March, 2009 Detective work by a British historian has unearthed information that could enable thousands to piece together their family histories. Peter Barton was commissioned to carry out research into the identities of World War I casualties discovered in a mass grave at Fromelles in France. He was given access to the basement of the Red Cross headquarters in Geneva. There, he was allowed to examine records that have lain virtually untouched since 1918. He estimates that there could be 20 million sets of details, carefully entered on card indexes, or written into ledgers. They deal with the capture, death, or burial of servicemen from over 30 nations drawn into the conflict; personal effects, home addresses and grave sites cover page after page. All were passed to the Red Cross by the combatants; volunteers logging the information by hand before sending it on to the soldiers' home countries. Read more >>>
November, 2008 Harry LaminNovember 11th, 2008 marked the 90th anniversary of the end of the First World War. At 11 am on the 11th day of the 11th month, Britain observed the anniversary of Armistice Day with two minutes of silence. Nov 11th, 2008 was another ending of sorts for a British blogger. Harry Lamin fought in the war. And for more than a year now, his grandson, Bill Lamin, has been posting online Harry's letters home from the war. That's 90 years to the day that Harry Lamin wrote them. The World's Clark Boyd has this update.
November, 2008
The World's Carol Hills speaks with anchor Lisa Mullins about her grandfather's letters home from WWI, with voiced excerpts from letters, including reaction to the Armistice.
November, 2007
Few wars have matched the horror of the trenches of World War I. Veterans Day, November 11th, marks the day that conflict ended, in 1918. A new book -- published online -- offers a candid view of what World War I was like for one British Army officer. Captain Alexander Stewart called his memoir "The Experiences of a Very Unimportant Officer." His grandson, Cameron Stewart, found the manuscript.
Charles Shay: Photo by Harald Prins and Bunny McBride
November, 2007
On his first official visit to the U.S., French President Nicolas Sarkozy honored seven American veterans of World War II. He decorated them with the medal of the legion of honor, France's highest military and civilian tribute. Among the seven was Charles Norman Shay, a member of the Penobscot Indian Nation in Maine.
Shay honoring a fallen comrade: Photo by Harald Prins and Bunny McBride
June, 2007 For years, Bill Lamin kept his grandfather's letters in a drawer. Now, he's turning them into a blog. His grandfather, Harry, served in the British Army during World War One. Bill Lamin is posting those war-time letters online for anyone to read. And he's posting them one by one, exactly 90 years to the day after each one was written. The World's Clark Boyd has the story.
Bill Lamin reading two letters written by Harry Lamin, both dated June 11th, 1917:
April, 2007
Samuel Benedict Goldberg was one of the last remaining US veterans of World War I. Before his death in December 2006 he told reporter Will Everett about his immigration to the United States and his time in the military.
October 2006
U.S. troops captured the Japanese island of Iwo Jima in March 1945 after one of the fiercest battles of World War II. Navajo "code talkers" were part of the American force, four of them went back to Iwo Jima.
Sam Tso, Albert Smith, Jesse Smith and Keith Little
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