The George William Curtis Collection
In December 2016, The Ghost Army Legacy Project acquired a collection of 90 rare photos of WWII inflatable dummies. The photos appear to be part of a U.S. Army camouflage archive from Fort Belvoir that was lost/abandoned in the 1990s. The collection was acquired with the assistance of a generous donation from Georgianne Kasuli , and is named after her father, George W. Curtis, a Ghost Army veteran who served in the 406th Combat Engineers.
The photos depict the dummies during the manufacture and testing phases. They also reveal details of the dummies construction.
Of particular interest are photographs of dummy landing craft filled with dummy vehicles. This is not a configuration that was ever used in combat, as far as is known.
Of the 90 photos in the collection, 28 are shown here. If you are interested in learning more about the collection, or in licensing images in the collection, contact office@ghostarmy.org.
Click the images to expand view.
![Decoy truck](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-1_1_orig.jpg)
Pneumatic construction of a 3/4 ton, 4x4, weapons carrier truck
![decoy cannon](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-3_1_orig.jpg)
C of E Model No. 14 Gun, 155mm, M1, Shipping weight 250 lbs, 33.6 cu. ft.
![decoy tank in use by the ghost army](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-4_1_orig.jpg)
Prefabricated, pneumatic type M-4 tank with mushroom type turret
![decoy tank in warehouse](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-5_1_orig.jpg)
C of E Model No. 4 tank, medium, M4, shipping weight 250 lbs, 33.6 cu. ft.
![soldier setting up a tarp structure](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-7_1_orig.jpg)
Soldier folding or unfolding deflated piece of equipment
![soldier assembling decoy army equipment made of logs and tarps](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-8_1_orig.jpg)
Soldier standing next to inflated vehicle frame, positioned on its side
![decoy jeep in the field](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-12_1_orig.jpg)
Inflated truck
![arial view of decoy tanks and jeeps in world war 2](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-13_1_orig.jpg)
Collection of five inflated vehicles
![decoy truck with soldier standing next to it](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-6_1_orig.jpg)
Soldier standing with inflated truck
![decoy scarecrow soldier with decoy Bofors gun](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-14_1_orig.jpg)
Personnel figure with center pole support, paper mache soldier, face cone and helmet. 40mm Bofors gun, pneumatic construction of 4" diameter neoprene tubes. Tires individually inflated.
![Decoy inflated truck trailer for a tank](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-24_1_orig.jpg)
Pneumatic construction, truck, trailer, 40-ton tank recovery
![decoy inflated tank carrier on a road](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-17_1_orig.jpg)
Inflated, pneumatic tank carrier with camouflage cover
![decoy cargo truck world war 2](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-27_1_orig.jpg)
C. of E. Model No. 8 truck, 2 1/2 ton, 6 x 6 cargo with camouflage canvas, shipping weight 165 lbs., 31.8 cu. ft., with two large duffel-type bags next to it, possibly containing deflated vehicles for transport
![decoy inflated tank in the woods](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-28_1_orig.jpg)
Inflatable M-4 Sherman tank positioned in a wooded area; note figure in lower right
![inflatable truck](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-29_1_orig.jpg)
Inflated truck with canvas cover
![framework of inflatable truck](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-41_1_orig.jpg)
Inflated tube frame of vehicle
![Inflated truck with canvas cover showing frame](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-60_1_orig.jpg)
Inflated truck with canvas cover, showing pneumatic tube frame
![decoy antiaircraft guns by a road](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-50_1_orig.jpg)
Collection of inflated anti-aircraft guns
![Inflated truck on a dirt road in the woods](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-55_1_orig.jpg)
Inflated truck with camouflage canvas cover
![decoy truck viewed through the woods](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-56_1_orig.jpg)
Inflated truck viewed from a distance
![Two inflated trucks](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-59_1_orig.jpg)
Two inflated trucks
![two inflated decoy trucks](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-63_1_orig.jpg)
Two inflated trucks; the right vehicle is an M-4 tank equipped with "Sunshield" pneumatic deception cover, which was not employed by the Ghost Army
![Decoy truck on in a field](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-64_1_orig.jpg)
C. of E. Model No. 19, "Sunshield" pneumatic deception cover for M-4 medium tank, shipping weight 226 lbs., 23 cu. ft. This was not employed by the Ghost Army.
![arial view of farmhouse surrounded by decoy vehicles ww2](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-68_1_orig.jpg)
Aerial view, showing a collection of inflated dummies on the right side of the building
![decoy landing craft in a bay ww2](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-73_1_orig.jpg)
Landing craft tank (LCT) towed by a small boat, which is a giveaway that the LCT is itself an inflatable
![decoy landing craft being towed](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-75_1_orig.jpg)
Landing craft tank (LCT)
![decoy landing craft by the shore with people walking toward it](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-84_1_orig.jpg)
Landing craft tank (LCT) near shore with people and a genuine LCT on the left
![decoy inflatable landing craft being lifted and launched on a beach](https://ghostarmy.org/images/thearchive/w12-86_1_orig.jpg)
Landing craft tank (LCT) being lifted into the water by a group of men