Roland Pronovost Letter to Anita Gendron, March 29th, 1955
subject: Nuclear weapons testing victims--Correspondence; Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)
description: A letter written to Anita Gendron, Roland Pronovost's fiancee, following his second time witnessing an atomic bomb test in Nevada during his army service. The letter reads: 29-Mar-55 Dear Nita, How’s my very own Nita tonight? Your Roland is just fine as always. Right now it’s 9:30 PM + a guy just handed me your fudge. I didn’t get any letters, so now I’m sure of some tomorrow. Last night I got 3 letters, 2 from you + one from Jean Cote. Your fudge is very good as always, I wish you could have put yourself in the box too. That would really be something. Thanks for the fudge + remind me once again to give you a big kiss for that, HA as if I’d forget HA. I just got out of bed about a half hour ago, to write this letter, + then I’m hitting the sack again when I finish. That’s really being lazy isn’t it? But I’m tired as usual, I always have some excuse HA. I got the night off tonight be- [2] cause I didn’t get any sleep at all last night. Remember I told you not to worry about me being near another blast, well well honest, I wasn’t lieing (sic) to you. I never lie to you + I never intend to either. But the way this happened, I couldn’t tell you about it any sooner because I didn’t know it myself. First of all, you remember me saying that Lt. Northrop was suppose (sic) to go back to Desert Rock Mon. + then they changed it to Thursday. Well last night we were in the Las Vegas Police Station pulling our regular duty, + the Lt got a phone call. It was from our CO at Desert Rock + he said that another bomb was going off, + that some Col. in charge wanted Lt. Northrop to witness it. That’s why they wanted him back there Monday in the first place + our CO changed it to Thursday. It was 11 PM + he was given a [3] direct order to go out there. Normally he needed a driver so he asked me. He said I didn’t have to go if I didn’t want to, but he did want me along. I told him I didn’t care to be anywhere near another one of them but I’d take him there anyway. When we got to Desert Ro…
date: March 29, 1955
format: Correspondence

Photo album page of landscapes
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Korean War (1950-1953)
description: A photo album page with 4 black and white images of a mountainous landscape beyond a body of water; images were taken during Pronovost's service in Alaska during the Korean War.
date: 1950-1953
format: Photograph

Photo album page with Nevada images and news clipping
subject: Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada; Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)
description: A photo album page with 2 black and white images and a newspaper clipping. One image is of a man (Roland Pronovost) in uniform standing in front of a building. He is wearing an MP armband and is standing at parade rest. The other photo is of a single-story building with a sign identifying it as "Company C 505 MP BN." The newspaper article is hand-dated as May 16, 1955, and is about the presence of military police at the Camp Desert Rock atomic testing site in Nevada, and includes an image of PFC Norman S. Mills with a bomb blast in the background.
date: 1955
format: Scrapbook

Bomb blast image 1
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A single black and white photograph of a mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

"Flats"
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs
description: A black and white photograph labeled "Flats." The image is of an arid-looking landscape, likely part of the Nevada test site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 2
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 3
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 4
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 5
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a glowing mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 6
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 7
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a glowing mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 8
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 9
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a mostly-dissipated mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 10
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 11
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a mushroom cloud. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

Bomb blast image 12
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs; Atomic bomb--Blast effect--photographs
description: A black and white photograph of a bomb in the early stages of detonation. While the surrounding area is barely visible, the glowing mushroom cloud is vivid. Part of Operation Teapot in 1955, this was one of the tests of the atomic bomb in 1955 witnessed by Chicopee resident Roland Pronovost during his service at the Nevada National Security Site.
date: 1955
format: Photograph

"August '54"
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Nuclear weapons testing victims--Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Nevada National Security Site (Nev.)--Photographs
description: A black and white image of three men standing outside near a vehicle, with tents and buildings in the background. The man on the left is wearing a baseball mitt; the man in the middle has a cigarette in his left hand; and the man on the right has one hand in his pocket. All three are wearing "casual" uniform and looking more or less at the camera. The back of the photo reads "Aug. 54; Me; Joe Martin." While it is not clear from the label who's who, the man in the middle was identified by his son as Roland Pronovost, suggesting the man on the left is Joe Martin. The third man is not identified.
date: 1954
format: Photograph

Undated group photo
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.
description: A black and white photograph of a group of men in uniform posing in front of a single-story building. Most of them are wearing garrison caps, but some are wearing helmets. Seven are kneeling or sitting on the ground in front; ten are standing; and two walk by in the background. None of them are identified, but the back of the photo reads "Guess who?"
date: circa 1954
format: Photograph

"Widgen"
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.
description: A black and white photograph of a small plane, with "Safeway Airways Alaska" painted on the side. The plane has a white nose and white stripe down the side, twin propellor engines, and small pontoons under the wings. The back of the image is labeled "Widgen." Though undated, this was likely taken in 1953 or 1954 during Pronovost's time serving in Alaska.
date: circa 1953-1954
format: Photograph

Draft Registration Card, Roland Pronovost
subject: Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.; Draft registration--Chicopee, Mass.
description: A battered Selective Service System Registration Certificate for Roland Pronovost, dated September 17, 1948. Though aged and quite damaged around the edges, the information written in is still clearly visible, and provides his personal information and a generic description of him at the time of his draft registration, as well as his signature.
date: 1948
format: Ephemera

Roland Pronovost Exhibit
subject: Nuclear weapons testing victims; Nevada National Security Site (Nev.); Veterans--Chicopee, Mass.
description: Images of an exhibit at the Chicopee Public Library from December 2024-July 2025.
creator: Exhibition created by Kate Ouimette, CPL Archivist