Monuments Man Thomas Carr Howe, Jr. and the Evacuation and Restitution of European Cultural Treasures

Today’s post, written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, is the next installment in an ongoing series of posts on real-life Monuments Men. The movie, The Monuments Men, has focused great attention on the Monuments Men (and women) and their work during and after World War II.  Of course the movie cannot tell the story of the over … Continue reading Monuments Man Thomas Carr Howe, Jr. and the Evacuation and Restitution of European Cultural Treasures

Terence A. Coyne: An Office of Strategic Services’ Art Looting Investigation Unit Monuments Man

Today’s post, written by  Dr. Greg Bradsher, is the next installment in an ongoing series of posts on real-life Monuments Men. The movie, The Monuments Men, has focused great attention on the Monuments Men (and women) and their work during and after World War II.  Of course the movie cannot tell the story of the over … Continue reading Terence A. Coyne: An Office of Strategic Services’ Art Looting Investigation Unit Monuments Man

Monuments Man Charles H. Sawyer, part II: Double Duty for the Roberts Commission and the OSS

Today's post was written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, senior archivist at the National Archives in College Park, MD. The movie, The Monuments Men, has focused great attention on the Monuments Men (and women) and their work during and after World War II.  Of course the movie cannot tell the story of the over 300 individuals involved … Continue reading Monuments Man Charles H. Sawyer, part II: Double Duty for the Roberts Commission and the OSS

Monuments Man Charles H. Sawyer, part I: Member of the U.S Army, the Office of Strategic Services, and the American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historic Monuments in War Areas

Today’s post, written by  Dr. Greg Bradsher, is the next installment in an ongoing series of posts on real-life Monuments Men. The movie, The Monuments Men, has focused great attention on the Monuments Men (and women) and their work during and after World War II.  Of course the movie cannot tell the story of the over … Continue reading Monuments Man Charles H. Sawyer, part I: Member of the U.S Army, the Office of Strategic Services, and the American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historic Monuments in War Areas

Before She Became The Ardelia Hall of the Department of State, Part II: Miss Hall as Consultant with the Department of State

Today's post was written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives in College Park, MD. On October 6, 1945, the day Ardelia Hall was terminated from the Strategic Services Unit, she met with Charles B. Sawyer regarding the translation of Japanese laws regarding arts and monuments and concerning the formation of a working … Continue reading Before She Became The Ardelia Hall of the Department of State, Part II: Miss Hall as Consultant with the Department of State

Before She Became The Ardelia Hall of the Department of State, Part I: Miss Hall and the Office of Strategic Services

Today's post was written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives in College Park, MD. Anyone studying World War II and postwar issues regarding cultural property knows the name Ardelia Hall, either because they know of her work as Monuments and Fine Arts adviser at the Department of State from 1946 to 1962 and/or … Continue reading Before She Became The Ardelia Hall of the Department of State, Part I: Miss Hall and the Office of Strategic Services

Wintergarden by Manet was NOT Looted by the Nazis

Today's post is written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives at College Park. In 1912 David C. Preyer wrote in his book The Art of the Berlin Galleries that the then Royal National Gallery did not until 1896 make any effort to add foreign works to its collection.  In taking the reader through … Continue reading Wintergarden by Manet was NOT Looted by the Nazis

D + 10 Years: The 1954 Celebration of the World War II Invasion of Normandy

Today's post is written by David Langbart, Archivist at the National Archives in College Park. This past weekend saw the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy during World War II.  The invasion was memorably portrayed in the movie The Longest Day (1962) and in episodes of the mini-series “Band of Brothers.”  By all accounts, this … Continue reading D + 10 Years: The 1954 Celebration of the World War II Invasion of Normandy

New Webpage for D-Day Records

Today’s post is written by Scott Ludwig, Archivist at the National Archives at College Park Today marks the 70th Anniversary of D-Day, which was part of the larger Operation Overlord and the first stages of the Battle of Normandy, France (also referred to as the Invasion of Normandy) during World War II. It was a crucial … Continue reading New Webpage for D-Day Records

The Chaplain at Nuremberg

Today's post is written by Daria Labinsky, Archivist at the National Archives at St. Louis Capt. Henry F. Gerecke thought he was going home. It was November 1945, and the Second World War had been over for several months. Instead, the Lutheran minister accepted a new assignment: to serve as the chief chaplain to the Nazi … Continue reading The Chaplain at Nuremberg