Delegates of the Potsdam Conference in Germany
7/19/1945
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In this photograph, delegates of the Potsdam Conference in Germany prepare to leave the conference room at Cecilienhof Palace, as photographers and newsreel cameramen gather on staircase. Soviet Prime Minister Josef Stalin talks to Secretary of State James Byrnes and President Harry S. Truman (back to camera).
President Truman wrote a note on the back of this photograph: "In which I tell Stalin we expect to drop the most powerful explosive ever made on the Japanese. He smiled and said he appreciated my telling him -- but he did not know what I'm talking about -- the Atomic Bomb! HST".
The original caption for the photograph reads: Conference of Big Three Powers at Potsdam, near Berlin, Germany, 7 July thru 2 August 1945, to demand the surrender of Japan. Generalissimo Josef Stalin, facing camera, shakes hands with Secretary of State James F. Byrnes near the conference table just before the opening of the third day's session. 7/19/45
This document was identified by teachers in our 2015 Primarily Teaching online workshop.
President Truman wrote a note on the back of this photograph: "In which I tell Stalin we expect to drop the most powerful explosive ever made on the Japanese. He smiled and said he appreciated my telling him -- but he did not know what I'm talking about -- the Atomic Bomb! HST".
The original caption for the photograph reads: Conference of Big Three Powers at Potsdam, near Berlin, Germany, 7 July thru 2 August 1945, to demand the surrender of Japan. Generalissimo Josef Stalin, facing camera, shakes hands with Secretary of State James F. Byrnes near the conference table just before the opening of the third day's session. 7/19/45
This document was identified by teachers in our 2015 Primarily Teaching online workshop.
This primary source comes from the Collection: Audiovisual Collection.
National Archives Identifier: 198894
Full Citation: Photograph PHT-63(1456)46; Delegates of the Potsdam Conference in Germany; 7/19/1945; Photographs Relating to the Administration, Family, and Personal Life of Harry S. Truman, 1957 - 2004; Collection: Audiovisual Collection; Harry S. Truman Library, Independence, MO. [Online Version, https://docsteach.org/documents/document/delegates-potsdam-conference-germany, March 27, 2025]Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Learn more on our privacy and legal page.
