Augusta University Libraries is currently hosting a World War II history exhibit that highlights the CSRA’s unique connection to the war.
Housed on the third floor of Reese Library, the exhibit features materials that belonged to Col. John A. May from the Dachau Concentration Camp Trials. An attorney from Aiken, South Carolina, May was tasked with serving on the defense team during the trials following the war.
“One can only imagine how he and the other attorneys must have felt receiving orders to defend Nazi individuals of the Dachau Camp,” said John A. Mayo, May’s grandson. “Indeed, they did so with courage, and my grandfather was awarded a U.S. Army Bronze Star for his participation.”
Beyond his military career, May practiced law and served multiple terms in the South Carolina State House of Representatives.
The exhibit showcases trial documents, event photographs and contextual information about the Dachau Trials. In addition to the trials, May contributed to the prosecution in the Borkum Island Trials, where 10 German soldiers and five civilians were prosecuted for war crimes against seven executed American airmen.
“In his writings of the trials, he frequently makes comments that he and the other lawyers had a great sense of duty and knew they were ‘making history,’” Mayo said.
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