Chicago vet's photos from front lines of World War II published in son's tribute to his dad

Fred Brems grew up captivated by the tales his father shared from his days serving in World War II.

“The way he talked about it, he knew what he was doing out there,” said Brems, 75. “There was an element of luck.”

Now, Brems hopes to share those stories with others as his way of honoring his father, who died in 2014. He spent 18 years compiling his father’s photos and stories from the war into a book titled "Knights of Freedom."

“I really love these pictures, because it was my dad taking them,” Brems said. “He was always telling stories.”

His father, Lt. Col. Frederick C. Brems, from Belmont Cragin, loved photography “from the get-go” and helped sell cameras at a Chicago department store. He took his Rolleiflex camera to war, documenting everything from burning vehicles to portraits of his comrades.

“The camera was part of him,” his son said.

Brems preserved those pictures in a box, totaling around 900. But for the longest time, Brems could not see much detail in them because they were such small pictures — 2¼-by-2¼ inches.

That changed after his cousin, a professional photographer, digitized them. The cousin took the “little dinky photos and blew them up to 12 megabytes,” he said.

“When they were blown up, I was amazed,” Brems said. “I realized I was looking through my dad’s eyes. I saw what he saw when he took those photos.”

Brems’ father served in the 2nd Armored Division, which he called his “home.” The division, nicknamed “Hell on Wheels,” was one of the most renowned units of military history, serving in North Africa, Germany, France and more.

Michael Bell, executive director of the Jenny Craig Institute for the Study of War and Democracy, said the 2nd Armored Division had “an amazing record” in combat. The division inflicted eight times the casualties on the enemy than it received, he said.

“It's a division that always had an incredible reputation of high standards and great performance,” Bell said.

The 2nd Armored Division was a key unit in the Allied invasion of Germany, a difficult campaign known for high casualty rates, Bell said.

Bell said firsthand accounts are crucial to learning about the day to day of soldiers’ lives.

“Their memories are so incredibly vivid that we can get insights that you can't otherwise understand,” Bell said.

Karen Dellinger’s father, Ray Stewart, served alongside Brems’ father. Though Stewart died this year, his daughter said she learned about him from reading Brems’ book.

“I could care less about guns,” Dellinger said. “The book does a good job of the everyday. Some of it’s mundane. Some of it’s interesting. Some of it’s courageous.”

Brems was “research driven” in his writing, she said. Her father advised Brems to tell the stories “like it happened,” even if the stories were emotionally difficult.

“A lot of these guys go through experiences they don’t repeat,” Dellinger said. “If we don't reach out to younger people and let them know the stories, they will be forgotten.”

For his service, Brems’ father was honored with a Silver Star and a Bronze Star. Brems’ father eventually commanded a tank company.

Bell said high casualties required leaders to step up and assume responsibilities quickly.

“I’m sure it’s an amazing story,” Bell said. “It’s a testament to identify the soldier to do that and move forward.”

After the war, Brems said his father worked at a paper company near the Merchandise Mart for 40 years. He also served in the reserves until 1977.

Later, his father moved to Wood Dale, where Brems was born in 1948, and Algonquin. Since then, his stories have carried on through his son.

“My dad’s my hero, and he always has been,” Brems said.