us-005578-irn521177-irn521188
type: RecordSet
archival history: The watercolor was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum by Milton Shurr in 1988.
biographical history: Milton Shurr was born on January 28, 1911, in Rochester, NY, to Mr and Mrs. Harry Shurr. On June 3, 1941, he married Muriel Friedman, from New York City. That year, motivated by news about the persecution of Jews in Europe, including news from correspondents about the camps, Milton joined the field staff of the Council of Jewish Federations and Welfare Fund. He moved from Minneapolis, MN, to Oklahoma City, OK, to head the Fund. He transitioned from being a program organizer in public health to arranging regional conferences to fundraise and to inform US citizens of what was happening abroad. The United States entered World War II on December 8, 1941, following the attack on Pearl Harbor. Milton was drafted into the US Army and enrolled in Officer's Candidate School. Corporal Shurr was then sent to military government school to be trained to rebuild postwar Germany. First Lieutenant Shurr and the rest of his class were deployed to Great Britain in February 1944. They assisted in the preparations for Operation Overlord, set for June 6, 1944. He was recruited from the Quartermasters Corp by the Army's Department of Civilian Affairs. Slated to deploy one week after D-Day, their departure was delayed to send more fighting troops. They then landed on Omaha Beach near Isigny. Milton was stationed with the 1st Army. He was assigned to collect medical or other supplies dropped on the beach and then throughout France. In October 1944, Milton was placed with the 1st Army Displaced Persons Team in Vervier, Belgium, and was in Malmady during the Battle of the Bulge. He continued to travel widely with a driver searching for supplies. They drove through combat territory and were often bombed. Around January 1945, Milton fell ill with hepatitis and was sent to England to recover. He returned to his unit in Germany the day after Patton's 3rd Army liberated Buchenwald concentration camp on April 11, 1945. Buchenwald was then transferred to the command of the 1st Army, which had the t…
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Framed watercolor landscape on paper depicting a town at the base of a mountain. In the right foreground is a forked, light brown path cutting through green and brown shaded foliage. The middle ground contains 4 low, wooden buildings with peaked roofs; the left 2 have white foundations and the far left 1 emits chimney smoke. Behind them is a white churchlike building with a square tower and light green cupola. Along the right edge is a grove of dark green trees and clouds of white fog. In the background is a brown, green, blue, and gray shaded mountain set against a light blue sky with offwhite clouds, with 2 smaller mountains in the distance. Initials are painted in the lower right corner. It is mounted in an offwhite mat with the artist’s signature and the year. The wooden frame is painted silver and has picture wire on the back. mat, front, bottom right corner, script, pencil : S. L[?] / 1945
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
date: 1945 April-1945 May
has beginning date: 1945-01-01
has end date: 1945-12-31
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn521188
is or was included in: us-005578-irn521177
record resource extent: overall: Height: 10.000 inches (25.4 cm) | Width: 13.375 inches (33.973 cm) | Depth: 0.875 inches (2.223 cm) pictorial area: Height: 6.750 inches (17.145 cm) | Width: 10.000 inches (25.4 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Watercolor of a mountainside village painted by an unknown prisoner and presented to Lt. Milton Shurr, a Jewish American soldier, as a sign of friendship and gratitude by another inmate of the recently liberated Buchenwald concentration camp in April-May 1945. The painting was created shortly after liberation. First Lt. Shurr assisted in planning for D-Day, June 6, 1944, and joined the Civil Affairs Unit. He landed on Omaha Beach soon after the invasion to organize supplies, then was placed with the 1st Army Displaced Persons Team. On April 11, 1945, the US Third Army liberated Buchenwald. Command of the camp was transferred to the 1st Army, which was responsible for establishing order, improving camp conditions, and caring for the inmates. Shurr worked 16 hour days trying to find food for 15,000 starving survivors. He later was sent to Bavaria as a health welfare officer to assist with the re-establishment of schools, hospitals, and other social services by the US Military occupation government. In 1949, he declined a permanent position and returned to the US.
title: Watercolor of a mountain and town given to US military aid worker by liberated inmate