Frank Bonanno Papers

Collection

Identifier: TMD15

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Collection contains a scrapbook with photographs of Bonanno and his friends, personal letter, other papers; loose material: uniform patches, medal, name tag; photomontage of photos documenting basic training to service in Italy.

Dates

1943-1945

Creator

Bonanno, Frank,1917-1999. (Person)
O'Connor, Nancy, (Person)

Language of Materials

Material is in English.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Copyright

All requests for permission to publish, reproduce, or quote from material in the collection should be discussed with the appropriate librarian or archivist. Permission for publication may be given on behalf of the Denver Public Library as the owner of the physical item. It is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which also must be obtained by the customer. The Library does not assume any responsibility for infringement of copyright or publication rights of the manuscript held by the writer, heirs, donors, or executors. Reproduction restrictions are decided on a case-by-case basis.

Biographical / Historical

Frank Bonnano was born in New York City in 1917, the son of Italian immigrants Andrew and Teresa Bonanno. He graduated with a degree in journalism from San Jose State University in California, and married Louise Ortalda in 1942. He enlisted in the Army February 15, 1943, at San Francisco, California, and joined the 10th Mountain Division at Camp Hale, Colorado, where he was assigned to Company K of the 87th Infantry Regiment. He subsequently served at Fort Ord, California; Kiska, Alaska; Camp Carson, Colorado; and Camp Swift, Texas; after which he was sent to Italy. While engaged in combat operations against German forces occupying Italy, he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for his actions at Mt. Croce on April 16, 1945. He attained the rank of Sergeant. Bonnano returned to his job at the San Jose Evening News in 1947, beginning work as a copy editor and wire editor. He stayed on for 41 years, rising to managing editor before he retired in 1981. Bonnano passed away July 26, 1999, in San Jose, California.