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Felmers Chaney [detail from video]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 377th Engineer Battalion
  • Location of Service: Camp Douglas, Utah; Salt Lake City, Utah; Boston, Massachusetts; Fort Belvoir, Virginia; England
  • Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/44449

View full service history

"It was amazing how you got treated, because these men had never had black commanding officers before." (Video interview, 16:10)

From the time that he attempted to enlist in the military with a group of white friends, only to be singled out for rejection, Second Lieutenant Felmers O. Chaney felt the full brunt of serving in the segregated Army during World War II. After being drafted in 1942, he quickly rose up through the ranks to become the first African American officer to hail from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Though he could command white soldiers, this did not automatically entitle him to their respect, or to using their same facilities; arriving at Fort Knox, Kentucky, he was refused service in the officer's mess. During his service overseas in England, he marveled at the kindness shown to African American soldiers by the British civilians.

Interview / Recording

More Resources

Secondary Interview

About this Item

Title

  • Felmers O. Chaney Collection

Names

  • Chaney, Felmers O.
  • Johnson, Willard R.

Home State

  • Wisconsin

Headings

  • -  Chaney, Felmers O.
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • Black or African American

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 377th Engineer Battalion
    • Location of Service: Camp Douglas, Utah; Salt Lake City, Utah; Boston, Massachusetts; Fort Belvoir, Virginia; England
    • Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1946
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 2006-05-02; 2008-09-05)
  • Photograph: Digital print [1 item] -- Portrait (collected 1942)
  • Video: VHS [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2006-05-02)
  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2003-08-13; 2006-05-15)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/44449

Cite as

  • Felmers O. Chaney Collection (AFC/2001/001/44449), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

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:

Chaney, Felmers O, and Willard R Johnson. Felmers O. Chaney Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.44449/.

APA citation style:

Chaney, F. O. & Johnson, W. R. (1942) Felmers O. Chaney Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.44449/.

MLA citation style:

Chaney, Felmers O, and Willard R Johnson. Felmers O. Chaney Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.44449/>.