Tag: Staff’s Pick: D-Day Stories

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Invasion of Normandy
Germans & Americans Recall the ‘Hell’ That Was Omaha

  By Morgan Birck • June 4, 2014 Uncategorized
National Archives and Records Administration

In this fascinating compilation of interviews, both German and American veterans from World War II describe their experiences of warfare on Omaha Beach during D-Day. Franz Gockel and Bruno Plota were German soldiers responsible for shooting U.S. soldiers as they dispatched from their boats onto the beach. Plota says, “The … Continue reading

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Invasion of Normandy
War Efforts of Canadian Men & Women

  By Sarah Dejak • June 3, 2014 Uncategorized
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Canadian men and women who were part of the liberating war efforts in France during the Normandy Campaign remember the events they encountered. The women were nurses on D-Day and discuss the horrific images they saw as they took care of the wounded soldiers. The men, all part of the … Continue reading

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Invasion of Normandy
WWII Vet: ‘When We Got to the Beach, There Was No Segregation’

  By Sarah Dejak • June 2, 2014 Uncategorized
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Charles Sprowl, a veteran who served as an army technician in the U.S. First Unit Special Brigade, landed on Omaha Beach on D-Day with his unit. He describes the camaraderie that was created when landing on the beaches of Normandy during World War II. Sprowl explains that there was no … Continue reading

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Invasion of Normandy
Guilt Over Seasickness at Juno Beach

  By Virginia Choi • June 1, 2014 Uncategorized
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Decorated veteran Gordon Smith, part of the 1051 Port Company Royal Engineers, recalls arriving at Juno Beach a day after the Normandy Landings. Smith recalls collapsing while trying to keep himself steady in a packed and tottering barge as his unit awaited orders to get to the beachhead. Strangers placed … Continue reading

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Invasion of Normandy
Two Thousand African-Americans Fought on D-Day

  By Virginia Choi • June 1, 2014 Uncategorized
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African-American soldiers reflect on the Normandy Invasion that took place on June 6, 1944. One veteran emotionally reacts to the cemetery that honors the Americans who fought on Omaha Beach at Pointe du Hoc hill. Allen Price describes being part of the 32 75th Quartermaster Company on D-Day: “Blood all … Continue reading

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Invasion of Normandy
[Text] Minister With the Fighting First Division At Omaha

  By Sarah Dejak • May 20, 2014 Uncategorized
dday_burkhalter

“As I lay there listening I thought of the awfulness of it all; the birds were singing and we Human Beings were trying to kill each other.” John G. Burkhalter was a former Miami minister before becoming part of the 1st Infantry Division with the U.S. Army during the Normandy … Continue reading

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Invasion of Normandy
[Text] ‘Some German Shells Started Whizzing By’

  By Sarah Dejak • May 20, 2014 Uncategorized
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“It was as though the curtain was about to go up on one of the biggest shows in history, and I was part of the cast! I knew it was going to be a small part, but the overriding sense of it all was that I was there!” Raymond L. … Continue reading

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Invasion of Normandy
Canadian Vets Tear-up While Recalling D-Day

  By Sarah Dejak • May 15, 2014 Uncategorized
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“There were five that didn’t make it and our tank did. One out of six tanks. There were five wiped out right there. 25 men. Five tanks.” Canadian veterans involved in the invasion of Juno Beach on D-Day discuss what they remember from the mission. The men tear-up as they … Continue reading

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Invasion of Normandy
A Juno Beach D-Day Landing

  By Sarah Dejak • May 15, 2014 Uncategorized
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John “Jack” Springer, a veteran who served in the army during the Normandy Campaign, talks about landing on Juno Beach during D-Day. He discusses how his faith grew during that time, as well as how he prided himself in putting others before himself. In Springer’s words: “I wasn’t scared for … Continue reading

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Invasion of Normandy
Why Germans Didn’t Shoot This D-Day Bagpiper

  By Morgan Birck • May 2, 2014 Uncategorized
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Bill Millin, the personal piper to Lord Lovat, a prominent British Commando in World War II, was ordered by Lovat to play the bagpipes as his fellow soldiers died around him on Sword Beach and all the way to the seize of Pegasus Bridge during the Normandy Landings. Millin asked … Continue reading