Buzz Bomb Attack 1944

Source: Wilbur Kenneth Bragg Collection, East Carolina Manuscript Collection, #1100

Buzz Bomb Attack 1944

Staff Person: Jonathan Dembo

Description:
Buzz Bomb Attack 1944 The attached images are from a private scrapbook compiled by Sgt. Wilbur Kenneth Bragg during World War II. During the war, Bragg served as a photographer in the 942nd Engineer Aviation Topographic Battalion, which was stationed near London during 1944-1945, and was part of the U. S. 8th Air Force. Normally, Bragg and his fellow airmen photographed bombing targets in Germany; but the five images on this page show that on at least one occasion he was, instead, the target of a German air attack. The top two photographs reveal how unexpectedly quiet and placid wartime London could be. The center photograph shows a German V-1 rocket suddenly hurtling to earth nearby. Rather than seeking shelter, Bragg continued filming and caught the rocket in mid air as it fell between two buildings. Called “Buzz Bombs” for the put-put noise its motors made, the V-1s did a great deal of damage and killed thousands in London and other European cities. They were very fast and quite small so shots like these are quite rare. Unharmed by the blast, Bragg recorded the effects of the bombs on residential neighborhoods in the final shots on the page. The collection was given to the East Carolina Manuscript Collection, by Mrs. Jane Bragg, 4/5/2007. Source: Wilbur Kenneth Bragg Collection #1100.1.c.12 Manuscript Collection 1100

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