Irving Adler Second World War correspondence

This collection contains two copies of one letter, handwritten and typed transcription, from Cpl. Irving Adler, USA to his parents during the Second World War. The transcription was typed by the author. The correspondence discusses his experience of liberating the Buchenwald concentration camp in Germany. Of note is the fact that the original correspondence was written on Army stationery with his name and rank.

The letter was written April 17, 1945 and Cpl. Adler begins by saying what he saw was "not battlefield action or anything as humane as that, (although this was more representative of all this war means than any actual combat could be)..."

He then goes into vivid detail about what he saw at the camp, discussing the condition of the living and the dead, body parts, the crematoriums, and the stories he had been told from those that could speak the language, or speak at all. He specifically mentions a twelve year old boy and his experiences, as well as a husky Russian. The Russian was a soldier and remained healthy by working in the bakery and stealing food. He told Adler the story of the last days when the prisoners mounted a rebellion against the Nazi SS soldiers that had yet to retreat and the hope they felt when they heard the allied artillery, a hope they had not felt since an American bombing took out their factory buildings the year prior without hitting the camp at all. He also mentions the nearby city, a population of around two thousand, being forced to march to the camp and witness what had gone on so close to them over the past several years. He closes by apologizing to his parents for the dark tone, but needed to tell them so they can relay the information to the non-believers back home.