1957 Letters – Page 3 – 1957 Letters

The 1957 Letters

Overview

Below are the 38 letters which Bob Jacobs sent to his family in the USA during his 1957 summer trip to Israel. They are arranged by date. The first 31 letters were addressed to his parents. Following these letters are 7 additional letters to his younger brother Alan, whose content differ significantly to those sent to his parents.

The Page Structure

Each of the letter links below contain a brief list of the main points of that particular letter. The “Read More” button will open the specific page of each letter. Each page contains:
1) A photo related to a subject of the letter
2) A typed copy of the original letter
3) A “Comment Section” giving detailed explanations of each letter and comparing Israel of 1957 to the Israel of today.
4) Links: Many interesting links are found in the comments sections. These links (in blue) provide further detail and expand upon many of the subjects.
5) A scanned copy of the original hand-written letter (bottom of each page).

September 1

September 1

Last letter to parents — Difficulties of overseas communication 1950’s

Alan – July 25

Alan – July 25

An encounter with Israelis at a pre-military camp. — Arab attacks & Israel responds by “blasting” Syrian forts. — UN jeeps rush in to prevent altercation between Israel & Arabs — The boys & girls in army makes you “real proud you are a Jew”.

Alan – July 29

Alan – July 29

Guard duty on a kibbutz in the Gallil. — Learning to use a machine gun — Kibbutz retaliation to Arab attacks — Israeli warplanes overhead: “They looked great”. — Meeting Arab shepherds: “Very friendly”.

Alan – August 5

Alan – August 5

Kibbutzniks dressing up as Arabs in nightly raids — The knife taken from an Egyptian soldier — Setting up ambushes to fight the “Fedayhin” (Arab terrorists)

Alan – August 16

Alan – August 16

Joining a Jerusalem patrol by the Jordanian border. — Patrol was well-armed along with dogs that understood Hebrew. — Speaking to Arabs in “only language they understand: guns & bullets.”

Alan – August 23

Alan – August 23

Haifa: “Big factories that make cars, (guns), etc.” — Riding on the captured Egyptian destroyer.

Alan – August 25

Alan – August 25

Boat ride through the Haifa Port. — Seeing the many Israel navy warships. — The captured Egyptian destroyer & its new Israeli crew. — Visiting the automobile and jeep assembly plants.

Alan – August 29

Alan – August 29

Driving along Egyptian border — Destroyed Egyptian tanks from the 1956 Sinai Campaign

Allan’s Lettter descptions