Resource Type

Oral History Interview with Boyd Lamb, February 28, 2001 transcript

Oral History Interview with Boyd Lamb, February 28, 2001

Interview with Boyd Lamb. He answers questions about his life before enlisting, life on the USS Tennessee, and his life post-war.
Date: February 28, 2001
Creator: Chamblin, Marie & Lamb, Boyd
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Alfonso Nava, March 26, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Alfonso Nava, March 26, 2004

Interview with Alfonso Nava, a technical sergeant in the US Army during WWII. He answers questions about his decision to enlist and his experiences in the military.
Date: March 26, 2004
Creator: Coy, Marisa E. & Nava, Alfonso
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Perry Simmons, April 23, 2003 transcript

Oral History Interview with Perry Simmons, April 23, 2003

Interview with Perry Simmons, a seaman in the US Navy during WWII. He answers questions about his time in the military during the war.
Date: May 11, 2004
Creator: McElhaney, Michelle & Simmons, Perry
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Clifford Warren, November 10, 1987 transcript

Oral History Interview with Clifford Warren, November 10, 1987

Interview with Clifford Warren, a veteran of World War II spending 3 1/2 years in captivity following the Battle of Corregidor. Warren answers many questions regarding his participation in World War II and shares his experiences of being held prisoner in Japanese prison camps.
Date: November 10, 1987
Creator: Mayo, Martha & Warren, Clifford
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Wilburn Snyder, April 16, 2002 transcript

Oral History Interview with Wilburn Snyder, April 16, 2002

Interview with Wilburn Snyder, a POW of the Japanese in the Philippines. He answers questions about his time in the military and as a POW in the Philippines.
Date: April 28, 2004
Creator: Stroble, Brandy & Snyder, Wilburn L.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Clifford Warren, April 18, 2001 transcript

Oral History Interview with Clifford Warren, April 18, 2001

Interview with Clifford Warren, a POW in WWII. He describes life in the POW camps and the status of life in Japan during WWII.
Date: April 18, 2001
Creator: McNeil, William J. & Warren, Clifford
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with A. B. Rawlinson, June 25, 2002 transcript

Oral History Interview with A. B. Rawlinson, June 25, 2002

Interview with A. B. Rawlinson, a machine gunner in the US Army during WWII. He answers questions about his life during the war and his experience abroad.
Date: June 25, 2002
Creator: Collins, Kim & Rawlinson, A. B.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Austin Karr transcript

Oral History Interview with Austin Karr

Interview with Austin Karr, a POW in WWII. He talks about his time as a POW and his reason for joining the service.
Date: 1995~
Creator: Musfy, Omar & Karr, Austin
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with John C. Hencke, April 25, 2003 transcript

Oral History Interview with John C. Hencke, April 25, 2003

Interview with John C. Hencke, a veteran of the United States Army during World War II, from New York City, New York. Hencke responds to questions regarding his time in the service and overseas, as well as what was going on back home. He notes his relationships that he kept up while he was away and the duties he maintained in the Army.
Date: April 25, 2003
Creator: Coffey, Stephen & Hencke, John C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Elliott Ross, May 1, 2001 transcript

Oral History Interview with Elliott Ross, May 1, 2001

Interview with Elliott Ross who joined the U.S. Navy during World War II. He discusses being a landing craft coxswain carrying troops and supplies from ships to the shore in seven invasions: Guam, Leyte, Luzon, Santacristo, Iwo Jima, Okinawa and as an occupation force in Japan after the surrender. He talks mostly about Guam, Leyte, Luzon, Iwo Jima, Okinawa and Japan, but also mentions burials at sea and on the beachs, seeing his brother's ship get hit by torpedoes, and the emotional toll of the war.
Date: May 1, 2000
Creator: Cox, Floyd; Misenhimer, Richard & Ross, Elliott
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with W. R. Barker, April 25, 2001 transcript

Oral History Interview with W. R. Barker, April 25, 2001

Interview with W. R. Barker, a veteran who served as a combat engineer with the U.S. Army in the South Pacific during World War II. It includes a conversation with Barker as he talks freely about his time in basic training at Camp Cook, when Bob Hope visited jungle training in Hawaii, and interactions between U.S. soldiers and the native islanders. He also discusses the Marines mission on Pelilu Island and meeting his brother in the Philippines.
Date: April 25, 2001
Creator: Amador, Yacel & Barker, W. R.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with E. R. Dolinar, April 5, 2003 transcript

Oral History Interview with E. R. Dolinar, April 5, 2003

Interview with E.R. (Ed) Dolinar, a serviceman with the U. S. Navy during World War II. He discusses going to boot camp, torpedo school and submarine school. He was on the SSN Stingray as a torpedo crewman that offloaded supplies and guerillas in the Philippines. It picked up stranded Japanese sailors and transported them to Australia. The Stingray was then decomissioned. He was then part of a crew that studied and stripped captured German submarines, and he discusses the differences between the U-boats and the US submarines. He also discusses the Bolomen, Filipino guerillas who fought the Japanese during the occupation. He also talks briefly about his experience of being hit with depth charges and gives his opinions on General MacArthur and President Truman.
Date: April 5, 2003
Creator: Bryk, Clarence & Dolinar, E. R.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with O. H. King, September 28, 2002 transcript

Oral History Interview with O. H. King, September 28, 2002

Interview with O. H. "Karl" King of Fort Worth, Texas, who is a World War Two veteran of the United States Marine Corps. In the interview, Mr. King recalls memories of his travels, the Japanese attack on Clark Field, the Battle for Bataan, and when he was a Japanese prisoner-of-war. He also talks about other experiences he had while serving in the Marines and his life before and after the war.
Date: September 28, 2002
Creator: Graham, Eddie & King, O. H.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with A. K. Sheffield, May 20, 2016 transcript

Oral History Interview with A. K. Sheffield, May 20, 2016

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with A K Sheffield. Sheffield joined the Navy in late 1943. He completed Armed Guard School in San Diego. He served with the Navy Armed Guard aboard a transport ship, and traveled to the Philippine Islands. In May of 1944, Sheffield was aboard the SS Henry Bergh when it ran aground on the Farallon Islands, and shares details of those events. He traveled through the Pacific Islands, to Japan and throughout the Atlantic. Sheffield does not speak of participating in any battles or combat. He returned home aboard USS Iowa (BB-61) after the war ended in late 1945.
Date: May 20, 2016
Creator: Sheffield, A. K.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Buck Gibson, October 19, 2002 transcript

Oral History Interview with Buck Gibson, October 19, 2002

Interview with Buck Gibson of Waco, Texas, a veteran from the United States Navy during World War Two. The interview includes some of Mr. Gibson's background before and after the war as well as his personal experiences while in the Navy, including memories of his training, life in the Navy, the sinking of the USS Indianapolis, and what happened after he was rescued.
Date: October 19, 2002
Creator: Cox, Bill & Gibson, Buck
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Lloyd C. Fons, October 29, 2008 transcript

Oral History Interview with Lloyd C. Fons, October 29, 2008

Interview with Lloyd C. Fons, an officer in the U. S. Navy during World War II. After completing midshipman's school and earning a commission, Fons served aboard patrol torpedo (PT) boats in the Philippines. He served in Squadron 17 aboard three different boats - 229, 230 and 231. He eventually became the commanding officer of PT 229 in July, 1945. His primary assignment seemed to be delivering guerrillas to various locations in Mindoro and Luzon. After the war, Fons was transferred to Hong Kong where he was commanding officer aboard a yard patrol boat, YP 641, for 11 months. Here, his primary duty seemed to be delivering frozen and refrigerated food to other ships.
Date: October 29, 2008
Creator: Misenhimer, Richard & Fons, Lloyd C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Abel Ortega, July 15, 2002 transcript

Oral History Interview with Abel Ortega, July 15, 2002

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Abel Ortega. Ortega was drafted into the Army in March, 1941 and was in the Philippines by November. Ortega was with a tank battalion on Luzon and recalls the retreat to and subsequent surrender on Bataan. Ortega also recalls how his Christian faith served him, and others around him, during captivity. He describes his experiences on the Bataan Death March. Ortega remained in the Philippines for over two years before being shipped to Japan to perform more slave labor. After the war, Ortega was repatriated and describes his return home to his parents.
Date: July 15, 2002
Creator: Ortega, Abel
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Robert D. Haines, May 15, 2002 transcript

Oral History Interview with Robert D. Haines, May 15, 2002

Interview with Robert D. Haines, an American prisoner of war during World War II. He discusses the attack on Clark Field in the Philippines on December 8, 1941, as well as his experiences on the Bataan Death March. He also tells of his time spent as a prisoner of war under the Japanese at Camp O'Donnell, Cabanatuan and Bilibid prison in Manila. He encountered his brother, who was a civilian internee, at Bilibid. From there, he rode on a hell ship for 39 days to a POW camp in Formosa (Taiwan). When the Americans began bombing Formosa, Haines was moved via another hell ship to Tokyo, Japan. Not long after, he was liberated and returned to San Francisco, then Denver.
Date: May 15, 2002
Creator: Graham, Eddie & Haines, Robert D.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with John Wilson, January 31, 2002 transcript

Oral History Interview with John Wilson, January 31, 2002

Interview with John Wilson, an officer in the U. S. Army during World War II. Wilson was born in Illinois but attended high school in the Philippines after his father accepted an engineering position there. He graduated from high school in 1939 and then enrolled in the University of Wisconsin, where he participated in the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program. He graduated and took his commission in the Army in 1943. After Officer Candidate School (OCS), he was assigned to an engineering unit slated to participate in the invasion of the Philippines. He eventually landed on Luzon. On Luzon he was assigned temporary duty with a small Philippine Civil Affairs unit that was made up of officers and men who had relatives interned by the Japanese in the Philippines. His small unit made their way to Santo Tomas where he liberated many friends and old school mates. A few weeks later, Wilson liberated his father, a civilian internee at Los Banos. Wilson remained with his unit constructing hospitals in the Philippines in anticipation of the casualties expected from the invasion of the Japanese home islands.
Date: January 31, 2002
Creator: Pratt, Rick & Wilson, John
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Albert Finley, April 11, 2006 transcript

Oral History Interview with Albert Finley, April 11, 2006

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Albert Finley. Finley joined the Marine Corps around December of 1943. He provides vivid details of his boot camp experiences. He served with Headquarters Company, 4th Marines, as a radar mechanic on Corsairs, repairing radio and radar gear. Beginning in September of 1944 they traveled to Guam, Kwajalein, Pearl Harbor and Majuro in the Marshall Islands. Finley shares a number of anecdotal stories, including working with POWs. He was discharged in the fall of 1946.
Date: April 11, 2006
Creator: Finley, Albert
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Glenn E. McDuffie, January 21, 2008 transcript

Oral History Interview with Glenn E. McDuffie, January 21, 2008

Interview with Glenn E. McDuffie, an Armed Guard in the U. S. Navy during World War II. He discusses lying about his age in order to join the navy at 15 and his experience in boot camp. He served as an Armed Guard on merchant ships that transported supplies across the Atlantic and remembers being in London while German bombers flew overhead. He transported German prisoners out of Marseilles and Naples shortly after the liberation of those cities. He remembers going to Times Square upon hearing that the Japanese had surrendered. He claims to have been the sailor in the iconic photo of the sailor kissing the nurse in Times Square on V-J Day. He describes how he proved he was the sailor in the photo, what he did after the war, and how he learned that his brother survived the Bataan Death March.
Date: January 21, 2008
Creator: Misenhimer, Richard & McDuffie, Glenn E.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Abe Santos, February 24, 2001 transcript

Oral History Interview with Abe Santos, February 24, 2001

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Abe Santos. Santos joined the Navy in November of 1939. He served as a Fireman aboard the USS Astoria (CA-34). They participated in the battles of the Coral Sea, Midway and Savo Island, where the ship was sunk. He traveled back to Pearl Harbor aboard the USS Wharton (AP-7). Santos was placed on tugboat duty for six months, then transferred to Johnston Island as a Second-Class Machinist’s Mate. He assisted with airstrip construction. He later transferred back to headquarters at Pearl Harbor, and worked on staff for Admiral Robert L. Ghormley. He continued his service after the war ended.
Date: February 24, 2001
Creator: Santos, Abe
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Al Stremel, July 30, 2011 transcript

Oral History Interview with Al Stremel, July 30, 2011

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Al Stremel. Stremel joined the Navy in October of 1940. Beginning in December, he served in the fire room aboard USS Enterprise (CV-6). In April of 1942, they escorted USS Hornet (CV-8) on the Doolittle Raid. From June through November, they participated in the battles at Midway, the Eastern Solomons, Santa Cruz and Guadalcanal. In January of 1944, Stremel was sent to Oil Burning School in Philadelphia. He was transferred to USS Swanson (DD-443). Stremel was honorably discharged in December of 1946.
Date: July 30, 2011
Creator: Stremel, Al
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with William R. Sanchez, June 24, 2011 transcript

Oral History Interview with William R. Sanchez, June 24, 2011

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with with William R. Sanchez. Born in Texas in 1918, Sanchez joined the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in 1938. He was drafted into the Army in 1940 and elected to serve in the Philippines. He was assigned to the 59th Regiment, Coast Artillery, Battery D and later Battery H at Fort Mills (Corregidor). He was then assigned to Army Intelligence in the Harbor Defense Headquarters. He recounts how the Army Intelligence at Corregidor provided advance notification of the Japanese force on its way to attack Pearl Harbor. He describes participating in the battle for Corregidor, being taken prisoner in the Malinta Tunnel, and his role in disposing of an American flag after the surrender to the Japanese. He discusses the treatment and living conditions he experienced as a prisoner of war. He was held captive at Bilibid Prison and Cabanatuan in the Philippines. He was transported aboard the Totorri Maru, a hell ship, to Formosa. He was then relocated to Camp Omori near Tokyo, Japan where he befriended Gregory “Pappy” Boyington and Louis Zamperini; was beaten by “the Wiley Bird” (Mutsuhiro Watanabe); and encountered Premier Tojo. He discusses his …
Date: June 24, 2011
Creator: Sanchez, William R.
System: The Portal to Texas History