The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Tom Dowding. Dowding joined the Army in 1942 and received four weeks of basic training at Camp Lee. He was sent to Camp Stoneman for bakery training. Having been a baker in civilian life, he was already qualified to do the work and so was not required to attend classes. He was sent to Guadalcanal on a mail ship that couldn’t dock upon arrival, due to low tide. While waiting in the water, the ship was strafed by Japanese planes. Men standing on either side of Dowding were killed. He spent over a year stationed at the end of Henderson Field, trading baked goods as a commodity with troops. There was nothing he couldn’t have, and the Seabees even made a boat for him. He traveled to a small island and came across a native who spoke perfect English, as Australians had brought him to the Midwest to be a prizefighter. Dowding was transferred to Mindanao, staying behind with his baking company for three months as the troops were fighting. When the war ended, Dowding volunteered as a baker on the way home, which gave him access to …

Transcript of an oral interview with Robert B. Walker. Born in 1920, he was drafted in November, 1943. He completed pilot training at the Tuskegee Army Air Field, Alabama in 1945. He flew B-25 airplanes. He arrived in England as the war in Europe ended. He was there for a month and did not see combat. He was discharged in March, 1946. He used the GI Bill to obtain his Doctor of Education (Ed.D.). He mentions the 1943 Detroit race riot and shares an anecdote about race relations at Tuskegee. The interview also contains information about his family during the Great Depression.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with John Harley Ruth. After doing a little work in Arkansas after completing high school, Ruth joined the Army in Fort Worth, Texas in 1940. He trained in the artillery in San Antonio, then became an instructor at a Field Artillery School at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. After one year of service, Ruth applied for pilot training in the Army Air Corps, was accepted, and reported to Brooks Army Air Field for preflight training just after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He shares anecdotes about flight training all over Texas: Cuero, San Antonio, Brady. Upon completion of flight training, Ruth was assigned to the 5th Ferry Group in the Air Transport Command. Ruth shares several stories about various airplanes he ferried all over the United States during 1942-1943. In 1944, Ruth was assigned to ferry a C-46 to India. From there, he flew supplies up into China over the Himalaya Mountains. He recalls several experiences: one involving General Clarie Chennault, a few close calls, and ferrying money and a load of tin. In late 1944, Ruth returned to Dallas where his wife and son were living. He was stationed at …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Otto Schwarz. Schwarz was born in Newark, New Jersey, on 6 September 1923, and enlisted in the Navy in October 1940. After basic training in San Diego, he was assigned to the USS Lark (AM-21), a magnetic mine sweeper. The ship sailed to the Philippines where it performed duties as a pilot rescue vessel. Schwarz was soon transferred to the USS Houston (CA-30), the flagship of the Asiatic Fleet. He recounts that the Houston left the Philippines prior to the Japanese attack and sailed to Surabaya, Indonesia where she operated between there and Darwin, Australia. Schwarz recalls participating in the Battle of Makassar Strait on 4 February 1942, during which a Japanese bomb destroyed the after turret killing 48 men. Schwarz also participated in the battles of the Java Sea and Sunda Strait, where HMAS Perth and the Houston were both sunk. He was in the water for thirteen hours, until he was picked up by a Japanese landing barge. He then hauled supplies for Japanese troops in Java between March and early October, 1942. Then he was transported to Burma to work on the Burma-Siam Railway. He …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Eugene Wilkinson. Wilkinson joined the Navy in 1940. He served in the Fire Control Division aboard the USS Chicago (CA-29). After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Wilkinson transferred to the USS Houston (CA-30), where he served as the Forward Rangefinder Operator. They completed convoy duty, transporting American soldiers to various locations in the Pacific. In February of 1942, Wilkinson describes Japanese attacks while escorting a convoy to Timor and participating in the Battle of the Java Sea. On 1 March 1942 during the Battle of Sunda Strait, the Houston was fatefully damaged and sank. Wilkinson was one of the survivors of this attack and sinking, was captured by the Japanese, imprisoned and forced into labor building the Burma railroad. He returned home in November of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Lee Soucy. Soucy joined the Navy in December of 1937. He completed Hospital Corps School, and served as Pharmacist’s Mate aboard the USS Utah (BB-31). He was on board when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. After the attack and sinking of the Utah, Soucy worked as an RN and head of the medical laboratory at the Pearl Harbor Hospital. He remained at the hospital through April of 1945. He then completed Malaria Control School with the Marine Corps at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, and worked as the Assistant Malaria Control Officer until his discharge in December of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Lee Soucy. Soucy joined the Navy in December of 1937. He completed Hospital Corps School, and served as Pharmacist’s Mate aboard the USS Utah (BB-31). He was on board when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. After the attack and sinking of the Utah, Soucy worked as an RN and head of the medical laboratory at the Pearl Harbor Hospital. He remained at the hospital through April of 1945. He then completed Malaria Control School with the Marine Corps at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, and worked as the Assistant Malaria Control Officer until his discharge in December of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Paul Candelori. Candelori joined the Navy in June of 1943. He served as Radioman Third Class and had additional training in amphibious landings. He traveled to Hawaii in April of 1944, training and working on the island. In February of 1945 he was assigned to USS LST-646 and participated in the Battle of Iwo Jima, working as radio operator and delivering supplies to the troops on the island. Candelori returned to the US in December of 1945 and was discharged in April of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Marty Romano. Romano was born 11 June 1924 in Jersey City, New Jersey. He joined the Navy and went to boot camp at Newport, Rhode Island. Upon completing boot training he was sent to Quonset Point, Rhode Island for patrol boat training. After more training he was assigned to Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 22 on Corsica. He went aboard PT-306 as a motor machinist. He describes his duties and of the need for rotating motor men every two hours due to the noise in the engine room. Squadron 22 participated in Operation Brassard on 4 June 1944 dropping off French commandos during the invasion of Elba. Ramano also participated in Operation Dragoon when they delivered commandos of the 1st Special Service Force to beaches in Southern France. He describes the method used in landing the troops and recalls one boat hitting a mine. On 24 December 1944 he was relieved of duty and returned to the United States for a thirty-three day leave. In February 1945 he boarded a troopship for New Guinea. Upon arrival he was sent to Borneo and assigned to the USS Oyster Bay (AGP-6), …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Eve Tice. Tice was born 7 August 1923 in Calumet, Michigan. Graduating from high school in 1942, she went to work as a timekeeper at a Chevrolet Motor Company plant in Detroit, Michigan. She describes her duties. She met her future husband, who joined the Navy, and they were married when he came home on leave following boot camp. Her husband was assigned to the USS Franklin (CV13) at Newport, Rhode Island. She tells of seeing her husband when he came home on leave after the Franklin went to Bremerton, Washington for repairs November 1944. She and her husband took the train to Bremerton where they rented one room in a private home. She stayed there until the Franklin departed. She comments on censoring and V-mail letters. On 19 March 1945 she was notified that the USS Franklin had been damaged, her husband was a survivor and that the ship would be returning to the Brooklyn Navy Yard for repairs. The ship arrived April 1945 and Mr. and Mrs. Tice remained in the area until he was discharged November 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with John Stutterheim. Stutterheim was born 14 June 1928 in Indonesia. He speaks fondly of growing up on the island of Java. Stutterheim was 13 years old in December of 1941, when Pearl Harbor was attacked. With the surrender of Java to the Japanese in 1942, Stutterheim and his younger brother and mother were taken to one prison camp and his father to another, where they all remained until their liberation in 1945. Their camps were located around Batavia and Jakarta. He recounts his experiences during the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies, sharing the brutal conditions in a Japanese labor camp and collapse of Dutch colonial rule.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Roy Simmons. Simmons begins by describing his reaction to the news about the attack on Pearl Harbor. He stayed in college for a little while before hitchhiking to San Antonio and joining the Marine Corps. After he graduated in August, 1943, he was sent to Parris Island for basic training. He went to Officer Candidate School and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps before shipping out to Hawaii. Finally, he was assigned as an artillery forward observer at Saipan prior to the invasion of Okinawa. At Okinawa, he participated in a diversion landing on D-day, an attempt to confuse the Japanese. He finally landed on Okinawa several weeks later and describes his combat experiences. Simmons witnessed General Buckner getting killed. After the war, Simmons went to Japan for occupation duty and describes some of his activities outside of Nagasaki. While there, his unit inherited an ice cream plant in which they began making ice cream for the regiment. In April, 1946, he shipped back to the US.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Henry Michalak. Michalak joined the Marine Corps and, after training in San Diego, went to communications school. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marines, 2nd Marine Division and sailed for the Solomon Islands after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He relates an anecdote about being on Gavutu and having an American dive bomber dorp a bomb near him. He then describes being present on Guadalcanal during the battle. His job during his time on Guadalcanal was making sure the telephone lines were operating and repairing them when they were down. When Guadalcanal was secure, Michalak and his unit went to New Zealand for R&R. In November, 1943, Michalak headed for Tarawa. He describes his combat experiences there and shares an anecdote about seeing a high school classmate on Tarawa whom he did not know was in the Marines. Michalak also share stories about his combat experiences on Saipan. He was wounded on Saipan and evacuated to a hospital ship. When he was recovered, he was sent to a naval ammunition depot in Oklahoma where he remained for the duration of his time in the service. He …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Lew Weber. Weber graduated from high school in Galveston, Texas, in May and joined the Marine Corps in July, 1943. He joined the Second Marine Division at Camp Tarawa on Hawaii late in 1943. Weber describes his experiences going ashore during the invasion of Saipan. he also describes a Japanese tank attack and being wounded on Saipan. Weber's unit was headed for Okinawa, but was diverted back to Saipan, where he finished the war. Weber then describes some experiences while on occupation duty in Japan after the war. Weber was awarded the Silver Star on Saipan. He finished by speaking about visiting the National WWII Memorial in Washington, DC.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Jerry Lewis. Lewis was born in Diamond, Missouri 18 February 1925. At sixteen he joined the Navy and trained at San Diego. He then attended radio school, after which he was assigned to the USS Frankford (DD-497). In June 1943 the ship traveled through the Panama Canal to Norfolk, Virginia. He recalls participating in convoy duty to Casablanca. He recalls relying on a tank as a fire control director during Operation Overlord. In October 1944, the ship returned to the United States and Lewis was transferred to the USS Harding (DMS-28). After the crew was trained in the use of mine sweeping gear the Harding sailed to Pearl Harbor. During March 1945, they sailed to Ulithi where they joined Task Force 58. After participating in mine sweeping operations during the invasion of Okinawa the ship was assigned to picket duty. The ship, damaged by a bomb from a kamikaze, was taken to Kerama Retto Island for repair. Lewis recalls having armed sentries on board at night to repel efforts by Japanese soldiers to board anchored ships. Returning to the United States, Lewis entered flight training at Norman, Oklahoma. …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Lewis Whitaker. Whitaker joined the Army in May of 1944. He served in Company K, 3rd Battalion, 264th Infantry Regiment, 66th Infantry Division. In the fall he was sent to England, then traveled from Southampton, England to Cherbourg, France aboard the SS Léopoldville (1929), for deployment into the Battle of the Bulge. During their transfer their ship was attacked and sunk by the German submarine U-486. Once ashore, Whitaker served as a rifleman and fought from Northern France to Germany and Austria, receiving a Combat Infantryman Badge. He was discharged in June of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Ralph S. Long. Long joined the Navy in June, 1944. After basic training, he was assigned to ACORN 29 and went overseas from Port Hueneme and arrived in time for the invasion of Okinawa. He landed with a Navy construction battalion and assisted in establishing a small airfield for close air support. Long was discharged from the Navy in 1946. He entered the Air Force in 1951 with a commission and served as a psychologist. He retired in 1971.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Chester Reese. Reese joined the Army in 1936. He was assigned to the First Infantry Regiment in Wyoming. In 1939, Reese did not re-enlist in the Army, but joined the Marine Corps instead. After basic training, Reese was sent to Hawaii, where he was when the Japanese attacked. He unlimbered his machine gun, set it up and defended Hickam Field. Reese served as an enlisted man on the subsequent Board of Inquiry into the attack at Pearl Harbor. His job was to sort out people who wanted to testify to the Board. Later in 1942, Reese was attached to the 6th Marine Regiment and headed for New Zealand, then Guadalcanal. Reese received a battlefield commission on Guadalcanal. After leaving the Solomons, Reese returned to the US for training. In early 1945, he went to the Mariana Islands and cleared out Japanese outpost on some of the outlying islands: Sarigan, Anatahan, and Maug.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Richard Grimm. Grimm joined the Navy in November 1941. He was sent to USS Maury (DD-401) and served as a signalman and anti-aircraft gunner. Grimm describes seeing Pearl Harbor soon after the attack and participating in the Battle of Coral Sea. He also mentions the signal that he was ordered to fly at the beginning of the Battle of Midway. Grimm describes seeing the USS Porter (DD-356) get hit at Santa Cruz and then taking part in the naval battles in the Solomon Islands where he helped recover casualties from the USS New Orleans (CA-32) and rescue crewman from the USS Helena (CL-50). He goes into detail on a close-call at the Battle of Kolombangara. At Vella Lavella, Grimm spotted the approaching Japanese fleet and describes how his ship launched torpedoes that sank three ships. He also discusses seeing the USS Liscome Bay (CVE-56) get hit by a torpedo that passed under the Maury. Grimm also took part in the landings at Leyte and Lingayen Gulf where the USS Liscome Bay (CVE-56) was damaged by a near miss from a kamikaze. He was in New York at the …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with James W. Fisher. Fisher was born in Witt County, Virginia. On 7 February 1939 he joined the Navy and underwent boot camp at Norfolk, Virginia. He was then sent to San Diego where he was assigned to the USS Shaw (DD-373) as a deck hand. After a period of time he transferred to the USS Whitney (AD-4) for on the job training as a torpedo man. Upon completion of his training he was reassigned to the Shaw and sailed to Samoa. Upon the ship’s return to the United States in 1941, Fisher was placed in a hospital while the Shaw returned to Pearl Harbor. Fisher returned to Pearl Harbor aboard a tanker on 8 December and saw the destruction caused by the Japanese attack. On 14 December 1941 he was assigned to the USS Maury (DD-401) as a torpedo man. He was involved in the invasion of Guadalcanal, Tulagi and Iwo Jima as well as night surface action with Japanese ships. He recalls the ship being involved in rescuing survivors of the USS Honolulu after it was torpedoed. Fisher was discharged from the US Navy soon after World …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with John Olcott. Olcott joined the Navy in the spring of 1941. After training, he was assigned to USS Maury (DD-401) at Pearl Harbor. Olcott was at torpedo school at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked. When Maury returned to port, Olcott went back aboard and was on the ship when it bombarded Wake Island and went to the Solomon Islands. Olcott stayed on Maury through 1944 and went back to torpedo school. Then, he was sent to a post office in New Guinea for a few months before going to the submarine base at Subic Bay. He was there when the war ended.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Howard M. Heisler. Born in 1926, he ran away from home and joined the Army in 1942. He was underage and used an assumed name. He was assigned to a reconnaissance group in the 1st Cavalry Division and sent to Australia in the spring of 1943. He participated in the invasion of the Admiralty Islands, Leyte, and Luzon. He was injured by a mortar shell when his platoon was guarding a bridge outside of Manila. He was evacuated to a hospital ship and received further treatment at a general hospital in New Guinea. He rejoined his unit in Luzon where they were training for the invasion of Japan. They were sent to Tokyo after the atomic bombs were dropped on Japan, but before the Japanese surrendered. He describes the city of Tokyo. He shares an anecdote about his parents learning of his whereabouts as the result of his being wounded. He was discharged under his real name in 1946.

Transcript of an oral interview with Harold Tatsch. Prior to enlisting in the Navy, Tatsch worked as a bellhop in the Nimitz Hotel in Fredericksburg, Texas. In November, 1944, Tatsch joined the Navy. After completing training, Tatsch went aboard the USS Drexler (DD-741) where he served as an ammunition handler for a 40mm antiaircraft gun. Eventually, the Drexler made its way to Ulithi where it joined the armada headed for Okinawa. Tatsch also describes being on picket duty off Okinawa and being attacked by Japanese aircraft. On 28 May 1945, the Drexler was hit by two kamikazes and Tatsch describes the impacts and aftermath. He abandoned ship and spent about three hours in the water before being rescued. He was sent back to the US on a 40-day survivor leave. At the end of it, Tatsch re-enlisted, requesting more duty aboard destoryers. In the meantime, the war ended and he was shipped to Guam where he spent 18 months as a shore patrolman. When that was complete, Tatsch was discharged.

The National Museum of the pacific War presents an interview with Jesse Copeland. Copeland joined the Navy in June, 1943. In September, Copeland was assigned to USS Haskell (APA-117) as a radio operator. Copeland made the invasion of Luzon in January, 1945 and provided shore to ship radio communication. He did the same at Okinawa. He remained with the Haskell throughout the war and upon returning to the US, was discharged in December, 1945.