The Tuskegee Airmen

On January 16, 1941, the War Department announced the creation of the Army Air Corps 99th Pursuit Squadron – the nation’s first African American flying unit.

The 99th Pursuit Squadron trained at the Tuskegee Institute in Tuskegee, Alabama, where there was an airfield and a civilian pilot training program. Soon, “Tuskegee Airmen” became the nickname for the World War II Army Air Forces units that were made up predominantly of African American pilots and maintenance crews.

From 1941 to 1946, hundreds of African Americans successfully trained as pilots at the Tuskegee Institute, serving with distinction throughout the war. They flew 1,578 combat missions and earned three Distinguished Unit Citations, at least one Silver Star, and 96 Distinguished Flying Crosses. However, they were fighting for freedom on two fronts: against Nazism in Europe and against discrimination at home in the United States.

From the beginning of the war, African Americans serving in the Armed Forces were segregated into all-black units and limited in the types of positions they could hold. To allow for the creation of the 99th Pursuit Squadron and similar units, Congress had passed legislation in 1939 expanding the Army Air Corps (the precursor to today’s Air Force). Among the act’s provisions was the creation of training programs located at historically black colleges to prepare African Americans for Air Corps service. It wasn’t until after the war that President Harry S. Truman signed Executive Order 9981 in 1948, leading to the desegregation of the United States military.

On March 29, 2007, these pilots received the Congressional Gold Medal from President George W. Bush for their commitment and service to the nation.

In celebration of the 75th anniversary of the creation of this historic unit, a flight report from a mission flown in support of the Anzio, Italy invasion and a petition sent to the War Department by officers protesting discriminatory practices in the Army Air Forces were on display in the “Featured Documents” exhibit in the East Rotunda Gallery of the National Archives in Washington, DC, from January  7, 2016, through March 2, 2016.

Past Featured Records

The War Beneath the Waves: Mary Sears and the Navy’s Oceanographic Unit
During World War II, navigating the Pacific Ocean's perilous tides and currents posed a constant challenge to the U.S. Navy. To update their maps and intelligence, the Navy established an Oceanographic Unit in 1943. The team of scientists was led by Mary Sears, a marine biologist commissioned as a lieutenant junior grade in the women’s division of the Naval Reserve, the WAVES.
Freedmen’s Bureau Marriage Records
After the Civil War, the federal government established a War Department agency to help Americans transition from slavery to freedom. The Freedmen’s Bureau (1865–72) issued rations, operated hospitals and helped establish schools and unite families. It worked to resolve labor disputes and negotiate labor contracts. It also presided over and documented marriages between freed couples.
20th Amendment: A New Inauguration Day
From George Washington’s second term through Franklin D. Roosevelt’s first, inauguration day was generally held on March 4. Without cars or computers, the four months between the election and inauguration served a purpose in the late 18th and 19th centuries. It allowed the President-elect time to settle their affairs and journey to the nation’s capital.
Mr. Santa Claus: Romance of the Postal Service
This holiday featured film is one of a series of silent movies produced by the Post Office Department in 1921. The mini melodrama shows how the postal service helps make a happy Christmas for a boy and his sister when their “Dere Sandy Claws” letter is answered by a young married couple.
Bring Them Home, Uncle Sam
Many Americans sought to honor the returning service members with patriotic greetings at the dock, parades to welcome them home, and memorials to honor their service. President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed November 11, 1919, as Armistice Day, creating an annual day to honor those who brought about the end of the “Great War.” Two decades later, America would find itself embroiled in World War II and then in the Korean War, with many more soldiers deserving of honor. In 1954, President Dwight Eisenhower rededicated Armistice Day as Veterans Day to honor all of America’s veterans for their service and sacrifice.