World War II 390th Bomb Group Photo Album Containing In-Flight Views of B-17s and Images of Destroyed Targets

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American Historical Ephemera & Photography, I...

By Cowan's Auctions

Jun 26, 2020

Set Reminder 2020-06-26 10:00:00 2020-06-26 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : American Historical Ephemera & Photography, Including African Americana:Premier Auction https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/cowans/american-historical-ephemera-photography-including-african-americana-premier-auction-5208
Cowan's Auctions is delighted to present the June 26 American Historical Ephemera and Photography Auction, including 55 lots devoted to the African American experience, over 175 lots dating from the Civil War Era, and more than 60 lots documenting life in the American West. Cowan's Auctions dawnie@cowans.com

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• Lot Description
  World War II 390th Bomb Group Photo Album Containing In-Flight Views of B-17s and Images of Destroyed Targets
  
  Brown leatherette photo album, 13.375 x 10.375 in., with string-tied spine and black paper leavers. Front cover with gold embossed details and interior cover with affixed 390th Bombardment Group emblem. Contains over 200 photographs, ranging in size from 4.75 x 3.875 in. to 9.75 x 8.125 in., most of which bear pencil inscriptions on versos and ink captions below (on album pages). Subjects and scenes include group portraits of members of the 390th, aerial views of France, Germany, Italy, England and the Netherlands, action shots of B-17 bombers, and sketches of sites around the airbase.    
  
  Highlights include a group portrait of 19 uniformed crewmen captioned below, "390th Bomb Group Photo Section;" a view of in-flight B-17s captioned, "German flak shells bursting amid B-17 Flying Fortresses from our Bomb Group;" a series of four snapshots featuring in-flight B-17s captioned, "(1) Planes dropped bombs & job is done for the day," "(2) Perfect form [indecipherable ] (Each group has RADAR plane. Doesn't carry bombs," "(3) 'This is it,'" and "'(4) 'It won't be long now,'" respectively; a series of four snapshots featuring wreckage in France, collectively captioned "Bomb damages to railroads in France done by aerial bombings to prevent movements and advancements of Nazi Germans. Picture on this & following pages taken by our photo graphic [sic] department to show results & horrors of war in France & Germany," an aerial view of an explosion captioned, "A 'direct-hit' on an all-important target in France by our 'Flying Fortresses,'" a scene featuring German soldiers with arms raised above their heads walking down the street, stamped "(48-LEIPZIG)" in the negative and captioned, "captured Nazis (German);" an image of emaciated bodies piled on top of one another, stamped "(35)" in the negative and captioned "Prisoners of War taken by Nazis & starved to death (same picture was in LIFE) magazine;" and a portrait of an officer leaning against a destroyed rail car stamped "(24-ORD-KASSEL)" in the negative and captioned "Col. Moller resting against bombed freight car."
  
  Album also contains a printed certificate signed by Colonel George W. Von Arb and presented to William E. Lowery for his participation in the 390th Bomb Group. Though little can be found about Lowery's time with the 390th, it is likely he was part of the 13th Combat Wing. 
  
  The 390th Bombardment Group was one of 41 such groups making up the "Mighty 8th" Air Force during World War II. Organized in January of 1943, trained in the United States, and stationed at RAF Framlingham in England, the 390th operated B-17 Flying Fortresses over war-torn Europe and Asia to realize their "Svr Le Nez" emblem ("On The Nose" in English). Until the group's inactivation in August of 1945, the 390th completed more than 300 missions, dropped more than 19,000 tons of bombs, destroyed more than 350 enemy aircraft, and was awarded two Distinguished Unit Citations, eight battle streamers, and several commendations. The group completed many strategic missions before the invasion of Europe, at which point it began serving as a tactical unit supporting ground forces in operations including the D-Day invasion of Normandy and Operation Cobra in the summer of 1944. The 390th not only played a crucial role in some of the most important victories won by the Allied Forces, but it also provided supplies and food to those in need through its many humanitarian missions completed throughout the war. The remarkable efficiency and superlative record of the 390th might be best exemplified by the career of one of its master sergeants, Hewitt "Buck" Dunn, who became the only 8th Air Force crewman to fly in 100 combat missions. The group executed its last combat mission on April 20, 1945, and began the journey home to the United States aboard the RMS Queen Elizabeth a few months later on August 5th. 

  Condition

  Album with minimal wear including some light wear to leather and some ripping to edges of pages. Some photos with toning. 
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