Copyright: The materials in the collection are governed by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S. Code).

Preferred Citation: Rainbow Division Veterans Association, Records. Archives and Special Collections, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries

Language: English, French, German

History:

Scope and Content:

The arrangement of the RDVA records is the result of a collaborative effort between the RDVA Archives and the Archives and Special Collections, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries.

The records are divided into nine series: World War I, World War II, Dachau, National RDVA, RDVA Chapters, RDVA Memorial Foundation, RDVA Auxiliary, Individual Papers, and Audio/Visual. Within these series, the items are defined by type and include several formats, such as: awards, correspondence, financial reports, lyrics, magazines, minutes, newsletters, newspaper clippings, photographs, publications, scrapbooks, sheet music, reports, and unit histories and rosters. Each of these formats is arranged in alphabetical order. The items within each type are arranged in chronological order by date of creation. Items with unknown creation dates are arranged in alphabetical order according to creator's surname. Special consideration is given to publications and publication excerpts. These are arranged alphabetically according to creator's surname. When the creator's surname is unknown, the publication is arranged by title.

The items within the RDVA Records document the activities and history of the 42nd Rainbow Division and of the Rainbow Division Veterans Association from 1917 to 2000. The correspondence is that of soldiers, veterans, and their families, and relates primarily to the activities of the Division and of the Association. Unit histories and rosters provide insight into the actions of the Division's regiments, battalions, corps, and soldiers during both WWI and WWII. The records contain individual photographs as well as those found within scrapbooks dating from World War I to the end of the 20th century. Publications include books about the 42nd Rainbow Division and photocopied excerpts of pages from nonfiction books that discuss the 42nd Division. Minutes are from mid-year and annual meetings of the National RDVA. They are available in paper format from 1920 through 1992 and on audio reels and cassettes tapes from 1960 until 1997.

RDVA Searchable Database

The Rainbow Division Veterans Association Collection is searchable through a Microsoft Access database located in Archives and Special Collections. The RDVA Collection includes two tables, General Materials and Correspondence. Defined fields within the General Materials table are Series, Date, Subject, Item Format, Author/Creator, Title, Box Number, and Folder Numbers. Patrons may conduct a query or search for a number of people and subjects related to the 42nd Division and the Rainbow Division Veterans Association. The collection has nine series and the dates for the materials range from 1916-2000. Subject matter appears under subject headings created by the Library of Congress, and under subject headings created by the RDVA Archives, for example, WWI in the subject field is written as "World War 1914-1918," and WWII is "World War 1939-1945." The General Materials Table includes all indexed paper documents and three-dimensional artifacts, with the exception of correspondence. The Author/Creator field contains either the name of the writer of the document or the name of the person who contributed the item to the collection. The titles of documents are listed in the Title field. The last two fields, Box Number and Folder Number, indicate the location of each particular document or object.

Defined fields within the Correspondence Table include Series, From, To, Date, Subject, Box Number, and Folder Number. Series in the Correspondence Table are WWI, WWII, Dachau, National RDVA, RDVA Chapters, RDVA Auxiliary, RDVA Memorial Foundation, and Audio/Visual. The "From" field reveals the name of the author of the letter. The receiver of the correspondence will be noted in the "To" field. Correspondence dates range from 1917 to 2000. Subject matter appears under subject headings created by the Library of Congress, and under subject headings created by the person who wrote the letter. The last two fields are "Box Number" and "Folder Number" and the numbers therein indicate in which box and folder each item of correspondence is located.

The purpose of this index is to reveal the specific subjects, people, and types of items in the RDVA Collection. Although this collection contains almost three thousand records, not every item is included in the database. Selected paper documents and three-dimensional materials from all 118 boxes are indexed in the database and serve as examples of all the items in that box. Meeting minutes, newsletters, and some correspondence contained within the Individual Papers Series are indexed using a range of dates. In such cases, years are cited without mention of specific months and days. Another special case involves newspaper clippings: numerous newspaper clippings are included in the collection; however, these items are not mentioned in the database due to insufficient documentation.

The RDVA Collection is by and about the men of the 42nd Division of the U.S. Armed Forces and details their postwar organization, the Rainbow Division Veterans Association. The database attempts to provide information concerning the role of the Division and of the Veteran's Association from personal documents and correspondence. Therefore, general materials and correspondence that do not relate directly to the 42nd Division or to the Rainbow Division Veterans Association are not mentioned in the database.

Subjects:
Dachau (Concentration camp)
Dachau (Germany) -- Ethnic Relations
France -- Military History -- 20th Century
Generals -- Biography
Germany -- Military History -- 20th Century
History, Modern 20th Century
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) -- Germany -- Biography
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) -- Germany -- Dachau -- Public Opinion
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) -- Influence
Holocaust survivors -- Germany -- Dachau -- Biography
Jews -- Germany -- Dachau -- Biography
MacArthur, Douglas, 1880-1964
Soldiers -- United States -- Biography
Strategy -- History -- 20th Century
United States. Army -- Biography
United States. Army -- History
United States. Army. Infantry Division, 42nd
United States -- History
United States -- Military History -- 20th Century
United States -- National Guard
Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States
Veterans -- United States
World War, 1914-1918
World War, 1939-1945
World War, 1939-1945 -- Concentration Camps -- Liberation -- Germany
World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives

Series Description:
Series One - World War I, Boxes 1-2, Oversize Box 108
This series consists of items created or collected by 42nd Division soldiers during the conflict. This series also includes items that document the war years but were created after World War I. These materials include military orders, publications, and unit histories and rosters. Other items in this series include: correspondence, newspaper clippings, poetry, programs from various events, and sheet music.

Series Two - World War II, Boxes 3-7, Oversize Box 108
The WW II series is comprised of items created or collected by 42nd Division soldiers from the reactivation of the Division to the end of the Second World War. This series also includes publications that document the war years but were created after World War II. A large component of this series is the unit histories and rosters, which includes lists of men who served with artillery, headquarters and special troops, military police, and the three infantry regiments: 222nd, 232nd, and 242nd. Other items in this series include correspondence, lyrics, poetry, programs, publications, newspapers, and newspaper clippings.

Series Three - Dachau, Boxes 8-23, Oversize Box 109
This series consists of items collected after WWII that attempt to prove conclusively that the 42nd Division participated in the liberation of Dachau Concentration Camp simultaneously with the 45th Division on 29 April 1945. The strength of the Dachau series lies in its vast collection of correspondence, individual papers, photographs, publications, and reports. Correspondence remains in the three categories chosen by the Rainbow Division Veterans Association Archives: individual, organizational, and subject. Individual correspondence includes items created by liberators and survivors of Dachau Concentration Camp. They are located in Boxes 8 through 15. Organizational correspondence documents the exchange of information between 42nd Division Veterans and organizations such as the Comite International de Dachau, National Archives and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Organizational correspondence is located in Box 15. Subject correspondence provides insight into special topics such as the Rainbow Dachau Plaque and the Dachau Museum. Subject correspondence is also located in Box 15. There is a sub-series of individual papers within the Dachau series from Box 15 to Box 18. A highlight of this series is the collateral information and stories collected and researched by members of the Rainbow Division Veterans Association to produce the book Dachau 29 April 1945. Publications and publication excerpts in the Dachau series focus on the 42nd Division's involvement in the liberation of the Dachau Concentration Camp. Additional items included in this series are magazine excerpts, newsletters, newspaper clippings, programs, and unit histories.

Series Four - RDVA National Association, Boxes 24-44, Oversize Boxes 110, 111, 112
This series contains papers and objects created and collected by the National Association. The strength of this series lies within the transcribed minutes from the mid-year and annual meetings of 1920 to 1992, which appear in Boxes 26-41. This series also contains the programs from those reunions. Other items in this collection include several versions of the Association's constitution, its long range plan, financial records, and scrapbooks.

Series Five - RDVA Chapters, Boxes 45-64, Oversize Boxes 113, 114
The RDVA Chapter series includes papers and objects created and collected by the many chapters of the Rainbow Division Veterans Association. This series is divided into three sections: unit chapters, state chapters, and regional chapters. All chapters show a commitment to the preservation of chapter newsletters. Additional items in this series include chapter constitutions, correspondence, meeting minutes, reunion programs, and scrapbooks.

Series Six- RDVA Memorial Foundation, Boxes 65-66
The RDVA Memorial Foundation series consists of the documents collected by that branch of the Association. This series holds the Memorial Foundation's correspondence and reports from its incorporation in 1971 to 1989. Additional materials document the creation of the Muskogee Memorial at Camp Gruber in Oklahoma.

Series Seven - RDVA Auxiliary, Boxes 67-70, Oversize Box 115
The Rainbow Division Veterans Association Auxiliary series is divided into two sections: National and Chapters. The first section includes a constitution, correspondence, histories, newsletters, and scrapbooks, all of which pertain to the activities of the National Auxiliary. The collection of the organization's national newsletter, "The Auxiliary Bulletin," dates from 1952 through 1998. In addition, the series includes eight scrapbooks created by, for, and about Auxiliary members, which collectively cover the dates 1929 through 1989. The Chapters section is further divided into three sub-series: units, states, and regions. The units are arranged chronologically while the states and regions' chapters are arranged alphabetically. The Chapter material includes account books, constitutions, newsletters, meeting minutes, and scrapbooks that pertain to the activities of individual chapters associated with the National Auxiliary.

Series Eight - Individual Papers, Boxes 71-87; Oversize Boxes 116, 117
This series contains the personal or assembled collections of men who served in the 42nd Rainbow Division of the U. S. Army in either of the world wars. Either "[WWI]" or "[WWII]" will appear next to each person's name to specify the war in which that man fought with the 42nd Division. Each collection reflects the personality of its creator. Examples include the individual papers of the 42nd Division Commander during WW I, General Douglas MacArthur, and the 42nd Division Commander during WW II, General Harry J. Collins. The individual papers include correspondence, newspaper clippings, photographs, prayers, programs, and scrapbooks. These items document the 42nd Rainbow Division and the Rainbow Division Veterans Association as they relate to individuals who were active in the organization.

Series Nine - Audio/Visual, Boxes 88-107
Audio cassette materials are contained within boxes 89-102; film reels are housed in boxes 103-106; and video cassettes are located in boxes 107-108. The bulk of the Audio/Visual series is comprised of the audio recordings of the mid-year and annual meetings of the Rainbow Division National Association from 1960 to 1997 and are located in Boxes 89-101. Meetings were recorded on several tapes in order to document the multitude of activities and business that occurred at each session. Selected recordings cover the banquet, the first, second, and third business meetings, the executive committee meeting, and the memorial foundation meeting. In addition the audio portion of this sub-series, contains a selection of music performed by the 69th Infantry Regiment Band in World War I, a cassette tape and records of a black face production by Rainbow soldiers in 1944 entitled the "Minstrel Follies," five recordings of various radio broadcasts concerning World War II, and the United States Memorial Holocaust Museum's "Witnesses to the Holocaust." Due to preservation concerns, the second portion of this series is divided into two sections: film reels and videocassette recordings. Film reels are arranged chronologically moving from World War I to World War II and then on to the Post-War period. The videocassette recordings are arranged according to the year of their production rather than by the date of the events that appear on the tapes. Items in this section include: a compilation video of the 42nd in World War I; the Reactivation of the 42nd Division on July 14, 1943; footage from the 1989-1991 reunions; and documentaries on General Donovan and General MacArthur.

Oversize Materials, Boxes 108-117, Oversize Folders 1-37
Oversize materials include awards and certificates presented to individuals in the RDVA as well as to the Association's chapters from 1919 to 1990. This series contains a collection of maps of battlefields in Europe from World War I and World War II as well as U.S. Navy War Maps of the Pacific Ocean, South China Sea, North Sea, and Mediterranean Sea. Newspapers comprise a large section of the oversize materials and are arranged alphabetically by title, with local newspapers arranged alphabetically by state of publication. This series also contains photographs from both wars and numerous photographs of the National Association's annual reunions from 1934 to 1962. Selected photographs of Ohio and Michigan Chapter reunions range from 1920 to 1954.

Container List: