Joe Thompson, Jr.

Joe Thompson Jr., England [circa 1943] War: World War, 1939-1945 Branch: Army Air Forces/Corps Unit: 67th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, 9th Air Force; 109th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron Service Location: England; Normandy, France; Belgium; Rhine Valley; Kassel, Germany; Central Germany Rank: Major

Flier Joe Thompson got to WWII England ahead of any U.S. planes, so for a time he flew with the Royal Air Force. As a reconnaissance pilot flying a P-51 Mustang, he helped locate enemy positions, while in his spare time he used a camera to record other sights of wartime. His ground-level photographs of England, liberated France, and parked airplanes standing ready to serve may be the work of an amateur, but they have the elegance and power of a professional. The Nashville Public Library, a Veterans History Project partner organization, holds nearly 600 of Thompson’s photographs and other materials related to his service.