WWII German Enveleope

[Reinhard Hardegen]

80 years old this year, hard to believe some one kept this envelope this long, and that it survived the whole war....

[Reinhard Hardegen]

It's a population census for 1939. Munich was the Capital of the National Socialist Movement. It is dated April 24th 1939 to the registry office in Bavaria.

Just wanted to share a little bit of history.

[K-61]

That is a lovely little piece of history you have there.

I have a friend who has a child's food bowl from the Nazi era. When the child ate their food there was a picture of a teddy bear imprinted on the bottom. I guess as an incentive to eat. Underneath the base there is a logo with manufacturer information and Nazi markings.

He calls it "Hitler's breakfast bowl."

My son-in-law's grandfather was a Heer soldier during WW2. He passed years ago but his widow is still alive. She once offered me his "soldat buch" if I am spelling it correctly, basically his record book. As keen as I was to have it I told her that it more properly belongs to one of her adult children who have a more direct connection to Opa. It seemed the decent thing to do. She also offered me a soldier's dictionary book which was distributed to the soldiers, and I suppose also to the Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine, before or around the time of Barbarossa perhaps, containing German words and phrases and their Russian versions. Again, for the same reason I declined.

But if I ever get the offer again I suspect my resolve shall weaken.

[Reinhard Hardegen]

Originally Posted by K-61

That is a lovely little piece of history you have there.

I have a friend who has a child's food bowl from the Nazi era. When the child ate their food there was a picture of a teddy bear imprinted on the bottom. I guess as an incentive to eat. Underneath the base there is a logo with manufacturer information and Nazi markings.

He calls it "Hitler's breakfast bowl."

My son-in-law's grandfather was a Heer soldier during WW2. He passed years ago but his widow is still alive. She once offered me his "soldat buch" if I am spelling it correctly, basically his record book. As keen as I was to have it I told her that it more properly belongs to one of her adult children who have a more direct connection to Opa. It seemed the decent thing to do. She also offered me a soldier's dictionary book which was distributed to the soldiers, and I suppose also to the Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine, before or around the time of Barbarossa perhaps, containing German words and phrases and their Russian versions. Again, for the same reason I declined.

But if I ever get the offer again I suspect my resolve shall weaken.

That's a great story, it is important to keep the history alive and never forget it. That way we learn from our mistakes (hopefully) and it's the family history that makes us who we are...

[K-61]

Amen, brother.

Military service in my family that I am aware of goes back to WW1, when my great grandfather served in the Royal Navy, as a Newfoundland seaman. Newfoundland was a British colony then. In WW2 one grandfather was in the merchant marine and the other fished to help produce food. I had various uncles who served in the air force and such, again under the Union Jack. In the late 40's Nfld joined Canada, and eventually I served as a reservist infantryman under the red Maple Leaf.

It is nice to look back in family albums and see my forbears in uniform, and alongside them the women who loved and waited for them. As a child I heard some of their stories, and others they never shared.

This generation [certain countries, not all] have never known war. That is the outcome that was hoped for them. I feel it is too easily taken for granted. As the saying goes, freedom isn't free. May we show our appreciation for the sacrifices of past generations by preserving the peace and freedom they bled to achieve.

[Reinhard Hardegen]

Originally Posted by K-61

Amen, brother.

Military service in my family that I am aware of goes back to WW1, when my great grandfather served in the Royal Navy, as a Newfoundland seaman. Newfoundland was a British colony then. In WW2 one grandfather was in the merchant marine and the other fished to help produce food. I had various uncles who served in the air force and such, again under the Union Jack. In the late 40's Nfld joined Canada, and eventually I served as a reservist infantryman under the red Maple Leaf.

It is nice to look back in family albums and see my forbears in uniform, and alongside them the women who loved and waited for them. As a child I heard some of their stories, and others they never shared.

This generation [certain countries, not all] have never known war. That is the outcome that was hoped for them. I feel it is too easily taken for granted. As the saying goes, freedom isn't free. May we show our appreciation for the sacrifices of past generations by preserving the peace and freedom they bled to achieve.