9 April 2024: Many of these links are either very slow to respond, or not responding at all this morning. I will retest tomorrow before dropping or editing them. Ahhh, the joys of the internet!–
Links to relevant information in print and on the web
The amount of information related to World War II and the use of Communications Intelligence, both online and in print, is staggering and continuing to grow. Below is a list of books and other sources which I’m currently reading, have read or use frequently as valuable references. They are of varying levels of detail and depth.
History of Codebreaking
- Released in 2013: It Wasn’t All Magic , a declassified report authored by Colin Burke. Based on his research while scholar in residence at the NSA Cryptologic History Center. Also found at NSA Special Research History series: It Wasn’t All Magic; the Early Struggle to Automate Cryptanalysis, 1930s-1960s Analysis of early Machine Cryptography, 2002. It loads a little more quickly at here.
The Information Age and the Cryptanalytic Bombe
- The Information Age . Online records of the Smithsonian Exhibit where the US Navy Bombe made its first public appearance
- The present Bombe Exhibit at the National Cryptologic Museum , Fort Meade, Maryland.The Museum itself is well worth a visit.
The role of cryptology in American history
Modern Cryptography, Logic and Electronics
- Before Supercomputers: NSA and Computer Development. All those other machines: Copperhead, Duenna, Mamba–the list is impressive.
Curious about tube technology?
- 70 Years of Radio Tubes and Valves; a Guide for Electronic Engineers, Historians and Collectors. John W. Stokes. 1982. The Vestal Press Led. Vestal, NY.
- Online sources include: Electron or Vacuum Tubes at the Engineering and Technology History Wiki .
- A labor of love: The National Valve Museum
- Thyratrons are even on YouTube! See Powering a Thyratron Tube
- Who knew tube technology was staging a comeback? See the IEEE Spectrum, Nov 2015 . Joe Desch researched the cold cathode Vacuum tube for several years.
Cryptologic History, Intelligence in Warfare
- Naval History and Heritage Command Online Reading Room . Too much information to grasp in just one visit.
- The NSA National Cryptologic Museum
- Naval Security Group Command, descendent and the heir of Op-20-G (NB: COMNAVSECGRU was disestablished 29 Dec 2005. Those former commands are now renamed Navy Information Operations Commands. For more information, please see this web site.)
- Navy CT History, the “unofficial” web site, preserving the history of the Naval Security Group Command and the worldwide CT community.
- An online exhibit about the Battle of the Atlantic posted by the Mariner’s Museum of Newport News, Virginia
- NSA SRH 235 online: Contribution of US Naval Communication Intelligence to Submarine Warfare
- US Cryptologic History online: A Priceless Advantage: U.S. Navy Communications Intelligence and the Battles of Coral Sea, Midway and the Aleutians
- Wolf Pack: The Story of the U-Boat in World War II . Gordon Williamson. 2005. Osprey Publishing. University Park, Illinois, Northants, UK.
- The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors; The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy’s Finest Hour. James D. Hornfischer. 2004. Bantam Books. This book brilliantly portrays the scope of the battle for Leyte.
- Combined Fleet Decoded: The Secret History of American Intelligence and the Japanese Navy in World War II . John Prados. 1995. Naval Institute Press.
- U-boat.net
- U-boat Archive.net
Background information about the Medal for Merit
The pioneering work of the British at Bletchley Park, and Bletchley’s relationship with the US
- Index to Frode Weierud’s CryptoCellar : My go-to site for extensive research and transcriptions of original documentation.
- The Official Site of the Bletchley Park Trust –updated and loaded with new information.
- Codes and Ciphers in the Second World War, hosted by our late friend and documentary star Tony Sale
- A section of The Alan Turing Internet Scrapbook , Alan Turing as UK-USA link, 1942 onwards: Hands Across the Sea
- The Alan Turing Archive
- Alan Turing’s Report after visiting the National Cash Register in December, 1942
- The admirable and now successful efforts of the Bletchley Park Trust not only to save Bletchley Park but educate the public about the Park’s heroic efforts during WW2. John Harper, leader of the Bombe Rebuild Team BCS Bombe Team receives Award . Also Honorary Fellowship of BCS
- Rebuilding the British Bombe and John Harper: Homage to Heroes, BBC News. (mistakenly names an “Enigma Replica”
- News Item: Engineering award: John Harper and his team receive award
Information about the ground-breaking work on cracking the Enigma accomplished by Polish cryptanalysts early in the War
- An essay on machine ciphers and their solutions by Chris Christensen, which outlines the Polish efforts
- The Enigma Machine; History of Solving hosted by Lech Maziakowski
- IEEE Milestone Honors Poland’s World War II Code Breakers
Would you like to learn more about codes and ciphers, encrypt a message, or learn more about tubes and circuits? decrypt other ciphers? tackle Enigma itself?
- Restoration of Enigma A16878, a site narrating the restoration of an Enigma by Jim Oram, restorer of Enigmas for museums and collectors.
- Volumes of information about versions of the Enigma. Jim also is devoted to the Graveyard of the Atlantic [link currently not working]
- Elonka’s List of Famous Unsolved Ciphers and Codes
More about methods of Enigma decryption
- The home pageof a host of web sites (somewhat technical) by Jerry Proc, of Ontario Canada. Links to topics include Crypto Machines, the Enigma, Radio Stories, and Sonar, Radar and IFF Systems.
- The Dutch Crypto Museum , a virtual museum sponsored in the Netherlands. Included is a list of Enigma simulators available for different operating systems (Windows, Perl, etc.)
Good sources for WW2 information
- An excellent reference with a misleading name: Hyperwar: World War II on the World Wide Web
- A good bilbiography page: ULTRA bibliography