Lukens, Albert Bruce

Links to Oral History Sessions: Lukens, Bruce Albert Part 1 (June 16, 2014)
Lukens, Bruce Albert Part 2 (June 26, 2014)
Conflict(s): World War II
Military Branch & Unit: Army
Theater(s): European
US Army Division: 99th Infantry
US Army Regiment: 393rd Infantry

Description:

Albert Bruce Lukens was born on January 31, 1925 in Bayonne, New Jersey. Mr. Lukens grew up in Roselle during the depression years. After graduating from Abraham Clark High School, he participated briefly in the Army Specialized Training Program and then took part in the Allied invasion of Europe in 1944. Mr. Lukens was serving in the 99th Infantry Division and was caught behind enemy lines when the Germans launched the Ardennes Offensive in December 1944. In the ensuing Battle of the Bulge, Mr. Lukens saw combat and ended up suffering from severe frostbite in his feet that resulted in the loss of nine toes and an experimental skin graft. After the war, Mr. Lukens attended Stevens Institute of Technology on the GI Bill. He was a member of Sigma Nu at Stevens. He then earned his degree at Fairleigh Dickinson University. He spent his career working at Johns-Manville. Mr. Lukens was married for fifty-four years.

"HERE IS A BULLETIN...": Memories of the Day Camelot Died

This month marks the 60th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963 in Dallas, Texas.

Images from that day and the events that followed remain etched in our collective consciousness—the open-top Presidential limo traveling down the people-lined streets of Dallas; President Lyndon Baines Johnson taking the oath of office on Air Force One beside a shaken First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy; John, Jr. saluting his father's passing casket at the funeral in DC.

Those who lived through that traumatic period can recall both their initial shock and the nuances of their reactions.

In "HERE IS A BULLETIN...": Memories of the Day Camelot Died, ROHA presents a sampling of stories related to the Kennedy tragedy, a touchstone event for multiple generations.

The Rutgers Targum (campus newspaper) cover from its November 22, 1963 issue. (Image courtesy of Special Collections and University Archives, Rutgers University Libraries.)

Voices of Veterans

Voices of Veterans is an online exhibit showcasing passages from oral history interviews of veterans who served in the Second World War and in wars in Korea, Vietnam, the Persian Gulf, Iraq and Afghanistan. ROHA created this exhibit in commemoration of Pearl Harbor Day, December 7, 1941.

CLICK HERE TO VISIT MORE ONLINE EXHIBITS