Resource Type

Oral History Interview with Lewis R. Hopkins, January 15, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Lewis R. Hopkins, January 15, 2004

Interview with Lewis R. Hopkins, a pilot during World War II. He describes growing up on a farm in Georgia, going to college at Berry, and working for Sears, Roebuck, and the Royal Typewriter Company before joining the U. S. Navy. He tells an anecdote about joining the navy so he could go to New York to see the World's Fair, since he had heard the Atlanta Reserve would be making a trip to the Fair. He began flight training in Florida in December 1940, finished the next September, then drove cross-country to San Francisco after the Pearl Harbor attack. He eventually joined the USS Enterprise in April 1942 and saw the B-25 bombers in the Doolittle Raid take off. He was part of Bombing Squadron Six and trained under Commander Best to learn how to do scouting flights, navigation, and dive bombing. He then describes his participation in the Battle of Midway, the hours before take-off, his first view of the Japanese fleet, and his bombing mission. He was later assigned to the USS Hornet and had to fly off to a little island so that planes from the USS Wasp could land on the Hornet after their ship …
Date: January 15, 2004
Creator: Cox, Floyd & Hopkins, Lewis R.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with James F. Sansom, October 8, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with James F. Sansom, October 8, 2004

Interview with James F. Sansom, an officer in the U. S. Army during World War II. Sansom joined the Army in 1940 and began training on anti-aircraft guns in Florida. He was selected for Officer Candidate School (OCS) and was commissioned a second lieutenant in 1942. He was assigned to the 843rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Air Warning Battalion, which made its way to India via the Panama Canal and Australia. Shortly after reaching Calcutta, the unit moved to Myitkyina, Burma. After the war, Sansom was assigned to Sagumo Prison outside Tokyo where Japanese war criminals were being held while on trial for war crimes. He describes some of the routines and residents in the prison. Sansom taught Hideki Tojo how to play card games like gin rummy. Sansom also describes the process of executing convicted prisoners as he carried out some sentences. In all, he executed nine convicted war criminals.
Date: October 8, 2004
Creator: Cox, Floyd & Sansom, James F.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with H. L. Obermiller, April 30, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with H. L. Obermiller, April 30, 2004

Interview with H. L. Obermiller, a Pharmacist's Mate during World War II. He discusses his involvement in the Battles of Tarawa, Saipan and Tinian, where he served as a Pharmacist's Mate. He remembers having Spam for Thanksgiving, meeting Navajo code talkers, and writing letters home.
Date: April 30, 2004
Creator: Metzler, Ed & Obermiller, H. L.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Sam H. Snoddy, April 29, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Sam H. Snoddy, April 29, 2004

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.
Date: April 29, 2004
Creator: Smith, Ned & Snoddy, Sam H.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Alan W. Saunders, October 8, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Alan W. Saunders, October 8, 2004

Interview with Alan W. "Buck" Saunders, a pilot during World War II. He discusses joining the Army Air Corps, becoming an airplane mechanic, and going to flight school for pilot training. He was stationed in India and flew supplies into China over the Himalayas (known by pilots as "the Hump"). In China, he traded items such as jewelry or opium for information on Japanese troop placements in Burma. He also discusses his meetings with native Burmese and talks about later experiences he had after the war and during the Vietnam War.
Date: October 8, 2004
Creator: Cox, Floyd & Saunders, Alan W.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Guinn Rasbury, April 30, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Guinn Rasbury, April 30, 2004

Interview with Guinn Rasbury, a U. S. Marine during World War II. He discusses joining the Marines, being part of the invasion force at Florida and Tulagi Islands, having multiple malaria attacks, being transferred to Maine to cure his malaria, being transferred around the United States, and finally returning to the Pacific theater. He explains how being sick with malaria and getting bumped from a plane ride home saved his life. He shares anecdotes about sounding "Taps" at a memorial service for President Roosevelt and being chairman of the Second Marine Division Memorial Scholarship Fund Committee.
Date: April 30, 2004
Creator: Graham, Eddie & Rasbury, Guinn
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Valentin R. Ybarra, April 29, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Valentin R. Ybarra, April 29, 2004

Interview with Valentin R. Ybarra regarding his experiences during World War II. He discusses his wartime experiences in Peleliu and Okinawa as well as occupation duty in Japan and China. He also had an assignment in Spain. He remembers the Cuban Missile Crisis, the revolt in the Dominican Republic, and his service in Vietnam.
Date: April 29, 2004
Creator: Misenhimer, Richard & Ybarra, Valentin R.
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 Mary Schandua, July 9, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Mary Schandua, July 9, 2004

Interview with Mary Schandua, a riveter for the Boeing Company during World War II. Florence Reeves also participates in the interview. She began working for the Boeing Company as a riveter in Seattle after she married her husband John, who was in the service. She assembled wing sections on aircraft.
Date: July 9, 2004
Creator: Nichols, Chuck & Schandua, Mary
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Eric Suggs, April 2, 2002 transcript

Oral History Interview with Eric Suggs, April 2, 2002

Interview with Eric Suggs, an avionics systems expert in the US Air Force. He describes his observations on life in Saudi Arabia.
Date: November 24, 2004
Creator: Gace, Michael & Suggs, Eric
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 Ernest Hamilton, April 17, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Ernest Hamilton, April 17, 2004

Interview with Ernest Hamilton, a veteran of World War II during the Battle of the Bulge, from Florence, Arkansas. Hamilton answers questions and explains his duties while in Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge as well as time as a POW in Brandenburg. Hamilton says volunteered to go to Japan after the war was over and soon became involved in the Korean War.
Date: April 17, 2004
Creator: Walker, Tracy & Hamilton, Ernest
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Lynn A. Seamans, March 30, 2002 transcript

Oral History Interview with Lynn A. Seamans, March 30, 2002

Interview with Lynn A. Seamans, a naval reservist in the US Navy during WWII and the Korean War. He answers questions about his time in the military and his experience abroad.
Date: May 12, 2004
Creator: Brown, C. & Seamans, Lynn A.
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 R. C. Nieto, April 9, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with R. C. Nieto, April 9, 2004

Interview with R. C. Nieto, a combat engineer in the US Army during WWII and the Korean War. He answers questions about his life before the military and his experiences overseas.
Date: April 9, 2004
Creator: Coy, Marisa E. & Nieto, R. C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Richard Jennings, April 20, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Richard Jennings, April 20, 2004

Interview with Richard Jennings, a member of a bomber squadron that flew missions during World War II in Europe, and a squadron commander during the Korean War, born near Charleston, West Virginia. Jennings answers questions concerning how he came to be in the Army, and where all he was stationed and trained. Most of his answers contain details of bombing missions he was a part of as well as his experiences during the Korean War.
Date: April 20, 2004
Creator: Nawaz, Muhammad & Jennings, Richard
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oral History Interview with Alf Klaveness, April 16, 2004 transcript

Oral History Interview with Alf Klaveness, April 16, 2004

Interview with Alf Klaveness, a commanding officer on the destroyer USS Benham. Klaveness begins by discussing his family history after coming here from Norway and working for John Rockefeller; he answers questions about his role in the Navy and describes being in Tokyo Bay during the surrender of Japan on the USS Missouri.
Date: April 16, 2004
Creator: Walker, Tracy & Klaveness, Alf
System: The Portal to Texas History