The battleship USS Missouri is best known as the site of the surrender ceremony during which Japanese and Allied officials signed the document that ended World War II, but its fighting life had just begun as it lay anchored in Tokyo Bay that early September morning in 1945. The Missouri was a relatively new ship; […]

Dr. Jerry Sanson Louisiana Maneuvers and Military Museum An American propaganda poster from World War II featured an image of Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto and a quote attributed to him: “I am looking forward to dictating peace to the United States in the White House at Washington.” The Instrument of Surrender that ended the biggest […]

Dr. Jerry Sanson Louisiana Maneuvers and Military Museum Above: Japanese Flag from Hiroshima Even though Americans celebrated the end of World War II and the imminent return home of their loved ones when Japan surrendered, some raised questions about the unconventional weapons that led to the speedy conclusion of the war. Louisiana newspaper editorial writers […]

Dr. Jerry Sanson Louisiana Maneuvers and Military Museum Louisiana residents looked forward hopefully to the end of World War II between Germany’ surrender on 6 May 1945 (Louisiana time), and Japan’s surrender on 15 August. Many of them thought about the consumer goods that would be available once again when the conflict was over. The […]

Dr. Jerry Sanson Louisiana Maneuvers and Military Museum As we begin the month of August that commemorates the 80th anniversary of the physical end of World War II, (the official Japanese surrender ceremony did not occur until September 2) it is worth thinking back about how enormous that conflict was and the cost in human […]

Dr. Jerry Sanson Louisiana Maneuvers and Military Museum Members of the United States Army Nurse Corps played a significant role in World War II providing emergency care to wounded service men while working in unimaginably difficult circumstances. Army nurses experienced unprecedented levels of danger as they provided care under fire in field and evacuation hospitals, […]

By Dr. Jerry Sanson, Louisiana Maneuvers & Military Museum Staff People in Louisiana realized during World War II that the state’s location on the Gulf Coast as well as its being the location of the Mississippi River’s mouth made it a potential target for the country’s enemies. Therefore, many of them volunteered for Civilian Defense […]

Jerry Sanson, Staff Member Louisiana Maneuvers and Military Museum American vehicle manufacturers received orders to cease making cars and trucks for the civilian market on February 22, 1942, thus making 1942 models some of the rarest for collectors to find. The shortened 1942 model year, however, did not mean that vehicle companies stopped turning out […]

Jerry Sanson, Louisiana Maneuvers & Military Museum Staff American military commanders were generally not pleased with the quality of recruits they were expected to turn into Doughboys during World War I. They discovered that the young men were not in good physical condition and that they knew little, often nothing, about American military tradition or […]

By Dr. Jerry Sanson June 6, 2025, marks the 81st anniversary of the Allied invasion of the Normandy beaches in France that sparked the eventual downfall of the Nazi regime in Germany. Allied military leaders and civilians alike realized early in the war that such an invasion was inevitable, but disagreements between American and British […]