History Commons^™

The Shelburne Line Allowed Up To 200 Airmen To Get Back To England To Fly Against Nazi Germany, Kellian Clink

Library Services Publications

The Shelburne Line, facilitated by Military Intelligence, Section 9, was something like the American Underground Railroad, but in this case, it was developed during the waning days of World War II to help evading or escaping aircrew to get back to fly against the Nazis. Wherever the airmen went down, they were first housed in Paris, then were accompanied to a small town in Brittany, where a BBC announcement would alert the helpers to start conducting the airmen to “la maison d’Alphonse” atop a Nazi patrolled promontory. From that house, they would have to descend a steep cliff, wait anxiously …

From Enemies To Friends: German Prisoners-Of-War In Michigan During World War Ii, Abigail J. Runk

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

During World War II, the United States government created a program, with the assistance of other Allied forces to house, care, and feed foreign Axis troops in the United States. Sent on Liberty ships to American shores, approximately 425,000 German prisoners arrived between 1943 and 1945. Stationed in camps across the country, these prisoners interacted with the citizenry and directly challenged their ideology.

For prisoners sent to Michigan, the citizens willfully violated War Department guidelines concerning prisoner treatment. The violations were not inhumane. Rather, the disobedience came from being too friendly, supplying prisoners with food, conversation and clothing, which was …

We Are Better For Having Survived: Tejanas In World War Ii, Ashleigh Champagne

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The contributions of women during World War II were significant to the Allies’ success. Women in the United States took on responsibilities that were typically not within their traditional roles. Latinas also impacted the war efforts, and their contributions have garnered less attention. Specifically focusing on the Mexican American women in Texas, this paper uses oral histories from archives located in Texas colleges, universities, and public libraries to highlight the ways these Tejanas were essential to society during wartime, how it challenged their traditional and cultural identity, and how that change inspired them to organize to fight for their communities …

Larkins, Sovern John, B. 1928 (Sc 3733), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 3733. Letters, 1947-1948, to Sovern John Larkins, Princeton, Kentucky, written during his U.S. Army service with American occupation forces in post-World War II Japan. A fellow servicemen describes conditions on his return home to Louisville, Kentucky and his wife’s reaction to his news that he dated a Japanese girl; his mother sends a Christmas card; a Princeton pastor expresses his good wishes; and a former classmate from the University of Kentucky sends greetings. Includes a photograph of four unidentified servicemen, and additional data about Larkins supplied by his daughter, 2024.

Sites Of Incarceration And Forced Labour Under The Nazi Regime And Its Allies, 1933-1945, Maja Kruse, Anne Kelly Knowles

History Faculty Scholarship

This map was commissioned by the United Nations Education Outreach Section to be part of a refreshed permanent Holocaust exhibition at UN headquarters in New York City. The contents of the map draw on years of research by Anne Kelly Knowles, Maja Kruse, and other members of the Holocaust Project research team at the University of Maine, Duke University, Washington University at St. Louis, and Middlebury College. This research was supported chiefly by grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, with additional support from team members' institutions. No territorial boundaries are shown because they changed many times from 1938 …

Bureaus Of Ungentlemanly Warfare: Comparing The Roles Of Women In The Special Operations Executive And The Office Of Strategic Services During World War Ii, Adaline Nolley

Senior Honors Theses

In 1940, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill created the Special Operations Executive. The SOE was one of the first government agencies to recruit female spies. In 1941, United States President Franklin Roosevelt commissioned the Office of Strategic Services, which also employed women. The organizations approached the concept of female agents differently. The OSS maintained female staff in domestic offices, but employed foreign women as agents. The SOE recruited women to go abroad, as they were less suspicious than men in occupied territories. The study of female staff in the OSS and the SOE allow historians to understand roles of women …

Minton Family Papers (Mss 761), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Collection 761. Primarily personal correspondence of John Dean Minton, a Trigg County, Kentucky native who served as fifth president of Western Kentucky University, his father John Ernest Minton and brother Layton Wilson Minton.

Penner, William Hazel, 1914-1990 (Mss 759), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Collection 759. Letters of William H. Penner (“Willie” or “Bill”) to his parents and brother in Warren County, Kentucky, written during his World War II military service in North Carolina, California and New Guinea. Includes a few other letters to Penner’s mother Maggie.

Fear, Racism, Agriculture: The Drive For Japanese Internment, Brandon James March

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The focus of this dissertation is the timing of the forced evacuation of the ethnic Japanese population from the West Coast in 1942. This work focuses on three key factors driving the timing of the evacuation: racism, security concerns, and agriculture. Racism has been studied and written about extensively; however, an overview of this factor is critical as it directly influenced the removal of Japanese American citizens in addition to Japanese immigrants. This dissertation will focus on the intellectual origins of racism and prejudice by focusing on key figures and tracing the ideas and beliefs and how they influenced the …

Ua94/5/6 Lucian Flora Student/Alumni Papers, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Scrapbook and memoirs created by alumni Lucian Flora of Smiths Grove, Kentucky of his activities as a soldier in World War II. Flora saw action through North Africa and Italy from 1941 to 1945.

Ua1c11/128 Lucian Flora Photo Collection, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Photographs and postcards removed from Lucian Flora's World War II scrapbook.

The Philippine Economy During The Japanese Occupation, Jasper Lem

Asian Studies: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

The economy of the Philippines was derailed by the Japanese occupation during World War II. As an American colony before World War II, the Philippines had close amicable ties with the United States highlighted by promises of independence on July 4th, 1946. The Philippines also maintained a beneficial economic relationship with the States at this time through extensive foreign trade. However, because of the Japanese invasion, the Philippine economy was robbed of this profitable foreign trade and the promise of independence, severely crippling the island nation and her morale. The first policies implemented by Japan were designed to control the …

Dogma: How A Convenient Narrative Led To The Holocaust, Morgan Rynn Schroeder

History: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

I developed this research paper as a result of my study abroad experience in Germany in June of 2023. In this paper I weave a combination of personal experience, primary sources, and works by historians to explain how Nazi ideology developed into genocide. I also emphasize the importance of how history is remembered in the form of monuments and museums.

James Parks Wilson Family Collection (Mss 755), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscript Collection 755. Primarily genealogical research on the descendants of James Parks Wilson of Hart County, Kentucky. Includes biographical data and papers regarding the military service of his grandson, James Admiral Wilson.

Volksdrogen: The Third Reich Powered By Methamphetamine, Madison Isenberg

Senior Projects

Leading up to and during the Second World War, the Nazified German Government wanted to perpetuate the belief that due to their exceptional strength spread through various forms of propaganda the “Aryan Race” was undefeatable. Unfortunately, this testament, and the propaganda that supported it, is still used by some to substantiate their claims that the Nazis devised the “master race”. The source of their strength has remained largely unresearched, so what was the factor that allowed the German home and war front to possess large amounts of energy to aid in their fight against the Allied forces? Initially, from whisperings …

Bewley, Stanley Clyde, 1915-1979 (Sc 3693), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scan (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 3693. V-mail letter, 28 March 1945, from Army private Stanley Bewley to his sister Mrs. Glen Cole, Austin, Kentucky. He reports on his arrival in Belgium and his homesickness, and asks to be sent some soap and pipe tobacco.

The Impact Of World War Ii On Hawaii, Darrel Raymond Van Hoose

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation will discuss World War II and the declaration of martial law in Hawaii. The attack on Pearl Harbor set in motion a series of events that violated the civil rights of thousands of individuals living in Hawaii. The Supreme Court declared that the military violated the rights of citizens and that the declaration of war did not stop citizens from being protected under the Constitution. Through examining the decisions of government officials in Washington D.C., the military command in Hawaii, the archival documents, and testimonies of both government workers and civilians provided evidence that the United States government …

Torn Between The “Creeds Of The Devil”: The German-Finnish Co-Belligerency In World War Ii, Stephanie Megan Wright

Masters Theses

In an article for the Sunday Chronicle in June 1937, Winston Churchill described Nazism and Communism as “the creeds of the devil.” Caught between these two ideologies that “are at each other’s throats,” Finland attempted to remain a sovereign nation. This would prove to be virtually impossible after the November 1939 Soviet invasion of Finland. While Joseph Stalin and his advisors “expected [a] triumphal parade,” the dogged resistance of the Finnish Army and people “turned [that parade] into a bloody three-month war.” Furnished in the crucible of conflict, battling for their very existence as a nation, the Winter War united …

From Mascot To Marine: The Long Walk To The American Military Dog Program, Elisabeth Jana Phillips

Masters Theses

In World War II, the military dog became synonymous with patriotism and the fight for a free world. In the absence of a military dog program at the beginning of World War II, the United States was the exception amongst Western powers. The establishment of an official military dog program in the United States during World War II was a critical and inevitable step in the development of the country’s military. Through the creative collaboration of civilians and military personnel, the K9 Corps and Dogs for Defense organization produced trained military dogs that had immediate positive impacts on the battlefield …

Perkins, John Casey, 1918-2010 (Mss 753), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid for Manuscripts Collection 753. Reports of the operations of the U.S. Army, Third Infantry Division in Italy, Sicily, France and Germany during World War II. Includes reports relating to the service of Lieutenant Colonel John C. Perkins of Bowling Green, Kentucky in the Third Signal Company. Also includes memoranda of surrender written by Nazi SS officer Otto Skorzeny, taken into custody by Perkins in Austria in May 1945 (Click on "Additional Files" below for scans).

Stewart, James Minor, 1916-2017 (Mss 748), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scans (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Collection 748. Wartime log kept by James M. Stewart, Bowling Green, Kentucky, during his 2½ years as a prisoner of war in Germany during World War II. Includes artwork, poetry and photographs of the prison camp and fellow prisoners.

The Experiences Of African Americans In World War Ii And How They Were Affected Compared To People Of European Descent, Lane Gooding

Masters Theses

The service of African Americans in the United States Army during World War II shaped their perceptions regarding fighting for the same country but with different experiences than their comrades in arms of European descent due to the exposure to racism within their own forces and the harsh realities of warfare. The struggles of African Americans in the army were evident from the start of the United States’ involvement in the war and continued to pose problems even as some soldiers were able to earn the respect of both comrades of European descent and civilians back home. African Americans who …

From Massachusetts To Ravensbrück: Betty Laurie, The United States, And The Holocaust, Delainey Bostley

Honors Program Theses and Projects

The United States has taken a large responsibility in regards to the remembrance and legacy of the Holocaust and World War II, yet the way in which the U.S. remembers the event is fairly narrow. Despite both the war and the Holocaust being a transnational event, remembrance in the United States is so focused on American triumphs and victories that it ignores many elements that give insight into the the overall understanding of the events. Why is that? The life and story of Betty Laurie will provide insight into the answer. Born in the 1890’s in Scotland, she immigrated to …

Carlton J. H. Hayes: Historian, Professor, And America's Forgotten Ambassador, Adam Prescott Manuel

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Carlton Joseph Huntley Hayes was born in Afton, New York, in 1882. His father was the town physician, and his mother was a music teacher. From his parents, he gained a love and appreciation for learning. Upon entering Columbia University at eighteen, young Carlton J.H. Hayes quickly found a niche in history. He was mentored for success by such historical titans as William R. Shepherd, Charles A. Beard, and James Harvey Robinson. Hayes quickly became a strong supporter of the New History School, and his A Political and Social History of Modern Europe is a prime example of that ideology. …

Fire And Fury: The German Tiger Battalions On The Eastern And Western Fronts, 1942-1945, Daniel L. Moore

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

After finding their tanks outclassed in terms of firepower and armor in 1941, Germany opted to design and field a tank that could defeat any enemy tank on the battlefield while remaining nearly impervious to enemy anti-tank rounds. The Tiger I and II were more than capable of serving in this role, but by the time of their introduction, Germany was on the verge of fighting a defensive war that would require large numbers of tanks that could rapidly relocate across a vast front line. The Tiger tank family has been the subject of hundreds, if not thousands, of publications, …

“We Fought For The Right Reasons And God Was On Our Side”: Combat, Faith, And Perseverance During The 28th Infantry Division's Engagement At The Battle Of The Bulge, Walter S. Zapotoczny Jr

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In December 1944, Hitler’s Germany was besieged on every front. Germany was working on super weapons and needed to buy some time to fight off the Red Army and the Allies. Until his super weapons could turn the tide, Hitler opted for a major counteroffensive in the west to split the Allies. Hitler would launch his last military reserves in a desperate gamble aimed at driving to the port of Antwerp through Luxembourg and Belgium. Such a blow, Hitler believed, would wreck the Allied Coalition. One of the divisions facing the main German offensive was the American 28th Infantry Division, …

272nd Army Field Artillery Battalion (Sc 3665), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and scans (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 3665. Materials collected by Haskell Pedigo, a World War II veteran of the U.S. Army’s 272nd Field Artillery Battalion. Includes copies of reports of actions against the enemy, August 1944-June 1945; unit histories, 1944-1945, and other historical data and reminiscences; and reunion materials, lists of attendees, and memorial rolls.

Logan, Leland Hallowell, 1905-1980 (Mss 744), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Collection 744. Correspondence and papers of Bowling Green, Kentucky attorney Leland H. Logan. Includes some personal material regarding his law practice and draft status, diaries for 1944 and 1945, and a small group of files representing his legal work, especially for the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation.

Intellectual Freedom, Cultural Exchange, And Nazi Germany: The Relationship Between The Deutsch-Ausländischer Buchtausch, University Of Denver, And Other Cultural Heritage Institutions, David Fasman

University Libraries: Staff Scholarship

Shortly after Hitler’s rise to power, the Prussian State Library was restructured, birthing a new entity – the Deutsch-Ausländischer Buchtausch (German Foreign Book Exchange, DAB). The DAB was responsible for exchanging books and serials with scholarly institutions worldwide. In 1936, the University of Denver (DU) received a gift of books from the DAB. Nearly fifty percent of the books would be categorized as Nazi propaganda or eugenics literature by current standards. Upon further research, it was discovered that the DAB’s relationships included Stanford, Yale, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the …

Examining The German Public's Response To The Third Reich's Anti-Jewish Policies, Georgetta M. Moore

Masters Theses

The anti-Jewish policies of the Third Reich progressed from anti-Jewish legislation, stripping German Jews of their rights, to systematic mass murder. Deeply rooted antisemitism and Nazi propaganda serving as a vehicle for ideology fostered an environment of approval among most of the German public for certain anti-Jewish policies such as the Nuremberg Laws. The non-Jewish, German public responses to these anti-Jewish policies by the Third Reich shifted over the course of the Nazi’s rule and during World War II. Most of the German public supported anti-Jewish legislation such as laws removing German Jews from civil service occupations because it made …