Bernard Mathy shares his discoveries of Omaha on the Internet

Bernard Mathy, a young retiree living in Vierville opposite Omaha Beach, had created a personal site to share his favorites in the region. One of his four sons, Julien, had introduced him to computer science and the Internet. Equipped for about a year, he quickly wanted to make known what was touching him around Omaha.

Before his retirement, four years earlier, he mainly frequented the house built by his grandfather at the beginning of the century, with a large bay window open to the sea. Having become a more regular resident, he observed visitors who, like him in the past, discovered little of the interior. His site wanted to give them ideas to start again by getting to know the region better.

The address presented, perso.wanadoo.fr/lasource, brought together choices between Port-en-Bessin, Isigny, Trévières and Bernesq. Pages on the Landing completed the whole: Bernard Mathy was personally interested in it and attended many commemorative ceremonies.

The section of popular places did not copy guides. To talk about the merchants of the Port-en-Bessin market, restaurants, Isigny caramels and other local products, he collected the information himself. He sometimes had to explain the selfless nature of his approach. Those interested were then happy to have a worldwide showcase; a butcher from Port had even printed and displayed the page in his shop.

Put online in 1997, the site had only counted its connections since July 1998. On the Wednesday before the report, La Renaissance was the 1,843th visitor. A tourist site, Enjoy France, had referenced it a few weeks earlier.

The exchanges went beyond the simple counter: Bernard Mathy received many emails, including a request from Singapore on the best route from London to Omaha. He sometimes directed correspondents to travel agencies.

He wanted to make the site more lively by announcing demonstrations, such as the Perriots jumping in July, while maintaining his freedom of choice. He did not want to become a simple mailbox and intended to check the information before publishing it. The report is signed T. H.

Archive image: https://vierville.cordelle.eu/PhDoc10/1998Nov6-SiteMathy.jpg