On May 8, 1945, Wyoming Valley residents erupted in celebration as news of Victory in Europe Day (V-E Day) spread swiftly through Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania and the surrounding Coal Region communities.
Residents gathered around radio sets at home and in offices as President Harry Truman addressed the nation at 9am. You can hear his speech below:
Marking the historic defeat of Nazi Germany, thousands poured into the streets around Public Square and the Central City shopping district in Wilkes-Barre to commemorate the end of the Second World War in the European theater. Despite steady rainfall, horns blared, whistles blew, and church bells rang out triumphantly, creating an unforgettable atmosphere of jubilation and relief.
This remarkable day in Luzerne County saw businesses shuttered, restaurants closed, and students and office workers joining together in spontaneous festivities. Streamers, confetti, and ticker tape cascaded from office windows, mimicking New Year’s Eve celebrations in Times Square.
Yet amid the joy, flags flew at half-mast across the Valley in solemn remembrance of the late President Franklin D. Roosevelt, symbolizing the sacrifice and sorrow that underpinned the victory.
The Wilkes-Barre Record documented the scenes in Luzerne County that day as rain poured down and victory in Europe was celebrated.
From the Wilkes-Barre Record, May 9, 1945:
Joyfulness is mixed with prayer and thanksgiving as Valley celebrates victorious end of European conflict
Horns, Whistles, and Church Herald Downfall of Germany
MOST BUSINESS PLACES CLOSED
Many people go hungry as nearly all restaurants shut down for day
Centering in and around Public Square and the Central City shopping district, Wyoming Valley residents gave vent to long-pent up enthusiasm yesterday morning as European victory was finally announced.
Steady rain failed to dampen the spirits of the residents as colliery whistles, church bells, and automobile horns set off the celebration virtually before President Harry S. Truman’s message had been conducted. Paper streamers, confetti, and torn bits of paper floated down from windows of the Miners National Bank, Second National Bank, Wilkes-Barre Deposit and Savings Bank, and other offices and homes in central city.
Schools and virtually every business place in Wyoming Valley commemorated victory on the European fronts by suspending activities for the day.
Almost all restaurants were closed by middle afternoon, leaving hungry and homeless residents and visitors alike stranded. Only one eating establishment was open on the Square with a double line of standees evident during dinner and lunch hours.
In raincoats and holding umbrellas, hundreds of celebrators mostly store and office personnel, milled around West Market Street and Public Square. Streamers of pink, green, and white paper and ticker tape from the brokerage offices floated down from office windows, providing pedestrians with an idea of a daytime New Year’s Eve on Times Square.
Opposite the bank, spectators, oblivious of the teeming rain, stood watching the stenographers in windows float the ticker tape, while all along West Market Street and Public Square, persons sat in window sills of apartments watching the gaiety.
Flags flew at half-mast in nearly every business place and on porches of local homes, bringing a sad reminder of the nation’s late President, Franklin D. Roosevelt.
For at least two hours after the proclamation, horns on automobiles moving slowly around the square never stopped their blaring announcement of V-E Day.
Confetti Covers Street
Pedestrians on North Main Street in the vicinity of the USO Lounge waded through brightly colored confetti. Doors of the lounge were flung open, but he haven of servicemen on V-E Day, totally deserted.
Baskets of paper were hurled to the dampened breezes by a crowd of men and women from one of the highest floors of the Deposit and Savings Bank building.
High school students provided the displays of the morning, as some boys in a Ford car raced the motor and turned the ignition switch off and on to produce backfire reports. One youth strode the sidewalks towing a cardboard, life-size image of Hitler by means of a rope tied about the “dummy’s” neck. “Hitler’s face” became the target for many kicks as it slithered along the rain-soaked sidewalk.
Cow bells, swung by boys and girls from pre-school to high school ages, also announced the arrival of V-E Day, while nine high school youths rode the running boards and fenders of a Packard car, in which at least six more rode, blaring the horn continuously adding to the bedlam that prevailed in the city.
Slightly dimmed by prevailing weather conditions, the celebration was partly enhanced by the appearance of gaily colored umbrellas and in spite of the traffic and din of horns, few traffic snarls were encountered, even during the height of the celebration.
Lee Park added a novel touch to the celebration by igniting approximately 100 flares along the right of way of the Buttonwood branch of the Central Railroad of New Jersey. The flares burned brightly for more than 15 minutes.
Eight decades later, the legacy of this extraordinary day resonates deeply, yet it is tempered by a sense of sadness and uncertainty about the enduring stability of the global order shaped by the World War II generation.
Revisiting these vivid contemporary accounts serves as a poignant reminder of the immense relief, gratitude, and hope felt by everyday citizens across the Coal Region and beyond, as well as the profound sorrow and sacrifices that made victory possible.
As we commemorate the 80th anniversary of V-E Day, reflecting on these individual and communal experiences offers essential insights and underscores the importance of preserving the lessons learned during one of humanity’s darkest chapters, especially as we face an increasingly uncertain future.
Read more stories about World War II in the Coal Region
A Schuylkill County veteran’s memory of V-E Day and liberating a concentration camp in 1945
A Coal Region WAVE urges the purchases of war bonds | 1944
A Pennsylvania airman’s letter about the air war over Europe | 1944
Letters from War – Irvin Schwartz’s V-E Day letter to the West Schuylkill Press-Herald – May 8, 1945
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