The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Robert Cashin. Cashin passed his Foreign Service Officer examinations and was awaiting assignment when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in December of 1941. In July of 1942 he joined the Army, 17th Infantry Division. He began Officer Candidate School in December. Upon completion of school he was assigned Platoon Leader in the Cavalry Replacement Training Center. He later served as a lieutenant in the Military Intelligence Center at Fort Ritchie, Maryland. In the fall of 1943 Cashin was stationed in Knutsford, England with the headquarters of the 3rd Army, relaying some anecdotal stories of General Patton. In July of 1944 Cashin went to Utah Beach and Sainte-Mère-Église in France and through Belgium to Bastogne in December. They moved into Renne, Brittany and Paris, France, where he took a job as a military liaison officer after the war ended.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Lorraine Mannering, nee Ungaretti. She discusses life prior to World War II and life on the homefront during the war. Her husband, drafted into the Army in 1941, served with the 18th Engineers constructing the Alcan Highway in Alaska. He also served on the Aleutian Islands of Attu, Adak, and Shemya. During the war, Lorraine continued her work in the insurance industry in San Francisco, California. She discusses rationing, shortages, blackouts, and victory gardens. She talks about war damage insurance policies and communicating with her husband via mail. She reflects on the treatment of Japanese Americans, the changing role of women, the use of atomic bombs, and race relations in San Francisco. When her husband was transferred to Fort Belvoir, Virginia, she worked for the Red Cross. Her husband was discharged in 1945. The interview includes information about her parents as well as her life after the war.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Philip Fox. Fox was drafted into the Army in 1943 where he was assigned to the 34th Evacuation Hospital. He describes the living conditions in the area outside of Manchester, England where he participated in establishing the 3rd Army, 34th Evacuation Hospital. This evacuation hospital group landed at Normandy and followed the Army through France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany. He discusses German casualties and prisoners of war. He shares his impressions of Munich, Germany at the close of the war. He also shares anecdotes about playing poker aboard a hospital ship; encountering Allied tanks on a French road; General Patton; working in the ear and eye clinic; and learning about the birth of his son while in Europe. He was discharged in Texas.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Kelly Gibson. Gibson joined the Army Air Corps in September, 1941. He was trained as a radio repairman and serviced radios in airplanes at Turner Field, Georgia. He volunteered for overseas duty and was sent to England in 1943 and attached to the 61st Troop Carrier Group. He soon was the radio operator in a C-47 flight crew and participated in the Invasion of Normandy. As the war in Europe was winding down, Gibson was transferred to Natal, Brazil where he resumed repairing radios. When the war ended, Gibson was returned to the US where he elected to be discharged.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Robert Cooper. Cooper was working for the Indianapolis Fire Department when he was drafted into the Army in 1943. From there, he volunteered for the paratroopers and trained at Camp Toccoa, Georgia. He was assigned to the 517th Parachute Combat Team. Cooper describes much of his training, equipment and uniform. In May, 1944, his unit landed in Italy. He jumped with his unit into Southern France in August, 1944 and served as a scout. Cooper also mentions some about the Battle of the Bulge. He returned home and was discharged in October, 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Robert Modersohn. Modersohn joined the Navy in April of 1943. He completed Radio, Radar and Electrical School by March of 1944. Beginning in May, he served as Radio Technician Third-Class aboard the USS Ticonderoga (CV-14), participating in the Philippine Campaign and combat in the South China Sea and around the southern part of Japan.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Carl Braddock. Braddock was born 1 February 1919 in Big Spring, Texas. Joining the Navy during May 1942, he took boot training in San Diego. He was assigned to range finding school and describes the training he received. Upon graduation he was assigned to the USS Saufley (DD-465), which went to Guadalcanal in December, 1942. He describes the bombardment of the island. In May 1943 he was sent to several schools for additional training. Braddock was assigned to the USS Franklin (CV-13) in January 1944 and he describes various battles in which he participated. He recalls the ship being subjected to attack and damaged by kamikaze aircraft on 9 October 1944 and 30 October 1944 which resulted in many casualties. He tells of being evacuated to the USS Santa Fe (CL-60). The Franklin returned to Bremerton, Washington for repairs and he was sent to school again. While in school he was notified that the ship was hit by several bombs with over 700 killed.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Billie Campbell. Campbell was born on 10 June 1926 in Oklahoma. He joined the Navy in 1944 and served as a signalman aboard USS Calvert (APA-32) and USS Montour (APA-101). He tells of crossing the equator and undergoing the King Neptune ritual. He recalls arriving at Manus Island and observing the aftermath of the USS Mount Hood (AE-11) explosion. He describes ships being hit by Japanese planes and observing the American flag-raising on Mount Suribachi. He also tells of seeing American dead being buried in trenches near the beaches on Iwo Jima.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Marcel Bisson. Bisson joined the Marine Corps in 1944 and after training was assigned as a replacement to the 5th Marine Division just prior to invading Iwo Jima. On the twelfth day, Bisson was wounded and evacuated. After some stays in hospitals, he was medically discharged in July 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Monte Guidry. He enlisted in the Navy after high school and went to boot camp in San Diego. He qualified for radio school and was sent to Texas A&M. From there, he was assigned to the attack cargo ship, the USS Libra (AKA-12). He continues with anecdotes about being aboard ship: seasickness, radio room work, practical jokes, etc. He participated in the Luzon landing and had a brief leave in Manila in 1944. Then he went on to Iwo Jima and tells more personal stories. His ship was present in Tokyo Bay for the surrender and he had leave later in Hokkaido where he mingled with some local Japanese. He then relates a few more anecdotes about being aboard ship before concluding.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Harvey L. Harvey. Right after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Harvey left the oil fields in South Texas and joined the Army Air Corps. Harvey discusses training to be a pilot and then going to New Caledonia. He also shares anecdotes about aerial combat over Guadalcanal and the Solomon Islands. Harvey participated in the mission to shoot down Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto in 1943 and describes his role and what he witnessed. Harvey also shartes several anecdotes from his time in combat and in the service while overseas.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Royce Keiser. Keiser joined the Army in February of 1943. He served in the 156th Field Artillery Battalion, Battery B, 44th Infantry Division, 7th Army. Keiser worked as a lineman, stringing wire between switchboards and firing batteries, and also worked as a cannoneer on the 105mm howitzer. In September of 1944 he traveled overseas to Cherbourg, France, maneuvered through Mannheim and Worms, Germany, crossed the Rhine, moved into Lunéville, France to the front lines, and traveled through the Siegfried Line. Keiser participated in the Battle of the Bulge. He shares details of his combat experiences. Once the war ended, he traveled to Innsbruck, Austria. In July of 1945 he returned to the US and discharged in November.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Emil Smolek. Smolek joined the Army Air Forces in 1942. He served as a B-24 pilot with the 531st Bomb Squadron, 380th Bomb Group. In the spring of 1944, they traveled to Biak, Indonesia and Mindanao, Philippines where they set up operations. Smolek flew a total of 31 missions, including bombing ammunition plants in China, Japanese headquarters in Baggio, oil fields in Balikpapan, and factories in Mindoro. They participated in the New Guinea Campaign. Smolek flew missions through the end of the war.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with John Alebis. Alebis was born in Detroit, Michigan on 7 February 1926 to immigrant Lithuanian parents. Upon entering the Army Air Forces in May 1944, he was sent to Shepherd Field, Texas for basic training. After three weeks of training he was sent to gunnery school at Las Vegas, Nevada. He describes the training he received as a gunner. Upon completion of gunnery training he was sent to Ellsworth Field, North Dakota where he was assigned to a B-17 bomber crew as right waist gunner. The crew flew a B-17 to Capital Stone, England, arriving on 5 April 1945. Upon arrival Alebis was assigned to the 398th Bomb Group, 605th Bomb Squadron. He flew three bombing missions and describes them from the beginning of the day to the return to base. Following the surrender of Germany the unit began flying survey mission over Europe and he describes the devastation he saw. On 1 June 1945 he returned to the United States and was sent to McDill Field, Florida to begin training as a gunner on a B-29. With the surrender of Japan, his training was curtailed and he …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Edward Kicklighter. Kicklighter attended Armstrong Jr. College in Savannah, Georgia and secured a pilot’s license through the Civilian Pilot Training Program. He had an appointment to the US Naval Academy, but joined the US Marine Corps instead. Selected for flight training, he became one of six marines in the aviation class of 106 at Jacksonville Naval Air Station, Florida. Upon graduation he was assigned to multi-engine training and sent to Meacham Field, Texas for transition instruction. Upon graduation, as a reserve officer, he was assigned to fly for United Airlines. In 1942 he received orders to report to the 9th Aircraft Wing at Cherry Point, North Carolina. He recalls several experiences while in this assignment. In 1944, he became the personal pilot for General Roy Geiger. One experience Kicklighter recalls is hearing a conversation between Ernie Pyle and the general shortly before Pyle’s death. He also tells of escorting the body of General Buckner after his death on Okinawa. Kicklighter stayed in the Marine Corps after World War II and he tells of his career prior to retirement including flying 100 combat missions over Korea, instructing midshipmen at …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Earl Smyth. He discusses his time aboard the USS Saratoga (CV-3) at the Battle of Midway, Guadacanal, sustaining two torpedo attacks and seeing Pearl Harbor three days after the attack.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Benjamin Muller. Muller was born in Louisville, Kentucky in 1924. Upon joining the Army Air Corps in 1942, he was sent to radio school in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He was then sent to Savannah, Georgia where he trained for one year as a member of the 92nd Airdrome Squadron. He then went to Pittsburg, California where he boarded the USAT Klipfontein bound for Lae, New Guinea. He then went to Nadzab, where he joined the 34th Bomb Group, 300th Bomb Squadron as the radio operator/gunner on a B-25. He tells of the various locations they were based and describes some of the thirty-seven missions he flew. He recalls a bombing mission over Indochina where flak from Japanese antiaircraft created a fire aboard his plane resulting in a crash landing in the sea. The pilot did not survive the crash and the co-pilot disappeared in the water wearing his life vest. Muller had been burned, the navigator had a back injury and the engineer was severely burned. On 3 April 1945, they were picked up by a Japanese patrol boat and taken to Samah, Hainan Island, China where …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with George Reynolds. Reynolds was drafted into the Army in January 1946 and received basic training at Fort Bliss. Basic was only six weeks long at that point, and Reynolds was happy to have the opportunity to relieve anyone who had served on the front lines. He recalls that his commanding officers weren’t very kind and seemed to be having difficulty readjusting to life after the war. He received nine months of training in handling 90-millimeter antiaircraft guns and was discharged later that year. He joined a refrigeration company as an assembly lineman and worked his way into quality control and engineering, finishing 47 years later as a laboratory manager. Reynolds feels that the artillery training he received prepared him well for the technical demands of his job.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Jetty Cook. Cook enlisted in the Army Air Corps in the aviation cadet program soon after his 18th birthday in 1942. They promised him that if he enlisted he would not be called to active duty until after he finished high school; this didn't turn out to be the case. He was sent to aviation cadet training in California but 'washed out' because of poor eyesight. He still wanted to fly so they said he could be a gunner. After B-17 flight mechanic school in Amarillo, Texas he was sent to aerial gunnery school in Kingman, Arizona, finishing just before Christmas 1943. Afterwards, he went to MacDill Army Airfield for two months of combat crew training. This is where the B-17 crews were formed up. He was selected by the pilot of this aircraft to be the flight engineer and top turret gunner. From there, the crew went to Hunter Army Airfiled, picked up a brand new B-17 out of the factory and received orders to deploy to Bangor, Maine. After arriving at a RAF base in Northern Ireland (after a grueling flight across the North Atlantic) their …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Charles Dahlstrom. Dahlstrom was born in Austin, Texas on 10 February 1926 and graduated from high school in 1943. Soon after, he joined the Navy and had boot training at San Diego. Upon completion of basic training he reported aboard the USS Mississippi (BB-41) and was assigned to a 5 inch deck gun crew. He was aboard ship bombarding Makin Island and saw the USS Liscome Bay (CVE-56) sink. The following day an explosion occurred aboard the Mississippi, killing over thirty men. After repairs at Pearl Harbor they proceeded to Kwajalein to provide support for the invasion. Dahlstrom also saw action at Peleliu, Manus Island, Leyte Gulf and Surigao Straits. He also recalls the battle of the Lingayen Gulf during which the ship was hit by a kamikaze. After more repairs at Pearl Harbor they proceeded to Okinawa where they were continually harassed by kamikazes and Japanese Baca bombs. The Mississippi was again struck by a suicide plane and proceeded to Leyte Gulf where it was placed in dry-dock for repairs. Upon completion of the repairs the ship proceeded to Tokyo Bay and was present when Japan surrendered. …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Robert Gwynn. Gwynn was born 8 October 1921 in Lima, Ohio. Joining the Army Air Corps 28 October 1940, he took basic training at March Field, California. He entered the enlisted pilot training program in December 1941. Upon graduating he received his staff sergeant rating and went to Wisconsin for C-47 transition. Upon completing the course he was assigned to Bergstrom Air Force Base, Austin, Texas. After a period of time he went to Florida where he received his instrument rating. He recalls participating in the invasion of Sicily on 10 July 1943 and comments on the high loss of aircraft that occurred. Gwynn also dropped paratroopers during the invasion of Anzio. He remembers witnessing from afar the German air raid on Bari, Italy during which 17 ships were sunk. On 6 June 1944 he piloted aircraft which dropped paratroopers over France. On 8 May 1945 he returned home and was discharged. He tells of being recalled in 1949 and participating in the Berlin Airlift.

Transcript of an oral interview with Harry Litzelfelner. Mr Litzelfelner enlisted in the Missouri National Guard, 140th Infantry Regiment (medical detachment stationed in his hometown of Caruthersville, Missouri) around October 1940; they were called into Federal service on December 23, 1940. They trained for almost a year at Camp Robinson, Arkansas. Right after Pearl Harbor, they were on the train headed to California. Originally, the 140th Infantry Regiment was part of the 35th Division but they were removed from the 35th and most of the people sent out to other places; he was sent to Alaska. Litzelfelner spent about fifteen months in Seward, Alaska. One night they came and got him (and some others), loaded them on a Liberty ship, and took them to Shemya (a little island near Attu); the campaign had just ended at Attu. They lived in tents there and the winter of 1943-44 was real terrible. Mr Litzelfelner mainly worked in the Post Office. He left there in June when his replacement arrived. After home leave, he was sent to Fort Sam Houston for about two months and then to Camp Barkley in Abilene; Camp Crowder, Missouri and then to Neosho, Missouri. He was discharged in …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents on oral interview with Carl McKenzie. McKenzie was born in Boise, Idaho in November, 1921. After working at Boeing briefly, McKenzie volunteered for service in the Navy in June, 1942. Once in the Navy, he attended fire control and radar operator schools before being assigned to the USS Earl (DD-635) at Boston. He recalls several convoy trips across the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and the United Kingdom. When the war in Europe ended, the Earle was being converted to a minesweeper and preparing for duty in the Pacific. Shortly after arriving in the Pacific, the war with Japan ended and the Earle went to Sasebo where minesweeping operations got underway. McKenzie also served aboard the USS McCook (DD-496) for more minesweeping operations in the China Sea.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Lucille Wilson. Wilson, nee Werner, born in Indiana in 1918. When war was declared, she was attending Purdue University. Soon, though, she went to Fort Wayne and took a job at General Electric. Wilson married during the war and her husband was in the Navy. She recalls travelling to New York on several occasions to meet him during the war. She also comments on rationing.