The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with David Ellis. Ellis was born on 8 March 1918 in Big Spring, Texas and enlisted in the Army in 1936. He went to Officer Candidate School, where he was trained in intelligence. His first duty station was in Hawaii, where he was assigned to the Navy’s Central Pacific Command by mistake. Next he was sent to Okinawa as a platoon leader in the 17th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. On Okinawa, Ellis was wounded and evacuated to a hospital ship and ultimately a field hospital in Saipan. His wounds left him unfit to return to combat and to be returned to the US due to the shell fragments embedded in his chest. Ellis walked away from the hospital and managed to get on a flight back to Okinawa and returned to his unit. The war ended shortly after he was given command of the regiment’s Intelligence and Reconnaissance (IR) platoon. The regiment then embarked on ships to Korea. During the transit, he was summoned to the flag bridge on the ship and assigned an intelligence gathering mission by Major General Archibald Arnold, 7th Infantry Division’s Commanding Officer. Ellis …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Lee Soucy. Soucy joined the Navy in December of 1937. He completed Hospital Corps School, and served as Pharmacist’s Mate aboard the USS Utah (BB-31). He was on board when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. After the attack and sinking of the Utah, Soucy worked as an RN and head of the medical laboratory at the Pearl Harbor Hospital. He remained at the hospital through April of 1945. He then completed Malaria Control School with the Marine Corps at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, and worked as the Assistant Malaria Control Officer until his discharge in December of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Earl Stevens. Stevens served aboard the USS New Mexico (BB 40) as an electrician beginning October of 1942. He was a gun electrician and took care of the firing mechanisms and the telephones. He provides his experience of joining the Navy with his dad and three brothers. He describes life aboard the New Mexico. He recalls traveling to Australia for liberty. Stevens describes the explosion of the USS Liscome Bay (CVE-56) and the repercussions it had upon the New Mexico. They also traveled to the Philippines. He was discharged in 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Eugene Walker. Walker served in the Navy aboard the USS New Mexico (BB-40) beginning Christmas Day 1937. He was aboard serving as a radioman. He describes the radios aboard the ship, working in the powder rooms in the turrets and Navy life in general. He gives details of a typical day as a radioman, including training, practicing Morse code and standing watch. Walker describes changes that took place in 1940, when they traveled from the Navy yard in Bremerton, Washington to Honolulu. Walker was transferred to the 14th Naval District from 1940 to 1942. He was present when Pearl Harbor was attacked on 7 December and provides recollections of the attack. He also describes a shellback initiation.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Frank Beardsley. Beardsley provides two interviews, one in 1990 and the other in 1998. Both focus on his career in the Navy. Beardsley joined the Navy in 1941 and earned a commission in January 1942. He served aboard the USS Big Horn (AO-45) for a while before commanding USS PC-1140 in 1944. After further anti-submarine warfare training, Beardsley commanded USS PCE(R)-858. He was on his way to the invasion of Japan when the war ended. He was discharged in 1946, but stayed in the reserves until 1964.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Santiago Diaz. Born in Chinampas, Jalisco, Mexico in 1915, he enlisted in the Army in 1943. He discusses his military training which included medical training as well as training for tropical regions. He was assigned to the 446th Malaria Survey Detachment and stationed on Guadalcanal. It was there that he was sworn in as an American citizen. He mentions Tokyo Rose. He also mentions the conditions aboard the ship, USS General W.M. Black (AP-135), to New Caledonia and the shellback ceremony that occurred upon crossing the Equator. He was discharged near Tyler, Texas in 1946. The interview ends with an unidentified person reading an article written about the life and military service of Diaz.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ken Barhite. Barhite was born in Alden, Iowa on 9 January 1921. Graduating from junior college, he was drafted into the Army and sent to Fort Wolters, Texas for thirteen weeks of basic training. He was then sent to Chenango, Pennsylvania for four weeks of advanced training prior to being sent to San Francisco where he boarded a liberty ship for a twenty-two day voyage to a replacement center in New Caledonia. After four weeks he was sent to Fiji where he joined the 23rd Infantry Division (Americal) in July 1943. The unit was sent to Bougainville where they performed patrols and were involved in some combat. He witnessed friends killed and wounded during these actions. While there, he was selected to attend 18 weeks of Officer’s Candidate School (OCS) in Australia. Upon his graduation in June 1945 he received his commission as a second lieutenant. He reported to the 158th Regimental Combat Team in Manila to prepare for the invasion of Japan. After the war, the unit boarded a ship for Japan as part of the occupation forces. Barhite returned to the United States in November 1945 …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Kenneth Spray. Spray joined the Navy in 1943 and received basic training at Great Lakes. During sonar training, he developed a system to cheat the tests; however, on patrol in Florida he was the first to detect an enemy submarine. In 1944, he deployed to the Pacific aboard the USS Sierra (AD-18) and completed his shellback initiation just before a torpedo attack. In Manus, Spray worked around the clock repairing radar, sonar, and depth-finding equipment on numerous ships. He survived relentless kamikaze attacks while working on the USS Howard (DD-179) at Lingayen Gulf. In 1945, he received orders to Pearl Harbor for radar school. Experiencing engine trouble 400 miles out, the crew threw their personal belongings overboard to lighten the load. When the war ended, Spray was stationed on Guam for three months before being discharged. He earned a master's degree in material science and metallurgic engineering and enjoyed a lengthy career with the Clark Equipment Company.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Richard L. Nielsen. Nielsen joined the Navy in 1960 after two years of college at San Francisco State. Nielsen discusses his father's service aboard liberty ships as a radio operator in the Merchant Marine during WWII in the Pacific. He also shares anecdotes about time in boot camp at San Diego. After boot camp, Nielsen went to hospital corps school. Upon completion of that, he was stationed in the intensive care unit at Oak Knoll Naval Hospital in Oakland, California. He relays an encounter he had with Admiral Nimitz as a patient at the hospital. He also relates an incident in which he traveled with a doctor to Yerba Buena Island to treat Admiral Nimitz at his home the day before he passed away.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Ernie Bowdre. Bowdre joined the Navy in mid-1943. He served as a Storekeeper aboard a liberty ship and traveled to Noumea, New Caledonia and Guadalcanal. He was then assigned to USS President Jackson (APA-18). In 1943, they participated in the Bougainville Campaign, transporting troops from island to island. They landed troops in the reinforcement landing at Lingayen Gulf and Iwo Jima. Bowdre recalls the ship being hit by enemy fire at Iwo. In June of 1945, they completed two round-trips to Manila before the cessation of hostilities. Bowdre returned to the US and received his discharge in March of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Melvin Brandenburg. Brandenburg joined the US Army in September 1942. He was assigned to the 78th Infantry Division, 310th Infantry Regiment. He provides details of his extensive infantry training. They arrived in England in late October 1944, then crossed to Le Havre, France in late November 1944. They participated in the Battle of the Bulge, where Brandenburg was wounded on 16 December. He provides details of their actions during this battle. They relieved the 82nd Airborne Division during occupation duty in Berlin. Brandenburg returned to the US and was discharged in January 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with William Wright. Wright joined the Army Air Forces in January of 1943. He completed training as a bombsight mechanic, and served aboard a B-29 with the 331st Bombardment Group, 20th Air Force. In 1944, Wright learned how to maintain the Norden bombsight. In April of 1945 he deployed to Guam. They completed missions over Japan, bombing enemy petroleum industries. He returned to the US in December of 1945. Their group was inactivated in April of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Bernard Kahn. Kahn joined the Navy in December of 1942. Beginning July of 1943, he served as Third Class Signalman aboard USS LST-118. From April through July of 1944, Kahn participated in the Hollandia and Mariana operations. He was transferred to USS LST-605. From October of 1944 through July of 1945, he participated in the Leyte, Luzon and Okinawa operations. Kahn returned to the US and was discharged in late 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral history with Ralph Styles. After two years of college, Styles entered the Naval Academy in 1930. When he graduated in 1933, he was sent aboard the USS Lexington (CV-2) for two years. After that, he was attached to the staff of the Commander, Aircraft Battle force in San Diego as a communications officer in 1935. In 1937, Styles entered submarine school. Upon completion, he boarded the USS Narwhal (SS-167) stationed at Hawaii. He served aboard the Narwhal from 1938 to 1942. He had just returned to Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked. After the Battle of Midway, Styles was placed in command of the USS S-20, another submarine. He did much training aboard the vessel before becoming the commanding officer of the USS Sea Devil (SS-400) in January 1944. On their first war patrol, they sank a Japanese submarine. Their second war patrol took them into the Yellow Sea. They torpedoed the Japanese aircraft carrier Junyo in December, 1944. On the third war patrol, Styles sank several merchant vessels, picked up a few prisoners out of the water and rescued some Marine aviators from the USS Essex (CV-9). He received …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ky Putnam. Putnam enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1942 in El Paso, Texas. After training, he was assigned to the 414th Night Fighter Squadron. His squadron was based in Italy and Putnam describes his living conditions, his squadron mates, and several of his combat experiences. Putnam tells the story of the time he got shot down in February, 1945. He and his radar man both parachuted out of the damaged P-61 and landed separately in the mountains. Putnam fell in with some Italian partisans and was eventually reunited with his radar man, John Marunovich, at the crash site. Putnam goes into considerable detail about his 22-day ordeal after his plane crashed. As Putnam and Marunovich made their way south, they encountered several friendly Italians, even one dressed in a German infantryman's uniform who traveled with the Americans for a while. After a while, Putnam and his radar man encountered an Allied unit from South Africa. They finally found a guide to get them through the lines and back to the Allied side. After a hike over a ridge at night, the group made it into Allied …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Harry Lapham. Lapham joined the Navy and after completing boot, he attended a machinist mate school at Norfolk, Virginia until March 1941. He tells of traveling to Goat Island, California where he went aboard the USS Tangier (AV-8). The ship was anchored near the USS Utah at the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He describes what he saw and felt following the attack. In February 1942, Lapham left the Tangier to attend Diesel school. He returned to sea aboard another ship.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with C A Wilkinson. Wilkinson joined the Naval Reserve in July of 1941. He served as a Storekeeper 3rd Class aboard the USS Tangier (AV-8) beginning September of 1941. He describes in detail life aboard the Tangier, the men he worked alongside, their trip to Pearl Harbor and events leading up to the attack on December 7. He describes some of the events that took place on the Tangier when Pearl Harbor was attacked. Wilkinson details some of Captain Clifton Sprague’s actions that day, as well as the USS Utah (BB-31) capsizing. He also provides details on their activities aboard the Tangier to prepare for their journey to Wake Island.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Benjamin Severns. Severns enlisted in the Navy in February of 1943. Prior to entering the service, Severns worked for Allis-Chalmers in LaPorte, Indiana, a former agricultural equipment manufacturer now producing 90mm guns for the war effort. Severns provides some details of his work experience. In November of 1943 Severns became machinist mate in the engine room aboard the USS Enright (DE-216). They traveled to Ireland and he vividly describes the destroyer, including sleeping and eating quarters and day to day life aboard. They convoyed to Londonderry, North Africa and a host of British ports, providing escort support. He describes some of his experiences in Ireland. Severns details a merchant ship that hit the destroyer in April of 1944, and their travels back to New York for repairs. They traveled back to North Africa, where Severns describes some adventures he had in Oran. He was assigned to the USS Fred T. Berry (DD-858) in January of 1945. They traveled to Hawaii. Severns was involved in the occupation of Japan, patrolling the harbors and setting up control towers. He was then transferred to the USS Belet (APD-109). They traveled to the …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Jerome Crowley. Crowley was born in Cituate, Maine 17 March 1924. He graduated from high school in 1941 and joined the US Navy 17 January 1942. Upon completion of boot camp he was sent to Aviation Machinist Mate School in Jacksonville, Florida where he received six months training on aircraft engines. He then volunteered for PT boats and underwent two months of training in Melville, Rhode Island. Crowley was then assigned to Torpedo Squadron 9 and went to Tobago for additional training. In March 1943 his unit arrived in Tulagi and he was assigned to the engine room aboard PT-156. He participated in the invasion of Munda and the Treasury Islands as well as doing patrols in the Kula Gulf. Crowley comments on the high morale among the crew members.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with William Cobleigh. Cobleigh joined the Civilian Conservation Corps of Colorado in 1938, and later joined the Vermont Coast Guard, then the Navy. By October of 1942 he was serving on Tulagi Island during the Guadalcanal Campaign. He worked on island patrol and as a cook aboard the USS PT-111. PT-111 intercepted Japanese forces, completing 11 patrols, including missions around Bougainville. In January of 1943 Cobleigh was transferred to the USS Cossatot (AO-77) and traveled across the Atlantic, through the Mediterranean and around the Arabian Peninsula, supplying fuel and dry stores to ships. From late 1943 through 1944 he served aboard the USS Acontius (AGP-12) and traveled to Hallaniyat Island. In late 1944 he transferred back to PT boats until the end of the war. Cobleigh was discharge din January of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Wilton Neumann. Neumann joined the Navy in 1943. He served as a radioman aboard the USS Griswold (DE-7) beginning June of 1944. They traveled to Pearl Harbor for additional training. In March of 1945 they were stationed at Eniwetok. In late May they participated in the Battle of Okinawa, where they conducted anti-submarine warfare and were credited for two kamikaze kills. In June they traveled to Leyte Gulf, and to Japan by September. Neumann returned to the US in October. He was discharged in early 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Wayne Brooks. Brooks joined the Army Air Corps in 1941. He completed flight school and additional training at Fort Sumner and served as a second lieutenant flight instructor in Roswell, New Mexico. He flew Beechcraft and Cessna aircraft. He was discharged in 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Paul Monroe. Monroe joined the Army Air Forces in April of 1942, as an Aviation Cadet. He received his wings and commission in the summer of 1943. He was then stationed in Carlsbad, New Mexico flying bombardiers in a T-11 trainer. Monroe completed 1,000 hours of flying cadets over a period of nine months. He was then assigned as the Assistant Director of Flying, which is where he served for the remainder of the war. In late 1945 Monroe was sent to Warner Robins, Georgia working as a Personnel Control Officer. In early 1946 he was then sent to Europe, serving with a full reconnaissance squadron, and continued his service into the late 1950s.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Elmer Anderson. Anderson joined the Army in January 1943 and received basic training in Mississippi and training as a medic in South Carolina. Upon completion, he was assigned to the 87th Infantry Division, supporting the headquarters company. At the Battle of the Bulge, he was stationed one mile behind the front lines. He passed the Buchenwald concentration camp but didn’t know how severe conditions were inside. Although Anderson witnessed the aftermath of horrific casualties, both civilian and military, he was not himself exposed to heavy combat. Rather, he often socialized with German soldiers. Anderson returned home at the end of the war and was discharged in May 1946.