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Norman P. Swaney, Youngstown, OH [November 1942]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: F Company, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division
  • Location of Service: Camp Wolters, Texas; Fort Benning, Georgia; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; England; Normandy, France; European Theater
  • Highest Rank: Corporal
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/23453

View full service history

"And that was the last time we ever had a peaceful day." (Audio interview, 39:55)

Drafted just prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Corporal Norman Swaney entered the Army Air Corps in January 1942, and volunteered for "the glory outfit"-the paratroopers. As a member of F Company of the 101st Airborne, although he lost a lot of buddies, he terms his experience in Normandy a "piece of cake" compared to what was to come. Wounded by shrapnel during Operation Market Garden, he recuperated in England before rejoining his unit in France, only to be taken prisoner by the Germans on January 3rd, 1945, during the Battle of Bastogne. Put through a series of work camps and eventually transferred to Stalag IX-B, he was liberated in early April 1945, and arrived stateside before his family had even been notified that he was a POW.

Norman Philip Swaney Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript

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Norman Philip Swaney Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript

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[ Authorization for Issuance of Awards for Norman P. Swaney ]

About this Item

Title

  • Norman Philip Swaney Collection

Names

  • Legacies: Stories from the Second World War
  • Swope, Thomas A.
  • Swaney, Norman Philip

Home State

  • Ohio

Headings

  • -  Swaney, Norman Philip
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.
  • -  Prisoner of War -- United States

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • White

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: F Company, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division
    • Location of Service: Camp Wolters, Texas; Fort Benning, Georgia; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; England; Normandy, France; European Theater
    • Highest Rank: Corporal
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1945
    • Prisoner of War: Yes
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of audio recording (collected 2004-09-18)
  • Photograph: Copy photographic print [2 items] -- Portrait (collected 1942-2004)
  • Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2002-09-04)
  • Audio: Audio Cassette [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2004-09-18)
  • Audio: CD [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 2004-09-18; 2007-11-30)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/23453

Cite as

  • Norman Philip Swaney Collection (AFC/2001/001/23453), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • image
  • online text

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Legacies: Stories From The Second World War, Thomas A Swope, and Norman Philip Swaney. Norman Philip Swaney Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.23453/.

APA citation style:

Legacies: Stories From The Second World War, Swope, T. A. & Swaney, N. P. (1942) Norman Philip Swaney Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.23453/.

MLA citation style:

Legacies: Stories From The Second World War, Thomas A Swope, and Norman Philip Swaney. Norman Philip Swaney Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.23453/>.