They were never intended for public consumption, so buried they remain among the 10,000 items that comprise the Edmund M. Cameron collection in the Duke University Archives. The manila folder, almost an inch thick, is nestled neatly amidst several others in a brown cardboard storage carton referenced as Box 5, with a cursive label that could not be more self-descriptive: "World War II Correspondence from Servicemen-Athletes."
Dozens of letters from Blue Devils in the armed forces fill this hidden historical treasure trove, all addressed to the beloved Eddie Cameron back home in Durham. Already an institution at Duke, Cameron had served as the school's basketball coach and football assistant since 1929.