The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ruth Lutken. Lutken was a legal secretary in the Civil Service. She worked in Jackson, Mississippi in a U.S. Attorney’s office. Lutken describes the local environment and situations she observed. She briefly mentions alien registration for civilians from enemy nations and an interview with a German POW. Lutken also volunteered at the American Red Cross. She left her position a few years after the war.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Glen Holder. Holder joined the Army Air Forces in August of 1940. Beginning August of 1943, Holder served as a P38 pilot with the 35th Fighter Squadron, 8th Fighter Group, completing 153 missions in the Pacific. He completed combat missions over New Guinea, Cape Gloucester, the Philippines and Morotai. He recalls Charles Lindbergh flying with his squadron, teaching them methods to double their fuel over water. He returned to the US and was discharged in mid-1945. Holder continued his service after the war, retiring from the reserves around 1972.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Jack Bohning. Bohning enlisted for Navy flight training shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He continued his service as a Marine Corps pilot, flying dive-bombers from 1943-1945. He completed several missions at Tarawa, Hollandia, Makin and the Marshall Islands. He remained in active service as a colonel with the Marines until 1973, training servicemen during the Korean War and as an advisor during the Vietnam War.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Gunner Johnson. Johnson joined the Marines in January, 1944. He trained at San Diego and was assigned as a machine gunner to the Fifth Marine Division. He travelled with the division to Hawaii, then Iwo Jima, where he landed with the second wave with the 27th Marines. He spent several weeks in combat and relates several stories. On 12 March, Johnson was wounded and then evacuated to Guam via C-47. He rejoined his unit and was loading out for the invasion of Japan when the war ended. He went for occupation duty at Sasebo. He returned to the US and was discharged in 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Jack H. Lucas. Lucas was born in Plymouth, North Carolina on 14 February 1928. On 8 August 1942 he quit attending Edwards Military Institute, Salemburg, NC and joined the Marine Corps when he was 14 years old. He forged his mother’s signature on the enlistment documents thus allowing him to join the military even though he was underage. Lucas went to Parris Island, South Carolina for boot camp and received additional training at Camp Geiger, North Carolina. Contrary to orders he received, he joined the cadre with which he had trained and went by troop train to California. He then went to Camp Catlin, Hawaii. There, Lucas stowed away on the USS Deuel (APA-160) bound for Iwo Jima. He graphically describes the action in which he was severely wounded. Returning to the United States by hospital ship, he was taken to the Naval Hospital in Charleston, South Carolina where he remained until 2 September 1945. On 5 October 1945, he was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Harry Truman. Following this, Lucas joined Admiral Chester Nimitz in touring the country during which he met various dignitaries including …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Richard Knarr. Knarr was teaching school in Indiana when he was drafted into the Army. He was assigned to the field artillery in the 87th Infantry Division where he served in the headquarters battery. Knarr describes his training prior to shipping overseas to England. He landed in France in late November 1944 and shares experiences during the Battle of the Bulge. He also recalls liberating a few concentration camps. When the war in Europe ended, Knarr was slated to go to the Pacific, but the war ended while he was on leave. He was discharged in November, 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Joe L. Ware, Sr. He was born in 1924 in Nederland, Texas. After working on B-24 bombers at the Consolidated Aircraft Company in San Diego, California, he returned to Texas and joined the Navy when he was nineteen-years-old. He went to Machinist School; was transported to the Pacific region on the USS Wharton (AP-7); and assigned to the USS Colorado (BB-45) in New Hebrides. He describes his typical duties as a machinist on the battleship. He talks about the bombardment and support for the invasion of Tarawa as well as Kwajalein. He mentions that the ship was hit twenty-two times by the shore battery at Tinian. He also speaks of kamikaze attacks at Leyte Gulf and Lingayen Gulf as well as shells hitting the bridge at Luzon. He mentions being under constant fire at Okinawa. He was on the bridge of the USS Colorado in Tokyo Bay when the peace treaty was signed. He remained on the ship while it transported troops home from the Pacific. He explains the meaning of a Homer Brown pennant. He was discharged in January 1946. The interview also contains information about his …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Frank Lepinski. Lepinski joined the Army Air Forces in February of 1943. He completed pilot training and graduated in April of 1944. He continued training in a B-26, and traveled to Birmingham, Britain to serve with a replacement crew. They completed several bombing missions. In the summer of 1945 Lepinski was assigned to a B-26 stationed under the Eiffel Tower in Paris during an exposition, demonstrating how they won the war for France. He was discharged in January of 1947.

Transcript of an oral interview with Thomas Koltoniak. He joined the Navy despite being underage. He was assigned to the USS Texas (BB-35), first in the radio division, then in the aerial division. He shares an anecdote about visiting a munitions dump in Iceland on one of the ship's Atlantic crossings. He mentions the radio broadcast of General Dwight Eisenhower?s ?Voice of Freedom? message from the Texas while off the coast of North Africa. He participated in aerial photography missions along the French coast in preparation for the invasion of Normandy, France. He relates that the Texas was hit by two German shells, one of which failed to explode, during the Battle of Cherbourg. He describes the invasion of Iwo Jima. He also describes the processes of taking-off and landing on an aircraft carrier. He discusses attacks by kamikazes at Okinawa as well as the capture of a kamikaze pilot.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with C E Simmons. Simmons joined the Navy in October of 1944. Beginning in January of 1945 he served aboard the USS Goshen (APA-108) as coxswain driving Landing Craft, Vehicle Personnel (LCVP) to the beach. They traveled to Hawaii and New Hebrides, and landed the first wave at the Battle of Okinawa. In September of 1945 he was assigned to the US Naval Training Center in Newport, Rhode Island, training new crewmembers for sea duty. He was discharged in October of 1947.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Arden E. ""Scotty"" Kersey. Kersey was attending the University of Nebraska when he entered the V-12 program. Upon learning to fly, Kersey elected to go into the Marine Corps. Prior to entering the service, Kersey learned to fly through the Civilian Pilot Training Program. He also discusses flight training and the various aircraft he flew. He trained at Cherry Point, North Carolina until January, 1944, when he shipped to California in anticipation of going overseas. Kersey was attached to VMF-313 as part of Marine Air Group 12. They continued traineing on Hawaii before going to Midway Island in April, 1944 for more training. In August, VMF-313 boarded the USS Altamaha (CVE-18) and headed for the Solomon Islands. Their first combat missions were flying as escorts for bombers attacking Rabaul and other targets. He mentions a brief R&R in Australia. He also recalls combat flights in the Philippines and destroying an enemy convoy. Kersey flew 79 combat missions in the Pacific before returning to the US for some ferrying duty prior to being discharged.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Henry Gerards. Born in Kennewick, Washington, 3 March 1917, Gerards joined the US Army Air Forces in November 1942. After competing basic training in Santa Maria, California, he entered pilot training. Upon receiving his wings and being commissioned he was sent to Ardmore, Oklahoma for transition to multi-engine aircraft flying the B-17. Upon completion of crew training, the crew flew a new B-17 to Scotland where they were assigned to the 390th Bomb Group, 570th Bomb Squadron. They flew twenty-two missions before being shot down over Magdeburg, Germany on 28 May 1944. Gerards recalls the flight encountering over thirty German fighter planes, which shot down four other bombers as well as their own. He was captured soon after he landed and was interrogated during the ten days he spent in Dulag Luft before being sent to Stalag Luft III in Sagan, Germany. One of the highlights of being a prisoner was receiving Red Cross packages of food. Recalling an attempt to escape by a group of POWs from his barracks, he tells of the deaths of many of the men. The prison camp was liberated by members of …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ralph Fette. Fette was born on 28 January 1921 in Germany and immigrated to the United States with his family in 1927. He attended high school in Brooklyn, New York until 1937 at which time he quit to work with his father. He was drafted into the Army Air Corps in 1941. After taking basic training in Georgia, he attended an airframe and engine school in Detroit, Michigan. Upon completion of the school, Fette left for overseas duty near Calcutta, India. After spending some time in India he joined the 9th Bomb Group at Myitkyina, Burma where his group repaired B-24s and P-40s. As a line chief he was responsible for fifteen planes. One of the B-24s assigned to his group was called Home Stretch. He returned to the United States and was discharged in 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Kenneth Harrell. Harrell joined the Marine Corps in August 1942 and received basic training in San Diego. He was assigned to the 1st Marine Division as a radio operator with the 1st Amphibious Tractor Battalion and first encountered enemy fire during a practice landing on Goodenough Island. With Chesty Puller, he walked across Cape Gloucester amidst sniper fire. Harrell transferred to the 6th Amphibious Tractor Battalion, landing on Peleliu in the second wave. When his LV-2 Water Buffalo was hit twice in shallow water, Harrell’s shoes were blown off and he crawled ashore, shredding his hands and knees on the reef. After the air strip was secured, Harrell was put on shore patrol, deterring enemy barges. Holdouts remained in caves, and Harrell was bayoneted during a banzai charge. He killed his assailant and boarded a hospital ship. His battalion having been decimated, Harrell rejoined the 1st Amphibious Tractor Battalion at Okinawa, taking fragments when a nearby Japanese soldier committed suicide by grenade and hiding amidst urns in native burial grounds. In September 1945, Harrell transferred to the 1st Motor Transport Battalion in north China, facilitating the disarmament of …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Geoffrey Fiskin. When Fiskin first tried to enlist in the Royal New Zealand Air Force, he was ordered to return to his farm, an essential duty at the time. He was accepted to the RNZAF on his second attempt and was assigned to the No. 205 Squadron, a flying boat squadron stationed in Singapore. He and other RNZAF personnel were then transferred to the RAF No. 243 Squadron, seeing their first action just one day after Pearl Harbor. Fiskin struck a Japanese Ki-27 which then exploded beneath his plane, causing Fiskin to fall into a tailspin for 5,000 feet. He survived that event only to later be shelled and wounded. He was erroneously reported missing and believed killed, which he learned while speaking to his mother by phone. Fiskin, though on crutches and with steel lodged in his hip, continued to fly. In March 1942 he joined the No. 14 Squadron as a P-40 pilot. In bad weather off New Caledonia, the whole unit made a sea landing and abandoned their planes. He later discovered on Guadalcanal that American troops had found his aircraft and salvaged it; he …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ernest J. Zellmer. Zellmer was appointed to the Naval Academy in 1940. When Zellmer received his commission in 1943, he opted for submarines and was sent to submarine school. Upon completion of the school in December 1943, Zellmer was assigned as the communications officer aboard the USS Cavalla (SS-244). Zellmer provides a thorough description of the interior of a Gato-calss submarine. He describes the action of the first war patrol in June 1944 arund the Mariana Islands and a torpedo attack on HIJMS Shōkaku. Zellmer describes several of the other war patrols and, in April 1945, was able to visit the San Miguel Brewery in Manila. Also, on one patrol, Zellmer describes how Cavalla assisted a damaged HMS Terrapin (P323) back to Fremantle, Australia. He married an Australian woman and was reassigned to the USS Cusk (SS-348) later in May. When the war ended, Zellmer resigned his commission and took one in the reserves. He began teaching engineering drawing at Washington University near St. Louis before joining the the CIA as a Soviet submarine analyst in 1950. He made a career of the CIA and retired in the …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Giles McCoy. McCoy joined the Marines in June of 1943. He served as a sniper. McCoy was assigned to the 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division. He participated in the Invasion of Peleliu in September of 1944, as well as the battles of Okinawa and Iwo Jima. He talks about his experiences with kamikaze planes at Okinawa. He then served as a Marine replacement and a hot shell man aboard the USS Indianapolis (CA-35). McCoy provides vivid details of the ship sinking and his 4 days surviving in the Philippine Sea. He was discharged around late 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with James Hood. Hood was born on a farm near Crawfordville, Indiana on 3 October 1916. He completed high school in 1934 and graduated from Washburn University in 1938. He joined the Navy in September 1943 and received a direct commission as ensign. He received orders to Fort Pierce, Florida and several months later was assigned to Harvard University for a four month course in the supply corps school. Upon completion of the course he received orders to report aboard the USS Damon M. Cummings (DE-643) at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii in September, 1944. His job assignment was to supervise payroll activities as well direct food acquisition and preparation. His battle station on the ship was as the officer in charge of an anti-aircraft gun and he describes the actions of the gun in shooting down a kamikaze while on station off of Okinawa. Hood left the Damon M. Cummings in February 1946 and was discharged shortly thereafter. Hood was recalled into the Navy during the Korean War.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with James Hood of Indianapolis, Indiana. He discusses entering the U.S. Navy in September of 1942 without basic training as he was a college graduate. After being sworn in at Wabash College he was sent to Harvard Business School for Supply Corps for 4 months before being assigned to a ship in Pearl Harbor despite having no sailing training. Mr. hood was assigned to the Cummings DE643, he was supposed to be on the Samuel B. Roberts but the naval officer over him changed his mind last minute and 37 days later the Roberts sunk. While in Tulagi, Mr. Hood was involved in shooting down a Kamikaze plane, even receiving a ribbon for it after the war. He was also involved in the Battle of Okinawa and even saved two shells and years later had them signed by U.S. pilot Paul Tibbets. Mr. Hood was discharged from the Navy on February 28th, 1946, at Santa Ana, California as a Full Lieutenant. He was recalled to the Navy for the Korean War on March 2nd, 1951, and discharged for the final time on March 30th, 1953, as a Lieutenant Commander.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Robert Turner. Turner was commissioned as an officer in the Navy in April 1943. He trained as an aeronautical engineer and was assigned to Utility Squadron 2 (VJ-2). Turner discusses the missions his unit performed from target towing to personnel transport. He describes his duties repairing SN-1s and a time when he made emergency repairs on a Grumman Duck. Turner was stationed on several islands before being rotated back to the US. He left active duty in May 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Carlyle Herring. Herring joined the Navy after high school, in 1937. His initial assignment was as a boatswain’s mate, in charge of anchors and small boats. Herring was aboard the Enterprise (CV-6) when Pearl Harbor was attacked. While sailing to Wake Island in the weeks before the Pearl Harbor attack, Herring was stationed at an anti-aircraft gun mount as Admiral Halsey announced that he anticipated imminent Japanese aggression, putting the ship at general quarters. While on the Enterprise, he was sent to work on the flight deck, pulling chocks from aircraft, putting him in dangerously close proximity to moving propellers. For a time, he worked with a dive bomber squadron until being erroneously court martialed for his buddies’ antics. During combat, Herring witnessed the sinking of other ships in his group, yet he never was afraid for his own life. Herring ended his service as an aviation machinist’s mate.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Clarence Haverland. Haverland joined the Navy in 1943 and received basic training in San Diego. He went to aviation metalsmith school in Oklahoma. Upon completion, he was assigned to the USS Enterprise (CV-6) as a chock man, assisting in the maneuvering of planes aboard ship. While on his way ashore for liberty, a friend dared him to ignore rather than salute the first officer he passed. He agreed and immediately encountered 18 admirals, including Nimitz, Spruance, Fletcher, and Halsey. Haverland pretended to be busy inspecting cranes as they passed by. Later, Admiral Halsey found Haverland aboard ship and questioned him about the incident. Haverland explained the bet he had made with a friend, and Halsey replied that he was lucky it was a group of admirals and not ensigns that he passed. Haverland went on to serve in United States. Navy. Carrier Air Service Unit 1 (CASU-1) and CASU-38 as an aviation metalsmith. He returned home and was discharged in January 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Frank Albert. Albert joined the Navy in 1941. Growing up in poverty with 12 siblings, enlisting was a way to ensure three square meals a day and to finally have his own bed. Albert was assigned to the USS Enterprise (CV-6) as a shipfitter, involved in routine maintenance and damage control. As such, he was appreciated by many people and often repaid with alcohol, which he would share with others before stowing the remainder inside the ship’s walls, welding the makeshift cubby shut each time. At Pearl Harbor, he conducted shore patrol and once broke up an altercation involving his own brother. The two of them, along with about 15 other pairs of brothers, worked together on the Enterprise, in the early days. Albert encountered many dangerous events, particularly surviving a weeklong typhoon, and watching from the crow’s nest as a kamikaze approached and blew out the number two elevator. In the aftermath, part of his duties in damage control included administering morphine to the wounded. Albert was discharged shortly before the war ended, having spent four years in the service. For a time thereafter, he suffered from …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Harry Lyons. Lyons joined the Navy in October of 1940. He served briefly aboard the USS Nevada (BB-36) as a machinist mate working in the boiler room. He was then assigned to the Engineering Department aboard the USS Enterprise (CV-6) from December of 1940 to August of 1944, where he served as Fireman First Class in the boiler room. Lyons describes the intensely hot work in the boiler room, while stationed in the Pacific. The Enterprise was 150 miles south of Oahu, Pearl Harbor the morning of December 7, 1941. Lyons describes their participation in combating the Japanese. In February of 1942 the Enterprise group swept the central Pacific, attacking enemy installations on Wake and Marcus Islands. In April of that same year the Enterprise participated in the Battle of Midway. Beginning in August of 1942 they participated in the Battle of Guadalcanal, and a few months later Lyons was injured during the Battle of Santa Cruz. In July of 1943 Lyons was promoted to Second Class Watertender. In June of 1944 they participated in the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign. In August of that same year, Lyons was …