Heather Hogue
ANTH 209
11/19/2014
WWII: Family History
Introduction
This paper will explain the history of World War II and how it relates to my family history. I chose to interview my aunt about her father (my grandfather), Joseph Clayton Hogue a.k.a Skeeter Hogue. I chose my grandfather because based on most of my group, we fall under the topic of war.
WWII
It’s been said that World War II started in July 7, 1937, but is still debated. It made major leaps in technology and laid groundwork that created post-war social changes that led to ending European colonialism, the civil rights movement, modern women’s rights movement, and outer space programs. The countries involved were the Axis nations (Germany, Italy, Japan), Allied nations (Britain), the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and the United States. The Allies turned out to be the victors.
Casualties in WWII
World War II was the most destructive war in all of history. The lives cost is unknown but 50 million service personnel and civilians died. Nations with the highest losses are listed below:
• USSR: 42,000,000
• Germany: 9,000,000
• China: 4,000,000
• Japan: 3,000,000
(See more at: http://www.historynet.com/world-war-ii#sthash.GgJ4dqX3.dpuf)
The U.S. in WWII
Apparently, the U.S. wasn’t involved until the end of 1941. It provided aid to Britain and the Soviet Union. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Congress declared war on Japan. Then, Germany who honored Japan, declared war on the U.S. Other countries such as Italy, Romania, and other European Axis alliances did the same. America suffered less than 20,000 losses.
“Two American commanders came to public attention during the North African campaign and would become two of the war’s most famous g...
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...ationed in Texas. Lastly, I thought it was interesting how 3 out of 4 of us in my group had relations to WWII. It’s quite interesting how something such as war would bring us together as a whole.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this paper has explained the history of World War II and how it relates to my family history. I discussed in the interview I had with my aunt about her father (my grandfather), Joseph Clayton Hogue a.k.a Skeeter Hogue. I chose my grandfather because based on my group, we fell under the topic of war.
References Cited
• Geni. (n.d.). Retrieved November 19, 2014, from http://www.geni.com/
• World War II Facts, information and articles about World War II, 1939-1945. (n.d.). Retrieved November 19, 2014, from http://www.historynet.com/world-war-ii
• World War 2 Facts. (n.d.). Retrieved November 19, 2014, from http://world-war-2.info/facts/
The United States and World War II. New York: Harper & Row, 1964. Print. The. Feis, Herbert.
World War II opened a new chapter in the lives of Depression-weary Americans. The United States of America had an unusual importance in the war, it had been spared the physical destruction that had taken place throughout the world. Americans on the home front did not see the fighting and brutality as other countries experienced it. However, the events and changes on the home front due to the World War transformed America. One of the greatest conversions was that of the American woman. Women around the country were transformed from the average house wife into a person with a voice and most importantly a purpose.
"World War II". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. 05 Nov. 2013. .
Jeffries, John. Wartime America: The World War II Home Front. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 1996. Print. American Way.
WWII evolved the entire globe, putting the world's largest economic and military powers against each other: the AXIS powers Germany, Japan and Italy against the ALLIED powers Russia, Britain and the U.S. There were some 27,372,900 civilians and 20,858,800 military personnel killed in the war. http://warchronicle.com/numbers/WWII/deaths.htm
"World War II (1939-1945)." The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project. Department of History of the George Washington University, n.d. Web. 19 Nov. 2013. .
“The effect of World War II” 1950s vol. 4. Danbury: Grolier, Scholastic Library Publishing, 2005.
"World War II by the Numbers." National World War II Museum n. pag. Web. .
“WW2 People’s War: An Archive of World War Two memories- written by the public, gathered by the BBC.” BBC. February 2012. http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar
O'Neill, William L. World War II: A Student Companion. New York: Oxford UP, 1999. Print.
Early in the 1940s, World War Two was just starting and The government wanted everyone involved. The American Dream in the early 1940s was all about the war. Society was entwined with the war. The government used propaganda to persuade and encourage the American “Home-Front”. They used...
World War 2 was a war that lasted from the 1st of September 1939 to the 2nd of September 1945. That’s 2 years longer than the first war. This war was started by Nazi Germany when they invaded Poland. This was the largest conflict in history that impacted every inch of the earth, including Canada.
O’Neill, William L. World War II A Student Companion. 1 ed. William H. Chafe. New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.
In the summer of 1940, World War II had been in progress for nearly a year. Adolf Hitler was victorious and planning an invasion of England to seal Europe’s fate. Everyone in the United States of America knew it. The Germans were too powerful. Hitler's Luftwaffe had too many planes, too many pilots and too many bombs and since Hitler was Europe's problem, the United States claimed to be a neutral country (Neutrality Act of 1939). Seven Americans, however, did not remain neutral and that’s what this book is about. They joined Britain's Royal Air Force to help save Britain in its darkest hour to fight off the skilled pilots of Germany's Luftwaffe in the blue skies over England, the English Channel, and North Europe. By October 1940, they had helped England succeed in one of the greatest air battles in the history of aviation, the Battle of Britain. This book helps to show the impact of the few Americans who joined the Battle of Britain to fight off an evil that the United States didn’t acknowledge at the time. The name of Kershaw’s book was inspired from the quote, “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to sow few,” which was said by British Officer and Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
The United States has been involved in many wars since its inception. WWII in particular had a significant impact on the world and the United States. Through the years 1939 to 1945 the majority of the world suffered many tragedies and hardships. In total, 50 million people died including women, children, civilians, and innocent bystanders. Adolf Hitler, the leader of Nazi Germany, was responsible for a significant amount of these deaths. Hitler, aligned with Japan, wanted to seize all of Europe and Japan wanted to conquer Asia. A major cause of WWII was that Germany strongly disapproved of the Treaty of Versailles. Germany especially didn’t like that they had to accept all the blame for WWI, paying $ 6,600 million for the damage they caused in WWI, and they were only allowed to have a small army and six naval ships, no tanks, no air force and no submarines were allowed. Also, the Rhineland area was to be de-militarized and taken out of Germany’s possession. All of these conditions were written in the Treaty of Versailles. During the war the world formed two sides, the Allies and the Axis Powers. The Allies included Britain, the Soviet Union, and the United States, known as “the Big 3”. The Axis Powers included Germany, Italy, and Japan. At the end of the war the Allies were triumphant and the world gained its peace.