| Original caption: “Private Roy W. Humphrey of Toledo, Ohio is being given blood plasma after he was wounded by shrapnel in Sicily.” Original caption: “Oblivious to all but the task of saving a comrade’s life, Private Harvey White administers life-giving blood plasma to a soldier wounded during the campaign in Sicily, from a blood bank furnished by Americans at home.” United States Army Private Roy “Willis” Humphrey (February 27, 1922 – August 10, 1943) of Toledo, Ohio, G Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division, receives blood plasma by United States Army Private 1st Class Harvey White of Minneapolis, Minnesota, at the aid station, Sant’Agata, Sicily, after he was wounded by shrapnel on August 9, 1943. Humphrey was wounded near San Fratello and was later taken to the 93rd Evacuation Hospital, where he died the next day. Humphrey would be temporarily buried in Military Cemetery Number 3 in Caronia, Sicily. Taken in an alley less than half a mile from the Nazi German lines and while under constant bombardment, the picture showed Private 1st Class Harvey White of Minneapolis administering blood plasma to a wounded soldier. The well-known photographer of the time, Victor Keppler (September 30, 1904 – December 2, 1987), called the photo “one of the greatest human interest shots to come from the war.” The depiction of a grievously wounded American soldier immediately begs the question, “Did this man survive?” The photograph received a 1944 Pulitzer Prize nomination. The photograph appeared in newspapers across the United States and was used by the Red Cross to encourage blood donations for the military. Seeing how blood plasma was used had a profound impact on the American public. The Los Angeles Times initially identified the soldier on the stretcher as Private Marvin Niles (September 17, 1922 – February 6, 1976). Niles was grievously wounded when a comrade tripped a land mine. Shrpanel tore through Niles’s right arm and neck. He fell in and out of consciousness until he was rescued 7 hours later. He tried to take sulfa pills, but they were in his backpack and he couldn’t turn around. He claimed he didn’t remember getting blood plasma. Niles dated the photo to August 7. A picture of his mother presenting this photo to her son was circulated nationally in December 1943. At the University of Southern California, TIME Magazine reported on August 28, 1944, Niles wished “the professor would remember that the German land mine which shredded and scarred his arm in Sicily left his elbow so sensitive that when it brushes against a desk he almost screams with the pain.” Though Wever’s caption noted White’s name, it failed to identify the GI receiving the plasma. People wanted to know who the wounded soldier was. It took a concerted effort by the 3rd Infantry Division Headquarters, but the man was finally identified: Private Roy W. Humphrey of Toledo. Humphrey survived the Operation Torch landings in North Africa, but he was wounded and received the Purple Heart. He graduated from Robinson Junior High School and Macomber Vocational High School. He was a welder at the Toledo Iron and Wire Company until he enlisted in June 1942. 1 of the newspapers that ran the photograph was the Toledo Blade in Humphrey’s hometown. The Blade identified White, but Humphrey was identified only as a “wounded Yank.” No 1 knew he was a local boy. The Blade ran the photo on September 3, 1943, and ran a story about Humphrey’s death 4 days later, on September 7, without ever connecting him to the soldier in the photograph. The Blade article added that in letters to his mother, Humphrey stated he planned to return after the war, marry his sweetheart, secure a job, and settle down. His mother never recovered from her son’s death. “She really loved that kid,” said Lee Weiser, who married Humphrey’s sister, Winifred, shortly after Humphrey left for war. “I’m telling you, she was in bad shape after he was killed. She really missed him.’ Humphrey was buried in the Toledo Memorial Park Cemetery on July 5, 1948. Photo by United States Army Lieutenant John S. Wever (March 2, 1916 – November 27, 1995) of Marbeth, West Virginia. Before the war, Wever worked as a racetrack photographer in Charles Town, West Virginia. As the war intensified in the European theater, Wever decided to enlist as a 2nd Lieutenant in 1942. Wever would be sent overseas to document the fighting in Sicily with the 196th Signal Photo Company. Wever would go on to document the Italian Campaign throughout its many battles. | |
| Image Filename | wwii0983.jpg |
| Image Size | 716.68 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 2928 x 2343 |
| Photographer | John S. Wever |
| Photographer Title | United States Army Signal Corps |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | August 9, 1943 |
| Location | |
| City | Sant’Agata |
| State or Province | Sicily |
| Country | Italy |
| Archive | National Archives and Records Administration |
| Record Number | NLR-PHOCO-A-74201290 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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