Letter from Charles James McLaren to Northern Pacific Railway Company (1936)
Dublin Core
Title
Letter from Charles James McLaren to Northern Pacific Railway Company (1936)
Alternative Title
Letter from McLaren to Northern Pacific Railway Company (1936)
Subject
World War, 1914-1918
Veterans--Florida
Description
A letter of correspondence from Charles James McLern (1891-1988) to the Northern Pacific Railway Company in 1936. When he initially applied to work for the company, McLaren claimed he was two years older than he was in order to be eligible for an apprenticeship. However, in 1936, he wrote a letter admitting to his correct birth date in order to gain addition employment. His mother went before a public notary to verify his birth date.
Born on May 17, 1891, in Seattle, Washington, McLaren grew up in Minnesota before moving to Spokane, Washington, to work for the Northern Pacific Railway Company. He spent decades working for the company, eventually becoming a master mechanic. He enlisted in the United States Navy on May 27, 1918, serving as a Machinist’s Mate, First Class. He remained in the Navy until his discharge on September 30, 1921. After the war, he returned to work for the Northern Pacific Railway. He married the former Anne E. Thomas and fathered a daughter, Carol. He later returned to Washington State, living in both Seattle and Spokane during the 1940s and 1950s. Eventually McLaren and his wife moved to Brevard County, Florida. McLaren died on September 20, 1988, and is buried at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell.
In 2017, the University of Central Florida was one of three universities selected to launch the National Cemetery Administration’s Veterans Legacy Program Project. The program engaged a team of scholars to make the life stories of veterans buried in the Florida National Cemetery available to the public. The project engages UCF students in research and writing and fosters collaboration between students, faculty and local Central Florida schools to produce interactive curriculum for k-12 students. The corresponding website exhibit uses RICHES Mosaic Interface to create a digital archive of related data. The public can use the project-developed augmented-reality app at more than 100 gravesites at the Florida National Cemetery, where they can access the UCF student-authored biographies of veterans.
Born on May 17, 1891, in Seattle, Washington, McLaren grew up in Minnesota before moving to Spokane, Washington, to work for the Northern Pacific Railway Company. He spent decades working for the company, eventually becoming a master mechanic. He enlisted in the United States Navy on May 27, 1918, serving as a Machinist’s Mate, First Class. He remained in the Navy until his discharge on September 30, 1921. After the war, he returned to work for the Northern Pacific Railway. He married the former Anne E. Thomas and fathered a daughter, Carol. He later returned to Washington State, living in both Seattle and Spokane during the 1940s and 1950s. Eventually McLaren and his wife moved to Brevard County, Florida. McLaren died on September 20, 1988, and is buried at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell.
In 2017, the University of Central Florida was one of three universities selected to launch the National Cemetery Administration’s Veterans Legacy Program Project. The program engaged a team of scholars to make the life stories of veterans buried in the Florida National Cemetery available to the public. The project engages UCF students in research and writing and fosters collaboration between students, faculty and local Central Florida schools to produce interactive curriculum for k-12 students. The corresponding website exhibit uses RICHES Mosaic Interface to create a digital archive of related data. The public can use the project-developed augmented-reality app at more than 100 gravesites at the Florida National Cemetery, where they can access the UCF student-authored biographies of veterans.
Creator
McLaren, Charles James
Source
Digital reproduction of original 1-page typewritten letter from Charles James McLaren to Northern Pacific Railway Company, 1936.
Date Created
ca. 1936
Is Part Of
Format
image/jpg
Extent
791 KB
Medium
1-page typewritten letter
Language
eng
Type
Text
Coverage
St. Paul, Minnesota
Accrual Method
Donation
Mediator
History Teacher
Provenance
Originally created by Charles James McLaren.
Rights Holder
This resource is not subject to copyright in the United States and there are no copyright restrictions on reproduction, derivative works, distribution, performance, or display of the work. Anyone may, without restriction under U.S. copyright laws:
• reproduce the work in print or digital form
• create derivative works
• perform the work publicly
• display the work
• distribute copies or digitally transfer the work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending.
This resource is provided here by RICHES for educational purposes only. For more information on copyright, please refer to Section 5 of Copyright Law of the United States of America and Related Laws Contained in Title 17 of the United States Code.
• reproduce the work in print or digital form
• create derivative works
• perform the work publicly
• display the work
• distribute copies or digitally transfer the work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending.
This resource is provided here by RICHES for educational purposes only. For more information on copyright, please refer to Section 5 of Copyright Law of the United States of America and Related Laws Contained in Title 17 of the United States Code.
Curator
Connolly, Lehman
Cravero, Geoffrey
External Reference
Abney, Barb. "VA Selects UCF Historians to Archive Stories of Deceased Veterans Veterans." UCF Today, March 13, 2017. Accessed August 9, 2017. https://today.ucf.edu/va-selects-ucf-historians-archive-stories-deceased-veterans/.
Collection
Citation
McLaren, Charles James, “Letter from Charles James McLaren to Northern Pacific Railway Company (1936),” RICHES, accessed December 21, 2024, https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka/items/show/10143.