Childhood Narratives on the Home Front at Florida Gulf Coast University collects oral histories of individuals who were children during the time of the Second World War. It crosses national borders to include the stories of those living in the U.S., U.K., and Western and Eastern Europe. While there are important collections that include the stories of children who lived through the atrocities of that era, this project focuses on the everyday lives of individuals whose childhoods were shaped by the realities of war.
Narrators recall their everyday lives from the period between 1939 and 1945. They discuss the ways that war affected (or did not affect) their families, communities, education, and playtime. European narrators reflect on issues like bombings and relocation, while Americans recall rationing and air raid drills.
The National Home Front Project has been honored to partner with this exciting initiative since fall 2017. Childhood Narratives on the Home Front has contributed an initial set of nineteen oral histories conducted by the project directors and their student interviewers, a selection of which can be found here.
For more information about participating in this project, please contact Dr. Frances Davey (fdavey@fgcu.edu) and Dr. Joanna Salapska-Gelleri (jsalapsk@fgcu.edu).
