“It is the desire of the Theater Commander that both still and moving pictures be utilized to the fullest extent practicable as exhibits in reports of investigations of war crimes committed by the Nazis with particular reference to Allied prisoners of war both in and out of camps and to concentration camps for the purpose of recording for civilization the history of horror written by over five years of German atrocities.”
— Omar Bradley, April 24, 1945
About Liberation Photography
Almost every day, World War II veterans and their families uncover extremely graphic photographs taken of the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps. These photographs provide powerful documentation of the crimes of the Nazi era. Though most GIs did not have access to a camera, some did and took their own photos. However, many are copies of US Signal Corps photographs of the Buchenwald, Dachau, and Mauthausen concentration camps and their various subcamps. Among the most common images is a series taken by an unknown photographer of the crematorium in Dachau and later published as postcards.
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Curatorial Affairs
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
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Washington, DC 20024-2126
Tel.: 202.382.0220
Fax: 202.479.9726
E-mail: curator@ushmm.org
Though we do not know how these photographs came to be reproduced and distributed in such great numbers, some hypothesize that these photographs were distributed as part of a policy reflected in General Dwight D. Eisenhower's desire to widely publicize the evidence of Nazi atrocities. Some of the most common images were printed in a small illustrated pamphlet by the US Army shortly after the end of the war and distributed throughout Germany so that "ordinary citizens become aware of the crimes which were committed in their midst, in their names, and with their permission."
If you would like to compare photographs in your possession to some of the most commonly reproduced photos to see if they are part of this massive documentation effort, please view the photographs below. Please note that some of these photographs are quite graphic and may not be suitable for young children.
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A survivor stokes smoldering human remains in a crematorium oven that is still lit. Dachau, Germany, April 29-May 1, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Merle Spiegel
View of a section of the newly liberated Dachau concentration camp as seen through the barbed-wire fence. Dachau, Germany, May 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Merle Spiegel
Corpses lie in one of the open railcars of the Dachau death train. The Dachau death train consisted of nearly forty cars containing the bodies of between two and three thousand prisoners transported to Dachau in the last days of the war. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of unknown source
While on a tour of the newly liberated concentration camp, General Dwight Eisenhower and other high-ranking US Army officers view the bodies of prisoners who were killed during the evacuation of Ohrdruf. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD
The bodies of former prisoners are piled in the crematorium mortuary in the newly liberated Dachau concentration camp. Dachau, Germany, April 29, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of George McDaniel III
Corpses lie in one of the open railcars of the Dachau death train. The Dachau death train consisted of nearly forty cars containing the bodies of between two and three thousand prisoners transported to Dachau in the last days of the war. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of George McDaniel III
During a US Army chaplain inspection of the newly liberated Buchenwald concentration camp, G. Bromley Oxnam (right), the Methodist bishop of New York and President of the Federated Council of Churches of Christ in America, views a demonstration of how prisoners were tortured in Buchenwald. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD
Survivors move around between rows of barracks in the newly liberated Dachau concentration camp. Dachau, Germany, May 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Merle Spiegel
Survivors of the Dachau concentration camp demonstrate the operation of the crematorium by pushing a corpse into one of the ovens. Dachau, Germany, April 29-May 10, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Albert Schiff
Survivors of the Dachau concentration camp demonstrate the operation of the crematorium by pushing a corpse into one of the ovens. Dachau, Germany, April 29-May 10, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of R. Harrison
Survivors of the Dachau concentration camp demonstrate the operation of the crematorium by preparing a corpse to be placed into one of the ovens. Dachau, Germany, April 29-May 10, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of R. Harrison
Survivors of the Dachau concentration camp demonstrate the operation of the crematorium by dragging a corpse toward one of the ovens. Dachau, Germany, April 29-May 10, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of R. Harrison
Survivors of the Dachau concentration camp prepare to move a corpse during a demonstration of the cremation process at the camp. Dachau, Germany, April 29-May 10, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Zydowski Instytut Historyczny imienia Emanuela Ringelbluma
German civilians remove the bodies of prisoners killed in the Nordhausen concentration camp and lay them out in long rows outside the central barracks (Boelke Kaserne). Nordhausen, Germany, April 12, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD
Corpses are piled in the crematorium mortuary in the newly liberated Dachau concentration camp. Dachau, Germany, May 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Merle Spiegel
Close-up of corpses piled in the crematorium mortuary in the newly liberated Dachau concentration camp. Dachau, Germany, May 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Merle Spiegel
View of the main street of the Nordhausen concentration camp, outside of the central barracks (Boelke Kaserne), where the bodies of prisoners have been laid out in long rows. Nordhausen, Germany, April 13-14, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Michael Mumma
Two survivors prepare food outside the barracks. The man on the right, presumably, is Jean (Johnny) Voste, born in Belgian Congo, who was the only black prisoner in Dachau. Dachau, Germany, May 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Merle Spiegel
While on an inspection tour of the newly liberated Ohrdruf concentration camp, American soldiers view the charred remains of prisoners burned upon a section of railroad track during the evacuation of the camp. Ohrdruf, Germany, April 4-15, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD
German civilians under US military escort are forced to view a wagon piled with corpses in the newly liberated Buchenwald concentration camp. Buchenwald, Germany, April 16, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Lee Moody
A wagon is piled high with the bodies of former prisoners in the newly liberated Buchenwald concentration camp. Buchenwald, Germany, April 11 - May 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of David Wittenstein
Former prisoners of the "little camp" in Buchenwald stare out from the wooden bunks in which they slept three to a "bed." Elie Wiesel is pictured in the second row of bunks, seventh from the left, next to the vertical beam.—US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD
The bodies of former prisoners are stacked outside the crematorium in the newly liberated Buchenwald concentration camp. Buchenwald, Germany, April 23, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD
A wagon is piled high with the bodies of former prisoners in the newly liberated Buchenwald concentration camp. Buchenwald, Germany, April 16, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD
The charred corpse of a prisoner killed by the SS in a barn just outside of Gardelegen. Gardelegen, Germany, April 16, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Thomas Hardy
During an official tour of the newly liberated Ohrdruf concentration camp, an Austrian Jewish survivor describes to General Dwight Eisenhower and the members of his entourage the use of the gallows in the camp. Ohrdruf, Germany, April 12, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD
The charred remains of former prisoners in two crematoria ovens in the newly liberated Buchenwald concentration camp. Buchenwald, Germany, April 14, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD
Two ovens inside the crematorium at the Dachau concentration camp. Dachau, Germany, July 1, 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD
A pile of corpses in the newly liberated Dachau concentration camp. Dachau, Germany, April 29-May 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Muzeum Niepodleglosci
The bodies of former prisoners are piled outside the crematorium at the newly liberated Dachau concentration camp. Dachau, Germany, April-May 1945. —US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Marcy Haupsman
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Is the Museum interested in collecting any more material?
The Museum continues to actively seek donations of original artifacts, documents, photographs, films, music, oral testimonies, and artwork to document the events of the Holocaust, from Jewish and non-Jewish victims, survivors, and eyewitnesses, who suffered discrimination, displacement, and persecution by the Nazis and their collaborators between 1933 and 1945. If you think that you possess unique photographs of liberation and would like to donate them, please contact curator@ushmm.org.
As part of our standard procedure, we ask that you please provide us with copies of the photographs (include the back if there is an inscription) in order to assist us in making our decision. These can be sent as scanned images via e-mail, or to our attention at the address above. In addition, if known, please include any further information you are able to provide about the liberator (name, rank, unit, etc.), and any additional information you can provide about where and when he/she took the photos. If known, please include any further information you are able to provide about how you came to acquire the photographs (via inheritance, purchase, gift, etc.), about the photographer, and where and when the photographs were taken. Please do not send any original materials at this time. We will review the images and other information you provide, and then be in touch regarding our decision. Should we decide that we are not able to accept the photographs for our collection, we would be happy to refer you to other institutions you can contact.
What is the monetary value of these photographs?
As a non-profit, federally funded institution, we are not permitted to appraise materials or provide you with any information in regard to the appraisal process and cost. In addition, we cannot recommend a specific appraiser, but you can use the following websites to search for assistance:
