Military service. Citations and awards, 1942-1949

Various topics and document types make up this subseries, and the amount of documentation per title varies from a single to multiple folders. The set of "Invoice" folders, selected during processing, details purchases ranging from household products to custom-made suits and shoes, and thus suggest the cost of McIlhenny's lifestyle. See the "Arrangement" note at the collection level for a detailed explanation of the processing protocol determined for invoices. The invoices are subdivided into the general categories described here. Based on many of the "Clothing" invoices, McIlhenny preferred London's haberdashers. While Turnbull & Asser supplied most of his shirts and ties, Lesley and Roberts, as well as Hayward, custom-made his suits. For more than 20 years, McIlhenny purchased his footwear from Peal & Co. He also did business with several Irish tailors and retailers, ordering for himself and others, including suits and caps for his chauffeurs at Glenveagh. Although at least one of the "Textiles" invoices pertains to fabrics for the home, yards of a variety of tweeds were bought for clothing. The invoices filed as "Groceries" and "Toiletries" reflect some of the purchases needed to maintain two household staffs, as well as dinner guests and overnight visitors. The material also gives a glimpse of popular marketing and consumer preferences since most of the packaged goods are noted by specific brand name. In fact certain products, such as Tetley tea and Sweet'N Low sugar substitute were purchased regularly from a Philadelphia supermarket for shipment to Glenveagh. An unidentified "Italian coffee" was also often included. Most of the "Groceries" invoices, however, pertain to Irish entities and include butchers, and merchants of produce, seafood, and liquors. One of the more diverse vendors was McClafferty's, which billed itself as a general grocer, wine and spirits merchant, potato exporter and funeral undertaker. Other folders pertaining to activities at Glenveagh include purchases of deer as well as fishing equipment and rifles. The "Tuition" folders offer a sampling of the cost of Irish boarding schools. As part of his agent's compensation, McIlhenny paid for the schooling of Julian Burkitt's four children. Most of the "various" purchases and services McIlhenny charged to his American Express pertain to travel expenses. The Wanamaker charges were primarily for household items and linens.

Most of the "Military service" documentation consists of correspondence with the various offices and departments related to the United States Naval Reserve. McIlhenny applied for and received his commission as a Lieutenant, Junior Grade, in the Aviation Volunteer Special Class of the USNR in April 1942. He was released from active duty in January 1946 and received his honorable discharge in 1954 with the rank of Lieutenant Commander. A history of the USS Bunker Hill, the warship aboard which McIlhenny served while in the Pacific is included here. The other two folders of correspondence, dating from 1941 and 1942, are arranged alphabetically by correspondent and pertain primarily to McIlhenny's earlier attempts to join the Office of Coordinator of Information and Naval Intelligence. McIlhenny felt his familiarity and land ownership in Northern Ireland could be of particular use in the war effort. In a February 1942 letter to the Office of the Vice President of the United States, McIlhenny notes that large homes, such as his Glenveagh castle, could serve as a hospital, and a local landowner, such as himself, could serve as an unofficial observer, which he was certain the Axis already had. According to a letter written several months later by his brother-in-law to a vice-admiral on the Inter-American Defense Board, McIlhenny was requested by the U.S. government to write a handbook for American servicemen going to Northern Ireland because he was so familiar with the area. A copy of the guide is included here. Despite McIlhenny's qualifications, Washington never took him up on his offer, and McIlhenny did not return to Ireland until after the war. Having the means to make the best of his situation, McIlhenny rented two furnished residences while stationed stateside. The lease agreements are included in the "Other papers" folder. In the summer of 1942, McIlhenny became an assistant engineering officer at Monogram Field, an auxiliary air station to the Norfolk Naval Base, located in Driver, Virginia. He rented a fully furnished house in Norfolk for a year, writing to his mother that he planned to divide his time between Monogram and "923" [Graydon Avenue]. In October 1944, McIlhenny received orders to report to the Bureau of Aeronautics in Washington, D.C. In January 1945, he rented a furnished duplex in the city and apparently remained there for a year, until his release from active duty. The lease not only covered the apartment, which included a drawing room, dining room, two bedrooms and two baths, but an adjoining facility, consisting of two servant's rooms and two baths. McIlhenny's letters to his mother and sister while in service are part of the "Correspondence" subseries of the "Family papers" series.

Other topics and document types include an early 19th-century volume published in Paris on the life of the French statesman and duke of Parma, Jean Jacques Regis de Cambacérès. According to related documentation, McIlhenny supposedly owned furniture belonging to the Frenchman, and this book was found in one of his pieces. McIlhenny's mother apparently made use of the diathermy apparatus, documented by a certificate of registration. Through electric current, this therapeutic device generated heat in order to increase blood circulation and was used in the treatment of conditions such as arthritis and bursitis.