the thematic content, though this was probably due to military censorship.  Notable letters include:  Pvt. C. Ellingson's rather racy account of military camp social life (11/1/43); a letter from Lloyd Ohmen (2/13/44) penned on stationary with a wartime propaganda motif; an account of the destruction of the war in Italy (Fredric Lansdorf, 1/19/45); letters from Clayton Duby which range from complaints about English beer (5/12/44) to his 8/28/44 mention of having received the Distinguished Flying Cross; and Landsorf's description of close calls in battle (3/13/45).  There are other interesting letters too numerous to mention, and the whole collection warrants perusal.

      Because most of her correspondents were friends from high school and college, the letters also provide some information about social life at Carleton College at the time.  Specifically, the letters raise many questions about the importance of drinking, partying, and dating to the Carleton social scene.