In 1988, President Ronald Reagan issued a proclamation declaring April 9th as National Former POW Recognition Day. The day commemorates the capture of nearly 25,000 U.S. troops that were surrendered by their commander on Bataan in the Philippines on April 9, 1942. Though this day has special significance for the “Battling Bastards of Bataan,” as…
The 493rd Bombardment Group was a unit of the US Army Air Forces assigned to the 93rd Bombardment Wing, Eighth Air Force, during WWII. The group included the 860th, 861st, 862nd, and 863rd Heavy Bombardment Squadrons. They were known as “the Fighting 493rd,” and we’ve recently added their Unit History to our archives. This Unit…
Have you ever wondered what the difference is between C-Rations and K-Rations? During WWII, US military officials had to find a way to feed the troops when they weren’t near a mess hall. Rations were prepackaged meals, easy to prepare, and intended to be eaten in the field. The Unit History of the 63rd Infantry…
On March 28, 1942, British forces rammed an obsolete destroyer laden with explosives into heavily defended dry docks at St Nazaire in German-occupied France. The state-of-the-art dry docks were the base of operations for the German U-Boat fleet and the only docks big enough to service the largest German ships, including the battleship Tirpitz, which…
On April 1, 2022, the National Archives and Records Administration will release the 1950 U.S. Census to the public. These records may provide new insights into the 16 million American men and women who fought during WWII. More than 400,000 Americans died during the war. As a result, many will find ancestors enumerated in the…
During WWI, the United States War Department hired female switchboard operators to accompany the American Expeditionary Forces to Europe. These women had to be fluent in French and English and preferably have previous switchboard experience. Their job was to connect important calls, translate information, and communicate command orders. They were known as “Hello Girls” and…
By the time WWII ended in 1945, the Holocaust claimed the lives of more than 6 million Jews across German-occupied Europe. In addition to Jews, Nazi Germany also engaged in the systematic killing of 11 million others, including POWs and those from different ethnic, social, political, or religious backgrounds. In 2005, the United Nations General…
