The movie poster above of a movie that was released in 1946, two years after the letter that Sgt. John Dolin had sent to Miss Payne. The movie is about a British born war bride, who wanted to flee the United Kingdom and living her life in America. After traveling around with her lover, she soon realized that he no longer loves her. She then had to turn herself into the immigrations office. Soon after the love of her life came chasing after her, asking her to marry him allowing her to live her happy life in America.
The Department of Justice had released an outline of steps for foreign-born GI wives that were needed to become U.S. citizens:
1. Register with the American consul in (native) country.
2. Obtain a visa.
3. On arrival in America, present the visa to port-of-entry officials who will forward it to the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization in Philadelphia.
4. Before completing two years of residence in the United States, file a preliminary petition of citizenship.
5. At the end of two years of residence, file a formal petition for citizenship.
6. Attend a court hearing to determine (eligibility) to be naturalized.
Citation: The American Legion. (2021, July 21). Our Wwii story: Here come the war brides. The American Legion. Retrieved April 7, 2023, from https://www.legion.org/honor/253045/our-wwii-story-here-come-war-brides
Two days after the letter Sgt. John Dolin had sent out to Miss Payne, the HMS Warwick was sunk by the destroyer from a Nazi U-boat torpedo off the Cornish coast in 1944. Only one out of the sixty-crew members had survived the attack. The HMS Warwick was used as an escort boat during World War Two to protect themselves from German Submarine attacks.
Citation: BBC. (2019, February 20). HMS Warwick World War Two Sinking remembered 75 years on. BBC News. Retrieved April 7, 2023, from https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cornwall-47298099
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.
Did John ever think about Margaret when he wrote his last letter to her? Or did the last few letters that he wrote to her was planned?
The children and mothers that were not able to leave England, did they stay in touch with the father?
How many babies were actually born from premarital sex that knew their parents or father?
Children that were born out of wedlock, especially from an army or military man of color, would often end up being abandoned once the soldier was sent back to their native country. 8% of the men that came from America to fight in England were African American. Few of these men would end up falling in love with a British girl and end up impregnating her. These babies would be considered "Brown Babies" and would be left behind with their mothers. Some of the black soldiers would ask for permission to marry a white British woman, but the permission would often be refused. "According to black former GI Ormus Davenport, writing after the war, the US Army "unofficially had a "gentleman's agreement" which became an official policy. The agreement said, "No negro soldier or sailor will be given permission to marry any British white girl!"...Not one GI bride going back to the US under the US government scheme is the wife of a Negro". Since white British women were not allowed to marry black soldiers, they would keep their children before marrying their other men.
Citation: Bland, Lucy & Caballero, Chamion, (2021. January 4), "Brown Babies": The children born to black GI and white British women during the Second World War, https://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/brown-babies-second-world-war/ , Accessed 14 April 2023