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Posted by: Megan Harris
I don’t keep a diary, but I used to. When I was in graduate school, I kept a diary on my computer, a la Doogie Howser. I wrote in it nearly every day, sometimes multiple times a day, venting my frustrations with my thesis and my anxieties about the future, and composing cheesy pep talks …
Posted in: Veterans History Project
Posted by: Megan Harris
Seventy years after D-Day, it may feel like the events of June 6, 1944, are well-covered territory. That’s how it has felt at times to me, at least. Between depictions of the Normandy invasion in movies and miniseries such as Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers, and popular histories such as those written …
Posted in: Oral History, Veterans History Project
Posted by: Megan Harris
On a hot, humid day in late May almost 10 years ago, I was on the National Mall in Washington, DC, surrounded by tens of thousands of World War II veterans and their families as part of the National World War II Reunion. The Reunion was organized around the official dedication of the National World …
Posted in: Oral History, Veterans History Project
Posted by: Megan Harris
The following is a guest post by Rachel Telford, Program Specialist at the Veterans History Project. When Veterans History Project staff members are called upon to identify particularly interesting, poignant, or visually appealing collections in our archive, one name that comes up again and again is Kenje Ogata. A Japanese-American who fought for more than …
Posted in: Oral History, Veterans History Project
Posted by: Megan Harris
In a letter dated November 16, 1918, an Army Private First Class stationed near Verdun, France, wrote to his mother, Dear Mother: By firelight on the fought-over ground of this stricken country I pause to rush word to you of my safety + well being. The last three weeks were terrible + of them I …
Posted in: Uncategorized, Veterans History Project
Posted by: Megan Harris
The following is a guest post by Lisa A. Taylor, liaison specialist with the Veterans History Project. A version of this blog post ran on the Library of Congress Blog on March 13th. Disabled combat hero, veterans’ advocate, politician, woman. U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) is many things, most strikingly, a person who has not …
Posted in: Oral History, Veterans History Project
Posted by: Megan Harris
As I write this blog post on March 13, it is 29 degrees here in Washington, DC, and it seems impossible to believe that spring will arrive in just over a week. Emerging from one of the snowiest and coldest winters that many regions of the country have seen in decades, in which the phrase …
Posted in: Oral History, Veterans History Project
Posted by: Megan Harris
The following is a guest post by Rachel Telford, Program Specialist for the Veterans History Project. Founded 73 years ago this month, the United Service Organizations (USO) was created at the request of President Franklin D. Roosevelt to provide entertainment and recreation to members of the military. Six civilian service organizations – the Salvation Army, …
Posted in: Oral History, Veterans History Project
Posted by: Megan Harris
Though the recent polar vortex may have tempered my enthusiasm a bit, this January I’ve been pulling on my running shoes and hitting the pavement with renewed focus. The resolution to exercise more in the new year led me to think about the role that sports have played in military life over the years. Athletics …
Posted in: Uncategorized, Veterans History Project