- Photograph by
- Schutz Photo, American, founded 1918
- Subject of
- 8th Engineer Battalion, American, founded 1916
- Coles, Alphonso C. Jr., American, 1920 - 2019
- Date
- 1942
- Medium
- silver and photographic gelatin
- Dimensions
- H x W: 10 x 34 in. (25.4 x 86.4 cm)
- Description
- This black and white panoramic photograph of World War II soldiers from Company D, 8th Battalion, Ft. Belvoir depicts the training class of 1942. The class photograph takes up the top half of the photograph and is made up of a posed group of soldiers standing and sitting on bleachers five deep. The front row holds a flag with a dark background and light colored letters that read "RTC/ 8D". Between the RTC and the 8D is a castle. The flag is mounted on a pole which is held horizontally by soldiers in the front row. One man, Alphonso Coles, is circled in black ink. The bottom half of the photograph is divided into five sections; four smaller inset images and a list of names as well as the company name "CO. D, 8th BATTALION/ Engineer Replacement Training Center/ Fort Belvoir, Virginia 1942." The furthest right image shows the soldiers lined up in front of the barracks. The second right image depicts four officers standing in a row. The furthest left image also show the soldiers lined up in front of barracks. The second left images show fifteen soldiers posing on bleachers with the same flag shown in the top image. Between the inset photographs is a space with a list of names of the individuals pictured.
- Place depicted
- Fort Belvoir, Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, North and Central America
- Classification
- Photographs and Still Images
- Type
- panoramas
- portraits
- Topic
- Men
- Military
- Photography
- World War II
- Credit Line
- Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Alphonso C. Coles, II
- Object number
- 2014.253.1
- Restrictions & Rights
- No Known Copyright Restrictions
- Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.




