Howard Lyford

This collection consists of thirty-one letters written by Howard D. (Duke) Lyford to his family, primarily to his sister Lela. This collection documents Lyford’s military career after he enlisted in the U.S. Army. Without having gone through basic training, he was sent with Company D of the 2nd California Infantry to guard a copper company in Utah against possible enemy espionage. After five months he was sent to Camp Kearney for basic training, where he joined Company M of the 159th Infantry.

The letters were written between August 1917 and April 1919. Letters written between August 27th through October 18th, 1917 were from Garfield, Utah. Letters from November 4th, 1917 through July 15th, 1918 were from Camp Kearney, San Diego; and letters from August 1918 through April 8th 1919 were written while aboard a troop ship on the Atlantic, and while serving in England and France. One letter was censored with scissors.