Black Military Service in Segregated America World War II Roll of Honor Archive 1942 to 1945

African American Rolls of Honor

Archive

Archive of three Roll of Honor posters commemorating African American servicemen during World War II, 1942–1945, constitutes a visually powerful record of Black military service within a formally segregated armed forces. Produced during the war years, these personalized memorial-style broadsides document individual participation in the United States Army, United States Navy, and an Aviation Squadron, affirming patriotic service at a moment when African American soldiers confronted racial discrimination both within the military and on the home front. The archive supports research in African American military history, wartime citizenship, visual culture of commemoration, and the Double V campaign, situating individual Black servicemen within the broader struggle for civil rights during the Second World War.

Three Roll of Honor broadsides. Woodmere, New York: George J. Mayer, circa 1945. Chicago, Illinois: Morris Solmon, 1944. Ensley, Alabama: P. T. C. Kemp Cook, November 1942. Each approximately 19.5 x 15.5 inches. Printed in color with central oval photographic portraits of the named servicemen, surrounded by crossed American flags and martial iconography beneath a spread eagle and the heading “World’s Great War For Freedom.” Each example is completed in manuscript with the soldier’s name, branch, place of enlistment, and date of enlistment; one identifies service in the U.S. Navy with enlistment in Chicago in 1944, another references Aviation Squadron service beginning November 1942, and a third records Army service. The motto “Liberty and Justice” appears prominently along the lower margin. Two examples are framed; one remains unframed.

Created at a time when African American troops served in segregated units and were frequently denied equal recognition, these posters visually assert inclusion within national narratives of sacrifice and democratic defense. The iconography of flags, eagle, and allegorical imagery contrasts pointedly with the lived realities of Jim Crow military policy, underscoring the tension between patriotic rhetoric and racial inequality. Such personalized Roll of Honor prints, especially those explicitly commemorating Black servicemen with photographic portraits, provide material evidence of community-based remembrance and the assertion of dignity through print culture. Light toning and minor edge wear consistent with age; framed examples not examined out of frames; unframed example with mild surface wear; colors remain strong and portraits clear. Overall very good condition. A cohesive and visually striking commemorative archive documenting African American wartime service and the politics of recognition during World War II.

Item #15878

Price: $980.00