Carleton Elliott Simensen Military Heritage Collection, 1862-

Carleton Elliott Simensen Military Heritage Collection

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Collection Overview

Title: Carleton Elliott Simensen Military Heritage Collection, 1862-

ID: OGLMC1278

Extent: 11.0 Linear Feet

Arrangement: The first series documents the life of Carleton Elliott Simensen. The remaining series are arranged in chronological order, with any sub-series arranged in alphabetical order.

Subjects: Military History

Languages: English, German

Abstract

Military history materials from the United States Civil War to the Persian Gulf War

Collection Historical Note

The collection is named after Carleton Elliott "Sim" Simensen, born January 25, 1919, in Grandin, North Dakota. After graduating from Grandin High School in 1936, Simensen attended the University of North Dakota. While at UND, Simensen played basketball and was a member of the Scabbard and Blade, Blue Key, and Iron Mask fraternities. In 1940, he graduated with a bachelor's degree in Commerce and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps. He graduated from the Marine Officers Basic School in February 1941, after which he served as a Minneapolis recruiter for the Marines. His recruiting duties also brought him back to UND. In June 1941, he reported to San Diego, where Simensen was assigned duty aboard the battleship USS Arizona. He was killed during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, on December 7, 1941. Carleton Elliott "Sim" Simensen was the first UND graduate to be killed in action during World War II.

Subject/Index Terms

Military History

Administrative Information

Repository: Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections

Access Restrictions: Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections.

Acquisition Method: The Carleton Elliott Simensen Military Heritage Collection was created by the Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections to solicit materials documenting how North Dakota and the surrounding region were affected by wars and military conflicts.

Preferred Citation: (Description of Item). Carleton Elliott Simensen Military Heritage Collection. OGLMC 1278, Box #, Folder #. Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections. Chester Fritz Library. University of North Dakota, Grand Forks.

Finding Aid Revision History: The finding aid was significantly revised by Heather Mohr, Special Collections intern, in March 2012, and added to Archon at that time.

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Carleton Elliott Simensen, 1919-1941],
[Series 2: Civil War, 1861-1865],
[Series 3: Spanish American War, 1898-1899],
[Series 4: WW I, 1914-1918],
[Series 5: Second Sino-Japanese War, 1937],
[Series 6: WW II Pacific Theater],
[Series 7: WW II Europe and North Africa],
[Series 8: WW II Home-Front],
[Series 9: Korean War, 1950-1953],
[Series 10: Vietnam War, 1953-1975],
[Series 11: Persian Gulf War, 1990-1991],
[All]

Series 1: Carleton Elliott Simensen, 1919-1941

Sub-Series 1: Robert Chatfield

Robert Chatfield donated one photograph taken at UND in approximately 1940. The photo depicts Robert Chatfield, Carleton Elliott Simensen, La Veern Abelson and an unidentified ROTC cadet. All four are in uniform. The photo was separated and placed in the Photograph File Cabinets. (OGL #1278-5). (Accession #93-1907)

Sub-Series 2: William Pratt

This accession consists of one folder of photocopied materials related to Carleton Elliott Simensen. Documents include correspondence, photographs, genealogical information, obituaries of Simensen and his parents, and page 142 from DEC. 7, 1941: The Day the Japanese Attacked Pearl Harbor by Gordon W. Prange, et al. This page describes Simensen's death on the USS Arizona. Three photographs of Simensen have been separated and placed in the Orin G. Libby Photograph Collection. This initial accession was a gift of William R. Pratt, Simensen's childhood friend and UND roommate. Pratt donated these materials July 27, 1993. (Acc # 93- 1896)

Three photographs have been separated and placed in the Photograph File Cabinets. These include a picture of Carleton Elliott Simensen in uniform taken in 1940 (OGL #1278-1), a portrait of Simensen taken approximately at the time of his high school graduation in 1936 (OGL #1278-2) and a picture of Simensen with William Pratt taken at the time of their graduation from UND in 1940 (#1278-3).

Box 1

Folder 1: Correspondence and family history, 1936-1941, 1988

Sub-Series 3: Mabel Rutherford

Mabel Rutherford donated one photo of her brother, Carleton Elliott Simensen, with her son, Charles Rutherford. The photo was taken circa 1941 when Rutherford was two and a half years old. Charles Rutherford later served as a special agent for the FBI in 1970-1995. The photo has been separated and placed in the Photograph File Cabinets. (OGL #1278-56)

Sub-Series 4: Kenneth Simensen

This accession consists of one folder of materials containing Kenneth Simensen's narrative memories of his brother and a brief recap of his own military service in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. Simensen retired from the military in 1968 with the rank of Major, United States Air Force. (Accession # 94-1947)

One photo of Virgil Banning, Carleton Elliott Simensen and Orville Bergren (all in uniform) taken in approximately 1941 was separated and placed in the Photograph File Cabinets. (OGL #1278-4).

Box 1

Folder 3: Memoirs, 1994

Sub-Series 5: Francis Simensen Stensrud

This accession consists of one folder of materials donated by Frances Simensen Stensrud, sister of Carleton Elliott Simensen. These include a telegram from the U.S. Marine Corps informing Elliott Simensen's family of his death, a posthumous letter of commendation from the Secretary of the Navy, a copy of the Gold Star Mother card presented to Mabel Simensen by the American Legion and Mabel Simensen's reply, copies of two photos - one of Simensen in uniform and another of Carleton, Mabel and Frances Simensen taken at a "Special Honor Day" ceremony at UND shortly after Pearl Harbor. Also included are a high school paper written by Elliott Simensen in 1936 and a newspaper clipping regarding the wartime service of Kenneth Simensen, brother of Elliott. (Accession # 93-1902)

Box 1

Folder 2: Papers Regarding Carleton Elliott Simensen: 1936, 1941-1942

Department of Special Collections
Digital Finding Aids