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Running Head: JOURNAL ACCOUNT OF RM PROJECT

Correspondence of Kermit Sheets, WWII Conscientious Objector

Journal Account of Organizing Letters

Robyn Ward

Emporia State University

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Monday February 12, 2007

I met with Paul Merchant, Special Collections Associate, to work on the details of

the project I would be working on over the next few weeks. It is my job to go through the

stack of letters, placing each correspondence into archival sleeves and labeling the

sleeves with: who the letter was to and from and the date. These would then placed in

archival boxes. I was to keep the letters in the order in which the Archives received them.

I was also instructed to scan the letters for content to look for connections and names to

complete a finding aid. Special Collections has an existing collection to which this letters

will eventually be added. These letters are also associated with the current exhibit done

by Special Collections “Footprints of Pacifism: The Creative Lives of Kemper Nomland

& Kermit Sheets”.

Lewis & Clark College was given the correspondence of Kermit Sheets. Kermit

Sheets was a pacifist, artist, printer, actor, director, and stage designer from California.

He and like minded others where interned in a number of conscientious objector camps in

the Pacific Northwest. During WWII pacifists were a small minority, According to Paul,

one CO represented one thousand men in the U.S. Armed Forces. *”COs were given the

option of serving prison time or enlisting in the Civilian Public Service (CPS), a program

that gathered men in camps to conduct work of national importance. In the Pacific

Northwest, this work took the form of forestry and mental health work. Men who worked

in the CPS camps forged close, life-long friendships, and found time to express their

creativity through all forms of art.” Kermit Sheets was assigned to CPS Camp 21 in

January 1942. The camp was in Wyeth, Oregon along the Columbia River Gorge at
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Cascade Locks. He and Kemper Nomland formed a relationship while at Cascade Locks

that would last a lifetime. During the internment at camp, these two men co-edited two

camp newsletters The Columbian and The Illiterati. During the years of 1942 and 1946,

Waldport became an important center of fine arts activity in music, theater, painting,

ceramics, weaving and publishing. Waldport and Cascade Locks camps closed in 1946

and after the war Kermit was a part of a small group of artist that would establish what is

known today as the San Francisco Renaissance.

I wanted to give some background for the letters. The collection of letters

consisted of correspondence to and from Kermit and also letters from his friends to

others. Paul was telling me that Kermit wanted to collect the letters of his friends also.

I came across a letter written on the back of a printed copy of the first page of The

Illiterati. I would like to quote what it said since it stuck out to me today while reading

through the letters.

We take pleasure in announcing to you the publication of a journal of

creative excretion: The Illiterati: Poems, stories, musical compositions,
informal sketches written by pacifists conscripted to do work of national
importance.
Here, then, in this first issue are five or six mugs who like to write
and think other people might like to read their stuff. Their work is
representative of nothing except themselves and their stray thoughts at the
time the Muse moved them.
The Illiterati has no publication schedule: it will simply be sent out
whenever enough material gets written and mimeographed. The Illiterati has
no subscription rate: sustaining members will receive gift copies of the
three act tragedy “Stalingrad Stalemate” and make further publications
possible. Address all communications to The Illiterati, Wyeth, Oregon.

Sitting down to begin the project, it seemed that the letters were organized by who

had written them and by chronological order. The first stack of letters that I was able to
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get through today were ones from another C.O. and friend, Harry Prochaska, also referred

to himself as Pro Hack or the Big Repulsive Slav who was at Waldport. The other letters

were from and to his parents and also letters written from Kermit to various other friends.

Preceding the small stack of letters from and to his parents, Kermit inserted a sheet of

paper with the writing “ letters to mother & dad about going AWOL” Kermit had second

thoughts of being conscripted and had sent a letter to his parents indicating that he would

rather be imprisoned. This letter was in January of 1944 after being conscripted for over a

year. His parents were shocked at his decision of being a C.O., but quite appalled at his

wanting to go to prison. Kermit’s response “You are bewildered by my going against the

thinking of the general public. I am amazed to find my gentle, loving parents lending

their money and saving their tin to help murder innocent people…rather than try to

change the other person, each of us should try to realize the other’s reasons for what he

believes and what he does”. Kermit ends the letter by writing “I often permit myself to

dream about…It is a picture of you and Mother, happy and proud, and you are saying,

“People don’t agree with him, but he’s trying to do something against the sins of our

world, he’s trying to live by what he believes, he’s not afraid of what people think of him,

and neither am I, and we’re proud of him. Well, anyway, that’s what I dream and I hope

someday it will come true.”

The letters have given quite an insight into Kermit’s beliefs and stance on war,

conscription, Christianity, and government/politics. Quoting from one of his letters, “ I

think India’s solution (perhaps I mean Gandhi’s solution to India’s problem) is a better

one than we took in 1776, because the independence gained by the U.S. in 1776 has led

us into the strong nationalistic, barrier-building philosophy we [now] hold, despite our
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claims of being “global minded”, a philosophy which has led in large part to the present

war. We still preach Americanism. In all the wars—1776, 1862, Mexican and Spanish-

American, the most important policy was to gain economic supremacy, whatever patriotic

whitewash of freedom (a meaningless word—freedom from what?) may have been

applied. And economic national supremacy leads to capitalism or totalitarian

collectivism. It is my opinion that you are fighting to perpetuate the latter.”

The letters form Harry Prochaska concerned music, plays and writing for The

Illiterati.

*Footprints of Pacifism exhibit catalog

Tuesday February 13, 2007

Today began with reading more letters from friends who share different

sentiments as Kermit about the war effort, or they may share ideals but have chosen to

participate in the war effort by fighting or supporting the war in other ways. An excerpt

from one of the letters was very interesting regarding more of how Kermit felt of

conscription. Quoting Kermit “I now realize that by submitting to conscription by coming

to CPS, I am identifying myself with conscription—I become a part of the machine

which creates conscription, just as if I had joined the army…”

There are a series of letters form Bill Webb, a friend of Kermit’s. Bill was

imprisoned for refusing to work in the CPS camps. He seemed to not mind imprisonment.

According to a few of his letters the conditions in prison are more suitable than at the

CPS camps. There are more C.O.’s there than there are actual criminals. He also likes

prison because of the variety of people and their perspectives. During this time he was

writing prose and music and contemplating writing a book on prisons. He also read many

books about philosophy and discussed socialism.

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Included among the letters:

THE POET LOO KE WRITES TO THE PRINCESS LI

WHAT IS A CORRESPONDENCE
WHEN THERE IS NO REPLY?
CAN SILENCE
BE CALLED AN ANSWER?

IF SO,
IT IS HARDLY A GENEROUS ONE.

Monday February 19, 2007

Today’s series of letters were quite a big collection from James and Joyce Burt,

mostly correspondence from James. James was a middle school teacher in the Fresno area

and applied to enlist in the Naval Reserves. From the letters one could tell that James was

a long time close friend of Kermit’s. James was a playwright and actor. A number of the

letters pertained to James’ directing and being a teacher. Included among the letters is a

newspaper review of one of the plays he directed “Out of the Frying Pan”. James felt

inclined to serve in the army and though asked to resign from military school in New

York, was resolved to serve in another branch of the service but in the interim went back

to teaching in California. He and Joyce marry and according to the letters Joyce is

expecting their first child. Joyce is also a writer and has been going to school. She and

James moved to Los Angeles where she then enrolled at UCLA. One interesting piece

included among the letters is a copy of the MissionTower a church newsletter announcing

the position of James Burt as Minister of Music for their church. There is also a picture of

him in the newsletter.

There is a small group of friends in California that are associated with Kermit and

see each other quite a bit a few names are George Maurer and Herb Smith, and Don

Chamberlin.
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Tuesday February 20, 2007

There were almost a dozen letters from Harry Prochaska most being quite

illegible except for one typed letter where Harry is writing from Washington D.C. He has

been in D.C. attending cooking school and anticipates being back in Oregon in a few

months. One excerpt that stuck out to me was concerning the architecture in D.C and how

newer buildings blend in with the older, “…changes in style over one hundred and fifty

years, set next to each other, strangely do not look incongruous. The Smithsonian

Institutes is a group of ugly red sandstone buildings dating from near the Civil War, and

rather than looking atrociously out of place, they look comically right against the smooth

new building of the National Art Gallery…”

Among the letters were two birth announcements, one from James and Joyce Burt

of their daughter Nicola Catharine born December 12, 1945 and the other from Don and

Betty Chamberlin of their baby boy, Kermit Alan Chamberlin born May 3, 1945. Next

were a series of letters from Don Chamberlin. The first letter from Don is dated June

1944, just before he and Betty are to be married. He is making sure that Kermit will be

able make it over to the wedding. They are getting married at the CPS camp at Wyeth.

Don writes to Kermit of how his parents wish he would wait to marry Betty until he is out

of the CPS, has finished school and can buy her a diamond “a good one.” Don is at

Wyeth camp in or near Marysville, Washington. In a letter to Kermit just after the

wedding, “Betty is all for having a baby as soon as things become fairly convenient or as

soon as an accident occurs” Don continues his letter discussing co-op communities, “I

don’t like the idea of bringing up kids in the kind of environment most are brought up in

now. Ordinary schools aren’t fit places to send kids unless you don’t care how they turn
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out”…”find out if enough, desirable people (like minded people) are serious about it to

start a community” then goes on explaining about the process of finding land,

possibilities in Mexico or South America to start such a community.

Thursday February 22, 2007

I went through a series of letters from Ibby Dupre, Vlad Dupre’s wife. Vlad is also

a C.O. at Cascade Locks. The Dupre’s end up in Illinois and the set of letters from Ibby

are from Oct-Dec 1945. One excerpt from her first letter, riding from Tillamok Oregon to

Portland “with 2 coast guard men in a bush care—one of them sang cowboy songs all

they way—in a nauseating whine…ate dinner at the Oregon Oyster Company.” In

another letter from Ibby to Kermit (very interesting) “…god! I wish you weren’t in love

with me! I’m sorry because I’m in love with Vlad. I’ve always loved people too easily,

Kermit, it goes on, after marriage, honestly but stupidly because it endangers a most

important relationship, it worries me a little that you too believe Vlad and I won’t last.”

Kermit was known for his many relationships with women and men. He actually

preferred men.

Letter from friend Allan Isaksen 14 July 1942 “…getting a letter from you in a

C.O. camp has both my political following and my personal interest far too much

involved to neglect writing. Politically you are my enemy. Politically I turn my eyes to

whatever forces make men act as they do and say “thanks that the fools are but a few”

Yes, damn it, I say “thanks that the disillusioned few are in camps where their poisonous

doctrines of idealistic hope in a horrible world of conquest cannot take serious root.”

Personally, you are my friend. I admire your personal courage, how much more real

courage it takes for you to do what you’re doing than for the many who accept the burden
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of war….since you are a pacifist I should like to know exactly what your reasons are,

what you hope to attain personally and for society with your pacifism? If it brings you

personal good, I would never protest your support of it. If, however, your concern is with

all of society, as I think it is, then I presume you do not consider it a strictly personal

thing and I likewise assume a right to criticize the doctrine which you propose for

society.” I wanted to include this in my journal because of the strong relationships Kermit

had with his friends. That there was opposing thought and ideals and these could be

expressed along with expressing the care and concern for each other.

Monday February 26, 2007

I began a long series of letters from George Maurer (~90 letters), another C.O.

who has returned home to Los Angeles because of illness. His letters have been highly

entertaining. I enjoy his sense of humor. He is seeing the doctor frequently and is writing

letters and reading quite a bit during this time period, this is summer 1942. I get a sense

too that he is down playing his illness, which could possibly be quite worrisome. Within

one letter I find that George’s brother Art was leaving for Naval Reserves Air corps

training.

Concerning the Japanese internment camps (letter from George to Kermit) “my

brother and I drove near Santa Anita. The authorities have the roads blocked off in the

vicinity. Probably to keep the people from seeing what a concentration camp looks like.

The barracks are on the parking lot surrounded by barbed fences with a strategically

situated guards house with soldiers and searchlights…the people were just sitting around

their barracks not doing much. Damn near made me feel sick and sicker to note the

arrogance of civilian attitude toward this situation. Ah, hell!

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“I just returned from the eye, ear and nose specialist. Amazing me: diagnosis

towit: I have a tumor of my right salivary gland which comes out sometime next week”

Letter of 13 February 1943, “Roosevelt’s speech was really corney, methinks.

Why does the gooney walk the fence all the time? He’s playing “politics” with lives,

peace, and decency. Makes me mad. But what can you do?”

Letter from George’s doctor to the camp indicated that Georg’es tumor was

malignant and was particularly serious and may prove quickly fatal. He was not to return

to the C.O. camp and that George himself did not know of the seriousness of his ailment.

The doctor suggested that all communication concerning George’s illness be directed to

his parents.

George’s letter of 2 March 1943 “It has been brought to our attention that several

clippings from the local paper concerning one, Gandhi, and his rather unpatriotic non-

eating campaign against our duely constipated alley, Great Bricks and. You will, if

available, return these with the enclosure so that we may have them for our files. We

anticipate making a file for some future Jack Benny program and we feel that this

material will be indispensable.”

Letter from Vera (George’s mother) to Kermit that George’s condition wasn’t as

serious as first indicated and that with being careful for a couple years the condition can

clear. James Burt and George are to teach at the same middle school.

Pacifica Center was established by Conscientious Objectors in L.A. to support

WRL, FOR, Pacifica Center offices, meeting room, seminar room, library, CPS hostel

and king’s chair.” This group started Pacifica Radio.

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Thursday March 1, 2007

Today I covered a series of letters from Bill and Cecil McGowan. They are from

Los Angeles and had known Kermit before the war. Bill McGowan, a writer, and his wife

both attend college. Letter from 6 March, 1943 informs Kermit that Bill was inducted

into the army effective 13 February and went active service on the 20th of same month.

He was assigned to the finance department at Pinedale California and is able to live at

home. “I’ve made application for air cadet training – childish reason for applying.

Nonetheless, it’s childishly sincere. I want to get shot at! Then if I don’t find a

termination of this nonsense, I’ll come back and keep trying. Oh enough!”

Bill was accepted, “Been living up in the clouds for years now, so I should feel quite at

home.” Bill and Cecil were transferred to Columbia, South Carolina for Bill’s training.

“Socially and culturally isolated, we long, my little woman and I, for the dear

companionship of those few, few persons to whom we look in respect and fondness for

the joys of friendship.”

Bill writes to Kermit concerning both of their views of war and how each sees

how to handle it. “…from my particular vantage point I’ve a feeling that your

contribution to the future is the one that is real and substantial.” “Has your group or those

of your association in the C.O. camps thru-out the country, formulated any plans for post-

war work? ….your literature is very interesting, Kerm, I hope you’ll be able to “carry on”

after this debacle has released us to new trials.

Letter from 24 October 1945, Bill just arrived home from spending five months

over in Italy fighting. Bill had spent 33 months of service in the armed forces and is home
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again as a civilian. Bill writing to Kermit “Then I read the newspapers – and the world

starts wheeling about and about making a blur in which it is hard to separate the ages, one

from another – 1945 looks very much like the world looked in 1919, and 1919 wasn’t or

isn’t or what-have you, very far removed from 1871 and so on. It’s amazing how the

character of man seems so impervious to change. What a marvel of physical comfort it is

to be alive today (in case you can afford it!)! Yet men still represent the age old pattern of

greed, selfishness, thoughtlessness, cruelty in the make-up of their character.”

There were only two letters from Kemper Nomland writing from Los Angeles.

Kemper is Kermit’s close friend from the CPS camps and fellow editor of The Illiterati.

These letters are from February 1946. Kemper is searching for a building for the press.

He was able to find one in back of Pacifica Center. One letter was dedicated to the

possible poets and writers to include in an issue of The Illiterati.

Following these letters was a long series from Harry Prochaska. There were a few

letters from Harry at the beginning of Kermit’s correspondence. Harry is at Civilian

Public Service Camp No.21 in Cascade Locks, Oregon. Most of the correspondence

between Kermit and Harry is concerned with the content and publication of The Illiterati.

During his stint in the camps, Harry does a lot of writing, research and reading. He is also

a musician. He writes music and plays. Harry is also the cook at camp and attended

cooking school in Washington D.C.

Content of card from July 22 1943 I wanted to include in the journal to Kermit from

Harry:

Wednesday: 4:40 PM just finished first draft of the last act of the 

production. Needless to say it needs lots on it yet, and in case you 
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are too encouraged, I wrote the last act first, there are two more to 

do. Kemper is probably displeased because I did not help on covers 

this afternoon, but this had to be done while I had time and the 

mood   and   the   typewriter.   Maybe   St.   Peter   can   explain   to   him 

someday from the records written in gold at the subway terminal to 

heaven. But anyway the thing is started and so this is one of those 

heavenly   days   of   worthwhile   production—one   which   leaves   you 

feeling   tired   and   more   pleased   than   cooking   three   meals   and 

canning cherries and mopping two floors. May you have a similar 

experience soon. Tell Ralph we got his card and will write soon. The 

big repulsive slav

Letter from Pro Hack (Harry practically always signed his letters – Pro Hack)

“If we are trying to create realization that pacifists can carry a torch for something

more than peace it becomes essential that our art, as communication, has a large audience

than the isolated esotericism of artists”.

Inclusion in one of Harry’s letters to Kermit was an excerpt of a letter from a

fellow C.O. The letter of 4 August 1944 contains information about containing the

Chelan fire where 30 men from Larch and Zigzag were sent. “We arrived in camp 1:30

A.M., got a little sleep and lit the fire line. The boys are doing fine and everyone is swell

to us… It sure is a big fire (last letter said 2500 acres) but the weather is good to us. It

rained a little today. We are sure up in the air and back where the hoot owls have control.
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We are up under Dollar Watch Mtn. which is about 7200 ft. It was sure some hike in

there, 18 miles instead of the 14 they told us but most of the fellows made it fine. If the

weather stays this way. I don’t suppose we will be here very long, They are dropping

everything in here by plane; am using a ration box for a writing table.”

Tuesday March 6, 2007

Letters form Herb Leigh Smith. Herb is an actor. The letters of his that I came

across first are ones that concern his activities in the theatre and at school. He received a

graduate assistantship at the university as Technical Director which entailed designing

sets for the plays. Herb is in Columbia Missouri. “INSPITE OF THE WAR, WHICH

EVERY DAY GIVES ME BUT GRIEF, AND ABOUT WHICH I CAN DO NOTHING,

AND ABOUT WHICH, BECAUSE I AM A SENSITIVE INDIVIDUAL, AND

MOREOVER, A RED, I DESIRE TO DO MUCH. **IN SPITE OF ALL THIS** the

Impulse HAS RETURNED! You know it well, or have you forgotten – no you can’t have

– that surge we felt working on sets, working over plays, visualizing productions,

moving, feeling, being, working, acting, creating in the Theatre! That was it – that is it. It

was what I lacked … my soul, my heart was not in the medium. It is here now. I can

make the next production my own. It will be my show and my set. I lacked it before.

Now I will be a part of the stage again.” Herb is extremely passionate in his writing and I

would say I quite enjoyed reading his letters. His passion continues but becomes directed

toward the war effort as his passion for his assistantship and what he is doing at the

college fades. Letter to Kermit 6 January 1942 “Of course you know I do not share your

views, but even so, I cannot find it in myself to condemn your stand…I have and still

retain an abhorrence of war but I believe that it is not an isolated phenomenon but is
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symptomatic of things basically askew in Society. But believe me, there is enough left in

me of liberalism to defend your right, though I disagree with your stand.”

From Herb to Kermit (year 1942) “This is a sort of a “Dark Ages” period for the

theatre. It, like all art, is going through a period from which it cannot but emerge in a

purer form; and that is the day that I wait for, and that I work for.”

“Again you know me well enough to know that I am not a flag-waver, a guy who

affirms that “this is the greatest country on earth and if you don’t like it go back where

you came from.” There are a lot of things wrong with America. We have not a complete

democracy but we must fight to maintain the framework within which we can struggle

and struggling, advance.” From another letter of the same year, “Without conscription, I,

because of my petit-bourgeois background could probably not make the decision, could

not nerve myself to the test. I welcome it, when and if it comes.”

Letter to Kermit of 12 September 1942 written form Salt Lake City Utah at Hotel

Temple Square. Herb is riding back to California from Missouri with his dad. He has

been called to the army and is to report in San Francisco on the 25th. Herb was assigned to

the Medical Administration Corps because of his ability to type and because he was 14

pounds underweight. He indicated that he was going to put in for Aviation Cadet

immediately. We was accepted and transferred to Texas to train for the Air Force

(included in letter to Kermit dated 12 January 1943). He was classified as pilot there

(clocking over 60 hours of flying time) and was sent to flying school in Oklahoma.

During this time many of Herb’s letters to Kermit are extremely political. There must

have been some going back and forth defending and questioning of political stands

between the two friends. The letters were passionate but very intellectual, articulate and
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thought out. It was a pleasure to me to see that such good friends could be so open with

each other.

Herb’s letter of 7 August 1943, “…something astounding and terrible has

happened to me…yes I got the gate – washed out after 14 hours in the air at basic”. Herb

was completely disillusioned at that moment and couldn’t understand since he could

actually fly but was cut after all of the hours and time. He really wanted to fly. He ranted

about the military and its methods. He was sent to gunnery school. I could tell from his

letters following that his spirit had deflated a bit and seemed extremely worn out and

tired. His letters weren’t as passionate. The letters did not contain the vigor of the war

effort or ideology as previous letters. This could also be because he and Kermit had come

to some sort of understanding that maybe they had both said everything there was to say

about pleading their cases to each other about the war.

Herb was sent to Europe and returned home summer 1945. He was discharged

from the Army 2 July of said year. Herb’s last letter to Kermit indicated that he was going

to New York City to try his luck at acting there.

I have finished reading the letters and creating a finding aid for the collection. It is

intended that the letters will actually be integrated into an existing collection held here at

Lewis & Clark pertaining the quite a few of the individuals whose letters compile this

collection.

It was a joy reading the letters of such articulate, interesting, and intelligent

individuals. It increased my interest in wanting to know more about the CPS camps

during WWII. Many things within the letters actually hit home to me that history really

does repeat itself and the same passions and ideals exist amongst us today, but for some
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reason I feel that we have isolated ourselves to only commiserate and share our ideas

with those of like-minded friends. I came across an article written on the CPS camps in

Oregon. I would like to include the URL

http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/ohq/107.4/davis.html. The content of the

letters touched on many things going on at the time: Ghandi and British occupation of

India, the Japanese Internment camps, war in general, and art, theatre, writing.

Friday March 9, 2007

Processing the letters and completing the finding aid was the scope of this project

for records management. I felt I learned quite a bit from being able to process this

archives collections, though quite different from processing records that will be

eventually disposed of. I asked Doug about records management and processing of

records here at the library and college. He indicated that the library uses retention

schedules that coincide with Federal and State regulations. It is very straight forward and

mentioned that he has not in the fifteen years of being here has he created is own

retention schedule. Records Management seems to be a very small part of his job and

does not take up much of his time. I feel I have a good grasp of records management and

the life cycle of a record and the importance of being a steward of records.

My final product of the project includes the Finding Aid for the collection. A little

bit about finding aids… Traditionally finding aids are used by archival repositories. The

finding aid can be in the form of an inventory, a register, or a calendar and is the primary

tool for establishing administrative and intellectual control over archives and manuscript

collections. The finding aid that I have put together is a rough one and incomplete in

terms of the whole scope of the project which I will continue past the scope of this class.
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I will be incorporating the letters into the other collection, finalizing the finding aid with

more complete information and making available on the web with EAD.