Pair of leather boots given to a US liberator by a concentration camp inmate

James Bennett Keegan was born on November 28, 1915, in Forestville, California, to James W. and Effie Bennett Keegan. James had one younger brother, John Edward, born in 1917. In the early 1910s, James W. and Effie married and settled in Forestville, where they had a farm. In the 1920s, the family moved to Analy Township, near Sebastopol. In 1932, James graduated from high school and became a bank teller. James married Edith Newman (1916-1998) and they settled in Santa Rosa.

Following the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States entered World War II. On August 31, 1942, James enlisted in the US Army. In early 1943, he attended Infantry Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, Georgia. On April 30, following the completion of the course, James was honorably discharged as a Corporal and reenlisted as a Second Lieutenant. He was assigned to the 411th Regiment, 103rd Infantry Division, nicknamed the Cactus Division. In October 1944, the 103rd Infantry was deployed to Europe and landed in Marseilles, France, as part of the Seventh Army. James was a front line officer for the duraton of the war. During the Battle of the Bulge, the Division defended Allied positions near Sarreguemines. Reichshofen, and Soufflenheim. In mid-March 1945, the Division crossed into Germany, pushing toward the Rhine valley. On April 27, James participated in the liberation of Landsberg concentration camp, a Dachau subcamp. His company remained in Landsberg when the rest of the Division advanced toward Austria. They provided medical services, cared for the inmates, and improved conditions in the camp. While there, James gave an inmate a pack of cigarettes and they became friends, although they did not share a language. The inmate had worked as a cobbler at the camp and gave James a pair of leather boots he had made as a sign of friendship.

Following Germany’s surrender on May 7, 1945, James was assigned to the occupation force in Innsbruck, Austria. James, now a Captain, returned to the US in early 1946 and was discharged in May. He was awarded many medals for his service, including two Bronze Stars for heroic merit and two purple hearts. James returned to Santa Rosa and resumed his career at Wells Fargo Bank. James and Edith had one son. James later joined the Army Reserves. He did not like to speak about his wartime experiences, but he would often talk about the inmate he had befriended at Landsberg, and treasured the boots he had been given. James, 78, died on June 28, 1994.