The US 79th Infantry Division led the way in assaulting Cherbourg’s Fort du Roule on June 25, 1944, and two Americans would receive Medals of Honor for their heroic conduct.

German Sixth Army, destroyed in the Battle of Stalingrad, was destroyed a second time in August 1944 by a Soviet offensive into Romania—with important help from the US Air Force.

The Berlin Airlift: From the position of the cockpit, WWII pilots Chuck Childs and Gail Halvorsen commit themselves to one of the greatest examples of humanitarian aid.

The USS Benevolence was one of three hospital ships in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945. The ship served as a haven and first stop in rehabilitation for thousands of Allied POWs.

Every aspect of the Japanese surrender on board the USS Missouri was carefully choreographed, with one eye on the past and another on the future.

The final liberation of the Philippines at the end of World War II released Filipinos from years of torment—but recognition of their courage and sacrifice was slow in coming.

Severely damaged by Japanese torpedoes at Pearl Harbor, USS West Virginia returned to service in October 1944. When the Japanese surrendered on September 2, 1945, she was in Tokyo Bay, a symbol of the resilience of the United States Navy.

On V-J Day, MacArthur invited two unexpected guests to witness the signing.

In 1945 the American intellectual, Norman Cousins, was one of the first to raise terrifying questions for humanity about the successful splitting of the atom.

One of the Museum's longest-serving employees reflects on one of the most trying times in the institution's history.