Scope and Contents From the Collection: The collection consists mostly of love letters between Ella-May Abbott of New Orleans, Louisiana and Walter James Rathbun who is based in ship ports in the United States, Europe, Nicaragua and the Panama Canal Zone.  Letters from Walter Rathbun’s Mother, Mrs. J. Baird of Floral Park, New Jersey and other family members are included. Ella-May and Walter begin a correspondence courtship in 1916, then breakup in 1919. They begin writing to each other again in 1926 and finally marry...

Scope and Contents On August 18, Walter writes "If you find it necessary to throw away a lot of old letters why do so dearest because there is no use leaving them around for other people to read." She replies "All afternoon I have been tearing up letters so I can burn them in the incinerator...it is awful to lose and to throw any of the beautiful letters you have written to me." In Ella-May's August 18 letter, she relates the situation across the hall from her where a step-dad beats his step-daughter and makes...

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Ella-May has a reaction to the shots required to go to the Canal Zone. Ella-May completes her ship plans for her trip, but Walter wants her to fly. Walter berates her for not letting him initially help since he is more experienced with travelling.

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Ella-May has moved out of her apartment and flies to the Canal Zone to live with Walter.  Walter's brother, Charlie, has also arrived in the Canal Zone needing a job and money.  Many details about the process to get from California to the Canal Zone.

Scope and Contents From the Collection: The collection consists mostly of love letters between Ella-May Abbott of New Orleans, Louisiana and Walter James Rathbun who is based in ship ports in the United States, Europe, Nicaragua and the Panama Canal Zone.  Letters from Walter Rathbun’s Mother, Mrs. J. Baird of Floral Park, New Jersey and other family members are included. Ella-May and Walter begin a correspondence courtship in 1916, then breakup in 1919. They begin writing to each other again in 1926 and finally marry...

Scope and Contents From the Collection: The collection consists mostly of love letters between Ella-May Abbott of New Orleans, Louisiana and Walter James Rathbun who is based in ship ports in the United States, Europe, Nicaragua and the Panama Canal Zone.  Letters from Walter Rathbun’s Mother, Mrs. J. Baird of Floral Park, New Jersey and other family members are included. Ella-May and Walter begin a correspondence courtship in 1916, then breakup in 1919. They begin writing to each other again in 1926 and finally marry...

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Ella-May writes that she plans to join Walter for a month in Yorktown, Virginia.

Scope and Contents From the Collection: The collection consists mostly of love letters between Ella-May Abbott of New Orleans, Louisiana and Walter James Rathbun who is based in ship ports in the United States, Europe, Nicaragua and the Panama Canal Zone.  Letters from Walter Rathbun’s Mother, Mrs. J. Baird of Floral Park, New Jersey and other family members are included. Ella-May and Walter begin a correspondence courtship in 1916, then breakup in 1919. They begin writing to each other again in 1926 and finally marry...

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Walter is stationed on the USS Bullfinch in the Canal Zone and Ella-May is living in Pasadena, California.

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On January 1, 1943, Walter writes from the U.S. Naval Hospital in Balboa, Canal Zone, that he has been in the hospital for two weeks and has been told that he needs six months rest. On January 8, he says he is leaving Panama and hopes he can stay in the Navy. Other letters during these years are either from or to Ella-May's sister, Lydia Vaughan of Orange, New Jersey or from George and Clara Potts of Los Angeles, California. These families are relatives of Ella-May.

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Letters to Ella-May Rathbun in Pasadena, California from family and friends.