Landing thousands of men and vehicles over a beach requires coordination and organization. On Omaha Beach, Louisiana native Frank H. Walk kept men and equipment moving and organized.

Retired Marine Corps Colonel Dave Severance recalls how his company, E Company 28th Marines, patrolled up Mount Suribachi, and how members of his company raised the American flag atop Suribachi on February 23, 1945.

The courageous Free French defense of the remote desert fortress of Bir Hacheim in May 1942 helped turn the tide of the war in North Africa.

On Memorial Day and every day, the name of Richard McCurdy, killed in action during Operation Torch, and other boys like him should be kept alive and their sacrifices and those of their families remembered. They were and are part of a nation, a city, a neighborhood, and a family.

Among the Museum's collection are many stories of those who did not return, like PFC Darrel “Happy” Neil, killed in action on July 7, 1944 in France.

Few fighter aircraft have had an impact on a conflict like the P-51 Mustang.

In 1945, one of history’s most notorious figures committed suicide by ingesting cyanide. Heinrich Himmler, known for his role in the implementation of the “Final Solution,” is remembered today for his heinous acts across Europe during World War II.

William Holloman, III, discusses fighting for a country that viewed him as a second class citizen.

Before John Coltrane became recognized as an influential jazz musician, he served with the US Navy band the Melody Masters. 

The Greek Civil War erupted in December 1944, pulling British forces into combat in Athens. Over the next five years this devastating conflict would shatter Greece and transform Europe.

In this clip, Richard Candelaria discusses how he and the other P-51 Mustang pilots in his group favored bomber escort missions as they knew they would likely get a chance to engage any German fighters that arrived to attack the bomber formations.

Before he became famous as the creator of James Bond in the 1950s, Ian Fleming (1908-1964) was an officer in the Royal Navy’s Naval Intelligence Department. He devised a number of wartime schemes worthy of a Bond novel. Some were successful and some were too wild to carry out.