Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Aaron R. Gould papers, 1940-1945
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Gould, Aaron R., 1919-1944
- Title
- Aaron R. Gould papers
- Dates
- 1940-1945 (inclusive)19401945
- Quantity
- 0.5 cubic feet
- Collection Number
- MG 332
- Summary
- Letters from Private Aaron R. Gould to his father, Owen J. Gould.
- Repository
-
University of Idaho Library, Special Collections and Archives
Special Collections and Archives
University of Idaho Library
875 Perimeter Drive
MS 2350
Moscow, ID
83844-2350
Telephone: 2088850845
libspec@uidaho.edu - Access Restrictions
-
Collection is open for research.
- Languages
- English
Historical NoteReturn to Top
Private Aaron Roy Gould was born on December 12, 1919 to Julia Hoty Gould and Owen J. Gould in Lapwai, Idaho. He married Audrey Pauline Pinkham and together they had a son named Lyle.
Gould enlisted in the United States Army in September of 1940. In August 1944, Gould and the rest of his fellow service members were sent to fight in the European Theater. He was originally in Company M, 4th Infantry Division of the U.S. Army from his joining to 1944. It was during his time at Fort Carson in Colorado that he and other members of the 4th Division were absorbed into the 414th Anti-Tank Company, an attachment of the 104th Infantry Division - known as the Timberwolves. This specialized unit earned their fame in the Armed Forces by their well-defined training of hand-to-hand combat and a particular specialization: night fighting.
Private Aaron R. Gould was killed in action on December 9, 1944 in Germany. He was buried at Ahsahka, Idaho with full military honors.
Other Descriptive InformationReturn to Top
Materials in this collection may contain images, language, or other content that may be offensive or disturbing. These materials are a product of a time and place in history and should be viewed within their historical context. To maintain historical accuracy, the materials appear as they were originally created to serve as historical evidence of the social mindsets, occurrences, behaviors, and norms of their time. They do not reflect the current views of the University of Idaho. For more information about how we treat materials with offensive or disturbing content, please see the University of Idaho Library, Special Collections & Archives Offensive Content Policy.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
This record group consists of 23 letters, some typed, others handwritten, which Private Gould sent to his father, Owen J. Gould, in which he mentions family and friends, military camp activities, and his own feelings about the war. It is evident from reading the letters that some of them are missing.
There are two other items in this collection, a letter from the Army effects bureau sending Aaron's property to his father, and a printed broadside Nez Perce County Honor Roll, World War II, which lists Gould along with other county residents who died in the war.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Alternative Forms Available
Each letter and envelope was scanned to provide a high resolution digital copy which is kept by the Special Collections and Archives department.
Preferred Citation
[Description of Item], Aaron R. Gould papers, MG 332, Special Collections and Archives, University of Idaho Library, Moscow, Idaho.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
The letters were arranged chronologically and placed in two folders. An asterisk (*) following the entry in the following list indicates a typed letter.
Acquisition Information
The letters of Private Aaron R. Goul were purchased from rare book dealer, Charles Apfelbaum of Valley Stream, New York, in January 1993.
Bibliography
Some of the information in the Biographical/Historical section about Private Aaron R. Gould came from scanned articles posted on the Nez Perce Tribe Social Services Facebook page. Additional information came from Gould's original written letters.
3. "Three Men Listed Killed In Action In Leyte, Belgium and Germany".
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Series I: Letters, 1940-1945Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 1 | Ft. Wright, Spokane, Washington |
1940 November 7 |
| 1 | 2 | Fort Richardson, Anchorage, Alaska* |
1941 January 24 |
| 1 | 3 | Fort Richardson, Anchorage, Alaska* |
1941 April 4 |
| 1 | 4 | Fort Richardson, Anchorage, Alaska |
1941 July 9 |
| 1 | 5 | Fort Richardson, Anchorage, Alaska* |
1941 October 19 |
| 1 | 6 | Fort Richardson, Anchorage, Alaska |
1941 December 1 |
| 1 | 7 | APO Seattle |
1942 May 6 |
| 1 | 8 | APO Seattle |
1942 July 12 |
| 1 | 9 | APO Seattle (Anchorage, Alaska pencilled on back of envelope) |
1942 August 13 |
| 1 | 10 | APO Seattle* |
1942 December 19 |
| 1 | 11 | APO Seattle |
1943 March 10 |
| 2 | 12 | Camp Carson, Colorado |
1944 April 4 |
| 2 | 13 | Camp Carson, Colorado |
1944 June 15 |
| 2 | 14 | Camp Carson, Colorado |
1944 June 26 |
| 2 | 15 | Camp Carson, Colorado |
1944 July 20 |
| 2 | 16 | Camp Carson, Colorado |
1944 August 5 |
| 2 | 17 | APO New York |
1944 August 18 |
| 2 | 18 | Somewhere in France |
1944 October 7 |
| 2 | 19 | Somewhere in Holland |
1944 November 1 |
| 2 | 20 | Somewhere in Holland |
1944 November 2 |
| 2 | 21 | Somewhere in Germany (Moresenet, pencilled on back of envelope) |
1944 November 23 |
| 2 | 22 | Somewhere in Germany |
1944 November 28 |
| 2 | 23 | Somewhere in Germany |
1944 November 30 |
| 3 | 24 | Letter from Army Effects Bureau |
1945 April 19 |
| 3 | 25 | Broadside: Nez Perce County Honor Roll, World War II |
1945 |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Correspondence
- Nez Percé Indians
- Nimi'ipuu Indians
- World War, 1939-1945
Geographical Names
- Lapwai (Idaho)
- Nez Percé Indian Reservation (Idaho)
Finding aid prepared by Judith Nielsen; updated by Sara Szobody in 2022.
1993
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
