In celebration of the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, the Broomfield Veterans Memorial Museum brings you one more Virtual Coffee & Conversation.

Background: In 1945, the author Gertrude Stein lived as an ex-patriot in the French countryside under the Vichy French government. As a Jew and an American, she had lived in fear of the Nazi regime during the years of the war. When American soldiers from the 47th Infantry liberated her town, she gratefully welcomed them into her home. On page 34 of her 1945 book Wars I Have Seen, she described that joyous day, “How we talked that night, they just brought all America to us every bit of it, they came from Colorado, lovely Colorado, I do not know Colorado, but that is the way I felt about it lovely Colorado and then everybody was tired out and my were we happy, we were, completely and truly happy and completely and entirely worn out with emotion.”

Imagine the release of tension that the liberation of France brought to people like Stein and so many others! As you do so, enjoy this presentation from Lew Moir about underground tunnels in Europe and how they were used during the war.

In the Coffee & Conversation from April 2019 linked here and embedded above, Lew Moir describes four different tunnel systems used in Europe during World War II.

African Americans in the military have long had to fight a two-front battle. They fight against the enemy (whether against the British in the American Revolution, Confederates during the Civil War, fascists in World War II, or the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong during the Vietnam War) and they also fight against racism in the United States.

This two-front battle is a tragic outcome of the legacy of slavery and oppression of black people in the United States. The persistence and dedication of the thousands upon thousands of black members of the armed forces throughout America’s history is truly remarkable. These men and women continually strove to upend the systems of discrimination and disenfranchisement in the United States, revealing their courage and determination in the face of rampant and unrelenting racism.

At the outset of World War II, James G. Thompson, a black member of the segregated U.S. Army wrote, “Being an American of dark complexion and some 26 years, these questions flash through my mind: ‘Should I sacrifice my life to live half American?’ ‘Will things be better for the next generation in the peace to follow?’…‘Is the kind of America I know worth defending?’”

Thompson’s questions helped to galvanize the “Double Victory” campaign—the fight against racism at home and fascism overseas—during World War II. Sadly, Thompson’s questions still have relevance today, as America continues to grapple with societal turmoil inherited from the past.

Continuing our focus on women in the armed forces, this post will delve into women in the Air Force and Coast Guard.

Air Force—Much like the Women’s Auxiliary Corps (WAC) for the Army during World War II, the Women’s Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) provided essential support to the United States’ war effort. Women pilots who had been trained by WASP flew 80 percent of all ferrying missions, delivering over 12,000 aircraft. Stationed at air bases across the U.S. during the war, they proved their worth time and time again.

Coast Guard—
A few women served in the Naval Coastal Defense Reserve during World War I, but World War II saw a much larger group of women join them. Formed around the same time as the other auxiliaries during World War II, the Coast Guard Women’s Reserve welcomed a total of 11,868 enlisted women and 978 female officers throughout the course of the war, paving the way for women in the Coast Guard up through today.

Sources:

Cole, Jean Hascall and Wendy Cole, (1992). Women Pilots of World War II. University of Utah Press. 

Tilley, John A., (1992). A History of Women in the Coast Guard.

As part of the Broomfield Veterans Memorial Museum’s “miniseries” about women in the armed forces, this post will dive into women in the Navy (who certainly made WAVEs) as well as female Marines.

Navy—Women took on roles in the Navy beyond nurse starting in World War I. The first female inductee in the U.S. Navy was Loretta Perfectus Walsh in 1917. Beyond the yeoman role, women also served as draftsmen, pharmacists, torpedo assemblers, photographers, telegraph operators and chemists. After the war, these women were released from active duty.

During World War II, women were again brought into service in the Navy, this time as a separate auxiliary called Women Appointed for Voluntary Emergency Service, or WAVES. Serving with distinction around the world, the WAVES broke barriers for the women who continue to serve the country in the Navy.

Marines—

World War I saw the Marines recruit women into the Marine Corps reserve, as depicted in the picture above. By the end of the war, 305 women had served, most of whom went to France to fill administrative roles.

During World War II, over 20,000 women served in the Marines. It is estimated that one third to a one half of the positions on Marine bases during the later part of the war were filled by women. One such of these was Irene Brophy, whose photograph is below and also on display at the BVMM in the Women in World War II exhibit.

As with the other branches of the military, despite obstacles and difficulties, women served in the Marines in a variety of capacities in all subsequent American conflicts. Take a moment today to appreciate these pioneering women.

Sources: Lacy, Linda (2004). We are Marines!: World War I to the Present. Tar Heel Chapter, NC-1, Women Marines Association.

Hall, Mary-Beth (1 September 2014). Crossed Currents: Navy Women in a Century of Change. Potomac Books, Inc.

Women have served the United States in all of its wars—from Molly Pitcher during the American Revolution to Mary Owens who dressed as a man to fight in the Civil War to female spies in World War I—but only recently have been granted mostly equal treatment in the armed forces. One of the groups that paved the way for the current status of women in the military was the WAC. As we’ll learn in future posts, service women from other branches of the military also played a large role in shifting the perception of women in the armed forces.

Formed in May 1942, the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (later changed to Women’s Army Corps), was a direct way for women to engage in the effort to defeat the Axis powers. Ultimately, over 140,000 women served in the WAC during World War II. Stenographers, arms maintenance, switchboard operators, mechanics, and drivers were some of the many Army support roles women took on. Serving both stateside and overseas, these individuals proved to be both capable and effective. General Douglas MacArthur referred to the women in the WAC as “my best soldiers” as the WAC became an essential part of the war effort.

While the WAC did not lead directly to the break-throughs for women that some had expected, some of the current success of women in the armed forces can be traced to this pioneering group.

As of 2014, women comprised a full 14 percent of the active duty Army and continue to break barriers. For further reading about women in the Army, visit the website here.

Keep an eye on our website for posts about women in the other branches of the armed forces in the coming weeks.

You can also watch Colleen Sawyer’s excellent presentation on female spies in World War I at our Virtual Coffee & Conversation linked here and below.

Sources:

Morden, Bettie J. (2000). The Women’s Army Corps, 1945-1978. United States Army Center of Military History.

Treadwell, Mattie E. (1954). The Women’s Army Corps. United States Army in World War II (1991 ed.).

On the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, we continue to share our Virtual Coffee & Conversations with you. Below and here you will learn more from Royal Schmidt, who fought in Charlie Company of the 160th Battalion in the 40th Infantry Division during action on Guadalcanal and New Britain.

Background: The war in the Pacific stretched from the Aleutian islands in the northeast (see image above) to New Guinea and Indonesia in the south west. From fierce fighting on remote jungle islands like Guadalcanal (see image below) to operations near the freezing Arctic Circle, the war in the Pacific was fought in the air, at sea, and on islands both large and small.

Take a moment today to reflect on the heroism, death, and service of the men and women who fought in World War II in the Pacific. Be sure to watch the Coffee & Conversation with your loved ones as you do.

The Broomfield Veterans Memorial Museum continues to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, this time with a photo retrospective of the London Blitz.

Background:

Near the beginning of World War II, Hitler set his sights on subduing Great Britain through a series of intensive bombing raids. Between September 1940 and May 1941, it is estimated that 45,000 short tons of bombs were dropped on Britain by the Nazi Luftwaffe. Intending both to damage Britain’s wartime industrial infrastructure and its citizen’s morale, the Blitz did not ultimately succeed in breaking Great Britain.

While certainly devastating and psychologically destructive (to say nothing about the lives lost and homes shattered) the Blitz didn’t achieve Hitler’s primary objective. The Royal Air Force (RAF) and ground-based anti-aircraft guns held their own, and the citizens—despite some turmoil and often severe hardship—remained unbowed. From sending women and children to the countryside, to sheltering at night in London Underground tunnels, the citizens of Great Britain adapted to life under air raids during the nine months of the Blitz.

By spring of 1941, Hitler had shifted his attention to invading the Soviet Union with Operation Barbarossa, and the Blitz ended. As you scroll through the pictures below, reflect on how you might have responded during this time. Use historical empathy to put yourself in the shoes of the people of the past and to imagine what life might have been like 75 years ago….

This year marks 75 years since the end of World War II. The Broomfield Veterans Memorial Museum continues to commemorate the end of the war by re-posting videos from past Coffee & Conversations that relate to this momentous event.

ABOUT V-E DAY: V-E Day (short for Victory in Europe) saw Nazi Germany unconditionally surrender to Allied Forces in Berlin on May 8, 1945. The surrender triggered celebrations in Allied countries across the world. Despite this huge victory, the ongoing war against Japan had not been won yet, and it would be nearly three months before the war was finally over.

Below and here you will find an embedded video of Brad Beeler’s account of his experiences in Germany in 1944 and 1945 with the 102nd Infantry Division. Beeler was awarded a Bronze Star medal for his heroism in action in Germany. He was discharged in 1945 and moved to Colorado in 1948 with his wife.

The social isolation spurred by COVID-19 has prompted many to employ the long-lost art of letter writing. Hand-written letters possess a thrill upon receipt that an email or a text cannot match. The act of opening the envelope and then holding the paper or card that your friend, relative, or lover recently touched has a visceral power and attraction.

For the men and women deployed in the military, letters have long been a vital connection to the home-front and a welcome respite from the drudgery and horror of war. In the Coffee & Conversation linked above and below from October 22, 2016, Colleen Sawyer describes the spirited love letters exchanged between her mother and father. Between the years of 1942 and 1945, her father, George Sawyer, and her mother, Jane Remer, exchanged many, many letters with each other and their discourse blossomed into love. Sawyer was deployed in North Africa and Italy during World War II, and it was clear through these letter that his relationship “on paper” with Remer was the beating heart of his persistence in the face of difficulty and boredom.

Learn more about this fascinating story and perhaps be motivated to write letters to your loved ones by watching the video linked here or above.