In the first week of February 1943, Private Lewis Jobe of Muir, Pennsylvania wrote home to his parents in western Schuylkill County with news that must have seemed almost too big for a single letter.
Days earlier, he had been chosen to drive a half-track and guard a stretch of road in North Africa while President Franklin Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill passed by, fresh from their historic conference at Casablanca during World War II.
As the two leaders rode past, Jobe threw them a salute from beside his .50 caliber machine gun, and both men returned it. He was, in his own words, a proud boy that day. He signed the letter, as he signed all of them, simply “Lew.”
That was the first of a series of letters Jobe sent back to Muir and to the pages of the local newspaper, The West Schuylkill Herald in Tower City, across 1943, and together they trace one young man’s path through some of the hardest fighting of the war.
He wrote of the German night bombers over Casablanca and the searchlights that turned the sky to daylight, of Stuka dive bombers screaming down on his gun positions near Kasserine Pass, and of a day’s leave in liberated Tunis, where two local girls led him up to their family’s apartment to hear about America.
He walked the ancient ruins of Carthage. Then, in July, he waded ashore in the pre-dawn invasion of Sicily, saying his prayers as bombs fell on either side of his landing craft.
The published letters end there, in the summer of 1943, but Jobe’s war did not.
Private Lewis T. Jobe of the 62nd Armored Field Artillery Battalion went on to land at Normandy on June 6, 1944. By then he was 23-years-old and already a veteran of North Africa and Sicily.
He was wounded by shrapnel in both legs during the fight to get the Army ashore at Omaha Beach on D-Day and was evacuated to England to recover. He survived the war and came home to Pennsylvania’s Coal Region.
Years later he moved to Cordele, Georgia, where he served as chief of police from 1966 until his death in 1982 at the age of 61.
What follows are his letters home from World War 2, in his own words.
Muir Soldier Guarded Roosevelt In Africa
A Muir boy had the honor to guard the way of President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill in their recent historic African conference. He is Lewis Jobe, son of Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Jobe, who is serving with the American army in that sector of the war.
A letter, received by Lew’s parents, tells of the incident. It follows:
Africa
February 6, 1943
Dear family,
Just a few lines to let you know that I am still in the same place. I received many letters and some packages all at the same time. I was sure glad to hear from you all. Maybe you read in the paper some time ago about President Roosevelt and Churchill having a meeting over here. Well, I was one of the men who was picked to drive a half track and guard the road while they passed.
I went with the 58th Field Artillery that day, and I sure was proud of it because when we saluted the President and the Prime Minister as they passed we got a big salute in return from them. I sure was a proud boy that day standing in a half track by a 50 caliber machine gun and giving those two great men a snappy salute.
Well I guess that’s all the news. Be sure to write soon. Letters are one thing a soldier really appreciates.
Love to all,
Lew.
Letter From Africa
The following very interesting letter was received by Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Jobe, of Muir, from their son, Pvt. Lewis T. Jobe, who serving with the U.S. Army in North Africa:
May 19, 1943
Africa
Dear Folks,
Just so I can write another letter home to you all, I will write a sort continued letter from the one of May 18 which has to deal with our experiences in Africa since the time of our landing in Casablanca.
In my last letter I wrote to you and told you that our first day of battle or being under fire was March 28, but that is not so. The first time we were under fire was… December 31 about 3:30 in the morning when a few German planes flew over our heads in Casablanca and dropped a large amount of bombs, but then again where the good Lord was us, because no American soldiers were killed by the bombs they dropped, but a few Arabs were killed which the American soldiers had to bury next morning.
That night all the anti-aircraft guns opened fire on the German planes and shot every one of them down.
They were six night bombers. That was really exciting; that morning, with about 8 big search lights in the sky so that you could see the planes just as if it was day time. It was so… tracer bullets in the sky going at the German planes it [many] times better than any July fireworks, and to see big six motor bomber ocean [going down in the] was sure a wonder [to see].
That wasn’t the only [incidences] we had with airplanes. [On the] first day of battle at Kasserine Pass when we got that [battling] with 88mm.
About [page ripped] [two] man Stuka dive bombers over and each one dropped a bomb but again none of them hit anything. They all landed in front of our gun positions. When they go into their dive they sound just like a fire truck siren which has a weird sound. This is only to break the morale of the soldiers but it didn’t break our morale because we sent up plenty of anti-aircraft fire and also 50 caliber machine gun fire which scared them off plenty fast.
We also had many German planes fly over us but we didn’t fire at them most of the time because we were well hidden and didn’t want to give our positions away to the enemy.
Right at the present time we are located outside of Mature which is the town that was shelled so bad by the American troops that night. One of the buildings is still standing up. From here the other day we were taken into Tunis the place the British 8th army took over. We left our area about 9 o’clock in the morning and arrived in Tunis about 12 o’clock noon. We were left in charge of an N. C. O.
About 7 men and we could go wherever we wanted to as long as we were back to the trucks ready to go back to camp at 6 o’clock the same night. Tunis is a wonderful city with some buildings that remind you almost as if you were in New York. The people in this place are very friendly to the American people.
I and a friend of mine were called up to an apartment by two girls. On our way up about four girls met us in the stairs, they took us up and introduced us to their mother and dad and we spent the rest of the day there telling about the United States.
They could understand the English language which was a big help. My friends and I thought we would go up there and just sit and look at each other like you do in most places over here because all the people talk French.
Along the roads to Tunis you can see some of our equipment that has been burned up and plenty of German equipment. We also saw some German bombers lying in the fields where they had been shot down.
We have seen nearly all the German prisoners we captured which amounted to 175,000 here in Bizerte and Tunis alone not counting what was killed which was a hell of a pile of them. I hear that most of the prisoners we captured are going to be the U.S. The lucky dogs. We don’t know what they are going to do with them back there but they sure must have a reason for it.
We took a trip Carthage the oldest city in the world. We saw the place where they, put the Christian people into the arena and opened the cage doors to let the lions go in and tear them to pieces. When you enter the big cathedral you see some beautiful paintings on the walls, in fact so beautiful that they almost look real. These paintings were ancient and supposed to be painted by people that lived 3,000 years ago. For any man, woman, or child in the states to see just Carthage the oldest city in the world is a wonderful sight all by itself, besides all other things to be seen.
Well I think I have written enough for one time as my fingers are giving out, but I sure could tell you plenty more things that are interesting and exciting but will wait till I get back.
Still in good health as I ever have been and hoping you are the same.
Love to all,
Lew.
The following letter was received from Lewis Jobe by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Jobe, of Muir:
July 27, 1943
Sicily
Dear Folks:
Well as I told you before I left Africa, if you didn’t hear from me for awhile you shouldn’t worry because we were getting ready for another invasion and that is what happened. Landed in Sicily on July 10th. The invasion took place about 3 o’clock in the morning.
It sure was rough and tough for the time being. Airplanes came out of the sky almost every 15 minutes of the day and dropped bombs alongside of our boat. The first two bombs that were dropped landed about two city blocks away, one on each side. You talk about a boy saying his prayers. I was one of them and probably not the only one.
We had a good bunch of navy boys on our boat and they could certainly handle the guns. They shot down at least two of the dive bombers in less than 10 minutes which is very good shooting. After we landed we flew through a couple of towns after we blasted them to the ground and in no time at all our mission was accomplished. The people over here are very nice to the American soldiers. Also the prisoners we have taken.
These Italian people don’t want to fight any more than anyone of us. At the first part of the battle over here we were driving through watermelon patches and all kinds of orchards. We stayed in our orchard one night and all you had to do when you got up in the morning was take your choice of fruit on the trees such as oranges, plumbs, peaches, pears, olives, almonds, figs, English walnuts, honeydews, in fact I don’t think there was any fruit on the market that wasn’t in that orchard.
The weather over here is about the same as Africa, although it is a lot colder at nights. In some of the towns we could buy ice cream made from goat’s milk which isn’t bad.
Will write soon.
Love,
LEW
Letter From Sicily
August 23, 1943
Sicily
Dear Editor:
War is sure rough and tough at times. I wouldn’t wish it on any man, but then there are times when we can have plenty of fun over here.
After every campaign it sure is wonderful to sit down and read letters from home, and also the Herald which I have been receiving from you very regularly. It makes me feel closer to home to read your paper and see what is going on back home.
Continue sending it to me because it is a big help to soldiers in the battle zones.
Yours truly,
Lewis Jobe
From the West Schuylkill Herald, July 28, 1944
Wounded “D” Day
Pvt. Lewis Jobe
Pvt. Jobe was wounded in action on “D” day in Normandy, and is now a patient in a hospital in England. He received shrapnel wounds of the legs, and is said to be recovering nicely.
Pvt. Jobe is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Jobe, of Muir, and is a veteran campaigner, having taken part in the invasion of Africa, Sicily, and France.
Read more Coal Region stories from World War II
Letters from War: Irvin Schwartz’s World War II correspondence with the West Schuylkill Press-Herald
Lackawanna County airman recounts bombing his native Sicily during World War 2 | July 1943
Private Harvey L. Adams | Killed on D-Day, June 6, 1944
The Coal Region on D-Day | June 6, 1944
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