The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Charles Callanan. Callanan joined the Army in March of 1942. He trained in California, building airstrips, hangars, temporary bridges, Quonset huts and worked on other construction projects. Callanan served as a master sergeant with the 1876th Engineer Aviation Battalion in New Guinea and in the Philippines. He returned to the US in December of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Albert Skiles. Skiles joined the Army in March 1943. He was sent to the Pacific as a replacement. Skiles eventually joined the 96th Infantry Division and landed at Leyte. He served as a switchboard operator and company clerk with a headquarters company. He was later sent to Okinawa and landed in one of the first waves of the invasion. He was wounded by a mortar shell and evacuated to Hawaii. During his time on Okinawa he witnesses a kamikaze attack on the USS Morrison (DD-560). He also was near Yontan Airfield when it was attacked by Japanese commandos and witnessed the aftermath.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Marshall Barrett. Barrett went to Duke University in 1941 and joined the Naval ROTC just before the attack on Pearl Harbor. He participated in the V-12 program, receiving an accelerated four-year degree and his commission by February of 1944. Around August, Barrett began serving as a training officer aboard the USS YMS-339. They traveled to Panama, New Hebrides, and the Admiralty Islands and joined the Seventh Fleet. They participated in the Borneo Campaign in the spring of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Eleanor Hughes. Hughes was working for Pacific Co-op in Roseburg, Oregon when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. She volunteered and worked nights on the local plotting board watching for planes and ships coming near the Oregon coast. When a blip appeared in their sector, they phoned in and someone checked to see if it was enemy or friendly. Hughes enlisted in the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) on 27 September 1943 at Little Rock, Arkansas and was sent to Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia for training. She was stationed there for almost a year before her group was sent to Port Moresby, New Guinea. They were trucked from their quarters to a headquarters building, known as the Pentagon of the jungle; they worked there all day and were taken back to their barracks by truck at night. Hughes was a secretary to a young lieutenant. A lot of the soldiers who were there when she arrived were replaced by WACs. The weather was hot and muggy but she does not remember it bothering her too much. There were no men in her camp; however, men worked at the headquarters and drove …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Harper Gruber. Gruber was an electrician's apprentice at the Charleston Navy Yard in South Carolina. He joined the Navy soon after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He was sent to the Panama Canal Zone to join the 13th Headquarters. He was later transferred to YMS-339 where he served as an electrician's mate for the remainder of the war. He describes in detail minesweeping operations for the various types of mines. His minesweeper participated in 7 invasion operations in the Philippine Islands. Gruber was sent back to Charleston Navy Yard after the war ended, and remained there until eligible for discharge.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Gladys Kizziar. Kizziar was training as a nurse at the beginning of the war. She became a US Army nurse after she graduated from nursing school. Kizziar was sent to the Philippines to help prepare for the invasion of Japan. She was on board a hospital ship in Tokyo Bay during the surrender ceremony. Kizziar served with the 42nd General Hospital in Yokohama helping to process POWs as they were being liberated. She tells of General MacArthur visiting the former POWs. Kizziar stayed in the Army and was eventually sent to Germany where she met her husband.

Transcript of an oral interview with Colonel Gordon Spencer. Colonel Spencer discusses his family lineage briefly before shifting to his education up through his years at Harvard. Before finishing at Harvard, Spencer joined the US Army Air Corps flight training program, but was eventually rejected. He went to communcations school instead and was commissioned in Wichita Falls, Texas in October 1941. Eventually, he was sent to England and joined the 306th Bomb Group, 8th Air Force. Spencer relates several anecdotes about making bombing raids over targets in Germany and Holland; losing friends and planes in combat. He served as the radar bombadier on missions over Frankfort, Cologne, etc. He was in England when the war in Europe ended and was shipped back to the US to be transferred to the Pacific to serve as a radar bombadier aboard B-29s. The war in the Pacific ended and Spencer got out of the military. He rejoined later in 1946 and ran a small medical clinic at Hensley Field, Texas; went to weather forecasting school; was a nuclear physics instructor at Air University.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Maurice Thoresen. Thoresen joined the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1938. He joined the Coast Guard around late 1939, working shore duty. In the summer of 1941 Thoresen went aboard the USCGC Taney (WHEC-37), serving in the ship’s radio shack. In July they traveled to Honolulu, where they were stationed when the attack on Pearl Harbor occurred in December. After 7 December and into 1942, the Taney conducted many depth charge attacks on suspected submarines. Thoresen was later transferred to the island of Samoa, setting up LORAN stations, long range navigation equipment. He returned to the US and was discharged.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with John Campbell. Campbell joined the Merchant Marine in March of 1942. He began as a wiper working in the engine room. Campbell soon found work on the North Atlantic convoy. His ship was torpedoed and sunk on the way to Murmansk. His next ship hit a mine and was forced to run aground. Campbell was a crewman on a ship that arrived at Cherbourg after the storm that destroyed the Mulberry Harbor. He also manned a diesel engine on a barque that made runs to France. Campbell was forced to spend time in a Naval hospital upon his return to the States for convoy fatigue. Next, he traveled to the Mediterranean where his ship transported a chemical warfare unit. Campbell eventually ended up in the Pacific near the end of the war to transport munitions for the invasion of Japan. He made one final voyage to Brazil after the surrender.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with William E. Bullard. Bullard joined the Marine Corps in 1938 and received a discharge before the U.S. entered WWII. He then joined the Army Air Forces and trained to become a fighter pilot. He joined the 354th Fighter Group and began flying missions over Europe. Bullard was part of an escort for C-47s that dropped airborne troops on D-Day. His plane was damaged on a mission over Germany and he was captured and became a prisoner of war at Stalag Luft I. He managed to escape after nine months. Bullard stayed in the service after WWII ended.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Harold Evans. Evans joined the Navy in August of 1942. He served aboard the USS Savo Island (CVE-78) as 3rd Class Petty Officer Ordnanceman, beginning in February of 1944. Evans also worked with a PBY squadron as a Blister Gunner, loading bombs and ammunition. Aboard the Savo Island, they provided air support for the landings on Peleliu Island, Leyte Gulf and the Battle of Okinawa. Evans was discharged in December of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Wallace Morger. Morger enlisted into the Marine Corps Reserves on 13 October 1942. After boot camp in San Diego, Morger went to the naval station in Newport, Rhode Island to study electronics for three months. Morger then went to Camp Lejeune, North Carolina where he joined the 16th Pioneer Battalion. They joined the 5th Marine Division at Camp Pendleton. Morger was transferred out of the pioneer battalion and became the police sergeant in charge of clean-up duties and the battalion bugler. After a special pre-embarkation furlough, the entire division was shipped to Camp Tarawa, Hawaii arriving in the middle of September 1944. When the division shipped out, no one knew where they were going to Iwo Jima. Morger landed with the 7th or 8th wave as part of the 28th Regiment, First Battalion, Company C. He talks of the devastating fire they took once ashore and all the caves and spider holes that the Japanese hid in. For the first 10 days of fighting, Morger was in charge of security for the stretcher bearers. He was at the base of Mount Suribachi when he saw the flag go …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Roger Moore. Moore joined the Navy in 1943. Shortly after basic training, he was given the opportunity to train as a US Navy photographer taking classes in Pensacola, Florida and Washington DC. While in Washington DC, he volunteered for the Sino-American Cooperative Organization (SACO). He was shipped to Chongqing, China and trained Chinese guerilla troops in the use of photography. In 1945, Moore was sent to Shanghai to take photos of the Japanese and other subjects that would interest the Navy. While there, he also took photos of the Chinese for his own pleasure. He later displayed the photos at the National Museum of the Pacific War in 2010.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ivan Hammond. Hammond joined the Marine Corps in 1943. After training as an air liaison as a part of Joint Assault Signal Company (JASCO), He became a part of the invasion force for Iwo Jima and describes landing on the beach, trying to dig a foxhole, and moving across the island. He witnessed the flag raisings from the base of Mount Suribachi and saw some of the first B-29s land on the island detailing the battle damage. His enlistment ended in 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Frank D. Barger. Barger joined the Army Air Corps in 1940. He started his career as an airplane mechanic. In 1941, he became an Air Cadet. After completing training he spent some time near Austin, Texas training cadets on C-46s and evaluating returning pilots. Barger was eventually sent overseas where he completed 170 missions while stationed in India and Burma flying supplies. He left service in 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with John Edwards. Edwards joined the Army Air Forces in 1944. He was trained as an aircraft engine mechanic and was sent to the Philippines where he became a crewman on an A-26 bomber. Edwards describes how his plane flew missions with P-61s as escorts and gives some detail on the types of targets that were selected. He talks about how his plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire and forced down during an attack on a Japanese airfield. Edwards was captured and interrogated by the Japanese. He describes the treatment that he received and how he lost half of his total body weight in his six months as a POW. Edwards was liberated at the end of the war, hospitalized in Tokyo, and returned to the US where he reenlisted and remained in the service until 1949.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Bianca Cunningham. Cunningham was born in Brazil to an Italian mother and a German Jew who was a sculptor and architect that had won a competition to build the Presidential Palace. Eventually Cunningham traveled with her mother to her hometown in Capri where she remained throughout the war. She witnessed life under Mussolini, the German occupation, bombing of Naples, and the American occupation. Cunningham became a hostess for the American Red Cross and met and married an American soldier after the war had ended.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Weldon Kaspar. Kaspar joined the Army Air Forces in 1944 and received basic training in Amarillo. He wanted to be a pilot, but was ineligible due to poor eyesight. He received aircraft radio mechanic training at Truax Field. He was in Boca Raton maintaining equipment at a training center for high-altitude bombing when the war ended. He reenlisted as a supply clerk for one year and was in the Reserves for three years. He went to Coyne Electrical School on the GI Bill. Kaspar’s wife, Sheila L. Mack, served as a second lieutenant in the Army Nurse Corps from 30 March 1945 to 20 June 1946.

Transcript of an oral interview with Robert W. Wood. Wood begins by discussing growing up during the Great Depression and the effect it had on him and his family. When he finished high school in 1941 in Greenville, Texas, he moved to Dallas, worked for Woolworth's and attended night school at Southern Methodist University. When Pearl Harbor was attacked, Wood had already volunteered for the Navy and was called up shortly after Christmas. Wood discusses riding the train to San Diego to attend boot camp in January, 1942. Then he describes a few experiences while in training. While in San Diego, he trained to become a radio operator before reporting to Bremerton, Washington where he boarded the USS Altamaha (CVE-18). Wood describes some of the sea trials and early voyages of the Altamaha as it delivered planes and cargo to various points in the Pacific: Brisbane, Australia, Noumea, Espiritu Santo, Pearl Harbor, Karachi, India and the Solomon Islands. He also describes some carrier-landing qualifying assignments for pilots the Altamaha had. He recalls a time when Bob Hope came aboard and performed a show for the sailors at Ulithi. He goes on to describe being caught in a typhoon in which …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with James Mooney. Mooney received his Navy wings at Pensacola, Florida in October of 1943. He went aboard the USS Ranger (CV-4) and was sent to the South Pacific as a replacement pilot. He was then sent to Guadalcanal where he performed escort missions for C-47 Air Force planes up through the Solomon Islands and Admiralties. He was sent back to Pearl Harbor to become indoctrinated in the Hellcat at the Naval Air Station at Berbers Point. In September of 1944 he was assigned to the USS Essex (CV-9). His first combat was in the Philippines, in the Rescue Combat Air Patrol. He provides details of his flying missions to attack Japanese aircraft on airfields and Japanese destroyers in Manila Harbor. He participated in the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October of 1944. He provides details of the planes that he flew during his missions. He was discharged around the summer of 1945.

Transcript of an oral interview with Robert J. Rabbitt. He discusses going to boot camp in Mississippi as part of the 69th Division, then shipping out to France via Scotland and England. He entered France through Omaha Beach in late July 1944, and was part of later Normandy Invasion action before being transferred to the 3058th Graves Registration Company where he served until fall of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Carroll Layton. Layton joined the Navy in May of 1944. He completed Electrician School and PT boat training. In April of 1945 he traveled to PT Base 17 in Samar, Philippines and later to Mindoro. He worked out of an electrician shack, serving as a motor mechanic on boat engines, and gunner when needed. He was later switched over from PT boats to a Landing Craft Tank vessel. He was discharged around late 1945 and served in the Naval Reserve for seven years.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Alvino Mendoza. Mendoza joined the Navy in 1944. He trained to be a member of the amphibious forces at Camp Wallace in Galveston, Texas. Mendoza traveled through the Pacific aboard the USS St. George (AV-16). He participated in the Battle of Okinawa in March through June of 1945, where his ship was hit by a kamikaze. Once the war ended, Mendoza was sent to Japan with occupation forces. While there, he came into contact with a Japanese family who insisted he was Japanese. He shares his experiences as a Mexican-American in the war. He was discharged in 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Walter Pittman. Pittman grew up in Texas and joined the Navy in 1941. Once he finished training, he was assigned to a Merchant Marine vessel as a 3.5 inch gun operator. His first assignment was shipping planes and aviation fuel to Australia with a stop at Hawaii. Pittman also tells a story of delivering crude oil to Britain after dropping the airplanes off at Australia. He also discusses his routine, the food and the life aboard the merchant vessel. Pittman mentions spending time in China shortly after the war ended and going back to the US aboard the USS Hornet (CV-12). While on board, he found a cousin who was headed for home, too.