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Helen Koser - World War II

Helen Laugher grew up in pre-war Birmingham, England, and was a nursing student during World War II when she met John Hambley, a convalescing American soldier, when she emerged from an air raid shelter following a German bombing attack in 1944. The two were married in 1947 in John's home town of Polo, Illinois.

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Abstract

Interview (Audio)

Transcript


Photos

Caption
Three year old Helen Laugher with her maternal aunt Rose in Birmingham around 1924.

Where:
Birmingham, England

When:
around 1924.

Ownership:
Narrator’s photo

Caption:

A portrait of Helen in 1937, when she was sixteen and living in Birmingham.

Where:
Birmingham, England

When:
1937

Ownership:
Narrator’s photo

Caption
Family portrait of Helen, her husband John Hambley, and their baby Terry in May 1948.

Where:
Unknown

When:
May 1948

Ownership:
May be restricted. Patrons desiring to use this photograph should contact the ALPL Audio-Visual Curator


Caption:

Helen and her second husband, Robert Vogel, taken at their wedding on December 22, 1989.

Where:

Unknown

When:

December 22, 1989

Ownership:

Narrator’s photo

Caption
Helen, 18, relaxes in Birmingham Park in 1939.

Where:
Birmingham Park

When:


Ownership:
Narrator’s photo

Caption
Postcard of Birmingham Cathedral as it appeared during the war.

Where:
Unknown

When:
Unknown

Ownership:
This image is considered to be in the public domain

Caption
Helen attended St. Augustine grade school, a Catholic school run by nuns.

Where:
Unknown

When:
Unknown

Ownership:
Narrator’s photo

Caption
Helen attended Rookery Road School from age 8 to 14. It was also where Helen attended nursing school during the war.

Where:
Unknown

When:
Unknown

Ownership:
Narrator’s photo

Caption
Helen Laugher’s Wartime Identification Card.

Where:
Unknown

When:
Unknown

Ownership:
This image is considered to be in the public domain

Caption
Helen received this Xmas card from her cousin, who was stationed in the Soviet Union during the war and was in Yalta at the time of the talks. It portrays the British Embassy in Moscow.

Where:
Unknown

When:
Unknown

Ownership:
This image is considered to be in the public domain.



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