Hand-illustrated cover

There is no postmark or censor mark on with World War II illustrated cover with a “free” mail mark sent by Corporal Jack Fogarty from APO 9788 to his pen pal Mary MacDonald in New York. The watercolor is a self-portrait of Fogarty in a life jacket on a ship’s deck. He looks across the sea towards the sun on the horizon while on one of the many South Pacific island transits made by his unit.

Jack Fogarty served with the US Army’s 98th Evacuation Hospital during World War II. While working in the hospital’s administrative office, Corporal Jack Fogarty (later promoted to Sergeant) struck up a life-long friendship with Chief Warrant Officer John MacDonald and his wife, Mary. Jack and John both wrote regularly to Mary as the war took them to the Pacific Theater. John MacDonald also served as a censor for the unit, and the illustrated covers by Jack Fogarty bear MacDonald’s censor stamp and signature. In his correspondence with Mary, Jack filled the envelopes with scenes in watercolors, ink, and pencil. The illustrated covers show Jack’s life at the Desert Training Center in Yuma, Arizona, and his overseas service in New Guinea, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Japan. In addition to illustrating his personal correspondence, Jack contributed artwork to the 98th Evacuation Hospital’s newsletter, The Bulletin. After the war, Fogarty’s artistic career took him into acting and his prolific correspondence with friends sometimes included illustrations.

References:

Jack Fogarty, e-mail message to Lynn Heidelbaugh, April 8, 2013.

Fogarty, John. Little Boy-Short Trousers-Eaton Cap: This I Remember. AuthorHouse, 2005.

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