William C. Coleman transcript
Scope and Contents
This folder contains the oral history of William Coleman recorded on May 15, 2003. Coleman served with the 101st Airborne Division in England and participated in the June 6, 1944 D-Day airborne operation into Normandy, France. He was later captured by German troops and spent time in a prisoner of war camp.
Dates
- Created: 1942-1945
- Other: Majority of material found in 1944
- Other: Date acquired: 02/02/2004
Creator
- Coleman, William C. (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open to all researchers.
Conditions Governing Use
All requests for permission to quote, publish, broadcast or otherwise reproduce from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Associate Dean for Special Collections & Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Florida State University Libraries as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.
Biographical or Historical Information
William C. Coleman (Army, 1942-1945) trained as a paratrooper at Ft. Benning and with the 101st Airborne Division once in England. His unit provided a simulated combat exercise for Churchill and Eisenhower near Torquay, England in May of 1944. He participated in the D-day invasion and was captured in a village close to where he was dropped. He talks about his experience as a POW in Stalag 12-A, Stalag 4-B and in arbeitdienst (work party). He describes the firestorms at Dresden. He escaped from his last German POW camp and after the war was in Camp Recovered Allied Military Personnel (Camp RAMP). Coleman was discharged in September of 1945 and attended Northwestern University on the GI Bill.
Extent
1.00 folders
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement Note
creator
Custodial History
Transferred from the Institute on World War II and the Human Experience to FSU Libraries Special Collections & Archives in July 2022.
Source of Acquisition
William Coleman
Method of Acquisition
donation
- Fort Benning (Ga.)
- Prisoners of war--Austria--History--20th century Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Prisoners of war--Europe--Interviews Subject Source: Local sources
- Prisoners of war--Germany--History--20th century Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Prisoners of war--United States Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Torquay (England) Subject Source: Lcnaf
- United States. Army
- United States. Army Ground Forces Subject Source: Lcnaf
- United States. Army--History Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- United States. Army--Military life Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- United States. Army. Airborne Division, 101st
- United States. Army. European Theater of Operations
- United States. Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 Subject Source: Lcnaf
- World War, 1939-1945 Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--France--Normandy Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- World War, 1939-1945--Germany--Dresden Subject Source: Local sources
- World War, 1939-1945--Prisoners and prisons, American Subject Source: Local sources
- Title
- William C. Coleman transcript
- Author
- Craig Whittington
- Date
- 01/25/2018
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- eng
Repository Details
Part of the FSU Special Collections & Archives Repository
116 Honors Way
PO Box 3062047
Tallahassee FL 32306-2047 US
850-644-3271
lib-specialcollections@fsu.edu