A program for a boxing card featuring US Army and Navy personnel from December 8th, 1945 during the voyage home for the 11th Airborne 221st Medical corps or part thereof aboard the Naval Ship USS Long Island. I think a few of the fights, especially the early ones, were Army vs. Navy although I do not think this was billed as such. One of the many programs collected by John and included in the scrapbook. Probably a unique item to history as I doubt any others remain.
The feature bout was a heavyweight match between a Corporal Robert Prince of Philadelphia--unfortunately not the same as the War Hero as his hometown and rank are wrong--and his opponent "Spider" Speight of Lake Village, Arkansas. (The only possibility is that somehow his rank and hometown were intentionally changed due to the nature of his fame and what he was doing?).
Corporal John R. Curran #35093223 was a Surgeon with the 221st Medical Company attached to the 11th Airborne Division. He enlisted in July of 1942 from Indianapolis, Indiana and was stationed at Camp Mackall prior to deployment to the Pacific theater, where he was involved in campaigns in New Guinea, Leyte, Luzon and the Liberation of Manila and the Philippines, before finally being stationed in Japan after the War until deactivation. He receive a Purple Heart for action in Luzon.
His campaign was dutifully documented in a scrapbook by his mother, to which set this was a part. It includes pieces documenting his progress such as enlistment papers and programs from events like football games, boxing matches and church service programs from his initial enlistment in Brazil, Indiana through training at Camp Mackall and reserve at Camp Polk, deployment to New Guinea, Leyte, Luzon, Manila and finally occupied Japan.
The majority of the scrapbook is being offered together with many personal photos, documents etc. of him as collected through the war, with select pieces or groups offered individually. I will be listing these items periodically so if interested please stay tuned to my listings and reference his name or the 11th airborne when doing a search on eBay for these items.
H16