The following pictures were found on the footnote.com-website, courtesy of NARA archives |
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View to city district Eigelsteinviertel, the Hansa-Hochhaus, church St. Ursula, the Cologne jail from Cologne people called "Klingelpütz"
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View to western city districts, in background area Appellhofplatz and Zeughaus, at bottom right side street Komödienstraße next to church St. Andreas
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Aerial view
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St. Aposteln at square Neumarkt
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Cathedral and ruins
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On the road between Neumarkt and Heumarkt, in background Cathedral and the - today - Kaufhof-building at street Schildergasse
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Blick vom Dom Richtung nördliche Stadtteile, links am Rande des Domturmes ein Turm von St. Kunibert ohne Dach
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The Kaiserin Augusta memorial at street Kaiser-Wilhelm-Ring
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Aerial view city district Deutz, background Cathedral, train station Deutz in the middle of the picture
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Aerial view, area around building Dischhaus and church St. Kolumba. In background coming from left side to right side the street Hohe Strasse
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The german Panther tank at the cathedral
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Again the german Panther tank
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Aerial view, Cathedral area
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Arial view city
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View from the cathedral. Old town
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Arial view, with Gereon Station below
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Street in Cologne, with tram and tank. Probably Aachener Strasse
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The destroyed central station. US tank located at the station wall
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The destroyed Hohenzollern Bridge
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Till death do us part ...
One of the many tragic moments of war took place on 31.10.1944 in Cologne. Amidst the chaos of war, a couple decided to get married and celebrated it that day with over 140 guests in a restaurant opposite the Melatenfriedhof (Melaten cemetery) at the Aachener Straße. In the evening an air alert interrupted the festivities and the wedding party went to the air-raid shelter located on the Melatenfriedhof.  During the air attack, a bomb hit the shelter so unfortunate, that a wall was destroyed and all occupants of the shelter were killed. The restaurant, in which the people had previously celebrated, remained unscathed in the attack. A small memorial at the cemetery chapel at Aachener Straße today reminds of that tragic event.
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Aerial view, Cathedral area
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View to city district Deutz
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View to city district Deutz
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Aerial view, the destroyed bridge Hohenzollernbrücke
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Aerial view, the destroyed bridge Hohenzollernbrücke. Below the city district Deutz, on top of the picture the Cathedral
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Aerial view city
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Ruins
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Aerial view Cathedral area
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Military persons on the street Gereonstraße
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Aerial view Cologne
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Aerial view city district Mülheim, the destroyed bridge Mülheimer Brücke
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View to western city districts
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October 15, 1944. Aerial view. After the big attacks, smoke everywhere
Tom, from Cologne, made a bit of a montage of that photo with Google Earth that shows a then and now view. You can see this interesting photo here on Flickr.
Here another version
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Cathedral
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Central station
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Aerial view of the destroyed city. Areas around - today - Mediapark behind the train rails and in foreground the area where the ruins were collected. The ruins mountain is still there today, now forrest and park. Cologne people still name it "Trümmerberg", hill of ruins
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The following photos are courtesy of B24.NET, by friendly permission of Bob Books |
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Cathedral and city
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Flight over city district Deutz
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Flight over city district Deutz
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Flight next to the cathedral
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Flight over the city
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The following photos are courtesy of Michael-Ann Belin |
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Michael-Ann Belin's grandfather Lt. Colonel Herbert Belin took this pictures, when he was stationed in Europe at the end of WWIICathedral damages ... | |
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Cathedral damages. Northern portal. | |
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The destroyed Hindenburgbrücke | |
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Destroyed Cologne panorama view | |
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The destroyed Hohenzollernbrücke | |
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Square Heumarkt, the destroyed equestrian monument of Friedrich Wilhelm III, in background on the right side the destroyed tower of church Groß St. Martin. | |
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Destroyed central station | |
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Again the central station | |
The following photo is courtesy of Luc Gilbert |
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Luc's father Camille Gilbert, who took this photo in August 1945 was a soldier sent in Europe in 1944. Luc says: "he was in Germany at the end of the war and stayed in Europe for two years before being demobilized, helping cleaning all the mess left over (re-opening the roads, evacuating useless military equipment, helping reconstruction). As most French-Canadians, my father was against the war, but was forced to join the army by the Anglo-Canadian politicians who (still) consider serving the Queen of England as their top duty. During the Second World War, each Canadian family had to give at least one child to support England in his fight against Gemany. For us, it was a non sense, because protecting England was protecting our own oppressor."
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The following photos are courtesy of Henry Mace Cockburn |
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Henry's father in law, Stan Walley, found the photos in a ruined house in Cologne in 1945. Look here for a website, where Stan Walley describes his memories of the war.
Square Neumarkt, in background the cathedral and the tower of the old police headquarters.
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Square Alter Markt and free view of the cathedral. Right side the Jan von Werth monument. | |
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Traffic policeman, probably at square Rudolfplatz.
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Military cars | |
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The old opera house. | |
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Road constructions | |
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Black market at the cathedral. In background central station | |
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Again black market at the cathedral | |
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"Headquarters Military Government Regierungsbezirk Köln" at street Kaiser-Wilhelm-Ring | |
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The destroyed Hindenburgbrücke. Behind it the McNair-Bridge, built up by the american military | |
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Two soldiers in front of the Hindenburgbrücke | |
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Guard house at the McNair-Bridge | |
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Destroyed Hindenburgbrücke and McNair-Bridge | |
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The temporary City Hall from 1945 to 1957 | |
The following photos were taken by Bryan Allen and are courtesy of his son Dave |
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The destroyed panther tank at the Cathedral. Three soldiers on top of the tank. Two are from the Pershing crew, who had destroyed the Panther before. This and the follwing photos were taken on March 07, 1945.
About the photographer Bryan Allen
Dave Allen: "My father was born in 1912. He was drafted into the Army during the early weeks of 1944 at age 31. In spite of his efforts to secure a photographic assignment in the Army, he was instead trained as an infantry replacement soldier for casualties that were anticipated by the continental invasion forces already in the UK.
Bryan Allen, January 1945
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He arrived on the northern coast of France in August 1944 on the same day Paris was liberated by the Allies. For a month, he remained in various camps in France and Belgium awaiting an assignment with a frontline unit. At the end of September 1944 he was unexpectedly assigned to the 165th Photographic Company headquartered in Verviers, Belgium because it needed a replacement photographer. While my father was not a professional photographer, his Army records which exhibited his interest in photography since his youth along with some formal photographic training, led to his new assignment. My father was forever grateful for being able to carry a camera rather than a rifle for the remainder of the war. After the war, my father continued his interest in photography with both landscapes and wildlife. He died in 1991."
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Photo shows situation on street Komödienstrasse, in background the Cathedral. Right side the Sherman tank, destroyed by a Panther tank in front of the Cathedral.
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Once again Komödienstraße, Cathedral and Sherman tank.
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Street Burgmauer and Cathedral.
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The Pershing tank in front of the Cathedral.
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GI stands watch on the Rhine R. from the Hohenzollern Bridge. The German's destroyed the bridge on 6 Mar 1945 after they retreated across the Rhine.
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GI standing on Hohenzollern Bridge, in background the destroyed Hindenburg Bridge.
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Hohenzollern Bridge across the Rhine viewed from the northern spire of the Cathedral. | |
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View from the northern spire of the Cathedral to the west.
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View from the northern spire, the destroyed central station.
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View from the northern spire, the destroyed city and the roof of the Cathedral.
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Hohenzollern Bridge. | |
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River Rhine and destroyed Hohenzollern Bridge.
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Again the destroyed Hohenzollern Bridge.
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View of Cathedral from the Hohenzollern Bridge.
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View from the Hohenzollern Bridge of the collapsed Hindenburg Bridge. | |
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Inside rubble strewn Cologne cathedral.
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Bird's-Eye View from Cologne Cathedral, including Panther tank knocked out on March 6, 1945 by 3AD Pershing.
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More pictures, info and videos on the next page
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