William Stinson Brown Letter, September 4, 1940

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Institution:

COGG Honor Archive

Collection:

The William Stinson Brown & Joanne Auringer Brown Family Collection

Date:

September 4, 1940

Item Type:

Correspondence

Branch of Service:

US Marine Corps

WWII Theater:

Pacific Theater

Unit / Squadron / Ship / Industry:

Rights / Restrictions:

Public Access

Description:

Bill describes one of the most hectic nights he’s had at the gate — some fifteen fights and dozens of confiscated liquor bottles on a sailors’ payday liberty — and the severe punishment handed down to a Marine caught drunk driving. Accompanied by a full typed transcript for ease of reading.

Additional Notes

Note: Bill’s account of the payday brawl is transcribed exactly as written, including his own use of a police club on two different sailors and his and Moe’s role sending men to be “sewed up” before the brig. The fine amount in the Davies court-martial passage is difficult to make out in the original and is given here as “$10 a month,” the closest plausible reading of the handwriting. “Moe” appears elsewhere in this collection as one of Bill’s companions at the gate. This letter is accompanied by a full typed transcript, appended to the end of this scan, for ease of reading.

Keywords:

payday brawl; drunk driving court martial; club; liquor confiscation

Cite As:

“William Stinson Brown Letter, September 4, 1940.” William Stinson Brown, USMC. September 4, 1940. The William Stinson Brown & Joanne Auringer Brown Family Collection. Honor Archive, Conservators of the Greatest Generation (COGG), San Antonio, Texas.