Category: World War II

3 children w/bread in their hands behind a box stamped "CARE United States of America"

Department of State Records Relating to Refugees, Displaced Persons, Relief, and War Crimes During the World War II Era, Part 2: Decentralized Files

by ncurrie, posted in Finding Aids, State and Foreign Affairs, World War II

This is the second of three parts describing World War II-era records of the Department of State relating to refugees, displaced persons, relief, and war crimes.  It describes the decentralized files of the Department.  Part 1 described relevant central files.  As noted in that post, there is significant overlap among the central and decentralized files … Continue reading Department of State Records Relating to Refugees, Displaced Persons, Relief, and War Crimes During the World War II Era, Part 2: Decentralized Files

mother standing behind 2 children

Department of State Records Relating to Refugees, Displaced Persons, Relief, and War Crimes During the World War II Era, Part 1: Central Files

by ncurrie, posted in Finding Aids, State and Foreign Affairs, World War II

Perennial subjects of interest in the records of the Department of State for the World War II era are refugees, displaced persons, relief, and war crimes.  Among the headquarters records of the Department of State are many records relating to those topics.  This is the first of three posts to discuss those materials. The records … Continue reading Department of State Records Relating to Refugees, Displaced Persons, Relief, and War Crimes During the World War II Era, Part 1: Central Files

Text Message Top 5 of 2021

by ncurrie, posted in American Indian History, Digitization Projects, Hispanic/Latinx History, Hollywood and Film, Military Records, Presidents, Transportation, Vietnam, World War II

Please enjoy this countdown of our most popular blog posts of 2021. Thank you for continuing to read the Text Message and we hope you join us for more stories, insights, and highlights from the textual records of the National Archives in 2022! #5 "Lucy, I'm Home!"... from the Army Armed Forces Newsmap, vol 1, … Continue reading Text Message Top 5 of 2021

map of Austria showing occupation zones

Soviet-American Cooperation Regarding Hitler’s Führer Museum Documentation, 1945-1946

by ddancis, posted in Monuments Men

Today’s post is by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland. Adolf Hitler desired to create a museum in Linz, Austria, to house art objects he had acquired before and during World War II. The German art authorities created a large quantity of documentation relating to the acquisition of … Continue reading Soviet-American Cooperation Regarding Hitler’s Führer Museum Documentation, 1945-1946

Z Plan cover page

The Capture and Exploitation of Japanese Records during World War II

by ddancis, posted in WWII Pacific

Today’s post is by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland. U.S. Military forces began capturing records almost as soon as the war began and started exploiting them immediately. Documents were first captured from a Japanese plane downed in the Pearl Harbor attack. These provided the first clues to … Continue reading The Capture and Exploitation of Japanese Records during World War II

Nuremburg Laws excerpt

The Nuremberg Laws: From Nuremberg to the National Archives

by ddancis, posted in NARA's History, World War II

Today’s post is by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland. For the 1935 Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg, Nazi German’s Chancellor Adolf Hitler called for the convening of the Reichstag in the city on September 15, the concluding Sunday, in order to pass a Reich Flag Law, making … Continue reading The Nuremberg Laws: From Nuremberg to the National Archives

World War II-era Far East Cultural Property Losses: Research at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland

by ddancis, posted in WWII Pacific

Today’s post is by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, MD. Dealing with World War II-era looted assets can be a challenging endeavor. Prior to 1990 there were relatively few scholarly works or newspaper articles on the subject of World War II-era looted assets, in part because of the … Continue reading World War II-era Far East Cultural Property Losses: Research at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland

The Creation of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS)

by ddancis, posted in Crime, Justice, and Intelligence, World War II

Today’s post is by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, MD. On June 25, 1941, an order was drafted which would establish William J. Donovan's wished-for intelligence agency as the Office of Coordinator of Strategic Information (for background see: William J. Donovan and the Establishment of the Office of … Continue reading The Creation of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS)

Atlantic Crossing: The Christmas Visit

by ncurrie, posted in Hollywood and Film, Presidents, State and Foreign Affairs, World War II

Today's post was written by David Langbart, archivist in Textual Reference at the National Archives at College Park, MD.  The PBS miniseries Atlantic Crossing tells a story of a princess stealing the heart of the president of the United States in a made-for-television drama about the World War II relationship of President Franklin D. Roosevelt … Continue reading Atlantic Crossing: The Christmas Visit

Men in suits posing for a photograph

William J. Donovan and the Establishment of the Office of the Coordinator of Information, July 1940-July 1941

by ddancis, posted in Crime, Justice, and Intelligence, World War II

Today’s post is by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, MD. In July 1940, several weeks after France capitulated to Germany, Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox proposed to President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Secretary of State Cordell Hull that someone be sent to England to study the … Continue reading William J. Donovan and the Establishment of the Office of the Coordinator of Information, July 1940-July 1941