Love Letters Over the Pacific

Josephine (Jo) Taylor (1909-1972) and J. Eugene (Gene) Taylor (1909 - 2006) of Nashville TN exchanged approximately 460 letters during World War II. Gene was based “Somewhere in the Pacific”, and Jo moved to Tucson, Monteagle and Sarasota while renting out their home at 1126 Tyne Blvd. in Nashville.

It is a love story and describes how Jo Taylor was able to manage her complicated Cooper family relationships while taking care of her two sons while away from home in Tucson, Monteagle and Sarasota.

Jo was a gifted story teller and writer. Gene’s letters from “Somewhere in the Pacific” (actually Ford Island at Pearl Harbor) were more constrained since he could not talk about his work, planning the naval air logistics for invasion of Japan. His letters are the other half of a 15 month dialogue by mail between two persons about family issues, money and politics.

In addition, the letters captures the language and feeling of a unique period in the social history of Americans during World War II.