48th Annual Holiday Exhibition

After the U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 8, 1941, life changed for Americans. Two young Spring Valley High School graduates— Jeanette Donaldson and George Murdock—found their plans interrupted by the U.S. entry into World War II. George enlisted in the Army in the spring of 1942 and served through 1945, while Jeanette took a job in the Printing Department at Lederle Laboratories in Pearl River.

While George was fighting in Europe, he and Jeanette exchanged hundreds of cards, letters, and V-Mail. A selection of their correspondence, now part of the HSRC Collection, forms the core of the 48th Annual Holiday Exhibition, "Holidays on the Home Front: Rockland County in World War II."

Through text, objects, images, and original cards and letters the exhibition evokes some of the joys and sacrifices experienced by the couple and other Rockland County residents, both at home and abroad, during the great global conflict of the mid-twentieth century. 

“Holidays on the Home Front” was curated by HSRC Executive Director Susan Deeks. Special thanks to Director of Programming Jennifer Rothschild, Museum Services Manager Ashleigh Malone, Senior Historian Marianne Leese, and Caretaker Bob Carroll, and to the Orangetown Historical Museum & Archives for permission to use photographs from its collection of Camp Shanks holiday parties.

The 48th Annual Holiday Exhibition is underwritten in part by the Department of Economic Development and Tourism, Office of Rockland County Executive Ed Day. We’re grateful for the support!

Tours for groups of 10 or more are available by appointment by contacting:

Historical Society of Rockland County
20 Zukor Road * New City, NY 10956
Phone: (845) 634-9629
Email: educator@rocklandhistory.org

Please note: The Historical Society of Rockland County will be closed on Wednesday, December 25, for Christmas Day, and Wednesday, January 1, for New Year's Day.

* Museum admission on Sundays includes a guided tour of the 1832 Jacob Blauvelt House decorated for the holiday season. All proceeds benefit the education and preservation mission of the Historical Society of Rockland County.