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 interview with A K Sheffield. Sheffield joined the Navy in late 1943. He completed Armed Guard School in San Diego. He served with the Navy Armed Guard aboard a transport ship, and traveled to the Philippine Islands. In May of 1944, Sheffield was aboard the SS Henry Bergh when it ran aground on the Farallon Islands, and shares details of those events. He traveled through the Pacific Islands, to Japan and throughout the Atlantic. Sheffield does not speak of participating in any battles or combat. He returned home aboard USS Iowa (BB-61) after the war ended in late 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Aaron Mendoza. Mendoza joined the Navy in 1943 and received basic training in San Diego. He attended torpedo school and was assigned to an aircraft torpedo lab at Kaneohe Naval Air Station. There he filled warheads with air so the torpedo could be retrieved after test fires. Torpedoes that passed quality control would then be filled with explosive warheads and loaded into underground silos. After 14 months, his unit was dispersed. Mendoza was in Great Lakes awaiting further orders when the war ended. He was discharged in December 1945 and worked as a civilian employee at Kelly Air Force Base, retiring with a GS-12 ranking. He then worked as a salesman for Control Data, selling supercomputers to the likes of NASA and Texaco. He emphasizes the importance of staying active in retirement, and at the age of 88 he ranked number one nationally in Wii bowling.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Albert Barton. Barton joined the Navy and was trained as a radioman. He became a crewman on an Avenger torpedo bomber in October 1943. Barton flew off of the USS Mission Bay (CVE-59) and the USS Tripoli (CVE-64) and performed anti-submarine patrols in the North Atlantic. He describes how depth charges were dropped, the armament of the plane, and how they were trained to skip-bomb. Barton was then sent to the Pacific where he flew off of the USS Anzio (CVE-57) for the remainder of the war. He describes an incident where his plane had a failed landing and ended upside-down in the water. Barton had to break some glass in the cockpit to escape. He flew ground support missions over Okinawa. Barton discusses how the radio and radar functioned on his plane. He was discharged several months after the surrender.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Al Jowdy. Jowdy enlisted in the Navy in July 1942 at the age of 15, with his parents’ consent. His first assignment was pulling bodies out of sunken ships in Pearl Harbor. At Guadalcanal, his ship was torpedoed. Due to the presence of enemy subs, he could not be rescued initially and spent two weeks floating in a raft. Then he joined a rescue effort to aid the USS Wasp (CV-7), only to be torpedoed again, spending another four days in the water. Jowdy was then assigned to the USS Salt Lake City (CA-25), patrolling the Bering Sea and participating in the Battle of the Komandorski Islands as a second loader on a 40-millimeter. After witnessing the Marianas Turkey Shoot and also seeing MacArthur film his famous return, Jowdy participated in the bombardment of Iwo Jima, amidst kamikazes and suicide boats. After the war, he survived a typhoon and served occupation duty in Japan, later transporting troops as part of the demobilization effort before being discharged in January 1946.

Audio interview from the Wes Phelps Podcast Interviews Collection recorded on September 22nd, 2022 in Houston, Texas. Phelps interviews Marco Roberts on his involvement with the Gay Student Services organization at Texas A&M University. Roberts speaks on the lawsuit Gay Student Services v. Texas A&M University, through which his group fought to be recognized as an official Texas A&M student organization. Roberts, as former president of the Gay Student Services, speaks on his experiences with political tensions in the group during the 1980s.

Audio interview from the Wes Phelps Podcast Interviews Collection recorded on October 21st, 2022 in Houston, Texas. In this interview, Chris Haight discusses the lives and deaths of John Griffin and Tommy Lee Tremble, two gay men who were close friends and roommates in Dallas in the 1980s. Haight discusses their negative treatment through newspaper coverage following their murders and the significance of applying humanity to their cases. Haight continues on to describe the trial and arrest of Richard Bednarski for the murders of the two men, critiquing his sentence and the roll Judge Jack Hampton played in his case.

Audio interview from the Wes Phelps Podcast Interviews Collection recorded on September 30th, 2022 in Houston, Texas. Phelps interviews Linda Morales on her life as a dedicated activist and plaintiff in Morales v. Texas. She speaks on her experiences with racism and discrimination in the LGBT community in Houston, and her creation of the Latina lesbian AMIGA organization. Morales also speaks on discrimination faced by the LGBT community due to penal code 21.06, a discriminatory sodomy law which made "homosexual conduct" illegal in the state of Texas.

Audio interview from the Wes Phelps Podcast Interviews Collection recorded on August 26th, 2022 in Houston, TX. Phelps interviews former United States Representative Craig Washington on his experiences with the Texas State Legislature. Washington begins by discussing a penal code which came to the legislature in 1973, exploring his involvement in rewriting and codifying said penal code. Specifically, Washington speaks on his attempts to repeal sodomy laws found under code 21.06 from state legislation.

Interview with Tommy Daniels discussing his childhood in Kerrville, going to Rice University on a football scholarship, his career in banking, and his family.

Sound recording of (clip 1) a 1993 meeting about historical preservation in regards to an affordable housing program in the Houston Heights neighborhood in Houston, Texas; and (clip 2) a Texas Historical Commission conference in Houston on Saturday, April 25, 1992, titled: Beginning Program on Access to Historic Places -- Implementing the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Interview with Jack Hunt Parks, the owner of the Hunt Store, from Houston, Texas. Parks speaks about his experiences as owner of the Hunt Store, his experiences as a member of the Hunt Preservation Society, and about his grandfathers (one of which was a Texas Special Ranger, the other of which was a cowboy on the Matador Ranch north of Abilene).

Interview with Cynthie Jane Ragsdale, the director of Heart O' the Hills Camp, from Houston, Texas. Ragsdale recalls her time going to summer camps during her childhood, her time studying journalism at Texas Woman's University, and her time working at Heart O' the Hills Camp. Photos relating to the interview follow the transcript.

Interview with Arthur Baker Bell and Robert Alan Bell, alumni of Tivy High School, from Kerrville, Texas. The Bell brothers recount their memories of the public Cascade Swimming Pool, Robert's time as a university swimmer, Arthur's hitchhiking trip to Alaska, and their community activities that have occurred since their retirement.

Interview with Gretchen Broun Stacy, the daughter of the owners of Camp Rio Vista, from Houston, Texas. Stacy gives a brief history of her life, including her time living in Houston before moving to Kerrville as a freshman in high school, setting up a cooking school at Camp Waldemar, and running a catering business.

Interview with Marjorie Eastwood, Mary C. Easley, and Mary B. Bonds from Baytown, Texas. These three women answer questions and describing their social and work experiences working at the Humble Oil Refinery during World War II.

Interview with Ruth Mageors, a resident of Baytown, Texas beginning in 1921 when the town was named Pelly. Mageors explains living in town during the early days of Baytown as being very tough, and also discussing the ferry boat and Herring's Drug Store.

Interview with Stephen C. Hughes, a resident of Baytown, Texas since approximately 1920. Topics include periods of the life of a 92 year old man who was visiting in Baytown. Most of his life was spent in the mid-west.

Interview with J. W. Carroll, B. B. Williams, Melvin Barry, and Bob Kalbitz, all members of the Exxon Oilers baseball team from Baytown, Texas. After a short introduction by Webber, these men all answer questions and describe their experiences before they arrived in Baytown and during their playing days for the Oilers.

Interview with Clyde L. Childers, a veteran who served during World War II, in which he answers general questions about his experience in the Army.

Interview with Carl Clay, a veteran of the U.S. Navy during the Persian Gulf War, who also served in the civil wars in Lebanon, Kosovo, and Somalia. Clay describes his time working in aviation on the flight deck of ships and the many countries he visited while in the service, such as Brazil, Spain, and Cuba.

Interview with Norman Dykes, Lt. C. E. Shaffer, Sgt. Gary Cochran, Officer James Thornton, and Officer Roger Clifford, residents of Baytown, TX during Hurricane Alicia. They discuss their memories of Hurricane Alicia.

Interview with Steele M. McDonald, a resident of Baytown, Texas since approximately 1920. Topics include early Baytown, TX history through consolidation to the present.

Interview with Marcine Lanham, a Red Cross volunteer after Hurricane Alicia struck the Gulf Coast of Texas, and Jean Shepherd. Lanham and Shepherd both share their memories of the aftermath of Hurricane Alicia including work with the Red Cross helping clean up the damage caused by the hurricane.