This collection is made up of 6 letters that Roy M. Whiteman sent to his family in Burlington, Iowa, while stationed in France in late 1918 and early 1919. Whiteman wrote about his recovery following an injury, his travels in France, and his life in the military.
Whiteman addressed most of his letters to his sister Clare, his parents, and other siblings. He responded to family news and reported his limited interactions with soldiers from home, whom he met only occasionally while abroad. In one undated letter, he discussed his ongoing recovery from an unspecified wound, which damaged his eyes and caused him general pain. In later letters, sent from Le Mans and Chamonix, France, he described his travels following the armistice, which included trips to the mountains and to the Bossons glacier in the Chamonix valley. He also mentioned his leisure activities, which included playing soccer and hiking. Whiteman discussed some of his religious habits, and remarked on the comfort he received from reading the Bible in times of loneliness.
Roy Miller Whiteman was born in Biggsville, Illinois, on February 17, 1893, the son of Henry Oliver Whiteman (b. 1858) and Mary Ellen Spears. He had five siblings: Mabel Foster, Jessie, Mary Clare ("Clare"), Ruth Elizabeth, and Helen Marissa. The Whiteman family moved to Burlington, Iowa, in 1914, where they owned a farm. During World War I, Roy M. Whiteman served in France with Company L of the United States Army's 137th Infantry Regiment, 35th Division. He was wounded in service. After the armistice, he was stationed in Le Mans and Chamonix, France. Whiteman returned to Iowa after the war and lived in Burlington and Crawford with his wife Merle, whom he married around 1920.