The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Christian W. de Marcken. De Marcken was born 24 January 1928 in Uccle, Brussels, Belgium. His father, Gustave immigrated to the United States, became a citizen and served in the US Army during World War I. Later he worked for the Hammond Organ Company, which sent him to Brussels. In 1939 the US embassy advised he and his family return to the United States. He did not leave Belgium, which was soon occupied by Nazi Germany forces. The de Marckens were American citizens and under the protection of the American embassy. This changed in December 1941 when Germany declared war against the United States. While the children were allowed to attend a private school and the family was permitted to rent a large home, a German guard was placed in the home. De Marcken recalls harboring a young Jewish boy in the home for a year and periodically hiding downed Allied flyers until arrangements could be made for their escape. He describes periodic night visits by the German Secret Service in which they thoroughly searched the home. He tells of the arrest and placement of his father into …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Ernest Andrus. Andrus joined the Navy in June of 1942. Beginning in November, he served as a medical corpsman in the sick bay aboard USS Rochambeau (AP-63), transporting troops throughout the Pacific islands. Around January of 1944, he transferred to the sick bay aboard USS LST-124 in New Caledonia. Andrus shares his experiences through the Battle of Tinian in July. They traveled to Guadalcanal for ferry duty, and provided transportation for supplies and men throughout the islands. Andrus left USS LST-124 in mid-1945 and went ashore in New Caledonia. He transferred back to the US around August, and recalls the celebration in the streets of downtown Los Angeles when the war ended. He received his discharge in December.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Herman Krehmeier. Krehmeier joined the Marine Corps in May of 1943. He served as a machine gunner with the 2nd Marine Division. He deployed in January of 1944 to Pearl Harbor. Beginning July of 1944 through April of 1945, Krehmeier participated in the Battles of Tinian and Okinawa. He was discharged in January of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Sam H. Snoddy. He served in the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment 2nd Marine Division. After training, he participated in the initial landing at Saipan where he was wounded in the knees and shoulder on the beach by shell fragments. He was loaded onto a hospital ship with several other casualties before returning to Hawaii to recuperate. He participated in the Okinawa campaign and spent time at Nagasaki on occupation duty. After being discharged, he went to college on the GI Bill, evetually settling in Texas working in the oil industry.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Christian W. de Marcken. De Marcken was born 24 January 1928 in Uccle, Brussels, Belgium. His father, Gustave immigrated to the United States, became a citizen and served in the US Army during World War I. Later he worked for the Hammond Organ Company, which sent him to Brussels. In 1939 the US embassy advised he and his family return to the United States. He did not leave Belgium, which was soon occupied by Nazi Germany forces. The de Marckens were American citizens and under the protection of the American embassy. This changed in December 1941 when Germany declared war against the United States. While the children were allowed to attend a private school and the family was permitted to rent a large home, a German guard was placed in the home. De Marcken recalls harboring a young Jewish boy in the home for a year and periodically hiding downed Allied flyers until arrangements could be made for their escape. He describes periodic night visits by the German Secret Service in which they thoroughly searched the home. He tells of the arrest and placement of his father into …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Herman Krehmeier. Krehmeier joined the Marine Corps in May of 1943. He served as a machine gunner with the 2nd Marine Division. He deployed in January of 1944 to Pearl Harbor. Beginning July of 1944 through April of 1945, Krehmeier participated in the Battles of Tinian and Okinawa. He was discharged in January of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Sam H. Snoddy. He served in the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment 2nd Marine Division. After training, he participated in the initial landing at Saipan where he was wounded in the knees and shoulder on the beach by shell fragments. He was loaded onto a hospital ship with several other casualties before returning to Hawaii to recuperate. He participated in the Okinawa campaign and spent time at Nagasaki on occupation duty. After being discharged, he went to college on the GI Bill, evetually settling in Texas working in the oil industry.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Henry Tackett. An avid radio hobbyist and proficient in Morse code as a teenager, Tackett joined the US Naval Communications Reserve in 1938. After the war began, he was called to active duty, and served as a Chief Petty Officer Radioman. He worked at two air stations in Pensacola, Florida, maintaining radio equipment on planes. Around mid-1942, Tackett completed Submarine Chaser Training and was assigned to the PC-600. In early 1943, he was assigned to the USS Heermann (DD-532). Tackett was involved in many of the major sea operations of WWII, including the Battle off Samar at Leyte Gulf, the battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa, the Philippines Campaign, the raids and bombardments of Eniwetok, the landing on Emirau, and the battles of Tarawa, Solomon Islands, Kwajalein, and Palau Islands. Tackett returned to the US and received his discharge in October 1945.

Interview with Sam H. Snoddy, a U. S. Marine during World War II. He served in the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. After training, he participated in the initial landing at Saipan where he was wounded in the knees and shoulder on the beach by shell fragments. He was loaded onto a hospital ship with several other casualties before going to Hawaii to recuperate. He participated in the Okinawa campaign and spent time at Nagasaki on occupation duty. After being discharged, he went to college on the G. I. Bill, and eventually settled in Texas, where he worked in the oil industry.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Frances W. Lipe. Lipe recalls anecdotes and events from the life of her father, Colonel Worthington. Her father joined the Army in 1917 and trained as a veterinarian. Her father was on Bataan when the US forces surrendered there in 1942. Her father escaped and was captured by the Japanese and taken to Manila. From there, he went to Formosa and then on to Mukden, Manchuria.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Ernest Andrus. Andrus joined the Navy in June of 1942. Beginning in November, he served as a medical corpsman in the sick bay aboard USS Rochambeau (AP-63), transporting troops throughout the Pacific islands. Around January of 1944, he transferred to the sick bay aboard USS LST-124 in New Caledonia. Andrus shares his experiences through the Battle of Tinian in July. They traveled to Guadalcanal for ferry duty, and provided transportation for supplies and men throughout the islands. Andrus left USS LST-124 in mid-1945 and went ashore in New Caledonia. He transferred back to the US around August, and recalls the celebration in the streets of downtown Los Angeles when the war ended. He received his discharge in December.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Truman Gill. Gill grew up in Texas and joined the Marine Corps in April, 1942 at San Antonio. Gill trained in San Diego and attended Sea School there prior to arriving at Pearl harbor to board the USS Mississippi (BB-41). Gill served as an antiaircraft gunner aboard ship and mentions going on patrols in the Coral Sea and around the Aleutians. Gill also mentions witnessing the USS Liscome Bay (CVE-56) sinking after a torpedo attack off Tarawa. He also describes attending a burial at sea. The Mississippi sopported the Army invasion of Makin. Gill was eventually transferred off the Mississippi and sent to New Caldonia, where he describes a deer hunt. Gill was training with the Fourth Defense Battalion on Tinian when the war ended.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Morris Hibbs. Hibbs joined the Marine Corps in November 1943 and received basic training in San Diego. He received field artillery instrument training at Camp Pendleton. Upon completion, he was sent to Hawaii. There he was reassigned to an antiaircraft unit on Kauai, serving as a cook. He was later stationed at a field kitchen on Okinawa, where he remained until the end of the war. Hibbs returned home and was discharged in December 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Peter Hammersen. Hammersen joined the California Army National Guard in September of 1939. He joined, as a charter member, Company A of the 115th Medical Regiment, 40th Infantry Division. He worked as a surgical technician in various hospitals, including the 48th Station Hospital at Vila, Efate, Henderson Field at Guadalcanal and finally the 37th Portable Surgical Hospital in New Guinea. Hammersen shares a number of anecdotal stories, and he was discharged in late 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with John Goodenough. Goodenough was born in Jena, Germany in 1922 to American parents. After being educated in private schools, he attended Yale University receiving his degree in 1944. He entered the United States Army Air Forces in 1943. He was commissioned, after being trained as a meteorologist and was sent to Newfoundland. He worked on weather predictions prior to the Normandy landing. He later served in the Azores. Following his discharge in 1948 he attended the University of Chicago, utilizing the GI Bill to attain a Ph.D. in physics. He recalls his tutelage under noted physicist Clarence Zener. Goodenough discusses his involvement in the development of the lithium-ion battery utilized in the development of the personal computer. He concludes the discussion, telling of his career at the University of Texas and his ultimate retirement. Goodenough was awarded the Novel Prize for Chemistry in 2019.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Norbert Fritz. Fritz joined the Army in 1941 and was sent to radio school in San Antonio and the University of Texas. He received basic training in Amarillo and was reassigned to the Army Air Forces. He completed a radio operator course in Sioux Falls but could not get his Morse code up to speed; so, he was sent to Florida for top-secret radar training and arrived on New Guinea in the spring of 1944. There he serviced B-25 radio equipment, after removing radar equipment so the planes would be light enough for low altitude missions. He continued his work in the Netherlands East Indies, the Philippines, and Okinawa. He sailed through two typhoons on his way back to the States and was discharged in January 1946. Fritz opened a radio repair shop, became a broadcast engineer, and founded several radio stations.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Fred Bergeron. Bergeron joined the Navy in 1940 and was trained as a radioman. He joined VB-3 and served on SBDs. Bergeron was attached to the USS Saratoga (CV-3). Bergeron describes his observations flying over the recently attacked Pearl Harbor. He was then attached to the Enterprise (CV-6) and helped screen the task force that launched the Doolittle Raid. Bergeron then joined the USS Yorktown (CV-5) for the Battle of Midway where he would earn the Distinguished Flying Cross. He describes in detail the bombing runs that he was a part of and his brother getting wounded. Bergeron rejoined the Saratoga until it was torpedoed off Guadalcanal, after that he flew missions from Henderson Field. He rotated back to the US for advance radio school and then received an honorable discharge.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Richard L Hamil. Hamil joined the Navy in 1942 and received basic training in Newport. He studied diesel engines in Virginia, although it was strictly book-learning as there were no engines available to practice on. Upon completion, he was assigned to the engine room of USS LST-447, his battle station at a 40-millimeter gun, as a loader. His ship carried supplies and Marines throughout the Pacific, often coming under attack. They were struck by a kamikaze at Okinawa, which caused an explosion and killed half a dozen of their crew. When Hamil abandoned ship, kamikazes nearly hit the ship that rescued him. Hamil was sent home on 6 April 1945 and discharged in October.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Robert Goolsby. Goolsby was born in Winters, Texas on 29 March 1922 and graduated from high school in 1939. Upon joining the Army in 1941, he underwent basic training at Fort Bliss, Texas. He was assigned to the Army Medical Corps and received training as a medical technician. In 1943 he was sent to Louisiana where he was trained in malaria control. After completion of the training he was assigned to an eleven-man Army Malaria Control Unit and sent to Oran, Algeria. He tells of the workings of the unit and how German prisoner were used to dig ditches for drainage of mosquito infested waters. He recalls that the members of the unit did not carry firearms and wore Red Cross arm bands to indicate they were medical personnel. His unit was then sent to Foggia, Italy and he tells of some of his experiences during his eighteen month stay. He returned to the United States during the latter part of 1945 and was discharged.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Robert Swan. Swan was born in Corvallis, Oregon in 1927. Upon joining the Coast Guard in 1944, he was sent to boot camp at Alameda, California. Completing training, he was assigned to radio school in Atlantic City, New Jersey. His training lasted over five months and after graduation he applied for LORAN (Long range navigation) training. Being accepted, he was sent to Groton, Massachusetts for four weeks of training. Upon completion of the training, he was sent to Pearl Harbor where he began working with the public information office. He tells of some of his experiences while working with the office.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Gerold (Jerry) Haynes. Haynes grew up in Mississippi and went to Memphis, Tennessee to join the Navy in 1939. He was assigned to the USS California and went to Pearl Harbor. The California was bombed December 7, 1941 during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Haynes describes the recovery efforts. In March 1942 he was reassigned to the USS Sante Fe (CL-60). He was on a 5 in/38 gun. He discusses sinking a ship in the San Bernadino Strait. In 1945, he rescued two survivors from the USS Franklin and received a citation. He describes the experience of pulling survivors from the ocean. NOTE: Haynes identified the USS Tingey (DDS-539) but the action described (Attu, Tarawa, USS Franklin rescue) supports the USS Santa Fe (CL-60).

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Pete Rocha. Rocha joined the Navy and trained at Great Lakes. He served as a storekeeper in Florida and Texas for a while before receiving amphibious training in Virginia. Rocha was assigned to LSM-262 as a storekeeper. Rocha recalls combat experiences at Okinawa and the Philippines. His battle station was on a 40mm gun at the bow. After the war, while ashore at Yokahama, Rocha encountered his brother.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with William T. Schauer. Schauer was born on 27 August 1928. He was in high school for the duration of World War II. He joined the Army Air Forces in June of 1946. He completed bootcamp, then was assigned to a fighter group on Okinawa and Guam, where he assisted in refueling planes. He notes Japanese soldiers coming out of caves and hiding, unaware that the war was over. He also notes his living conditions on the islands. Schauer was assigned as an automotive mechanic in charge of the motor pool. On 17 June 1949, Staff Sgt. William T. Schauer received his Honorable Discharge.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Ramon Nelson. Nelson joined the Army in 1942, and graduated from the Morgan Park Military Academy. He served as an infantry officer with the 7th Infantry Division and participated in the battles of Attu, Kwajalein, Leyte and Okinawa. Following the Japanese surrender, the division was stationed in Korea. He returned to the US and was discharged in late 1945.