The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Robert Hand. Hand joined the Army in February of 1941. He served with the 208th Military Police Company in Brownwood, Texas. After Pearl Harbor, Hand completed Officer Candidate School, graduating in May of 1942. He was assigned to the 7th Armored Division, 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron. They landed at Omaha Beach in August of 1944. They patrolled between Saint-Lô and Caen, and Hand was wounded on his way up to Germany. Hand returned to the US, and remained hospitalized from August of 1944 through April of 1945. He was then assigned to help set up a Reconnaissance School at Fort Knox. Hand was discharged in December of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Edward Nielsen from Medaryville, Indiana. He discusses undergoing Amry training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, before being assigned as B Company of the 69th Army Regiment at Fort Knox as a private. Afterwards he got lucky and was assigned to drive a truck from Louisiana to North Carolina, Mr. Nielsen describes this as the best job he ever had in the Army. After Pearl Harbor he is transferred to the 1st Armored Division and Regiment, 2nd Battalion. He was then transported from fort Knox to Ireland then to England for a short time before being shipped out to Oran in North Africa. On the way to Oran, the ship he was on was almost hit by a missile shot by a German U-boat, but it instead hit another ship that was nearby. By the time Mr. Nielsen reached Oran he was a segreant Tank Commander. He also relays a time he warned his Company Commander about German Tiger Tanks being in their area and being ignored only for them to show up a few days later resulting in one captain deserting and being captured by German soldiers. Mr. Nielsen …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ralph Herman Seibt. Seibt joined the Army Air Corps in June 1939. A skilled typist, he worked in communications for the 52nd Squadron at Randolph Field. He took an interest in flying and in 1944 transferred to Montgomery, Alabama, as a cadet. He was hazed and got on poorly with his instructor, and after a certain point he refused to continue his training. Seibt deployed to Guam with the 501st Bombardment Group, 41st Bombardment Squadron, assigned personnel duties such as administering Purple Hearts. Initially, he lived in dangerous jungle conditions but eventually was housed in barracks. He saw natives rounded up in stockades in Agana and was instructed not to interact with them. Upon his return to the States, he crossed paths with German POWs at Fort Bliss, where he was discharged. He enjoyed having the opportunity to chat with them, and they were happily reminded by his last name of one of the great German radio manufacturers. Seibt returned home to his wife and got to know his daughter, who was born in July 1944.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Warren Wilt. Wilt was born on 5 November 1922 near Plevna, Kansas. Three of his brothers served in the military during World War II. He describes living on a Kansas farm during the Dust Bowl days in the 1920s and 1930s. Soon after enlisting in the Army in 1943, he was sent to Fort Bragg, North Carolina to begin training as a paratrooper. In March 1944, he was assigned to a bazooka team with Company H, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division. He describes participating in the Normandy invasion and tells of actions in which he was involved prior to being wounded. Following six months of hospitalization and recovery he returned to his unit and participated in the Battle of the Bulge. During this time he suffered from severe frostbite and was hospitalized. Upon being released from the hospital, he was assigned to the 713th Military Police Battalion. He was assigned to guard the residence of President Harry Truman when he attended the Potsdam Conference during July and August 1945. Following the surrender of Germany, Wilt returned to the United States and was discharged in December 1945.