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John Baber at time of interview [4/19/2005]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army Air Forces/Corps
  • Unit of Service: 8th Air Force
  • Location of Service: European Theater; Camp Polk, Louisiana; Oklahoma
  • Highest Rank: Major
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/50101

View full service history

"Really, it became a situation of living day to day trying to just keep going until we knew the ultimate end would be that we'll get liberated some day" (audio interview, 02:12:51.0).

Before bailing out of the B-17 he was co-piloting, John Baber had never made a jump from a plane. "Psychologically, that's a helluva sensation," he says in his video interview (00:59:31.0). Along with all but one of his crew, who was never accounted for, he dropped into the Zuiderzee in central Holland and was taken prisoner by the Germans. For Baber, the war was over. Many POW stories include details of suffering, but for Baber and his fellow prisoners at Stalag Luft 1, a German Air Force camp, their treatment was better than expected while still being onerous. He does not remember any guards who were sadistic, and escape attempts were punished, but with confinement rather than execution. The men were even allowed to play baseball, hold boxing matches, and perform in plays. Baber's collection includes 177 remarkable photos depicting everyday life inside the camp in a way that is rarely seen.

John William Baber Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript

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About this Item

Title

  • John William Baber Collection

Names

  • Popowitch, Joe
  • Indian Prairie Public Library
  • Baber, John William
  • Thomas, Martin W.

Home State

  • Illinois

Headings

  • -  Baber, John William
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army Air Forces/Corps.
  • -  Prisoner of War -- United States

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army Air Forces/Corps
    • Unit of Service: 8th Air Force
    • Location of Service: European Theater; Camp Polk, Louisiana; Oklahoma
    • Highest Rank: Major
    • Dates of Service: 1941-1945
    • Prisoner of War: Yes
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: veteran
    • Service History Note: The veteran flew ten missions on a B-17 bomber.

Materials

  • Audio: Audio Cassette [2 items] -- Oral history interview (collected 2005-04-19)
  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of audio recording (collected 2005-04-19)
  • Photograph: Copy photographic print [179 items] -- Photograph (collected 1944-1945)
  • Computer File: Floppy Disk [4 items] -- Multiple types of electronic files (collected 1944-2005; 2006-11-08)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/50101

Cite as

  • John William Baber Collection (AFC/2001/001/50101), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • image
  • online text

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Wars & Conflicts

Service Branch

Location of Service

Service Unit

Prisoner of War

Highest Rank

Service Entrance

Discharge Status

Gender

Home State

Interviewee

Interviewer

Organization/Affiliation

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Popowitch, Joe, Indian Prairie Public Library, John William Baber, and Martin W Thomas. John William Baber Collection. 1941. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.50101/.

APA citation style:

Popowitch, J., Indian Prairie Public Library, Baber, J. W. & Thomas, M. W. (1941) John William Baber Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.50101/.

MLA citation style:

Popowitch, Joe, et al. John William Baber Collection. 1941. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.50101/>.