Liberation of Auschwitz
On January 27th, 1945, the largest Nazi concentration and death camp, Auschwitz-Birkenau was finally liberated by the Red Army. The soldiers first found a warehouse full of victims’ belongings like eyeglasses, pots, pans, and countless pairs of shoes. They then stumbled upon the emaciated survivors, abandoned by the Nazi who fled the camp in order to avoid persecution for their atrocities.
Unemployed Lumber Worker, 1939
Lumber worker Thomas Cave and his wife Annie found themselves completely down on their luck as the Great Depression began. Cave tattooed his Social Security number on his arm in order not to forget it so that he could take advantage of the Social Security Act which provided economic relief to those who needed it.