Transcribe
Translate
Nile Kinnick and Nile Kinnick Sr. letters to William C. Stuart, 1941-1983
1972-04-24: Front
More information
digital collection
archival collection guide
transcription tips
Omaha, Nebraska April 24, 1972 My dear Bill: A recent note from Derald Stump told me that he had received a long letter from you about your recollections of Nile, and I asked him for a copy, feeling that you would not object to my having it. It came last Saturday and I want to add my thanks for a fine word picture that I wouldn't want to change in any way. I know that it will help Derald in what he wants to do. Your memory of Nile's entry into the service is quite accurate. He enlisted, in Des Moines I believe, late in the summer of 1941, shortly before the fall term at the University. His call to report at Fairfax Naval Air Station at Kansas City was for December 4th. Ken Pettit stayed with Nile in Omaha the night before and they drove down together that day. One of the poignant reminders that came back with his effects was a diary that he began keeping the night before departure and it is a facinating record, expecially for those who knew him intimately, because of the wide range of his thinking and the mental growth the diary records. As you know, he was very responsive and those were years of heavy demands. Incidently, one of the first entries, on December 8th, was, "wrote a long letter to Bill Stuart". There is a gap of several months, unexplained, in the latter half of 1942. Otherwise it is a daily record of what he did, the people he worked and played with, what he was reading and what he was thinking. I am sure you are right about his intention to be active in politics and government. He would have been right in the middle of it - with the Kennedy boys and all the others. Maybe on their side some of the time. The diary reflects the development of a strong social consciousness, a natural for him as he always had a righteous sympathy for those less privileged than he. The last entry, the night before his fatal crash, was "People must come before profits." Bill, I noted with high interest the news of your appointment to the U. S. District Court and intended to write a note saying so. May I extend those congratulations now. Nile's mother passed on in June, 1966. His brother, Ben, a bomber pilot in the Marines, and his crew were lost in a night raid over Rabaul, New Ireland, in September 1964. George, youngest of the three boys, was enroute in the Pacific as a Navy seaman when the war ended. He is in business, a painting contractor, in Omaha. In my recollection, the only times we have met were when I stopped briefly at your Law Commons quarters, and another time when Leo Hoegh brought me to your office in Chariton, a good many years ago. My kindest regards, Bill, and all good wishes. Nile Kinnick, Sr. Judge William C. Stuart United States District Court Des Moines, Iowa
Saving...
prev
next
Omaha, Nebraska April 24, 1972 My dear Bill: A recent note from Derald Stump told me that he had received a long letter from you about your recollections of Nile, and I asked him for a copy, feeling that you would not object to my having it. It came last Saturday and I want to add my thanks for a fine word picture that I wouldn't want to change in any way. I know that it will help Derald in what he wants to do. Your memory of Nile's entry into the service is quite accurate. He enlisted, in Des Moines I believe, late in the summer of 1941, shortly before the fall term at the University. His call to report at Fairfax Naval Air Station at Kansas City was for December 4th. Ken Pettit stayed with Nile in Omaha the night before and they drove down together that day. One of the poignant reminders that came back with his effects was a diary that he began keeping the night before departure and it is a facinating record, expecially for those who knew him intimately, because of the wide range of his thinking and the mental growth the diary records. As you know, he was very responsive and those were years of heavy demands. Incidently, one of the first entries, on December 8th, was, "wrote a long letter to Bill Stuart". There is a gap of several months, unexplained, in the latter half of 1942. Otherwise it is a daily record of what he did, the people he worked and played with, what he was reading and what he was thinking. I am sure you are right about his intention to be active in politics and government. He would have been right in the middle of it - with the Kennedy boys and all the others. Maybe on their side some of the time. The diary reflects the development of a strong social consciousness, a natural for him as he always had a righteous sympathy for those less privileged than he. The last entry, the night before his fatal crash, was "People must come before profits." Bill, I noted with high interest the news of your appointment to the U. S. District Court and intended to write a note saying so. May I extend those congratulations now. Nile's mother passed on in June, 1966. His brother, Ben, a bomber pilot in the Marines, and his crew were lost in a night raid over Rabaul, New Ireland, in September 1964. George, youngest of the three boys, was enroute in the Pacific as a Navy seaman when the war ended. He is in business, a painting contractor, in Omaha. In my recollection, the only times we have met were when I stopped briefly at your Law Commons quarters, and another time when Leo Hoegh brought me to your office in Chariton, a good many years ago. My kindest regards, Bill, and all good wishes. Nile Kinnick, Sr. Judge William C. Stuart United States District Court Des Moines, Iowa
Nile Kinnick Collection
sidebar
