US COAST GUARD SAILOR EARLY 1930s HANDWRITTEN DIARY

A 4.25" x 6.25" loose leaf notebook with about 60 pages of a diary, filled with entries in both pencil and typewritten. The diary was kept by an unidentified man in the US Coastguard, who mostly works in the Radio Lab in New London, CT. It dates from 1933-1937, though most of it is from 1934. He will miss some time, then catch up with what was happening in his life. He has a great sense of humor. He drinks, dates, works, drinks more beer and then some milk.

In the front of the diary are four typewritten pages going over the last few years of his life. They read:

Saturday, September 1, 1934. USCG Academy, New London, CT:
Well again I've decided to keep a diary, a might risky thing to do says my friend Catlin, but then I told him I was going to be careful and not get too confidential with it. It is my intention that this will be my last years in the service and I thought perhaps it would be nice to have a few reminders in the years to come, of these last few years in the US Coast Guard. I find now that it is becoming faded in my memory the incidents of my years in the Navy, eight or ten years ago. I will state briefly a few incidents of the last year or two: Reenlisted for two years on September 2, 1932 aboard the 125 ft patrol boat Crawford, stationed at Two Harbors, Minnesota. I spent many happy months up in that country in spite of the tough three man continuous watches and came very near getting married up to the sweetest little Sweet-Irish woman in the world, Violet Schreiner. But I'm glad we didn't, for I'm afraid we would never have gotten along on account of her being too strict out an old sailor's beer guzzling, which he will do as long as he can raise a glass. I made Radioman 1st class during a trip to Salt Ste Marie, Mich. In October or early Nov., 1932, I was transferred to the Cardigan, a 125 footer stationed at Harbor Beach, Mich. Soon after I made 1st class. I soon learned to like Harbor Beach. It is a very small town, but as lively a one as I ever saw, after you learn the ropes. That was before prohibition was repealed, but there were a dozen places where beer, wine or whiskey could be bought. I taken 30 days leave starting Jan 19, 1933 and went home. I went around by Waynesboro, Penna. and visited my sweetheart Winnie. Got back to Harbor Beach Feb 18th. I continued to have a good time at Harbor Beach, in spite of the tough three man watch we kept there on the ship. Radiomen Ribarich, Seither and myself. I got orders for transfer to Boston Div. About March 13, 1933. That was so I could get in three months in the Boston Div prior o to the firing of the New England Rifle Matches at Wakefield, Mass to be eligible. I got 5 days leave in route and stopped by the see Winnie again in Waynesboro, Penna. I was assigned tot he radio station at Winthrop when I reported in at Boston. I liked it very much there. I sure had a good time. I was ordered to the Rifle teamJune 1st, but I'd been sick about a d week then with Pleurisy, so had to be taken to the Chelsea Marine Hospital in an ambulance on June 2nd. They kept me there nearly three months. Had a pretty tough time of it. My old pal Spence and Longshore and several of the Rifle Team came into see me there. I got out of there the latter part of September, 1933 and was ordered to the Coast Guard Academy at New London, Coon. I liked the job fine at the academy, altho I always hated New London. Taken 30 days leave about March 15th, 1934 and drove home stopping by Waynesboro, Penna to see my gal Winnie and another friends. All went well at the academy with me and I was having a good time, but I got sick again with bleeding ulcers in my stomach and went to the hospital at the academy during July and August, but came out feeling fine and no more trouble that way. So with this writing, I'm still at the academy and enjoying life as a good sailor should.

He writing is legible and it is fun to read a sailor's account of his life in the Coast Guard.