The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Peter Hennessey. Hennessey attended a West Point prep school and helped his widowed mother run the family business. After earning a business degree at the University of Texas, he enlisted in the Army and became an aviation cadet in September 1941. After earning his wings in April 1942, he became an instructor in Douglas, Arizona. Hennessey flew every model of B-25 produced and was promoted to captain. Hoping to see combat, he volunteered for a bomber assignment but V-E Day occurred soon after. He was then transferred to Pampa, Texas, again as an instructor. Making flight commander and squadron commander, he would often fly with struggling students to assess their instructors. While doing so, he once avoided disaster by saving a plane from a violent spin. Hennessey joined a night squadron as commander, but it was soon disbanded near the end of the war. He was released from active duty in October 1945 with over 2,000 hours of flight time.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Betty Blalock. Blalock joined the Navy in 1945 and received basic training in Yonkers. She was assigned to the hospital corps and sent to the amputee ward at Quantico. Once a day, an airplane would arrive with amputees whom Blalock would visit and encourage. She remembers them as having good morale. After the war, she was discharged and married a tech sergeant, Hugh Blalock, who went on to serve in the Air Force for 30 years. She and her husband spent 10 years with Air America in Laos, Saigon, and Bangkok. While there she opened three kindergartens, taking a 12-hour train, a bicycle ride, and a boat taxi twice each week to teach classes. Blalock says that she’s led an interesting life and has gone around the world about five times.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Clyde Combs. Combs was attending a vocational school when Pearl Harbor was attacked. During his senior year, he worked for a company that manufactured parts for military planes. He was then drafted into the Navy in March 1943 and sent to quartermaster school. Combs then had motor torpedo boat training to study their engines, radio, radar, and gunnery. Upon completion, he was assigned to PT-515 as a quartermaster stationed in Southern England. During the invasion of Normandy, his boat’s job was to protect the western flank of landing crafts from Schnell boats and also to assist ships with the rescue and recovery of wounded and deceased. In August 1944, while patrolling the French coast, the boat was by a Schnell boat. Combs waited in London for repairs, enduring buzz bombs and blackouts. He returned to the States in March 1945 and served as an instructor until his discharge in November. Combs finished college on the GI Bill and went on to a career in engineering.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Carl Crandall. Crandall joined the Navy at age 17. After basic training at Great Lakes, he was trained on running ship’s boilers. Crandall was then assigned to USS Warrick (AKA-89) as a third class watertender. While running the boilers, he would occasionally clean the insides, which required holding his breath for up to three minutes. Crandall was in battle zones in the Philippines for a year and suffered hearing damage from a kamikaze attack on a nearby destroyer. While ashore, he traded with the natives to acquire fresh coconuts. At Iwo Jima, Crandall sat atop the smokestack and watched the flag being raised on Mount Suribachi. After the war, Crandall participated in disarmament of the Japanese by dumping their arms and ammunition into the ocean. While in Japan, he was surprised by the hospitality of the Japanese, having been invited into their homes. Crandall returned to the States after occupation duty and returned home to finish high school.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Dorinda Nicholson. Nicholson was a first-grader living on Pearl City Peninsula at the time of the attack. Japanese planes grazed the trees in her backyard as they began their bombardment, and Nicholson’s father rushed her family to the sugarcane fields perched above the harbor. From that day onward, the island was under martial law and strict rationing. Nicholson saw many locals leave and thousands of soldiers arrive. When the war finally ended, it seemed the soldiers left nothing behind but camouflage netting and cans of SPAM. This surplus source of protein after such a prolonged period of scarcity quickly became a favorite among the islanders. Nicholson has written four books about children’s experiences during World War II and is published by National Geographic.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Arnhold Schwichtenberg. Schwichtenberg joined the Navy in September 1940 and was assigned to the USS Trever (DMS-16). During the attack on Pearl Harbor, he went out on a whale boat and rounded up officers and a substitute captain to help the Trever get underway. He watched torpedoes hit the USS Utah (BB-31) and the USS California (BB-44). He saw a bomb hit the USS Curtiss (AV-4) and saw a bomb intended for the Trever splash into the water beside him. A week later, the Trever left to escort a Norwegian freighter. When they arrived to meet the freighter, it had been torpedoed, and so the Trever picked up the survivors. Schwichtenberg was transferred back to the States to attend diesel school. He was promoted to chief machinist’s mate and prepared the USS Brennan (DE-13) and USS Steele (DE-8) for commissioning. He went to sea with the Steele and was aboard the USS Rockingham (APA-229) during atomic bomb tests. Schwichtenberg returned home and was discharged in August 1946. He worked for the Navy as a civilian employee, leading a crew that commissioned 20 destroyers.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Philip Nelson. Nelson enlisted in the Navy in 1943 and attended midshipmen's school at Northwestern University. There he learned Morse code and semaphore signaling. Upon completion, he received landing craft training at Camp Pendleton. In the Pacific, most of his duty was on LSTs and LSDs. Equipped with rockets at Kwajalein, a mechanical mishap resulted in his ship's friendly rocket fire on a nearby vessel. At the invasion of Guam, Nelson was assigned the first of many temporary duties on other ships. At Leyte, he evacuated wounded aboard USS Doyen (APA-1). At Okinawa, he ferried ammunition under blackout conditions aboard USS Casa Grande (LSD-13). At the end of the war, Nelson returned home earned a Master's degree on the GI Bill.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Loy Smith. Smith joined the Navy in 1943 and received basic training in San Diego. He then attended gunnery school and further training in electrical and hydraulic systems. Upon completion, he was assigned to an attack cargo auxiliary ship as a gunner’s mate. Smith recounts that his ship would pick up supplies on New Guinea and Guam and deliver them to invasions. At Lingayen Gulf, there were so many kamikazes and so many ships that it was impossible to know who was responsible for shooting a plane down. At Iwo Jima, the ship was anchored close to shore for five weeks, sending equipment in LCVPs and LSMs that were often lost in the soft sand and large swells. The ship was loaded for the invasion of Japan when the war ended. They brought supplies instead to the occupation forces. Smith felt the younger Japanese civilians appeared frightened of Americans, probably due to propaganda, whereas the older generation was friendly and eager to ask about their relatives in the States. The ship sailed on to Okinawa, which had been devastated by a typhoon. So desperate for supplies were the …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with James Walker. Walker was working as a mail carrier when Pearl Harbor was attacked. He enlisted in the Navy, and despite attending aviation mechanic school he was selected to be an aerial gunner. Walker was assigned to an SBD crew aboard USS Essex (CV-9), flying his first mission over Wake Island and his last over Truk. After 10 months in combat, he transferred to Florida for further training. Walker later put in to become a pilot himself and was taking courses at William Jewell College in anticipation of flight school when the war ended. Walker was discharged thereafter.

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.

Transcript of an oral interview with James Reed. Reed was drafted and went into the Army 11 Nov 1943. After basic training in Waco, Texas he was sent overseas, landing in England. He was put in a tank destroyer outfit to start with but got separated from them. After a hospital stay, he was put in the 101st Airborne Division, 327th Glider Infantry. He was wounded by shrapnel on 20 Dec 1944 in his right leg during the Battle of the Bulge. He was at Bastogne. Once wounded, he was sent back to France and then to England. He stayed at a hospital in England for nine months and then was shipped home. After a 4-5 month stay at a hospital in the States, he was discharged. He receives disability from the Army for his injuries. Reed was discharged 18 Sep 1945.

Transcript of an oral interview with Captain Robert K. Kaufman. Kaufman discusses getting nominated to the US Naval Academy in 1936 and describes some experiences he had there. During his years there he went on summer cruises aboard the USS Arkansas (BB-33) and the USS New York (BB-34), visiting Germany in 1937 and again in 1939. Upon graduation, Kaufman reported aboard the USS Wichita (CA-45) as the communcations officer before it steamed for South America. After a few months, he became a gunnery officer. When th ewar got started, the Wichita cruised to Iceland and patrolled in the Atlantic. Kaufman was aboard the Wichita when the North African invasion occurred and then left the ship to report to submarine school, from which he graduated in June, 1943. From there, he reported aboard the USS Gato (SS-212). Kaufman served aboard the Gato for five war patrols, the last two as the Executive Officer. In March, 1945, he became the Aide and Flag Lieutenant to the Submarine Force Commander (Admiral Charles Lockwood) and moved to Guam. He was invited to attend the sirrender ceremony aboard the USS Missouri (BB-63) i nTokyo Bay and rode in an airplane from Guam to Saipan with …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with David Hoobler. Hoobler joined the Army Air Forces in December, 1941 and trained as a bombardier. He was placed in a B-24 crew in the 458th Bomb Group and went to England in January, 1944. Hoobler describes his journey to England and also a few bombing missions over Germany. Hoobler flew 30 combat missions.

Transcript of an oral interview with Julius “Bud” Masinick. Born in 1925, he was drafted into the Navy in 1943. He describes boot camp at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center in Illinois. He talks about joining both the baseball team and the boxing program. He describes submarine school at Naval Submarine Base New London, Groton, Connecticut. He was assigned to the USS Icefish (SS-367) in the Pacific Fleet in June, 1944. He talks about the submarine attire. He describes being depth charged while on the submarine. He also describes a burial at sea. He talks about being the athletic officer at Camp Dealy on Guam. He shares anecdotes about being the designated swimmer on the submarine who was tasked with ocean rescues of downed pilots; starting a riot in Perth, Australia; intercepting small gunboats and apprehending Japanese officials attempting to return to Japan; and the unintentional sinking of Javanese fishing boats. He was discharged in April, 1946 and played professional minor league baseball.

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 Dan Hixenbaugh. Hixenbaugh joined the Navy V-7 program on 7 December 1941. After officer training he went to torpedo school. Hixenbaugh then joined the crew of USS Lamson (DD-367) in early 1943. He met John F. Kennedy on the troopship taking them both to the South Pacific. Hixenbaugh also talks about how he knew Kennedy’s executive officer, Lenny Thom, from earlier in life. He details a kamikaze attack in Ormac Bay that damaged his ship and caused many casualties. Hixenbaugh was awarded the Bronze Star for helping to save the Lamson. He describes returning to the States to have the entire bridge replaced. Hixenbaugh returned to the Pacific on board the Lamson and tells of saving downed aircrewman and going through a major typhoon. He stayed on board for a short period after the surrender when he visited Nagasaki and became the Navigation Officer. Hixenbaugh details the process of ship navigation. He left the service after he had earned enough points after the war.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Robert Dale. Dale joined the Navy in 1944 when he was 16 years old. He was assigned to the heavy cruiser USS Boston (CA-69). Dale served as a fireman in the Engineering Department working with the evaporators. He talks of the Boston shelling the Japanese mainland and being present for the surrender in Tokyo Bay. Dale stayed with the Boston for occupation duty. He describes visiting Hiroshima and interacting with the Japanese people. The Boston returned to the U.S. after six months of occupation duty and Dale left the service.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ithiel Worden. Worden joined the Navy in the summer of 1942 at the age of seventeen. He was assigned to the USS Underhill (DE-682). He was assigned to engineering and ran thee evaporators. The Underhill was assigned to convoy duty and traveled to North Africa and the North Atlantic. The Underhill was then assigned to convoy duty in the Pacific. The ship rammed a Japanese Kaiten submarine while escorting a convoy near the Philippines. Worden describes the massive explosion and evacuation efforts that followed. He details how the ship lost almost half of its crew in the incident. Worden was rescued and sent back to the U.S. for 30-day survivor leave. He left the Navy soon after the war ended.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Max Schlotter. Schlotter joined the Navy in August 1941 and received basic training in San Diego. He attended service school in Toledo, Ohio. Upon completion, he went to the Brooklyn Navy Yard and converted a banana boat to an attack transport. The ship carried troops just north of Casablanca to Fedala as part of the North Africa invasion. Onboard, Schlotter served as the skipper’s messenger, running errands. He was then promoted to yeoman. He returned to the States and attended Emory University under the V-12 program. He then went to Miami for further training and was assigned to a submarine-chaser. He boarded CVE-1 carrying planes from Long Island to Mogmog. The CVE-1 went to Luzon, where Schlotter took an LSM to Subic Bay. There he boarded a sub-chaser as the executive officer. Apart from enduring a typhoon near Okinawa, his patrols were uneventful. Schlotter returned home and was discharged in February 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Steven Dittrich. Dittrich was born 15 October 1952 in Oceanside, New York. He is first generation American and grew up in an extended family that spoke German in the household. In his narrative, he relates the experiences his father and grandmother had during World War II. His father, Erwin K. Dittrich, was born in Westheim, Germany 25 March 1923. His grandmother was Jewish while his grandfather was a Christian. In March 1943 his grandmother received a deportation order sending her and her son, Erwin, to a transit camp in Bielefeld, Germany. After two months the mother and son were put aboard a train and sent to Theresienstadt concentration camp where the mother died of starvation in 1944. Erwin was sent to a camp at Trebnitz, Germany. The commandant of the camp was Franz Stuschka who was tried and found guilty of war crimes committed during the war. Erwin’s job was to clean the SS barracks. As the Russian Army advanced the camp was evacuated in February 1945 and he was sent to Theresienstadt. In May 1945 the Nazis turned over control of the camp to the Red Cross …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with J. L. Summers. Summers joined the Army in 1937. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 131st Field Artillery, 36th Division. He traveled to Java with his unit and was captured by the Japanese in early 1942. Summers talks of his time as a POW covering railroad construction, hunger, disease, and punishment suffered at the hands of his Japanese captors. He also discusses being used as tiger bait by the Japanese during a detail. Summers was liberated at the end of the war and returned back to the States where he left the Army.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Stanley Kuenstler. Kuenstler entered the Navy in 1943. In December 1944 he was assigned to the USS Murphy (DD-603). The USS Murphy escorted the USS Quincy to the Yalta Conference. During the conference King ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia stayed on the USS Murphy and gifted Kuenstler and the crew watches. Following the surrender of Japan, the USS Murphy went on to Nagasaki. Five months before Kuenstler was discharged he transferred from the USS Murphy to the Naval Station and served as an inspector.

Transcript of an oral interview with Sun-Ha Lim. Lim discusses growing up in Korea and living under Japanese Colonial Government, being conscripted into the Japanese army and being part of the mainland defense of Japan in 1945. He also discusses a friend deciding to "go crazy" during training to get out of service and having to fight the Americans, then Lim later pulling him out of a "mental deficiency patient curing place" which was actually a cave in a mountain to get him home to Korea after the war.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Haynes Harkey. Harkey left law school to volunteer for the Navy in the spring of 1941. He received orders to attend Notre Dame in the fall of 1942 and boarded the USS Indiana (BB-58) at Nouméa, New Caledonia, as an ensign in the spring of 1943. The most frightening event during his service was a collision with the USS Washington (BB-56) in which the bow of the ship tore into his stateroom. He was transferred to the USS Lake Champlain (CV-39). Harkey was responsible for ensuring that the other military branches being transported performed their own KP duties. He recalls one group’s Thanksgiving dinner being thrown overboard because no one assumed responsibility for their meal. Harkey returned home and was discharged in the spring of 1946. He returned to law school, this time on the GI Bill.