Accession 99-044: Initial Deposit, 1943 - 1945
Scope and Contents
This accession contains two manuscript diaries, as well as a miniature laminated copy of Sgt. Maurice G. Ewen's honorable discharge papers from 1945, that provide dramatic details about the missions and rescues of downed bomber-crews.
Excerpts include:
7/12 - He lies awake listening to Allied bombers on a sweep into Germany, 100's of them...
7/13 - "I've been logging all morning..."
(He then tells of raids going out and Jerries coming in, German raids around him.)
7/26 - "I am on duty monitoring a big raid over Rotterdam. Yesterday we lost 19 B-17s..."
(He tells of his fears of Jerries and their bombs right above and gives details of receiving "May Day" calls from the bombers. He talks about orbiting a bomber down, reports 3 lifecraft and all OK and how it took 40 minutes for a boat to rescue them.)
10/4 - Ewen sits on a "May Day" and later finds out the TC34 plane crash landed, and the pilot was killed...
12/13 - Ewen sees a Marauder crash, runs 2 miles to help, chases away civilians, gathers confidential material and ammo...
(Long description of this incident - crew had bailed out)
Dates
- Creation: 1943 - 1945
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open to research without restricitons.
Full Extent
0.25 Cubic Feet (1/2 doc box / 3 items)
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Arrangement
This accession is arranged at the item level.
Condition of Materials
The copy of Sgt. Maurice G. Ewen's discharge is laminated and in good condition; however, the two diaries are fragile with their covers prone to detaching from the rest of the binding.
Repository Details
Part of the Auburn University Special Collections and Archives Repository
Auburn University
Ralph Brown Draughon Library
231 Mell Street
Auburn Alabama 36849
334-844-1732
archives@auburn.edu
