The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with John Schley. Schley enlisted in the Naval Reserve in August of 1940. He was assigned to 5 destroys and served as skipper on 3 of these. He was commissioned in March of 1941 and sent to the USS Rhind (DD-404), serving as assistant engineer. He describes their supporting the British war effort. They traveled to Bermuda maintaining a destroyer tender, providing convoy escort, carrier screening and anti-submarine warfare services. They joined a Task Force commanded by the British and operating out of Scapa Flow. They moved up the Norwegian coast to Murmansk battling German bombers, torpedo planes and submarines. He describes an encounter with the German battleship Tirpitz. He provides narrative details of the sinking of HMS Punjabi. In August of 1942 they traveled to the North African landings with his destroyer division. They provided support in the advance up to Italy. By early 1944 Schley was sent to the Pacific as executive officer of the USS Stringham (APD-6). He later became the commanding officer of this ship. They escorted the main force to the Palau Islands. He describes the Pearl Harbor West Loch explosion. He became a lieutenant …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Herman R. Shirley. Shirley joined the Marine Corps in Alabama shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor and trained at Parris Island, South Carolina. Upon completion oftraining, Shirley headed for New Zealand aboard the USS Barnett (APA-5) and was assigned to Baker Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment. From there, the Barnett took Shirley to Guadalcanal in August, 1942. Shirley describes the scene after the battle at the Tenaru River and encountering Washing Machine Charlie. He also talks about other action he was involved in while fighting the Japanese on Guadalcanal. During the campaign, he served as a runner relaying messages. Shirley also describes being in combat and the mud on Cape Gloucester. Shirley had been assigned to telephone communications by this time and served as a linesman. Shirley also served as a telephone operator on Peleliu. Shirley returned to the US for more training after Peleliu and was at Camp Pendleton when the war ended. He was discharged in September, 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with John Carey. Carey joined the Navy in September 1944 and received basic training at Great Lakes and electrician’s mate training in Gulfport. Upon completion, he was assigned to the USS Stanton (DE-247) as an electrician striker, running the ship’s generators under supervision. Four hours after he arrived at Pearl Harbor to begin his overseas duties, the Japanese surrendered. Hickam Air Force Base erupted in celebration, the men howling and throwing their hats in the air. Carey remained there working in a service shop on the submarine base until he was sent to Guam to do the same. En route to Guam, he maintained the ship’s search lights, which he describes as welding irons with mirrors behind them. Suspended from a rope, he would swing over the water and over the lights, attempting to reach and clean the electrical contacts below. After repairing various small motors at the submarine base on Guam, Carey returned home and was discharged.

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 interview with Lindsey Wilcox. Wilcox joined the Navy in November of 1942 and completed machinist school. He was sent to Alaska and then assigned to the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) beginning in January of 1943. His job aboard was in the number two fire room, operating the boilers. Throughout 1943, he participated in the Aleutian, Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaigns. In 1944 Wilcox participated in the Mariana campaign and the Battle of Tinian, and in March of 1945, the pre-invasion bombardment of Okinawa. When the Indianapolis sank, Wilcox was one of the remaining crew set adrift before being rescued. He describes events leading up to, during and after this fateful event. He was discharged in February of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Gerard Noteboom. Noteboom was a child living near The Hague when his father was taken away by the Gestapo and sent to Buchenwald. From December 1940 to September 1944, his father remained active in resistance groups while interned. Meanwhile, the Dutch underground provided financial assistance to Noteboom's family. Noteboom prudently invested in salt, a valuable commodity that could be easily traded for food. He also actively resisted the occupation, stealing arms and ammunition. As the Allies drew near, his family sought refuge from crossfire in a reinforced cellar. After the liberation, Noteboom worked as an English translator in exchange for bread. His father soon returned home. Noteboom went on to attend medical school, graduating in 1954 and immigrating to the United States. There he joined the Army as a pathologist at Fort Meade.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Robert Wesley Clum. Clum joined the Army Air Forces in February of 1943. He served as a Bombardier aboard a B-24 Liberator with the 484th Bomb Group, 827th Bomb Squadron. In October of 1944 they traveled to Bari, Italy to the headquarters of the 15th Air Force. They completed 25 combat missions, traveling over Germany, Czechoslovakia, northern Italy and Libya. Clum was honorably discharged from active duty as lieutenant in 1945, and honorably discharged as Captain in 1959 from the Air Force Reserves.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Donald Bentley. Bentley joined the Navy in 1942 and went through the V-12 program. He was assigned to the Seabees. Bentley was trained on ship loading and unloading and joined the 30th Special NCB stateside. He was transferred to the 4th Special NCB and traveled to Okinawa. Bentley describes the work that his unit performed and life on Okinawa at the end of the war. He left the service after four years in March 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Gordon Sage. Sage joined the Marine Corps in mid-1941. He served aboard USS Maryland (BB-46) as an orderly for Rear Admiral Walter Stratton Anderson, commander of battleships in the Pacific Fleet. Sage was aboard the ship the morning of 7 December. They were moored along Ford Island, with USS Oklahoma (BB-37) on Battleship Row. Sage describes his experiences through the attack, including passing ammunition down a line to the anti-aircraft gun. They traveled to Bremerton, Washington for repairs, where he was detached from the ship. Sage later joined the 14th (Artillery) Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, in Hawaii. In 1945, they participated in the Battle of Iwo Jima. He returned to the US in late 1945, and went on to complete a 21-year military career in the US Air Force.

Transcript of an oral interview with Murven J. Witherel. He grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and graduated from Allegheny High School in 1939. He went to work for a untility company before being drafted into the Army in February 1942. He qualified for Officer Candidate School (OCS) after Basic Training at Fort McClellan, Alabama. He was commissioned a 2nd lieutenant at Fort Benning, Georgia in December 1942. He was then assigned as the leader of 3rd Platoon, Company E, 20th Infantry,6th Infantry Division and sent to the Mojave Desert to train anticipating a trip to North Africa. Instead, his unit went to New Guinea in January 1944. In June, his unit landed at Baffin Bay and assaulted Lone Tree Hill. Witherel was evetually wounded twice and received the new drug, penicillin at the Lae General Hospital. He was eventually shipped back to the USA. the conversatio then veers to cover such subjects as USO shows, friendly fire, the Red Cross, Tokyo Rose on the radio, morale in his outfit and a visit in the Lae General Hospital by Jack Benny.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Jack Maroney. Maroney joined the Marine Corps in early 1943. He served as a 20mm gunner aboard USS Enterprise (CV-6) through the end of the war. Maroney participated in 12 Naval engagements aboard the Enterprise, including the Gilbert and Marshall Islands Campaigns, the Battle of the Philippine Sea and the Battle of Leyte Gulf. He returned to the US and was discharged in late 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Albert Sanders. Sanders joined the Army Air Forces in October 1942 and earned his wings in April 1944. After learning to fly B-24s, he arrived in England with his crew as part of the 458th Bomb Group. From there he made raids over Germany, twice making emergency landings in Belgium after being shot up. He transitioned into being a lead crew pilot, heading up a tight formation of 36 bombers. Sanders had flown 18 missions by the time the war ended. He and his crew flew home, stopping for fuel and wine in the Azores. He was also transporting 20 soldiers who were so eager to land that they crowded the front of the plane, shifting the load and causing an extremely rough and dangerous landing. That was the last time Sanders ever piloted an aircraft.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Daryl Haerther. Haerther joined the Army in 1944 and was assigned to the 96th Infantry Division a few days after the beginning of the invasion of Okinawa. He was assigned to A Company, 383rd Infantry Regiment. While there, Haerther qualified as a medic and shares several anecdotes from his combat experiences. Eventaully, Haerther was wounded and evacuated to Guam. He was still in the hospital when the war ended and Haerther elected to be discharged in December 1945. Haerther indicates he continues to struggle later in life as a result of some of his combat experiences.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Howard Opheim. Opheim joined the Army Air Forces in August, 1942. He qualified for pilot training. He went overseas to England in November, 1944. He recalls ferrying troops and supplies to the continent during the Battle of the Bulge and making a combat drop over the Rhine River area. When the war ended in Europe, Opheim went to Brazil to ferry troops back to the US to prepare for the invasion of Japan.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Amos McGinnis. McGinnis was working in a factory when he was drafted into the Army in December, 1942. He trained as a combat engineer and went to England before heading out for Normandy five days after D-Day. McGinnis shares several anecdotes about his experiences building bridges across Europe. He was in Germany when the war ended and was discharged in December, 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with George Gehl. Gehl was born in New Salem, North Dakota. Joining the Navy, he attended boot camp at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station. He was then sent to the Navy base at Norman, Oklahoma. After a few months at Norman, he went by troop train to San Francisco where he boarded a ship bound for the Philippines. Arriving at Manila he took part in establishing the Philippine Sea Frontier Headquarters. He was discharged soon after returning to the United States in May 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Louis Justin. Justin volunteered for service in the Army Air Forces in March, 1943 and took the photography course in Denver. He went overseas to Tinian in November, 1944 where he worked in the photo lab developing images. On Tinian, he developed the film from the Enola Gay. After the war, Young returned to the US in January and received his discharge in February. Justin has some help during the interview from his daughter.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Rocelia Madison. Madison joined the WAVES in December 1943. She received basic training in New York and attended machinist school in Oklahoma. Upon completion, she was assigned to Corpus Christi, where she worked as an aviation machinist’s mate, servicing mostly PBMs and the occasional PBY. She got along well with her crewmates and received equal pay to the men. She married a sailor, Joe Wesley Harmon, and the two were discharged together. They bought their first house and attended school on the GI Bill, and Madison ran her own business for 30 years.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ida Paxton. Paxton was raised in the Dust Bowl and educated in a one-room schoolhouse. When the war began, her mother sought permission of the ration board to acquire new shoes for the growing children in her family. Paxton left school in the ninth grade and worked at a drugstore soda fountain. At 17 she became engaged to a young soldier who was home on leave. She went with him to Oakland, where he was stationed, and got a job at the Emeryville Ordnance Depot. There she drove all sorts of Army vehicles, from DUKWs to half-tracks, taking them to their ports of embarkation. Soon after marrying, her husband deployed to the Pacific, corresponding in code so that Paxton could follow his wartime experiences. She also drove military vehicles in war bond rallies, V-J Day parades, and the celebration of General Wainwright's homecoming. Immediately after the surrender, her unit worked for 30 days straight, often until midnight, preparing vehicles for the occupation forces. Afterwards, she transported longshoremen from place to place, until her husband returned in November 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with William A. "Bill" Campbell. Born in 1925, he joined the Army in 1934. He describes basic training and living conditions at Miami Beach, Florida. After basic training, he attended aerial gunnery school at Fort Meyers, Florida and was then sent to Boise, Idaho where he became a tail gunner of a B-24 crew. He was then transferred to the 466th Bomb Group of the 784th Bomb Squadron where they flew bombing missions over Germany. He provides an account of his combat mission over Germany when he was hit by anti-aircraft flak. He shares an anecdote of when he won the Distinguished Flying Cross for extinguishing a fire on the plane following a direct hit to the bomb bay. He also describes the attacks by German fighters, his twenty-seven missions and the places he bombed as part of the 8th Air Force. He shares an anecdote of a gas mission his B-24 flew to Patton???s army in France and watching the V-2 buzzbombs hitting Norwich. He left Liverpool for Boston in 1945 aboard the USS Wakefield (AP-21) where he awaited surgery from his flak wound in Atlantic City, New …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Merle Volding. Volding was born 19 December 1923. He joined the US Army Signal Corps around late 1941. He completed extensive training as a radar technician at the School of Engineering at the University of Iowa. He then completed further engineering and cryptography training through the Army’s Specialized Training Program (ASTP). Around late 1944 through the end of the war, he worked in the SOPAC message center on New Caledonia. He shares details of life on the island. He returned to the US and received his discharge in February of 1946.

The National Museumn of the Pacific War presents an interview with Claribel Hannemann. Hannemann was born in Frederickaburg Texas in 1928. She discusses growing up during the Depression and being a teenager during the war and how the war affected her family.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Robert Brown. Brown was drafted into the Marines in March of 1944 and served in the 2nd Marine Division. He traveled to Eniwetok and Okinawa. In Okinawa his job was to help service the planes. They also traveled to the Yokosuka Naval Base in Japan. He was discharged in March of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Peter Williams. Williams joined the Navy in July of 1946, at the age of 17. He served as Radioman 2nd Class aboard USS Montague (AKA-98). They operated off the east coast through January of 1948. He was then transferred to the USS Winston (AKA-94), where he remained until his discharge in May.