Interview with with Norman Apelt, an airplane mechanic during World War II. He discusses his service in the US Army Air Corps as an airplane mechanic in Pampa, Texas. After the war ended, Apelt was assigned duty in occupied Japan.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Will Scott. Scott joined the Navy in May of 1941. He served as a Gunner’s Mate aboard the USS Utah (BB-31). He shares his experiences living at sea, his work and general life aboard the Utah. Scott also provides details of the attack while berthed in Pearl Harbor. After the Utah was sunk, Scott was assigned to the USS Honolulu (CL-48) for ten months, and then transferred to the USS Denver (CL-58) for two and half years. From there he served aboard the USS Harold J. Ellison (DD-864) until the war ended. During his service he traveled to the Aleutian Islands, Guadalcanal and Leyte Gulf.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Sam Palermo. Palermo was born in 1924 in Melrose Park, Illinois. His parents came from Italy in 1902. He was drafted into the Navy in June 1943 and sent to Farragut, Idaho for boot training. Upon finishing, he went to Wahpeton, where he studied engineering at the North Dakota State College of Science for six months. In March 1944 he reported aboard the USS Dennis (DE-405) as a motor machinist in the engine room. The Dennis was part of Taffy 3 and participated in the Battle of Leyte Gulf off Samar during which the ship was hit five times by Japanese gunfire. After the battle, the Dennis picked up 434 survivors from the USS St. Lo (CVE-63) and Palermo describes burials at sea of five shipmates and a casualty from the St. Lo. After dropping off the injured at Peleliu, the ship returned to Alameda for repairs. Returning to the Pacific, the Dennis provided support during the invasion of Iwo Jima. After twenty-seven days on station at Iwo Jima the ship went to Ulithi for provisions and to prepare for the next invasion. After participating in the invasion …

Transcript of an oral interview with Frederick M. Bidwell. Bidwell joined the Army in 1940 at Fort Benning, Georgia. He was assigned to the 69th Infantry Division and headed for France in mid-1944. He eventually was attached to the 35th Infantry Division and fought in France at the Battle of St. Lo. He also briefly mentions the Battle of the Bulge.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Richard Hockensmith. Hockensmith was drafted in the Army in 1942. He was assigned to the 626th Military Police Battalion in Camp Beauregard, Louisiana. They patrolled the streets and served as auxiliary police. He was then assigned to the 394th Military Police Escort Guard Company in Fort Bliss, Texas. They were trained to handle prisoners of war. He also received instruction on personnel management. He was then transferred to a little town about 35 miles east of Waco where a POW camp was established. In 1943 he went by troop ship to North Africa to pick up African and German prisoners from the Afrika Korps to transfer back to a POW camp in Mexia, Texas. He describes the work of a POW at the camp. From Mexia, Hockensmith was transferred to another POW camp in Camp Swift, Texas. He was then transferred into the personnel section of the Medical Corps and was shipped out to the Pacific in late 1944. They traveled to Okinawa, then to Kadena Airfield and remained in this area until January of 1946. He was discharged in early 1946.

Transcript of an oral interview with Ronald DeWitt. In 1943, he joined the Navy when he was 17. He went to Newport, Rhode Island for basic training and then went to radar operator school at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. From there, he was assigned to Port Hueneme, California for more radar training. He evetually volunteered for sea duty and was posted to the USS Algol (AKA-54) in August, 1944 as a radar man. He describes the function of and gear aboard the attack cargo ship; being the ranking radar man; traveling in a convoy. After entering the Pacific, he participated in the invasion of the Philippines and was present for the landing at Lingayen Gulf. From there, they delivered cargo at Leyte, then headed for Okinawa. Th eAlgol ws there for the first nine days of the invasion before heading for Guam and then the US. toward the end of the war, the Algol was back in the Pacific, where, after the war, it delivered its boats to China. From there, it returned to Seattle and DeWitt left the Navy in March, 1946.

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 oral interview with W.T. Riedel. Riedel was born in Yorktown, Texas on 27 December 1921. He was a member of the Texas A&M University band when he enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces in 1943. Following basic training at Sheppard Field in Wichita Falls, Texas, he was sent to the University of Denver in Colorado. While there he was selected for pilot training. He recalls the various air fields on which he received the various phases of flight training before receiving his wings in February 1944. Upon being commissioned he was sent to Salt Lake City, Utah where a B-17 bomber crew was assembled and crew training began. Upon completion of the training, the crew flew to Bedford, England. There, they were assigned to the 306th Bomb Group. He describes one mission they flew over Lutzkendorf, Germany during which their aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft fire. Due to a fire aboard their plane, the crew was compelled to bail out. The entire crew landed safely and were picked up by Belgian partisans and taken to friendly headquarters. They were returned to England and given a period of rest and …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Richard E. Werner. Werner joined the Army in September of 1942. He served in the Medical Detachment with the 1106th Engineer Combat Battalion, 7th Army. They were transferred to England, and participated in infantry combat and built pontoon bridges during the Normandy invasion and traveled as far as the Rhine River when Germany surrendered on 8 May 1945. Werner served with the occupation in Germany and returned to the US in November, receiving his discharge.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Dorothy Rufi. Mrs. Rufi’s maiden name is Roehning. She arrived in Washington D.C. to work at the Coast Guard headquarters in 1942. She was assigned to a secretarial pool of four women who worked for Rear Admiral Harvey F. Johnson. She mentions blackouts and an air raid drill. She returned to her home to Minnesota in 1944.

Transcript of an oral interview with Norman Apelt. He discusses his service in the US Army Air Corps as an airplane mechanic in Pampa, Texas. After the war ended, Apelt was assigned duty in occupied Japan.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Sybil Bale. Bale was born in Clovis, New Mexico in 1920. In 1940 she went to Washington, D.C. to work for the Lend Lease Program as a secretary. She tells of seeing the program grow from a staff of four with four secretaries to over 750 employees when she left in 1941. Returning to New Mexico, Sybil was employed by the Selective Service Draft Board as an auditor and tells of the work it entailed. She describes the classification process of civilians including those who worked on the Manhattan Project. She tells of getting married in 1952 to a career Marine and of her life married to a World War II veteran who also served in Korea and Vietnam.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ken Cook. Born in Dallas, Texas on January 19, 1927, he joined the Navy in October 1943 and attended boot camp in San Diego. Upon completing boot camp, he was ordered to engineering school in Gulfport, Mississippi and was assigned to the USS Sigourney (DD-643) for the duration of the war. He reported aboard Sigourney in May 1944 as a Fireman Striker, but after serving a stint as Mess Cook, changed his rating to Cook Striker. He recounts being aboard the vessel during July 1945 in San Pedro, California, when the crew was ordered to stand by for inspection due to a reported "theft of articles from a sailor's locker." Liberty was cancelled, the inspection was never conducted, and the ship got underway after embarking a mysterious individual dressed in a Chief's uniform. He recalls that the "Chief" soon changed into civilian clothes and, to his knowledge, spoke to almost no one during the ensuing days as the vessel sailed north to the Alaskan coast and a rendezvous with the USS Washington (BB-56). The Sigourney pulled alongside the Washington, which had the ship's band turned out and playing, …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Dr. Patrick H. McKay. Born in San Antonio, Texas in 1924, he discusses the hard times experienced by his family during the Depression. He joined Army ROTC in high school. After graduating, he was inducted into the Army in September 1943. He was sent on the USS West Point (AP-23) to Papua, New Guinea. He describes his experiences and training during the transit. He describes his time at Milne Bay, as a Private assigned to the 158th Regimental Combat Team, known as the" Bushmasters." He describes his unit's attack on a small island off the coast of New Guinea. His regiment's next action was at Noemfoor Island, New Guinea in July and August 1944. He recalls Tokyo Rose saying before the landing that "the blood-thirsty Bushmasters are going to meet a wall of steel.” He recalls several banzai attacks during the battle. His unit next made an assault on Lingayen Gulf in Luzon, Philippines. Their objective was the headquarters for the 17th Japanese Army unit under the command of General Tomoyuki Yamashita in Baguio. Next, his unit was sent to fight its way through the outskirts of Manila. …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Mike Rubin. Rubin discussed his father, M. J. Rubin. M. J. Rubin was born in Amarillo, Texas in the 1920s. He joined the Navy as a Corpsman shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Upon finishing boot camp in San Diego, California he was transferred to the Second Marine Division and sent to New Zealand. His first action was at Tarawa. He was then sent to Pearl Harbor where the Second Marine Division was reconstituted. Following the reconstitution he was sent to Saipan where he was wounded by mortar fire and suffered battle fatigue and returned to the States. He received three Silver Stars during his four years overseas.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Robert Allender. Allender was born in Oskaloosa, Iowa 21 November 1925 and enlisted in the Navy after graduating from high school in 1943. He qualified for sonar school while in boot camp and went to San Diego. Upon graduating from the school, he was sent to duty aboard the USS YMS-387, an auxiliary motor minesweeper. He describes his time on the YMS, engaged in coastal minesweeping and training prospective minesweeper crews. He left the minesweeper in December 1944 and was assigned to the commissioning crew of a coastal patrol craft in Portland, Oregon in the spring of 1945. He describes convoy duty between Pearl Harbor and the South Pacific, and operations near Eniwetok, Saipan, Guam and Ulithi. He recalls that following the Japanese surrender, his patrol craft was sent to Yap to accept the surrender of the Japanese garrison. The ship left Ulithi in November 1945 and returned to Charleston, South Carolina for decommissioning. He was discharged from the Navy in April 1946.

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 Lee Weber. Weber joined the Marine Corps Reserve in 1939. He was in San Diego when the war started and soon sailed for Samoa where he served as an armorer. He attended OCs at Samoa and was commissioned in August before going to Guadalcanal in October, 1942. Weber shares several details about ground fighting at Guadalcanal. When he left Guadalcanal, he went to New Zealand for rest and preparation for the invasion of Tarawa. Weber worked closely with Major Henry (Jim) Crowe. He also describes landing at Tarawa and fighting during the battle. Weber was wounded by a grenade and evacuated to a ship offshore. Upon recovering, he went to Quantico and served as an ordnance officer. When the war ended, Weber stayed in the reserves, retiring in 1979.

Transcript of an oral interview with Frederick M. Bidwell. Bidwell joined the Army in 1940 at Fort Benning, Georgia. He was assigned to the 69th Infantry Division and headed for France in mid-1944. He eventually was attached to the 35th Infantry Division and fought in France at the Battle of St. Lo. He also briefly mentions the Battle of the Bulge.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with W.T. Riedel. Riedel was born in Yorktown, Texas on 27 December 1921. He was a member of the Texas A&M University band when he enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces in 1943. Following basic training at Sheppard Field in Wichita Falls, Texas, he was sent to the University of Denver in Colorado. While there he was selected for pilot training. He recalls the various air fields on which he received the various phases of flight training before receiving his wings in February 1944. Upon being commissioned he was sent to Salt Lake City, Utah where a B-17 bomber crew was assembled and crew training began. Upon completion of the training, the crew flew to Bedford, England. There, they were assigned to the 306th Bomb Group. He describes one mission they flew over Lutzkendorf, Germany during which their aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft fire. Due to a fire aboard their plane, the crew was compelled to bail out. The entire crew landed safely and were picked up by Belgian partisans and taken to friendly headquarters. They were returned to England and given a period of rest and …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Richard E. Werner. Werner joined the Army in September of 1942. He served in the Medical Detachment with the 1106th Engineer Combat Battalion, 7th Army. They were transferred to England, and participated in infantry combat and built pontoon bridges during the Normandy invasion and traveled as far as the Rhine River when Germany surrendered on 8 May 1945. Werner served with the occupation in Germany and returned to the US in November, receiving his discharge.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Richard Hockensmith. Hockensmith was drafted in the Army in 1942. He was assigned to the 626th Military Police Battalion in Camp Beauregard, Louisiana. They patrolled the streets and served as auxiliary police. He was then assigned to the 394th Military Police Escort Guard Company in Fort Bliss, Texas. They were trained to handle prisoners of war. He also received instruction on personnel management. He was then transferred to a little town about 35 miles east of Waco where a POW camp was established. In 1943 he went by troop ship to North Africa to pick up African and German prisoners from the Afrika Korps to transfer back to a POW camp in Mexia, Texas. He describes the work of a POW at the camp. From Mexia, Hockensmith was transferred to another POW camp in Camp Swift, Texas. He was then transferred into the personnel section of the Medical Corps and was shipped out to the Pacific in late 1944. They traveled to Okinawa, then to Kadena Airfield and remained in this area until January of 1946. He was discharged in early 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Dorothy Rufi. Mrs. Rufi’s maiden name is Roehning. She arrived in Washington D.C. to work at the Coast Guard headquarters in 1942. She was assigned to a secretarial pool of four women who worked for Rear Admiral Harvey F. Johnson. She mentions blackouts and an air raid drill. She returned to her home to Minnesota in 1944.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Will Scott. Scott joined the Navy in May of 1941. He served as a Gunner’s Mate aboard the USS Utah (BB-31). He shares his experiences living at sea, his work and general life aboard the Utah. Scott also provides details of the attack while berthed in Pearl Harbor. After the Utah was sunk, Scott was assigned to the USS Honolulu (CL-48) for ten months, and then transferred to the USS Denver (CL-58) for two and half years. From there he served aboard the USS Harold J. Ellison (DD-864) until the war ended. During his service he traveled to the Aleutian Islands, Guadalcanal and Leyte Gulf.