Museums are among my favorite places to lose myself for a few hours. And yesterday I had the opportunity to do just that, with two good friends here in Savannah, who introduced me to the Museum of the Mighty Eighth — dedicated to the history of the U.S. Eighth Air Force from World War II.
I was previously unaware of the history of the Eighth Air Force, which was created in Savannah, Georgia, with seven recruits from the U.S. Army Air Force and not a single aircraft. In January of 1942 — just a month after the United States entered the war following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor — the men, just teenagers and young adults, were sent to England to join our allies in the defense of Europe against Hitler’s Third Reich.
Over the course of the war, the Eighth became the largest air force in the world, consisting of 350,000 Americans on air bases across East Anglia, England.
By the end of the war in Europe in May of 1945, they had flown more than 600,000 missions and dropped over 670,000 tons of bombs.
But the cost was high. The Eighth lost 26,000 airmen in action, with another 28,000 taken as prisoners of war. Among the members, they received 17 Medals of Honor, 220 Distinguished Service Crosses, and more than 420,000 Air Medals. [Source: Mightyeighth.org]
The Museum — privately owned and maintained — is a beautiful tribute to those men. And it is a reminder, as that generation nears extinction, of the horrors of war and of the sacrifices that have been made in the defense of freedom and democracy . . . something we must never allow future generations to forget, lest it happen again.
Just sayin’ . . .
Brendochka
2/11/26
The Blog About Everything … and Sometimes Nothing 
I do find the stained glass windows in the chapel depicting weapons of war somewhat incongruous, but that’s probably just my Quaker perspective.
LikeLike
No, I thought the same thing. But they are beautifully done. And the chapel is not used for religious services, but for weddings, memorials, etc.
LikeLiked by 1 person