PHOTO #34487 Army Entry Into Austria Album

This photo album is an extremely fine example measuring about 10 x 7½ inches having hard cover with black paper inside. The photo acceptance paper has slots in it to which the pictures are applied. The cover has a fine gold and blue floral style motif, with the album being held together with black yarn-like string. There are about sixty photos in this album and although some of them are postcards the bulk of them are all 5½ by 3½ inch photos.

The album depicts the armies move into Austria during the Anchluss of 1938. The pictures show an army brigade having groups of horses, motorcycles and staff guards moving through what appears to be a smaller Austrian town. There are signs stretched over the road welcoming the German Wehrmacht. The pictures are really outstanding where many uniforms can be studied as well as the horses, band instruments, motorcycles and side cars, side buildings and most of all the faces of the crowds standing along the curbside welcoming the German army. In the center of the album is featured an army general who is giving a talk at the city hall.

The photos of the general are really outstanding. It is also interesting to see that many of the soldiers have flowers attached to their uniforms and everyone seems to be in a really great mood here. If anyone thinks that the Austrians did not welcome the Nazis in 1938 they should have a look at this photo album. A very interesting well done book here and there are many pictures that are worthy of publishing as to the subject matter as well as the quality of the photos.

Excellent Plus. $325.00

PHOTO #33925 Army Photo Album

This photo album measures 12½ inches by 9½ inches. It has a blue leather embossed cover. The album contains about 140 photographs. It depicts army training, families, recreation time, horsemanship, taking baths and there are also a few RAD photos. One of the photographs shows horses being ridden with one of the saddles equipped with a sword and leather saddle hanging device. Lots of poses with automobiles, cannon and even one in front of a war memorial. An interesting well done album here with excellent photography.

Excellent Plus. $295.00

PHOTO #34048 Luftwaffe Schweinfurt Air Base / GI Berchtesgaden Photo Album

This photo album is a very large format measuring about 14 inches by 14 inches. The album is beautifully bound, similar to a book, and it is also encased within its own cardboard container. On the outside of the container, the capturing G.I.’s have written, “ Germany , April 28th, 1945 / We took his airbase.” Obviously the Americans involved with this album liberated the artifact when they captured the Schweinfurt Fliegerhorst ( Schweinfurt airbase) in April of 1945. The album, apparently, belonged to the Commander of the airbase. It features about 65 outstanding photographs, all beautifully mounted with headings done in ink for each section. The photographs are quite interesting, as they look like they were prepared by an underling for this Commander and there are sections showing the beautiful town of Schweinfurt with its war memorials, river and even a racetrack. Then there is a section showing the Hitler Youth in the area with a fantastic picture of a Hitler Youth lad blowing a trumpet equipped with a banner having a large white skull on the black-fringed material. Another section shows a glider plane at the airbase and yet another section shows local workers and also members of the Luftwaffe Sport Team active in swimming and other sports. The last section in the album shows the commanders and staff of the airbase greeting a military visitor and lastly, under the date of May 1940, a large Luftwaffe band performs with many good shots of the instruments and uniforms. There are daggers shown in wear as well as great uniform studies. There are also many pictures of the main building at Schweinfurt used on the airbase. After this, which is about the halfway place in the album, the pages are blank and then it picks up with an album obviously started by the liberating G.I.s. The main individual does not name himself, but he is the first one to be pictured and he is shown throughout the last part of the album with his army buddies during training in Texas and then in France on October 31st, 1944. The men with him are all named in the photographs and it looks like the owner who liberated the album was named Sgt. Al Ingersoll. The ablum goes on to show Ingersoll clowing around in parts of Alsace Lorrain and other areas of France . He is seen with other army buddies and fraternizing with women in the area. The end photographs feature the same group entering Bertesgaten where the G.I.s are seen in the mountains posing with captured troops, captured vehicles and posing with fellow G.I.s. There are pictures of Hermann Goering’s house in ruins, the entrance to the tunnel that went up to the Eagle’s Nest, a wrecked Packard that very likely could have been Eva Braun’s personal vehicle, as I know she did drive a Packard. This album has a great war story to tell and it would be interesting to trace some of the people mentioned and pictured to get more facts of their great campaign. A very interesting historical album here.

Excellent Plus. $995.00

PHOTO #31487C Army Photo Album

This Army photo album has a nice woven style cover and is held together with brown cord. It has the usual black pages inside separated with onion skin. The pages are about 11 x 9. There are about 24 pages that contain photographs. Some of the photographs are labeled although most of them are not. The album is quite interesting as it follows the career of an NCO from 1930 to about 1938 just before the war. The NCO is a tough looking fellow who is quite easy to recognize in almost all of the photographs. The album starts out with what looks like a soldbuch photo along with a photo of our NCO in his Reichswehr uniform. The next picture shows the oath of allegiance being taken to Hitler and appears to be about 1935 as the five soldiers involved are wearing the transitional style Frankenstien type helmets. The album than commences with pictures going back to the early 1930s showing the usual marking with rifles, photos of entire classes swimming in a lake, sitting under trees and a good shot of a marching band complete with jingling Johnny and tuba playing in the background. Our NCO is also pictured with musical swallow tails and I believe he is the drum major that is seen in the band. There are no further pictures that deal with him in the band so this must have been a short career. The next pictures show him as an NCO leading trainees in classes outside marching, building of barracks, shooting rifles in ditches and of course the usual marching where the NCO carries a sword. Later shots show training in the woods in summer white tunics and lots of close up shots showing the carrying of bayonets and rifles with good uniform pictures. There is also a shot of our NCO boxing another individual. The NCO looks like he is going to win as he is a very rough looking fellow now devoid of hair. One shot of him laying down shows him with shoulder boards having tress around them as well as tress around his collar and one pip. The last photo shows the NCO standing by a tree with his men surrounding him. This is probably about 1938 when the album ends. A lot of interesting pictures here and very fine photography throughout.

Excellent Plus. $295.00

PHOTO #18086 Luftwaffe Photo Album

This album is a sanctioned Luftwaffe type, as it has printed on the padded cover “Meine Dienstzeit” or in English “My Service Time”. Above the printing and to the left is a nicely detailed Luftwaffe droop tail eagle, however, the swastika has been removed from this bird. The job, though, is well done and still looks good. The album is held together with red, white and black string. The album itself measures about 10 inches by 7.5 inches and there are 165 photos contained. The album begins at about 1930 with a career of an NCO. He originally was with the Cavalry Division of the Army and was quite a horseman. There are many pictures showing this NCO riding and jumping as well as posing with his horse. Some of these horsemanship photos are quite interesting. There are also pictures of the NCO with his family as well as in training about 1933. About halfway through the album in 1936, this Cavalry NCO joins the Luftwaffe. There are some shots of swords and 1st model Luftwaffe daggers being worn. This man became a very high NCO in the Luftwaffe, having two stripes on his sleeve which I believe meant that he was the equivalent of a Sergeant Major. He never gave up horses, as there are later photos showing him on horseback. There are also photos of airports and other interesting scenes. The photo album ends about 1937. It is quite interesting and really follows the life of this career high-ranking NCO.

Excellent Plus Plus. $395.00