Victory in Europe: the war is half over...

Item # 705800

May 08, 1945

THE EVENING BULLETIN, Providence, Rhode Island, May 8, 1945

* Surrender of Germany - Nazis
* V-E Day celebrations underway

The banner headlines announce: "ALLIED ACCLAIM V-E DAY" "Terms To Be Signed In Berlin" "Guns Fall Silent At 6 Tonight" with many related subheads and a celebratory photo.
Complete in 28 pages, good condition.

background: On May 8, 1945, the streets of Providence underwent a profound transformation as the "sober and subdued" rejoicing described by President Truman took hold of the city. While the banner headlines of The Evening Bulletin heralded the official 6:00 PM ceasefire, the local reality was a poignant blend of chaotic celebration and the high-stakes industry of a state that had sent over 90,000 of its citizens to war. As downtown crowds gathered near the bustling transit hubs and the influential Journal-Bulletin building, the atmosphere was thick with the scent of newsprint and the relief of families whose loved ones were in the European theater; yet, for many Rhode Islanders, the victory was viewed through a "half-finished" lens. Because the state was a massive naval and industrial engine—home to Quonset Point and the nation’s primary PT boat training centers—the jubilant noise in Providence was shadowed by the quiet, ongoing mobilization for the Pacific, a geographic and emotional duality that eventually led Rhode Island to become the only state to maintain an official "Victory Day" holiday to this day.