Dr. Robert D. Thornton graduated from the US Navy Japanese Language School, University of Colorado, Boulder. He served as a Japanese language officer for the US Navy at Pearl Harbor, Guam, and Okinawa. Following the war, Thornton taught English at Harvard, the University of Colorado, Boulder, and other universities.
Francis Wolle (donor) served in the infantry and as an intelligence officer in France during World War I, and acted informally as a counselor for his students serving in World War II.
From the guide to the Robert D. Thornton Translation of Japanese War Diary (MS 85), 1942-1949, 1942-1943, (University of Colorado at Boulder Libraries. Special Collections Dept.)