Letters from John
These letters were written by John Fletcher Darley, Jr., Hospital Apprentice
First Class, United States Navy while he served in World War II. Darley
was a Statesboro resident prior to enlisting, and his family lived in Statesboro.
The names in parentheses after some of the addressee names were taken from
envelopes. John Fletcher Darley, Jr. was killed in action on Iwo Jima in
March, 1945.
| Date | Location | Addressee |
| undated | none given | Mrs. John Darley (mother) |
| March 18, 1944 | "Somewhere in England" | "Gannie" & "Hat" (Mrs. J. D. Cannon) |
| June 3, 1944 | none given, but first line mentions sailing to France at dawn | none given |
| June 18, 1944 | none given | Dad (John Darley) |
| September 18, 1944 | Camp Lejeune, New River, NC | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| September 19, 1944 | Camp Lejeune, New River, NC | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| September 27, 1944 | Camp Lejeune, New River, NC | Hugh |
| October 1, 1944 | Camp Lejeune, New River, NC | "Shag" |
| October 4, 1944 | Camp Lejeune, New River, NC | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| October 11, 1944 | Camp Lejeune, New River, NC | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| October 12, 1944 | Camp Lejeune, New River, NC | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| undated | none given | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| October 13, 1944 | Camp Lejeune, New River, NC | Sally & Bedgood |
| October 18, 1944 | Camp Lejeune, New River, NC | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| October 24, 1944 | none given | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| undated | Camp Lejeune, New River, NC | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| October 29, 1944 | 30th Replacement Draft, Camp Lejeune, NC | Mom and Dad (Mr. & Mrs. John Darley) |
| November 4, 1944 | Camp Pendleton, California | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| November 8, 1944 | none given | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| November 11, 1944 | none given | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| November 24, 1944 | none given, but does mention he is in new location; refers to it as "this island" at one point | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| November 26, 1944 | none given, but mentions he is in the Pacific | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| November 29, 1944 | U. S. Marines, 4th Division, Roi-Namur, Saipan, Tinian | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| December 8, 1944 | none given | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| December 14, 1944 | none given | Pop (John Darley) |
| December 18, 1944 | none given | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| December 20, 1944 | none given, although does mention he has another address now and thinks it will be permanent | Ray |
| December 21, 1944 | none given | Sis |
| Christmas | none given | Christmas card to all family |
| December 25, 1944 | none given | Hugh |
| December 25, 1944 | none given | "Gannie" (Mrs. J. D. Cannon?) |
| January 1, 1945 | none given | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| January 4, 1945 | none given | Dad (John Darley) |
| January 10, 1945 | none given | Sis |
| January 18, 1945 | none given | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| January 21, 1945 | none given | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| January 22, 1945 | none given | Dad (John Darley) |
| February 9, 1945 | none given | Dad (John Darley) |
| February 12, 1945
(date mailed) |
none given, but mentions that ship-board life is making him lazy | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| February 12, 1945
(date mailed) |
none given, but mentions that he is on a ship and has been for a month | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
| undated | at sea | Mom (Mrs. John Darley) |
Other Letters
1) telegraph to Mr. and Mrs. John Fletcher Darley, Sr., from Vice Admiral
Randall Jacobs, Chief of Naval Personnel, informing them that John Fletcher
Darley, Jr. had been killed in action (March 17, 1945)
2) letters from various friends of John F. Darley, Jr., who served with him during World War II; names include Ferney Train, Melvin Newman, Bill Falk, Carl Custer