This collection contains two photograph albums belonging to a German couple, Hermann and Emmi Meinhardt, which separately record their wartime experiences. Hermann Meinhardt’s album provides a personalized look at his experiences serving with a flak regiment in the Luftwaffe, which served in France, Austria, Ukraine, Romania and Russia, with photographs focusing on the war-torn landscapes, moments of camaraderie, and battle. Emmi Meinhardt’s album shows the experience of a young mother and her daughter, who were evacuated from Cologne to the Bavarian countryside. Together, both albums demonstrate a unique look at how the war was experienced on the front and at home. This collection also contains a selection of loose photographs belonging to Hermann Meinhardt, which were not included in the album, and date from 1941 to December 1942. Additionally, Hermann Meinhardt’s posthumous medals, including his Iron Cross and his Eastern front medal, were donated along with the photographs. This collection also contains extensive contemporary research on Hermann Meinhardt, his battalion and his military experiences, which was conducted by Inga Kahn, Herman and Emmi Meinhardt’s daughter, her friend, Barbara Tangney, and librarian, Danielle Van Wagner. A book, Vom Train zum Roland: Eine Geschichte der deutschen Flugabwehrtruppe (1988), contains a published account of Meinhardt’s battalion, I./Flak Regt. 4, which provides extensive context to Hermann Meinhardt’s album and photographs.
Arrangement:
Contains series:
• Series 1: Hermann Meinhardt Photographs and Medals
• Series 2: Emmi Meinhardt Photograph Album
• Series 3: Contemporary Research