About

WHO?

Sidney Friend (1894-1980) was born in Ohio but spent the majority of his life in New York City. His parents, Myer and Fannie, were both born in New York City of German descent. He was devoted to his younger sister, Nanette. Just after his military service {1917-1919) Sidney married Evelyn Cahen and they had three children: John, Sidney Jr. (Sandy) and Margaret.

His early interest in photography led him to start his career as a professional photographer and work in advertising. When he joined the military, naturally he was assigned to a photographic unit of the Signal Corps. Following the war, he joined a manufacturing company and as the company grew he rose in position, topping out as Secretary of the company.

WHAT?

There was a manila envelope full of transcribed letters that had been kicking around the family for years. The original letters, long since gone, were written by my grandfather to his then-girlfriend, later wife, Evelyn during his time in the service in The Great War. It is unclear who typed up the letters or when they undertook the task.

The family was seemingly unaware of their existence until around 1980 when a copy was discovered among Sidney’s sister’s things. The envelope contains about 80 pages of single-spaced typewritten text on thin typing paper. It is unclear how much editing of the letters took place in transcription. While they contain a fairly detailed description of his life in the military, there is hardly any mention of his family or life at home. You might expect for a young man writing to his girl back home a certain amount of gushing sentiment, yet the letters, as transcribed, are remarkably devoid of it. There’s not even a “Dear Evelyn” or “Love Sidney” in the whole collection. Whether or not there was an effort to edit out any personal comments is impossible to know. For my part, I have tried to transcribe the letters verbatim, making corrections on only the most blatant typos such as repeated words or inverted letters.

WHERE and WHEN?

The letters span over a year, starting with the first letter on May 9, 1918 from Fort Wood in New York harbor through his time in Vincennes outside Paris, to his return to Washington D.C. on June 13, 1919.

WHY?

I only knew my grandfather as an old man. He had a good sense of humor and a twinkle in his eye but he moved slowly and walked with a cane. Having the opportunity to read the words he wrote as a 24 year-old gave me an interesting insight to him especially given the backdrop of The Great War.

When I realized that these letters were written starting in 1918, I thought it would be interesting to release them as blog posts on the hundredth anniversary of when they were written.