World War II Records Digitized

Mapping World War II
Maps and charts have always played an important role in the planning and execution of military operations. Military maps, nautical charts, and fortification plans form a significant part of the holdings in the Cartographic Branch. Among these records include a recently digitized series of World War II Records from the Adjutant General’s Office of the War Department (Record Group 407). These records are available to view and download from the National Archives Catalog.

World War II Records Digitized

WWII Records in the Cartographic Branch

Aerial Photography

World War II brought a rapid acceleration in the use of aerial photography of foreign areas for both military operations and mapping purposes. The Cartographic Branch holds World War II aerial images covering parts of the European, Mediterranean, and Pacific Theaters of Operation, taken by units of the U.S. and Allied Air Forces. Both vertical mapping and oblique reconnaissance photography are included in the RG 373, Aerial Photographs series.
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Utah Beach 6/6/1944

The RG 373 cartographic series German Flown Aerial Photographs, 1939-1945, or GX Prints, contains approximately 1.2 million prints of aerial photographs taken by the Germany military. Coverage is widespread- Europe (from the British Isles to the Ural Mountains), the Middle East, and North Africa are included in this collection. Many of the prints are annotated to indicate military installations and defenses; other prints are marked to show potential bombing targets. While the scale and quality of the photographs in this collection vary considerably, the imagery provides unique wartime coverages of many of the contested areas.

PRE-INVASION MANEUVERS, FIRTH OF CLYDE, SCOTLAND

The NARA website also has the digitised versions of the wartime German aerial photos of the UK that are also available on NCAP, for a small subscription. There is no real search facility unless you know the sortie reference or the obscure location references on each frame. Still they are free to download as full sized frames although NCAP does hold higher resolution copies that you can buy.