Unbroken: Records from Louis Zamperini’s Incredible World War II Story

On May 27, 1943, Army Air Force bombardier Louis “Louie” Zamperini’s B-24 airplane crashed into the Pacific Ocean. The former U.S. Olympian survived, only to face months adrift at sea and years as a Japanese POW. His fate unknown in the U.S., Louie was declared dead a year and a day after his plane went down and was “posthumously” awarded a Purple Heart. Miraculously, Zamperini survived and was liberated at the end of the war.

Click here to learn more about this incredible story and other related records.

Zamperini’s Purple Heart medal, courtesy of Laura Hillenbrand; copies of the certificate awarding him the Purple Heart; and a condolence letter from FDR to the Zamperini family were on display in the “Featured Documents” exhibit in the East Rotunda Gallery of the National Archives in Washington, DC, February 5 through March 4, 2015.

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.