70th Anniversary – Army Establishes First Overseas V-Mail Station
On this day 70 years ago, the United States Army established its first overseas (and largest thus far!) V-Mail station in Casablanca, Morocco. V-Mail, short for “Victory Mail,” was developed by Eastman Kodak and quickly became the primary way for military personnel stationed abroad to communicate with friends and family back home. Because the letters were censored at facilities like the one in Casablanca before being transferred to microfilm, V-mail was one of the most secure methods of communication. After letters arrived at their destination, the negatives would be blown up to full size and printed. In addition to increased security, this method meant saving shipping space that could otherwise be used for necessary war materials. Using this small microfilm saved the postal system thousands of tons of shipping space, fitting the equivalent of 37 mail bags worth of letters into just one.
Letters sent by V-mail offer great insight into how soldiers and their loved ones handled things like shortages, rationing and the fear of war. Here are a few select artifacts and letters from the Museum’s collection.
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- Because the text on a V-Mail was small, many used readers with magnifying glass to make reading easier.
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- An envelope containing a V-Mail letter that ultimately found its way to its recipient in North Africa.
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- This letter in particular mentions the gas shortage and how it made travel more difficult.
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- A propaganda poster boasting the benefits of using V-Mail.
Posted by Gemma Birnbaum, Digital Education Coordinator at The National WWII Museum.
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