Destroyed bridge at the Moselle River, France, 1945

Gift in Memory of Jack Hershkowitz
Description: 

Photograph. Remains of a bridge on the banks of the Moselle River; another bridge is in the background; photograph taken from a wooden bridge. Personal caption on reverse: "Crossing the Moselle River under more favorable circumstances than when we crossed it last year. All brides [sic] are blown up." Metz, France. October 1945

Image Information

Accession Number: 
Date: 
1945-10-
Location: 
Hometown: 
Branch: 
Theater of Service: 
Campaign / Event: 
POW / KIA: 
Collection Level: 
Items from the service of Jack Hershkowitz, who was a switchboard operator in the 512th Field Artillery Battalion, Third Army in the European Theater of Operations. Hershkowitz was born on 18 February 1912 in New York, New York. He was working as a public service inspector in Lakewood, New Jersey, when he enlisted in the United States Army on 8 July 1943 and was called to active duty on 29 July. On 2 July 1944, Hershkowitz was shipped out to the European Theater of Operations and assigned to the 512th Field Artillery Battalion. By December, He was in Luxemburg, and in Germany by March 1945. Hershkowitz and his unit celebrated VE-Day in Czechoslovakia [modern-day Czech Republic] and were then assigned the task of overseeing Russian displaced persons and German prisoners of war. The 512th Fld. Arty. Bn. traveled throughout Germany to transport Russian troops and civilians from prisoner of war camps to transit camps. One notable location the unit traveled to was Dachau concentration camp. In September 1945, the unit began to make its way from Germany to Camp Brooklyn near Reims, France. They arrived in the camp in October and began their journey across the Atlantic Ocean on 23 November 1945. Hershkowitz arrived in the United States on 13 December 1945 and was honorably discharged on 20 December in Fort Dix, New Jersey. On 10 July 1982, Jack Hershkowitz passed away. The collection includes a field journal, photograph album, postcards, and over 200 photographs. The photographs feature life in the field, displaced persons camps, prisoners of war, Dachau concentration camp, and interactions with local populations.
Geography: 
Metz
Latitude: 
49.117
Longitude: 
6.183
Thesaurus for Graphic Materials: 
World War, 1939-1945--Destruction and pillage--France
Moselle River--France
Bridges--France