World War Two

The Finger Lakes During World War Two

October 20, 2023 by Guest Contributor 1 Comment

The bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, pushed a reluctant United States into the Second World War. Factories across the country, including those in Central New York, answered President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s call for American manufacturers to shift production towards military preparedness.

Before the outbreak of the war, factories located in Syracuse and Onondaga County, NY, made shoes, typewriters, air conditioners, washing machines, and many other civilian products. Between 1941 and 1945 however, Syracuse industries manufactured antiaircraft gun mounts, antitank landmines, rifles, machine guns, radar systems, and airplane and ship signaling lights. [Read more…] about The Finger Lakes During World War Two

The Odd Couple: Yussel the Muscle & Maximilian Schmeling

October 5, 2023 by Jaap Harskamp Leave a Comment

Joe Jacobs was born in 1896 to Hungarian Jewish immigrants. He grew up in the neighborhood of Hell’s Kitchen, Midtown Manhattan, then a bastion of poor Irish Americans, where his father ran a tailor shop.

For many young males living in that tough setting, boxing was both a badge of identity and a means of survival. Every immigrant neighborhood had its own champions and heroes. Boxing was a flag of ethnic pride, attracting a large and loyal local following. [Read more…] about The Odd Couple: Yussel the Muscle & Maximilian Schmeling

American Culture and 1920s Netherlands

September 22, 2023 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

During the 1920s, the Netherlands excelled in dullness, it is said. But Kees Wouters shows how the cobwebs of pillarized society were blown away by a new musical wind from the West: Jazz! Exalted by many, vilified by others, Dutch musicians playing American jazz conquered music halls and radio waves alike and even made the Dutch dance.

According to Dutch historian Hermann von der Dunk, writing in the early 1980s, life in the Netherlands after World War I was as exciting as in a girls’ boarding school. Nothing much happened. Despite the presence of about a million destitute Belgian refugees, the horrors of the war had largely passed the Netherlands by. [Read more…] about American Culture and 1920s Netherlands

4-H Clubs & Victory Gardens During World War Two

September 16, 2023 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

First promoted during World War One, War Gardens or Victory Gardens provided American citizens an opportunity to assist with the war effort. Americans were encouraged to produce their own food by planting vegetable gardens in their backyards, churchyards, city parks, and playgrounds.

According to the 1919 pamphlet War Gardening and Home Storage of Vegetables, the War Gardens of America produced food “which helped establish the balance of power between starvation and abundance” in Europe during the final two years of the war. [Read more…] about 4-H Clubs & Victory Gardens During World War Two

Anna Rosenberg: A Key Aide to FDR and Truman

September 8, 2023 by Bob Cudmore Leave a Comment

This week on the Historians Podcast, author Christopher C. Gorham discusses his biography of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry Truman aide Anna Rosenberg, The Confidante: The Untold Story of the Woman Who Helped Win WW II and Shape Modern America (Citadel Press, 2023).

Anna Rosenberg was dubbed by Life magazine as “far and away the most important woman in the American government.” From New York City, Rosenberg devised a plan that helped diversify the ranks of factory workers during the Second World War. She also served as deputy defense secretary during the Korean War. [Read more…] about Anna Rosenberg: A Key Aide to FDR and Truman

Harlem’s ‘French’ Hero: The Multi-Talented Eugene Bullard

August 29, 2023 by Jaap Harskamp 1 Comment

What has gone down in history as the Peekskill Riot was an attack in 1949 by a horde of white supremacists on African-Americans attending a Civil Rights benefit concert in Peekskill, Westchester County, NY. The show, scheduled for August 27th, was headlined by bass-baritone Paul Robeson, the left-wing campaigner and advocate of racial equality.

Just before the singer’s arrival in Peekskill, concertgoers were brutally attacked by some three hundred troublemakers, many of them carrying baseball bats. As the local police did not intervene, thirteen people were wounded in the mayhem. The concert was cancelled and postponed until September 4th. With local labor unions providing security, the event proceeded that night before an audience of 20,000 people. Robeson was joined on stage by folk singers Pete Seeger, Hope Foye and others. [Read more…] about Harlem’s ‘French’ Hero: The Multi-Talented Eugene Bullard

J Robert Oppenheimer in Schenectady

July 20, 2023 by Guest Contributor Leave a Comment

On October 21, 1941, 46 days before Pearl Harbor, The National Academy of Sciences Uranium Committee met in the office of Dr. William C. Coolidge, director of the General Electric Research Laboratory in Schenectady. This top-secret meeting was historic for two reasons. [Read more…] about J Robert Oppenheimer in Schenectady

Dutch Prince Bernhard, His American Jeep and Two Women Passengers

July 17, 2023 by Guest Contributor 1 Comment

During the Second World War, the English secret service did not trust the German-born Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld, son-in-law of Queen Wilhelmina of The Netherlands. Yet he was wildly popular among the Dutch population suffering under the Nazi yoke. So much so that he could get away with a few missteps.

In the fall of 1944, the immediate future of many people in The Netherlands looked distinctly grim. Following the Allied invasion in Normandy in June, France, as well as Belgium and southern parts of The Netherlands, had been liberated quickly. [Read more…] about Dutch Prince Bernhard, His American Jeep and Two Women Passengers

World War II Home Front Memories

July 9, 2023 by Guest Contributor 1 Comment

For the family of Italian immigrants Genaro and Jenny Lambert, a July, 1943 headline “ALLIED INVASION OF SICILY” had special meaning. Although the German occupation of Europe – Poland had been overtaken in thirty five days; Belgium, Netherlands, Luxemburg, and France had surrendered in six weeks- painted a grim picture, the newspapers’ headline created hope. No one thought defeating the Axis powers would be easy, but maybe the tide was turning. [Read more…] about World War II Home Front Memories

V is for Victory: Roosevelt’s Revolution & World War II

July 2, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

V Is For Victory: Franklin Roosevelt’s American Revolution and the Triumph of World War II (Scribner, 2023) by Craig Nelson takes a look at how FDR confronted an American public disinterested in going to war in Europe, skillfully won their support, and pushed government and American industry to build the greatest war machine in history, “the arsenal of democracy” that won the Second World War. [Read more…] about V is for Victory: Roosevelt’s Revolution & World War II