Henry Truman became the thirty third president of the United States on April 12, 1945. Upon the death of Franklin D he told reporters, "I felt like the moon, the stars, and all the planets had fallen on me." During Truman's presidency Germany surrendered (May 8, 1945) and Japan surrendered (Aug. 14, 1945), ending World War II.
Truman was born in Lamar, Missouri, on May 8, 1884. He joined the Baptist church in Kansas City, Missouri at age eighteen. He grew up in Independence, and for 12 years prospered as a Missouri farmer. In 1910, he began courting Elizabeth Wallace. …
