Special Collections Department
403 Parks Library
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-2140

MS 666
Fred O. Gordon (1894-1971)
Papers, 1917-1931, undated


Descriptive summary

creator: Gordon, Fred O. (1894-1971)
title: Papers
dates: 1917-1931, undated
extent: 0.21 linear feet (1 half-document box)
collection number: MS 666
repository: Special Collections Department, Iowa State University.

 

Administrative information

access: Open for research
publication rights: Consult Head, Special Collections Department
preferred citation: Fred O. Gordon Papers, MS 666, Special Collections Department, Iowa State University Library.

 

Biographical note

Fred Otto Gordon was born 24 October 1894. His parents were George and Martha (Hyde) Gordon, and the family lived in Arlington, Iowa.

He enlisted in the U.S. Army on 9 April 1918. After completing a training course for electricians at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant. He was sent to Europe in July 1918 and was assigned to Battery F, 119th Field Artillery. He was wounded on 1 October 1918. He returned to the United States in April 1919 and was discharged from the Army on 20 May 1919.

Fred O. Gordon died in June 1971.

 

Collection description

The collection (1917-1931, undated) contains materials related to Fred O. Gordon's World War I service, as well as newspaper clippings and photographs related to the Gordon family.

The World War I material includes a diary, correspondence, selective service and training certificates, a pay record book, newspaper clippings, and photographs (in the photograph album in folder 1/6). The diary covers the time from Gordon's enlistment until his discharge and records events such as the sinking of a submarine while on ship for Europe, artillery action, and being wounded and taken to the army hospital. The diary also includes notes about conventional signs used on firing charts and army codes such as NORPT (Nothing to Report).

The collection also included several artifacts relating to Gordon's World War I service. These items include two pieces of shrapnel and a metal plate, a cloth pouch, and an American Legion "Iowa" ribbon. These items are housed in the Artifact Collection (artifact numbers 2004-179.001-005).

Other materials in the collection include newspaper clippings about his parents' twenty-fifth wedding anniversary and his mother's obituary as well as photographs of family and friends.

 

Organization

The collection is in alphabetical order.

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

1

1

Army Training School Certificate - Electrician Course

1918

1

2

Correspondence

1918-1931, undated

1

3

Diary

1918

1

4

Joe R. Gordon Identification Card

undated

1

5

Newspaper Clippings

1917-1919, undated

1

6

Photograph Album (70 b/w photographs)

undated

1

7

Photographs (19 b/w photographs)

1931, undated

1

8

Selective Service Registration and Classification Certificates

1917-1918, undated

1

9

Soldier's Individual Pay Record Book

1918