Sgt. G.I. Crows’ Eye View of Frankfurt AM and PM, Germany

An amusing postwar perspective on Frankfurt am Main.

This hilarious cartoon plan of Frankfurt, Germany was designed and copywritten in 1954 by Byrel “Lederhosen Lefty” Burgess. Intended for primarily an American military audience, the pocket map was published by Stars and Stripes in nearby Darmstadt. While the sheet may not be of much use for navigation or directions, it does capture the zeitgeist of Frankfurt’s postwar reconstruction in the decade following the Second World War.

Despite the presence of the Iron Curtain looming over West Germany, the image is upbeat and incorporates comedy, puns, and clever wordplay at every opportunity. ‘Military humor’ is rife, with the U.S. Army serving as the butt of numerous jokes. Scattered references to America (Pike’s Peak, Texas, etc.) possibly reflect attitudes of homesickness. Several Armed Services facilities are identified and military police are stationed with some regularity, but the content emphasizes recreation and leisure. Charming pictorial vignettes identify numerous locations of interest amid a basic transportation outline. German culture is also the subject of much amusement, with references to the cuisine, social customs, and history. Beer and sausages, naturally, are featured heavily.

While the map does appear occasionally on the market, it is scarce in institutional collections. As of July 2024, WorldCat notes only one example, at the University of Chicago Library. OCLC# 59284292