World War II veteran to pay cost of shipping German fortifications to New Orleans

The story of the Atlantic Wall’s arrival in New Orleans came full circle this week when we were contacted by WWII vet, R. Randolph “Randy” Richmond Jr. He had read about the wall segments that arrived at the Museum on July 23, a gift from the Utah Beach Museum, and generously offered to pay for all of the shipping costs. He visited the Museum this week to write an initial check and see the pieces for the first time in 67 years. Richmond had first seen the fortifications when he came ashore at Utah Beach a month after D-Day. In an interview with the New Orleans newspaper the Times-Picayune, he said they “brought back memories.” He added “I thought they were higher.”

Read the Times-Picayune story.

Read the press release on the Atlantic Wall arrival.

Posted by interactive content and community manager Kacey Hill

Pieces of Hitler’s Atlantic Wall Arrive at the Museum

This week the Museum received a very unusual gift from the Utah Beach Museum – three large pieces of concrete totaling nearly 22 tons. During WWII, they made up a part of the of the German defenses known as the Atlantic Wall.

Completed in 1944, the Atlantic Wall was a series of fortifications Hitler ordered built to guard Europe’s west coast from Allied assault. Made up of mines, pillboxes, tank traps and the infamous “Rommel’s asparagus,” the Atlantic Wall stretched more than 3,200 miles, presenting a formidable obstacle for the Allied troops charged with executing the D-Day invasion.

These particular pieces were donated to the Museum to make way for a significant expansion of the Utah Beach Museum. Currently, you can see two of the three wall segments on the grounds of the Museum outside the Solomon Victory Theater.

See more photos of the journey from Utah Beach to New Orleans.

Read the press release.

Posted by interactive content and community manager Kacey Hill