Sumner T. Bernstein Correspondence

Sumner Thurman Bernstein (1924 - 2002) grew up in Portland, Maine, the son of lawyer parents. He served in the South Pacific in the U.S. Army during World War II (achieving the rank of Captain) and attended Harvard University for his undergraduate education and for law school. He returned to Portland after marrying Rosalyne Spindel in 1949, to join his father and uncle’s law practice, which he helped to grow into Bernstein, Shur, Sawyer and Nelson in 1964. He was very engaged with the community, participating in the following organizations, among others, often serving as president or chair of these groups for a portion of his tenure: Portland City Council (1955-1961); Portland School Committee (1955-58); Portland Housing Authority; Downtown Portland Corporation; Maine State Bar Association; Maine Bar Foundation; Jewish Federation of Southern Maine; Temple Beth El; Maine Jewish Council; Jewish Community Center; National Council of the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee; Pine Tree Council of the Boy Scouts of America; Portland YMCA; Maine Medical Center; Portland Public Library; and World Affairs Council of Maine. He also served as an adjunct professor at the University of Maine School of Law from 1993-98 and was a member of their Board of Visitors, and he was an instructor at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute of the University of Southern Maine. The Papers document his civic work and personal life. They include correspondence, newspaper clippings, and text of his speeches and talks. Of particular value are 25 folders of family correspondence dating from 1940 to 1945, which include letters covering Bernstein’s military training and World War II service. Other records and reminiscences of his army service and Harvard education are present, as well. The Papers also include materials related to his final illness and death, including letters of sympathy and condolence, information about contributions made in his honor, obituaries, eulogies, and other tributes, and videos/cassettes of memorial services and other celebrations of his life. The Papers also include two albums – one documenting the 85-year history of Bernstein, Shur, Sawyer, and Nelson and the other a collection of notes and photos compiled for The Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine’s Evening to Honor Sumner and Rosalyne Bernstein (May 15, 2000).

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06/10/1945 B

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner T. Bernstein regarding interstate divorce law; British elections; revised veto system; first anniversary of his time on Santo.
06/08/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner T. Bernstein regarding shipment going out; correspondence with friends from home; Russian literature; memories of childhood friends; "down spells".
06/07/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner T. Bernstein regarding correspondence; Henry Wallace; bridge; Uncle Lou's discharge from the Army; Youth Centers in Portland.
06/06/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner T. Bernstein regarding anniversary of D-Day; correspondence with friends from home; parents' weekend at Sebago Lake; British elections.
06/05/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner T. Bernstein regarding description of Santo; letter from Neil Clark in Hawaii; colleague who is hoping to get out of the Army soon.
06/04/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner T. Bernstein regarding Army's plan for officer discharges; Bernsteins' summer vacation home Menikoe; family news; Truman's request for reorganization of the executive branch.
06/03/1945 A

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner T. Bernstein regarding Father's Day greeting to father; reflections and jokes about fatherhood.
06/03/1945 B

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner T. Bernstein regarding correspondence; life on base; concept of "Jewish Medical School"; Winston Churchill; Harvard alumni news; US politics; thoughts on Pastor Martin Niemoller and Nazism.
06/02/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner T. Bernstein regarding attendance at Saturday services; life on base; colleague at ordnance depot; pamphlets received in the mail; Churchill.
05/29/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding V-E Day observations at home; news of friends and family; British politics; heredity vs. environment; Thurman grandparents; speculation about when he will be discharged from the Army.
05/29/1945 B

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding mail received from home; Memorial Day; sister Helen's social life in Portland.
05/28/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding McKellar and Lilienthal; Hopkins letter on universal service; international Jewish solidarity.
05/23/1945 B

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding mail delays; boredom on base.
05/26/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding arrival of mail; news from home.
05/25/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding weather; life on base; San Francisco Conference; Zionism; postwar Europe.
05/24/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding life on base; Churchill; British politics; blizzard in Maine.
05/22/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding life on base; colleagues; prospect of returning to Harvard; mail delay.
05/21/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding mail delay; life on base; Army point system for discharge.
05/21/1945 B

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding fighting in Syria and Lebanon; Palestine; Zionism; locations being discussed as havens of refuge for European Jews; correspondence; grandfather's health.
05/20/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding mail delay; life on base; reappointment of Lilienthal by Truman; optimism about the end of the war; growth of democracy.
05/19/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding reading; updates on friends from Harvard; friend's visit to New Zealand; card games.
05/16/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding spells of depression; American Jewish Committee's position on Zionism; Russia and Japan.
05/15/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding entertainment on base; news from home; upcoming San Francisco Conference.
05/13/1945

Sumner T. Bernstein

V-mail from Sumner Bernstein to Uncle Louis Bernstein regarding V-E Day celebrations; MacArthur's takeover of Pacific forces.
05/13/1945 B

Sumner T. Bernstein

Letter to family from Sumner Bernstein regarding Mother's Day; life on base; news of sister Helen's social life in Portland; grandfather's health; boredom; Navy friend's return to the Pacific; Spanish class.