The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ernest W. Sears. When Sears graduated from high school in 1942 he received a farm deferment and did not enter the Navy unitl 1944. He trained as a radioman for beach landings. He was home on leave when his unit shipped out, so he was assigned to the USS Lexington (CV-16) and joined her at Bremerton, Washington in March, 1945. He served in the radio control room aboard the Lexington for the duration of the war and speaks about being on duty during the signing of the peace accords, and dropping food and supplies to the Allied POWs in Japan. Welson Sears (Ernest's son) fills in some details during the interview. When he was dischaerged from the Navy, Sears enrolled at Texas Tech University and went to school using the G.I. Bill.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral monologue by A R Evans. Evans was the coastwatcher on Kolombangara who facilitated the rescue of the PT-109 crew, led by John F. Kennedy. One of his scouts noticed a fire on the water at night and saw an unidentified object floating the next day. Evans, having been informed that PT-109 was missing, instructed his scouts to search for crewmen. Two natives encountered the crew, who for want of a common language carved a message on a coconut to be delivered to Evans. Evans met Kennedy that afternoon and dispatched a message coordinating his safe return. When Evans visited the White House in 1961, he found a framed copy of the dispatch and the carved coconut in the Oval Office.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ernest W. Sears. When Sears graduated from high school in 1942 he received a farm deferment and did not enter the Navy unitl 1944. He trained as a radioman for beach landings. He was home on leave when his unit shipped out, so he was assigned to the USS Lexington (CV-16) and joined her at Bremerton, Washington in March, 1945. He served in the radio control room aboard the Lexington for the duration of the war and speaks about being on duty during the signing of the peace accords, and dropping food and supplies to the Allied POWs in Japan. Welson Sears (Ernest's son) fills in some details during the interview. When he was dischaerged from the Navy, Sears enrolled at Texas Tech University and went to school using the G.I. Bill.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Paul Hatgil. Hatgil joined the Army Air Forces after working briefly in the defense industry. He received communications training and was assigned to the 505th Bombardment Group. On Tinian, he oversaw the teletype office adjacent to General Curtis LeMay. He recalls seeing the Enola Gay heavily guarded by Marines. Although at the time he was unaware of the atomic bomb, an important message arrived for LeMay, sent to the teletype machines by Colonel Paul Tibbets. Disobeying orders, Hatgil read the message, which was a recap of Tibbets’ instructions, specifically urging him to leave the target area as quickly as possible after dropping his bomb. When the war ended, Hatgil returned home and was discharged. Having spent much of his service decorating planes, sketching portraits, and painting murals in his free time, he enrolled in art school on the G.I. Bill and became a professor of art at the University of Texas. Hatgil kept a scrapbook of his wartime experience, including his artwork and several photos given to him by his unit’s official photographer.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Paul Hatgil. Hatgil joined the Army Air Forces after working briefly in the defense industry. He received communications training and was assigned to the 505th Bombardment Group. On Tinian, he oversaw the teletype office adjacent to General Curtis LeMay. He recalls seeing the Enola Gay heavily guarded by Marines. Although at the time he was unaware of the atomic bomb, an important message arrived for LeMay, sent to the teletype machines by Colonel Paul Tibbets. Disobeying orders, Hatgil read the message, which was a recap of Tibbets’ instructions, specifically urging him to leave the target area as quickly as possible after dropping his bomb. When the war ended, Hatgil returned home and was discharged. Having spent much of his service decorating planes, sketching portraits, and painting murals in his free time, he enrolled in art school on the G.I. Bill and became a professor of art at the University of Texas. Hatgil kept a scrapbook of his wartime experience, including his artwork and several photos given to him by his unit’s official photographer.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Joe Rackley. Rackley was born in Nueces County, Texas, 26 April 1926. Graduating from high school in 1943, he was drafted into the Army and sent to Camp Wolters, Texas for basic training. Upon completion of basic he was sent to Camp Stoneman, California and went aboard the USS General John Pope (AP-110) for a 31 day trip to New Guinea. He was assigned to the 37th Infantry Division, 145th Infantry Regiment as a combat radio operator in the headquarters section to serve as radioman for the company commander. He landed at Bougainville and describes the difficulties encountered in landing, the heavy rains that fell and the high number of casualties. During January 1945, the division landed on Luzon unopposed with orders to recapture General MacArthur’s former residence. Rackley remembers being ordered to take Bilibid Prison in Manila and he tells of the condition of some of the former prisoners. After spending two weeks retaking Clark Field they were ordered to conduct mop-up operations. Rackley recalls heavy fighting during the operation and mentions his captain being seriously wounded as he used the radio. He recalls receiving a radio …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Joe Rackley. Rackley was born in Nueces County, Texas, 26 April 1926. Graduating from high school in 1943, he was drafted into the Army and sent to Camp Wolters, Texas for basic training. Upon completion of basic he was sent to Camp Stoneman, California and went aboard the USS General John Pope (AP-110) for a 31 day trip to New Guinea. He was assigned to the 37th Infantry Division, 145th Infantry Regiment as a combat radio operator in the headquarters section to serve as radioman for the company commander. He landed at Bougainville and describes the difficulties encountered in landing, the heavy rains that fell and the high number of casualties. During January 1945, the division landed on Luzon unopposed with orders to recapture General MacArthur’s former residence. Rackley remembers being ordered to take Bilibid Prison in Manila and he tells of the condition of some of the former prisoners. After spending two weeks retaking Clark Field they were ordered to conduct mop-up operations. Rackley recalls heavy fighting during the operation and mentions his captain being seriously wounded as he used the radio. He recalls receiving a radio …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Edgar Wolf. World joined the Army Air Forces in January, 1942 and trained at Biloxi, Mississippi before heading for Lockheed in California to learn about P-38s. He went to Officer Candidate School and earned a commission before being assigned to the Air Transport Command in New York. With the ATC, Wolf learned loadmaster techniques and air traffic control procedures before heading for Chabua, India. At his base he was responsible for transient aircraft. He also served at Agra and at Karachi. Wolf was in India for 27 months and returned home in September, 1945 and received his discharge.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Manuel and Amalia Montecillo. Manuel and Amalia were in Manila engaged to be married when the Japanese attacked the Philippines on 8 December 1941. Manuel was already in the Filipino Army and was folded into the US Army Far East and headed for Bataan. Amalia stayed in Manila. Manuel commanded a platoon of Igorot soldiers. They share a few anecdotes about Japanese atrocities during the occupation of the Philippines. Manuel was released after the fall of Bataan and eventually joined a guerrilla outfit and operated radios. Amalia was busy with children.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Robert Murry Storey. Storey joined the Navy in 1939. He served with the deck crew aboard USS Salt Lake City (CA-25). They were with USS Enterprise (CV-6) task group west of Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. They docked in Pearl Harbor on 8 December, and Storey describes the overturned ships and casualties that he witnessed in the harbor. He discusses their involvement in the Doolittle Raid. Storey does not go into great detail about specific places he traveled or battles he fought in aboard Salt Lake City. He provides general details of his experiences serving. He returned to the US after the war ended and received his discharge in late 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Edgar Wolf. World joined the Army Air Forces in January, 1942 and trained at Biloxi, Mississippi before heading for Lockheed in California to learn about P-38s. He went to Officer Candidate School and earned a commission before being assigned to the Air Transport Command in New York. With the ATC, Wolf learned loadmaster techniques and air traffic control procedures before heading for Chabua, India. At his base he was responsible for transient aircraft. He also served at Agra and at Karachi. Wolf was in India for 27 months and returned home in September, 1945 and received his discharge.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Bill Lane. Lane was attending the University of Texas and tried joining the Marine Corps, but did not pass the physical. He instead opted for the Army, which accepted him. He trained at Fort Custer, Michigan. There he trained as a military policeman and was soon shipped to a prisoner of war camp housing German submarine sailors in New Mexico. After being sent to west coast, Lane boarded a ship and sailed 23 days to New Caledonia, where he was assigned to the Americal Division. From there, Lane went to Guadalcanal in late 1942 and relieved and replaced a Marine unit on the front line. Lane recalls his experiences fighting he Japanese at the Tenaru River on Guadalcanal. He was armed with a Browning Automatic Rifle. Lane also describes some experiences while on R & R in Australia before he headed for Bougainville. After a brief amount of time in the Palau Islands, Lane headed for the invasion of Leyte. Later on, he moved to Luzon and fought in Manila. Lane backtracks and shares some anecdotes about being a personal river for General Douglas MacArthur in Sydney while …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Robert Murry Storey. Storey joined the Navy in 1939. He served with the deck crew aboard USS Salt Lake City (CA-25). They were with USS Enterprise (CV-6) task group west of Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. They docked in Pearl Harbor on 8 December, and Storey describes the overturned ships and casualties that he witnessed in the harbor. He discusses their involvement in the Doolittle Raid. Storey does not go into great detail about specific places he traveled or battles he fought in aboard Salt Lake City. He provides general details of his experiences serving. He returned to the US after the war ended and received his discharge in late 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Zeb Alford. Alford joined the Navy V-12 Program in July of 1943. He trained as an engineering officer. He entered the Naval Academy in 1944 and graduated in 1947, providing details of his schooling at the Academy. He served for two years aboard the USS Charles R. Ware (DD-865). He graduated from Submarine School in 1949. Alford retired from the Navy in September of 1973 as a captain.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Richard F. Hoffman. Hoffman was born 7 January 1922 in Seattle, Washington. While in college, he joined the Naval Reserve V-7 program. Upon graduation in June 1943, he reported to Great Lakes Naval Training Center, then to the Midshipman School at Columbia University. In November 1943 he was commissioned an ensign and sent to Antisubmarine Warfare schools in Miami and Key West. He subsequently joined the commissioning crew of the USS Damon M. Cummings (DE-643) as the ASW officer. The Cummings sailed to the Western Pacific in September 1944, escorting a convoy to Eniwetok. She continued to provide patrol and escort duty until March 1945 when she escorted a convoy of LSTs from the Philippines to Okinawa. During the battle for Okinawa, Cummings provided picket duty, shooting down one kamikaze. After the war, she went to Japan where Hoffman was able to go ashore in Tokyo. From Japan, they sailed to Bremerton, Washington for an overhaul. Hoffman was now the Executive Officer. The Cummings crossed the Pacific again to provide services in Mainland China and French Indochina. Hoffman left the ship in May 1946 and was returned to …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Lucy Overmeyer. Overmyer was born in Culver, Indiana on 21 June 1920 and after graduating from high school in 1938 she went to work for a defense contractor, Bendix Aircraft. She enlisted into the Marine Corps on 12 May 1943, completed basic training at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina and enrolled in Quartermaster School at Quantico, Virginia. She describes some of her experiences while at Quantico, where she spent the remainder of her time in the service. She was discharged from the Marine Corps on 26 September 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with James Sigrist. Sigrist was born in Rochester, Missouri 7 September 1921 and entered the Navy V-7 program while in college. After graduating from Midshipman’s school he went to Raleigh, North Carolina to attend electrical engineering school. This was followed by three months of intensive training at the General Motors Institute of Technology specializing in marine Diesel engines. He then reported aboard USS LCI-677 at Norfolk, Virginia, as the Diesel electrical engineer and supply officer. The ship proceeded to San Diego where the crew made practice landings with the 4th Marines. They then were ordered to Pearl Harbor where they transported liberty parties from Pearl Harbor to and from Maui for six months. In 1944, USS LCI-677, along with twenty-one other LCIs transported the 204th General Hospital to Guam. They then went to Saipan, where they encountered a typhoon. They then proceeded to Ulithi where they were subjected to attacks by Japanese kamikazes. After the surrender of Japan, USS LCI-677 was sent to the island of Yap. Sigrist describes the natives and their way of life. In 1946, he returned to the United States and was discharged.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Lucy Overmeyer. Overmyer was born in Culver, Indiana on 21 June 1920 and after graduating from high school in 1938 she went to work for a defense contractor, Bendix Aircraft. She enlisted into the Marine Corps on 12 May 1943, completed basic training at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina and enrolled in Quartermaster School at Quantico, Virginia. She describes some of her experiences while at Quantico, where she spent the remainder of her time in the service. She was discharged from the Marine Corps on 26 September 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Richard F. Hoffman. Hoffman was born 7 January 1922 in Seattle, Washington. While in college, he joined the Naval Reserve V-7 program. Upon graduation in June 1943, he reported to Great Lakes Naval Training Center, then to the Midshipman School at Columbia University. In November 1943 he was commissioned an ensign and sent to Antisubmarine Warfare schools in Miami and Key West. He subsequently joined the commissioning crew of the USS Damon M. Cummings (DE-643) as the ASW officer. The Cummings sailed to the Western Pacific in September 1944, escorting a convoy to Eniwetok. She continued to provide patrol and escort duty until March 1945 when she escorted a convoy of LSTs from the Philippines to Okinawa. During the battle for Okinawa, Cummings provided picket duty, shooting down one kamikaze. After the war, she went to Japan where Hoffman was able to go ashore in Tokyo. From Japan, they sailed to Bremerton, Washington for an overhaul. Hoffman was now the Executive Officer. The Cummings crossed the Pacific again to provide services in Mainland China and French Indochina. Hoffman left the ship in May 1946 and was returned to …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Daniel Crowley. Crowley left school at 16, electing to go to work. In October, 1940, he joined the Army Air Corps. He describes his journey to the Philippines, where he landed in March, 1941. He was stationed at Nichols Field. Crowley recalls being shipped across Manila Bay to Bataan in Christmas Day and fighting the Japanese there until the US forces surrendered. Instead of surrendering, Crowley made it to Corregidor. Whe nCOrregidor was surrendered, Crowley was sent back to Manila and paraded through the streets with other Americans before being sent to Cabanatuan. From there, Crowley was sent to Palawan and, with others, was forced to build an airfield in the jungle. Before the massacre at Palawan, Crowley was sent back to Cabanatuan, then placed aboard a hell ship and sent to Japan, where he was forced to work in a copper mine.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with the Reverend Dr. R. Thomas Bousman. Bousman was born in the Manila, Philippines in 1928. His parents were Christian missionaries. He fled to Los Banos with his family, but returned to Manila in late December, 1941. He was interned at Santo Tomas with his family for only a short period of time before being released and placed under house arrest because his parents were missionaries. In 1944, they were transferred to Los Banos and were eventually liberated from there in February, 1945. In May, they returned to California. Bousman also relates how the internee experience affected him throughout his life.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Zeb Alford. Alford joined the Navy V-12 Program in July of 1943. He trained as an engineering officer. He entered the Naval Academy in 1944 and graduated in 1947, providing details of his schooling at the Academy. He served for two years aboard the USS Charles R. Ware (DD-865). He graduated from Submarine School in 1949. Alford retired from the Navy in September of 1973 as a captain.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Norman Palmer. Palmer was born in 1922 in Tiosa, Indiana. He enlisted in the Army in January, 1942 and took basic training at Fort Robinson, Arkansas where he was assigned to the Medical Corps. From there, he went to Fort Benning, Georgia and worked ina field hospital until he took and passed the Army Air Forces cadet training tests. He reported to preflight training in San Antonio in December, 1942. Palmer earned his wings and was commissioned in August 1943 just prior to reporting for duty with the 309th Bomb Wing in South Carolina. Palmer was assigned to a B-25 crew as copilot and flew a new bomber to North Africa in December, where they were attached to the 310th Bomb Group stationed on Corsica. Palmer describes bombing missions over Italy and southern France. Palmer flew 40 missions in a B-25 as a copilot and 30 as a pilot. After 70 missions, Palmer was sent home in September, 1944. Palmer was assigned as a flight instructor at Altus, Oklahoma after he returned. When the war ended, Palmer was assigned to the Transport Command where he ferried planes. Later …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with David Mackay. Mackay joined the Army in June of 1942. Beginning in the spring of 1943, he deployed to Brisbane, Australia and served with the 32nd Infantry Division. He completed patrol work and additional training on Hollandia, New Guinea. From early 1944 through early 1945, Mackay participated in the landing at Saidor, the Battle of Leyte and the Battle of Luzon. He returned to the US and was discharged in October of 1945.