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OTTO K. GRALERT. World War II Scrapbook; 1942-1945. .5 cu. ft. Inventory.
Otto K. Gralert was from Hoboken, New Jersey. He enlisted in the U.S. Army during World War II and served as a personnel clerk in medical units. Gralert served with the Medical Replacement Training Center at Camp Pickett, Virginia (1942); the 107th Station Hospital at Fort Jackson, South Carolina (1942-1943); and the 179th Station Hospital at Adak Army Air Field in the Aleutians (1943-1945). He later spent time in Anchorage and Fort Lewis, Washington, before his release from active duty at Fort Dix, New Jersey.
The collection consists of papers, artifacts, and photographs taken from the World War II era scrapbook of medical personnel clerk Otto K. Gralert. The collection is divided into two series: papers and artifacts, and photographs. The papers include a xerographic copy of Gralert's original 49 page scrapbook; unit newsletters, a promotion order, and a duty roster from the 107th Station Hospital in Fort Jackson, South Carolina; clippings from a Life Magazine article on the Aleutians; and service patches and souvenirs including a dog tag, service patches, an army transport card with bed assignment, and a booklet from the separation center at Fort Dix, New Jersey. The photographs consist of 93 black and white prints, 31 photo post cards, and 35 copy negatives. The photographs are divided into sections for Camp Pickett, Virginia; Fort Jackson, South Carolina; Adak Island, Alaska; Anchorage, Alaska; and Tacoma and Fort Lewis, Washington. The 83 photographs from Gralert's service with the 179th Station Hospital at Adak Army Air Field include group portraits of the unit's personnel (including nurses), panoramas of the unit's quarters, pictures of a unit dress parade and ceremony, portraits of Olivia DeHavilland during her visit there, and views of base buildings and island scenery.
The collection was acquired by the archives in 2001.
HMC-0550
JAS (12/2001)