This historic group is to 2nd Lt. Joseph M. Day, 45th Field Artillery, 8th Infantry Division. Day enlisted in the army the day after Pearl Harbor and was mortally wounded on Dec. 5th, 1944, acting as a forward observer during the battles for Hill 400 in the Hurtgen Forest campaign. He died on January 12th, 1945, in the military hospital in Paris. The group consists of 2 official government engraved Purple Hearts, a Purple Heart presentation box, over 40 letters written to family, including two letters written by his brother who died around the same time, and the original carboard shipping carton for Purple Heart. I believe that one of the Purple Hearts was awarded during his hospitalization in Paris as his wounds were of a nature that he would not survive and the other sent to the family. The military records shown are digital copies from the National Archives and are transferable to purchaser.
Both of the medals are in excellent condition as is the award box. The letters span the time of his service with several written from France prior to entering combat. Rarely do you find a group as personal as this where you can actually get to know the man through his written words.
