The Reporter: June 1996, Vol.7, No.3
The Lattimer Collection: History You Can Touch

Half a century ago, Dr. John K. Lattimer found himself in the midst of one of the most important trials in the modern era. World War II had come to a close and the Nuremberg International Military Tribunal convened, bringing the defeated Nazi leaders to account for the unspeakable atrocities they had committed. As a major in the U.S. Army medical corps, the young Dr. Lattimer served as the urologist and general medical officer for the defendants of that historic trial.

Dr. Lattimer, now P&S professor emeritus of urology, was a featured speaker this spring at the 50th Reunion Congress of the Nuremberg trial staff. Of the original 1,000 staff members, 200 took part in the reunion held in Washington, D.C. What made Dr. Lattimer's presentation more than just a recap of events or a retrospective analysis was the collection of odds and ends he had saved from the trial. Once the trial was over, Dr. Lattimer was able to obtain a number of belongings of Hermann Goering, the Nazi leader appointed by Hitler as his successor and one of the war criminals on trial at Nuremberg. "It's one thing to talk about somebody," says Dr. Lattimer, "but it's another thing to see something they held in their hands." He believes such objects give insight into the personalities behind events in history. Dr. Lattimer has Goering's hunting coat with expandable seams, designed to accommodate Goering's waistline, which shrank more than 100 pounds during the 10-month trial. He was also able to obtain Goering's state-of-the-art chronometer wristwatch, his seal ring, enormous "lederhosen," and his pen that was used to sign Nazi documents.

Dr. John K. Lattimer, U.S. Army

"In order to keep the Army guards on his side, Goering gave them little gifts," says Dr. Lattimer of Goering's imprisonment. Of course, he explains, the guards weren't about to do anything illegal on Goering's behalf, but the little gifts he gave them were often quite unique. After the trial, Dr. Lattimer was able to purchase some of those "gifts" from the Army personnel or their families.

Dr. Lattimer has the empty metal vial found in Goering's hand after his suicide. Goering sneaked three vials holding cyanide into prison, one of which was confiscated. "He was very clever because he hid this one in a jar of face cream." Goering killed himself two hours before he was to be executed by the tribunal.

Dr. Lattimer's collection of political memorabilia is not limited to World War II relics. "I've been a collector all my life," he says. The first piece in his eclectic collection is the sword of Ethan Allen, which Dr. Lattimer inherited as a descendant of that early American revolutionary. He also owns a number of things relating to the assassinations of Presidents Lincoln and Kennedy, such as medical implements belonging to Lincoln's physician and a scrap of blood-stained leather from the car in which Kennedy was assassinated.

The Lincoln collection is so extensive that pieces have appeared at the Smithsonian Institution and the New York Historical Society. Last month, the "Lattimer Family Collection of Significant Lincolniana and Assassination Relics" was part of a special exhibit at the Metropolitan Arts & Antiques Pavilion titled "Lincoln in New York."

And what does Dr. Lattimer think of all the hype created by the recent auctioning of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis' estate? "If you've collected things when they're reasonably priced, you can't bring yourself to pay those awful prices."

Goering's suicide capsule container	Hermann Goering's expandable hunting coat