About Us

A Handy Guide to "FIRST AID for the Injured", prepared from the Official First Aid Manual, US Army & Based on Methods Used by the US Army Medical Corps, Foreword by Maj General James C. MAGEE, Surgeon General, US Army, Illustrated with Diagrams & Photographs,
Whitman Publishing Company, Racine, Wisconsin, No. 751, 1943

Who We Are:

The WW2 US Medical Research Centre started out as a private venture between two WW2 US Medical collectors and re-enactors from Europe. Using a variety of sources, we were able to create an online database containing a list of all WW2 US Medical Department Item Numbers and their descriptions. For us, we soon realised that the database was an invaluable research tool for anyone interested in the period. As a result, the project soon grew to encompass a number of other resources for both collectors and re-enactors to use for their research.

As stated, this site is an amalgamation of the efforts by both Alain Batens and Ben Major. The project has been 100% privately funded by us, and so we hope that the site is of some use to the visitors.

Biographies:

Alain Batens:

WW2 Medical impression of a Section Leader, i.e. Buck Sergeant, filling in the necessary data on the Emergency Medical Tags, he is a member of a Collecting Company, 428th Medical Battalion, attached to the Third United States Army, period August 1944, France

My name is Alain S. BATENS – I am a Belgian citizen, militaria collector, parttime historian and researcher, fascinated by Military History. My general interest goes to World War 2 and the Allied Armies that liberated my home country. I have always had a fondness for the United States Armed Forces, and am more particularly interested in the U.S. Army’s Medical Department and the Corps of Engineers, in the European Theater of Operations (E.T.O.).
I started collecting at age 13 (I now am 63 years old and retired) and my first re-enactment activities took place in the mid 1970s. Having read numerous books, treaties, manuals, and the like, on the medical subject, I got hooked on “medical care in combat” – imagine, Medical Department personnel, i.e. unarmed soldiers, painstakingly taking care of their fellow combat men, and saving thousands of precious lives under trying conditions, while endeavouring to preserve the fighting strength of the combat forces!

Alain S. BATENS – Lest We Forget those who provided “Comfort and Aid”

Ben Major:

WW2 Medical impression of an 82d Airborne Medic, Normandy 1944. He carries full parachute equipment, including a B4 "Mae West" Life Vest, T5 Parachute and Reserve Pack, and also medical equipment.

I'm Ben Major, and a British collector and researcher of American WWII militaria and in particular Medical equipment. Although primarily interested in the US Army Medical Department during the Second World War, I also have fostered an interest in WW2 re-enactment, portraying a Battalion Aid Station impression pertaining to the 82nd Airborne Division.
I started collecting and re-enacting, like my good friend Alain at an early age (around 10 - 11). My adoption of an interest in the Medical Department was a gradual one, and I began to research the topic more and more, through a number of different sources. Like Alain, I share the view that what these personnel did to save the lives of many was truly awesome. I hope that this website can be a small appreciation gesture to those men, and honor them in such a way that they all deserve.

Ben C. Major

Our Aim:

Here at the WW2 US Medical Research Centre, we believe that re-enactors, collectors, researchers and historians should have access to information to assist them with their research. As a result, the site was set up to offer fellow collectors, and other people with similar aims as ourselves the opportunity to expand their knowledge about the period.

It was also the intention of the founders, to bring the WW2 Medical Research and Collecting community together, and allow them to communicate with other people having similar interests. We really do welcome comments and any other information that our visitors may be able to offer, and we sincerely hope that information supplied here is of use to them.

Project History:

History Timeline:
September 2006	Myself and Alain began work on the Item Number database, and began to add items to it.
October 2006	The database was completed, and both Alain and I went through our collections to ensure that the items which had been entered were correct.
End of October, 2006	The main website layout was started, and the pages began to take shape. We worked on some more features for the website, as well as ensuring the database was kept up-to-date.
November, 2006	The forum for the website was created, and formatted to fit in with the website. Also, many articles were completed and uploaded to the website.
End of November, 2006	A number of new articles were written and uploaded to the website, as well as a number of lists.
December, 2006	A number of new articles were completed and added to the website, including ones featuring a list of US ETO Hospitals. In addition, the links section was added to the website, and the search engine for the site greatly improved.

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