Dale Mabry Army Air Field (DMAAF) was a major fighter pilot training base during World War II. Silver Lake was used for survival training, Sopchoppy for bombing, and Alligator Point for strafing. The 4,300 "Mabryites" expanded the city's population by 25%, creating jobs for 800 civilians. All told, over 8,000 pilots trained at DMAAF, including British, French, and Chinese flyers. The famed African American Tuskegee Airmen also trained here. Along with all of those pilots, there was all of the airplane maintenance, mechanical training, and ordinances mission of ammunition handling and maintenance.
Citations:
Army Air Corps pilots - Tallahassee, Florida. 1944-01-29. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/11995, accessed 30 March 2023.
“Tallahassee's Dale Mabry Army Air Field Museum.” Accessed 2023. http://www.dmaaf.org/.
The following object description information includes basic elements from the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative (DCMI). An additional notes field is included to list dates from the actual letter, envelope postmark locations, and any other identifying details.
Notes – Handwritten letter dated June 4, 1943, two pages. Includes envelope, postmarked June 5, 1943, 10:30AM, from Dale Mabry Field, Tallahassee, Fla.
Jack mentions the heat; as you can see in the table below from Weather Spark the temperatures for June of 1943 in Tallahassee, the temperature for much of the day is above 85 degrees with pockets of over 95 degrees, and we must not forget the humidity. The other thing unusual about the temperature is that it is over 75 degrees starting at 7 am and lasting till midnight or later. REMEMBER there is no air conditioning!! According to the NOAA website, this is a warmer than typical month.
Citation: “June 1944 Weather History in Tallahassee Florida, United States.” Tallahassee June 1944 Historical Weather Data (Florida, United States) - Weather Spark. Accessed April 26, 2023. https://weatherspark.com/h/m/15552/1944/6/Historical-Weather-in-June-1944-in-Tallahassee-Florida-United-States#Figures-Temperature.
The Kodak 35 was introduced in 1938 as the first US-manufactured 35mm camera from Eastman Kodak Company. It was developed in Rochester, New York when it became likely that imports from the Kodak AG factory in Germany could be disrupted by war. This camera was the most common camera in 1943 so it is likely that this is the type of camera that Margaret would have been using to taking pictures of her and John.
Citation: Ivanlo. (2016, January 8). Kodak 35 - Vintage Camera Lab. Vintage Camera Lab - Vintage Camera Lab. Retrieved March 30, 2023, from https://vintagecameralab.com/kodak-35/