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AGENDA SET FOR GHOST ARMY CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL CEREMONY

Three Ghost Army Veterans to Join Speaker Johnson, Congressional Leaders at Capitol

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

WASHINGTON, D. C. – Three surviving members of the Ghost Army, the top-secret WWII units that used creative deception to fool the enemy, will join House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, and other Congressional leaders at a special ceremony on March 21 at the Capitol to honor the Ghost Army with the Congressional Gold Medal. The long-awaited ceremony will take place at 11 a. m. on Thursday, March 21 in Emancipation Hall (Capitol Visitor Center) at the U. S. Capitol Complex in Washington, D. C. [...] read more

GHOST ARMY VETERANS TO RECEIVE CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL AT MARCH CEREMONY

Speaker Johnson, Congressional Leaders to Honor Surviving Members at the Capitol

Monday, January 22, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The long-awaited ceremony to present the Congressional Gold Medal to the Ghost Army, the secret WWII units that used creative deception to fool the enemy, will take place at the Capitol on March 21.

House Speaker Mike Johnson will host the special event, along with House and Senate leaders and sponsors of the legislation passed in 2022 authorizing the award, Congress's highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements by individuals or institutions. It will be the first time the Gold Medal, designed and produced by the U.S. Treasury Department, will be unveiled.

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GALP Launches 2024 Fundraiser

Monday, November 20, 2023

The Ghost Army Legacy Project today launched its 2024 Fundraiser. Our goal is to raise $30,000 by the end of the year. As of December 20, we have raised 84% of our goal through 73 donations! The soldiers of The Ghost Army used inflatable tanks, sound effects, and imagination to fool the Germans on the battlefields of Europe. Only 8 of the intrepid soldiers who carried out this bold mission are left. The Ghost Army Legacy Project is ensuring that these men and their accomplishments are never forgotten. [...] read more

Ghost Army Exhibit Heads to Nevada

Opens March 4, 2023

Saturday, January 14, 2023

The Ghost Army exhibit created by the National World War II Museum opens at the Nevada Museum of Art on March 4. The exhibit, titled Ghost Army: The Combat Con Artists of World War II was created in consultation with the Ghost Army Legacy Project, and sponsored by E. L. Wiegand Foundation. The exhibit was most recently at the Illinois Holocaust Museum in Skokie, Illinois. Ghost Army features inflatable military pieces, historical narrative text panels detailing unit operations, profiles of unit officers, archival photography and sketches and uniforms from unit officers. The [...] read more

Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee Makes Recommendation on Gold Medal Design

Friday, November 18, 2022

The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee, which advises the Secretary of the Treasury on the design of all US coins and medals, has made a recommendation for the design of the Ghost Army Congresional Gold Medal. The committee reviewed a portfolio of 16 candidate designs for the front and back. Committee members enthusiasticly endosed the reccomendations of the the three liaisons designated by Sen. Markey and Rep Kuster (Rick Beyer, Roy Eichhorn, and Stephanee Leech) and voted unaimously to recommend GA-O-03 for the obverse and GA-R-O5 for the reverse.

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George Dramis Gold Medal Celebration

Thursday, July 21, 2022

RALEIGH, NC – WWII Veteran George Dramis, 97, will be honored at a special ceremony Saturday at the Waltonwood Lake Boone assisted living community to mark the recent award of the Congressional Gold Medal to the Ghost Army, the secret WWII units that used creative deception to fool and distract the enemy on the battlefields of Europe. [...] read more

Bernie Bluestein Gold Medal Celebraton

Friday, July 8, 2022

Ghost Army Veteran Bernie Bluestin, 98, will be honored at a special ceremony Saturday, July 16 at Harper College. President Biden recently signed into law awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to the Ghost Army, the secret WWII units that used creative deception to fool and distract the enemy on the battlefields of Europe in which Christman served. [...] read more

llinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center to Unveil Ghost Army Exhibit from The National WWII Museum

Wednesday, May 4, 2022

Skokie, IL – On June 16, 2022, the traveling exhibition Ghost Army: The Combat Con Artists of World War II will begin its national tour at Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center . Produced by The National WWII Museum in New Orleans and exclusively sponsored by E. L. Wiegand Foundation, the exhibit tells the story of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops—the first mobile, multimedia, tactical deception unit in US Army history. The unit waged war with inflatable tanks and vehicles, fake radio traffic, sound effects and even phony generals, using [...] read more

President Biden Signs Bill to Honor Ghost Army

Congressional Gold Medal Awarded to Secretive WWII Units

Tuesday, February 1, 2022

The 23rd Headquarters Special Troops carried out more than 20 deception missions, often dangerously close to the front, in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany. This “traveling road show of deception,” of only 1,100 troops appearing to be more than 20,000, are credited with saving an estimated 30,000 American lives. U.S. Army analyst Mark Kronman stated, “Rarely, if ever, has there been a group of such a few men which had so great an influence on the outcome of a major military campaign.”​ A sister unit the 3133rd Signal Company Special, carried out two deceptions in Italy in 1945.

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Congress Passes Bill to Honor Ghost Army

Bill to Award Congressional Gold Medal to Secretive Army Units Awaits President’s Signature

Wednesday, January 19, 2022

“What made the Ghost Army special was not just their extraordinary courage, but their creativity,” said Rep. Annie Kuster (D-NH), the House sponsor of the bill, speaking on the floor of the House Wednesday. “Their story reminds us that listening to unconventional ideas, like using visual and sound deception, can help us solve existential challenges like defeating tyranny.”

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Senate Passes Ghost Army Congressional Gold Medal Act

Wednesday, December 15, 2021

The United States Senate today passed legislation to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the 23rd Special Headquarters Troops and the 3133rd Signal Service Company, the WWII deception units popularly known as The “Ghost Army.” The efforts and contributions of these soldiers were kept classified for more than 50 years. Passage came via unanimous consent.

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Bipartisan Bill to Honor WWII Ghost Army Receives Necessary 67Th Co-Sponsor in the Senate

Wednesday, November 17, 2021

​The existence of the Ghost Army was top secret for more than 50 years until it was declassified in 1996. That’s when the public first learned of the creative, daring techniques the Ghost Army employed to fool and distract the enemy about the strength and location of American troops, including the use of inflatable tanks, sound effects, radio trickery and impersonation.

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Bipartisan Bill to Honor Ghost Army Passes Halfway Mark for Senate Co-Sponsors

Monday, July 19, 2021

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The campaign to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the “Ghost Army” – the highly secretive WWII Army units that created ingenious deceptions on the battlefields of Europe – gained 13 new co-sponsors in the U.S. Senate this week for a total of 40. It has passed the halfway mark to the 67 co-sponsors required to bring the bill, S 1404, up for a vote. [...] read more

Please Support Our Ongoing Efforts

The soldiers of The Ghost Army used inflatable tanks, sound effects, and imagination to fool the Germans on the battlefields of Europe. The Ghost Army Legacy Project is ensuring that these men and their accomplishments are never forgotten.

Give via credit card by clicking the yellow “Donate” button.

Or, send a check to:

Ghost Army Legacy Project
1305 S. Michigan Ave. #1104
Chicago, IL 60605

All donations are tax-deductible!