WWIIVHP BLOG
Discover the latest from the WWII Veterans History Project.
Follow our journey of capturing the stories of WWII veterans, educating the next generation, and giving the past a future, one story at a time.
96-YEAR-OLD WWII 1ST ENGINEER COMBAT BN VETERAN
We recently had the opportunity to interview 96-year-old Lawrence Bailey, a WWII veteran who served as a Sergeant in the 1st Engineer Combat Battalion during the occupation of Germany.Although he never saw combat, Bailey’s job was hazardous – and instrumental in the US military’s efforts to denazify, stabilize, and rebuild Germany following World War II…
REMEMBERING PEARL HARBOR | 81ST ANNIVERSARY
Today marks the 81st anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, December 7, 1941. We honor all service members present during the attack and remember those who lost their lives on that fateful day…
A WWII THANKSGIVING
Happy Thanksgiving from the WWII Veterans History Project! Today, we are thankful for the sacrifices made by our nation’s Greatest Generation in fighting to preserve peace and democracy across the world…
WWII BATTLE OF THE BULGE VETERAN DIES AT 99
Please join us in remembering WWII Veteran Joseph Watson, who passed away last Tuesday in South Carolina. He was 99. Three years ago, we had the opportunity to join Watson on his return to the battlefield where he fought for the first time since the war…
VETERANS DAY 2022 — HONORING OUR GREATEST GENERATION
On this Veterans Day, we honor and pay tribute to the brave men and women who have served our country in the armed forces…
US MARINE CORPS BIRTHDAY
Happy 247th birthday, U.S. Marine Corps! Today we salute and honor all members of the Corps who have selflessly served and protected our country. Semper Fi!
97-YEAR-OLD 101ST AIRBORNE VETERAN OF NORMANDY
Michael Camasso is a 97-year-old WWII veteran of the 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division and one of the last surviving members of his unit, which saw fierce combat across the European theater from Normandy to Germany…
WWII US NAVY VETERAN DIES AT 96 | USS VELLA GULF
Please join us in remembering the life of WWII US Navy veteran Donald Tracy, who passed away today at the age of 96. Tracy was drafted during the height of WWII and chose to enter the Navy, following in his father’s footsteps…
TUSKEGEE AIRMEN WWII VETERAN TURNS 100
Please join us in wishing a happy 100th birthday to WWII veteran Daniel Keel, one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen, a group of Black pilots who persevered in the face of racism within the United States armed forces and were able to make a valuable contribution to the war effort…
LONGSTANDING MONARCH AND WWII VETERAN QUEEN ELIZABETH II DIES AT 96
Queen Elizabeth II has died at the age of 96. Her death marks the end of an era, coinciding with the rapid passing of the World War II generation. She was the last surviving head of state to have served during World War II…
WORLD WAR II BEGINS | 83 YEARS AGO TODAY
83 years ago today, on September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, triggering the outbreak of World War II. For the first time, the German blitzkrieg was put into action. Although the Polish army fought hard to defend their country, they were unprepared and quickly overwhelmed by numbers and superior tactics. In less than a month, the entire nation had been overrun and occupied…
MOLOTOV-RIBBENTROP PACT | 83RD ANNIVERSARY
On August 23, 1939, Germany shocked the world when Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop flew to Moscow and signed a non-aggression pact with Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov. The secret terms called for a partition of Poland, with Germany invading the Western half, while Soviet forces occupied the East…
DIEPPE RAID | 80TH ANNIVERSARY
On August 19, 1942, the Allies launched Operation Jubilee, an amphibious attack on the German-occupied port of Dieppe in northern France. It tested the possibility of a large scale beach landing in Western Europe and was designed to infiltrate and destroy critical military targets, including German coastal defenses and port facilities…
VICTORY OVER JAPAN | 77TH ANNIVERSARY
Today marks the 77th Anniversary of VJ Day, marking the official end of WWII. On August 15, 1945, in a radio broadcast to his Empire, Hirohito announced Japan's unconditional surrender to the Allies. In his somber speech, he noted that the use of "a new and most cruel bomb", led to the surrender and that further fighting would only cause "the ultimate collapse and obliteration of the Japanese nation"…
NAGASAKI BOMBING | 77TH ANNIVERSARY
Three days after the world’s first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, the Japanese surrender still not forthcoming. As a result, the Americans chose a second target. On August 9, a B-29 took off from Tinian airbase and dropped an atomic bomb on Nagasaki, a large coastal city on the Japanese island of Kyushu. This bomb was nicknamed "Fat Man" and produced similar results as the Hiroshima bomb…
WWII US NAVY WAVES VETERAN TURNS 101
101-year-old Priscilla Getchell was born in Massachusetts in 1921 and attended Boston University before she answered the nation's call to serve in the US Navy's Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES) one year after the attack on Pearl Harbor…
HIROSHIMA BOMBING | 77TH ANNIVERSARY
It was a calm and sunny morning on August 6, 1945, when the B-29 bomber Enola Gay departed the American air base on the island of Tinian. Its destination: the city of Hiroshima. At approximately 8:15 a.m. local time, the world's first atomic bomb, nicknamed “Little Boy,” was dropped on the city. The explosion was equal to 15 kilotons of TNT, and it sent a radioactive blast wave across the densely populated metropolis…
JFK PT BOAT SUNK BY JAPANESE
On this day in 1943, PT-109 was rammed and sunk by a Japanese destroyer in the South Pacific. With future President John F. Kennedy in command, PT-109 and the remarkable story of the crew’s survival has become legendary…
DECORATED WWII FIGHTER PILOT DIES AT 101
Today the WWII Veterans History Project honors the life and service of decorated WWII fighter pilot Jack Hallett, who recently passed away at the age of 101. We had the privilege to interview him in 2018, capturing his wartime memories in a compelling video interview…
HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR AND WWII VETERAN DIES AT 99
Today the WWII Veterans History Project honors the life and service of Holocaust survivor and WWII veteran Harry Stern. Harry recently passed away at the age of 99. We had the privilege to interview him in 2019, preserving his wartime memories for generations to come…