"Mementoes of Days in Service" details Lawrence Layden's service in World War II from his induction in June 1941, six months before Pearl Harbor, until his formal discharge in December, 1945. Part of the 67th Tactical Reconnaissance Group, Layden's squadron provided aerial reconnaissance for Operation Overlord and the assault on Nazi Germany. Through photos and text, Layden's scrapbook follows him from his initial assignment in Louisville, Kentucky to bases in England and continental Europe. The album contains reconnaissance photos used in the assault on Europe, photographs of Layden at various bases throughout the war and several photographs of Buchenwald concentration camp, visited by Layden six days after its liberation.
Layden's first military security pass from Bowman Field, Louisville, Kentucky, issued June 26, 1941 and another card enabling him entry to the local Service Club.
A black and white photograph taken shortly after the liberation of the Concentration Camp Buchenwald in Germany in April 1945. The photograph is of an SS general being returned to the scene of the Holocaust crimes at Buchenwald. The general is seen walking second from left,the contributor, Charles C. Cross, is seen to the far right in a helmut with his hands on his hips.
A black and white photograph taken shortly after the liberation of the Concentration Camp Buchenwald in Germany in May 1945. The photograph is of a memorial dedicated to those who died at Buchenwald.
A black and white photograph taken at the Buchenwald Concentration Camp in Germany shortly after its liberation in April 1945. The photo is of a boy between two liberated inmates of Buchenwald.
A black and white photograph taken shortly after the liberation of the Concentration Camp Buchenwald in Germany in April 1945. The photograph is of a gallows and, in the background, a pile of human ashes.
A black and white photograph taken shortly after the liberation of the Concentration Camp Buchenwald in Germany in April 1945. The photograph is of dead prisoners stacked like cordwood awaiting cremation.
The reverse of Image 06 on which Charles C. Cross has recorded "They are picking up a few more that didn't quite make it in spite of food and medical aid given by the U.S. Army, too far gone."
A black and white photograph taken shortly after the liberation of the Concentration Camp Buchenwald in Germany in April 1945. The photograph is of the entrance to the ovens at Buchenwald.
The reverse of Image 05 on which Charles C. Cross has recorded "View down the hill." Living conditions and food rations worsened the further one was down the hill.
A black and white photograph taken shortly after the liberation of the Concentration Camp Buchenwald in Germany in April 1945. The photograph is of living conditions at Buchenwald, specifically the sewage draining downhill. Living conditions and food rations worsened as one went further down the hill.
A black and white photograph taken shortly after the liberation of the Concentration Camp Buchenwald in Germany in April 1945. The photograph is of medical workers transporting the bodies of those who had died despite medical aid and food provided by the U.S. Army and the Red Cross.
A black and white photograph taken shortly after the liberation of the Concentration Camp Buchenwald in Germany in April 1945. The photograph is of some of the "healthier" inmates at Buchenwald.
