The depression was hard, especially for Melvin and his new wife, forcing them to separate, simply to survive. The letters start with Melvin working in Atlantic, Iowa while Dorothy lived with her sister in the Missouri Valley. Melvin was degreed from Central College, and could speak upwards of 7 languages and could read as many as 5. Melvin eventually joined the Army, training at Fort Leavenworth and then on to Camp Wolters, Texas. Eventually he was assigned to the 314th Infantry Regiment of the 79th Infantry Division, seeing action and fighting in France. World War II came home to Iowa as Private Melvin W. Johnson was wounded, and died on November 18, 1944, while fighting in Northern France.