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https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9cd6ba7bb2f1bb5a12a3f1d311407dbc.pdf
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Grand Valley State University
Veterans History Project
Les Alcumbrack
(01:02:00)
Background
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Full name is Lester Alcumbrack (00:14)
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From Kentwood, MI (00:31)
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Born in Grand Rapids, his family moved to the corner of 32nd and East Paris when he was about
five years old. (00:44)
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He was in the #8 District school, which had one teacher. (01:03)
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The school was about five and a half miles away. (01:14)
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He went to Godwin High School, as did all of his siblings. He was the youngest of five
children. (01:21)
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They usually walked to school. Sometimes his father dropped them off on the way to work.
(01:34)
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His father worked at a laundromat. It was initially called “U.S. Laundry,” and the name was
later changed to “American Landry.” (01:53)
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Les worked on nearby farms after graduating high school. (02:08)
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Graduated 1939. (02:27)
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He didn't pay much attention to international affairs, or WWII, he was too busy at the time.
(02:40)
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He heard about Pearl Harbor in Silver Lake. He and his girlfriend were delivering calendars for
his sister's church, and they heard about it on the car radio. (02:55)
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At the time, he didn't think about being drafted or enlisting. He was very afraid. (03:33)
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Later on, he attempted to enlist and was rejected because he was set to be drafted very soon.
(03:53)
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He was drafted a few weeks later. (04:16)
Training
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Went to Fort Custer. (04:38)
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He was given written aptitude tests. (04:47)
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Next, he was sent out to Yuma, AZ in the middle of the desert. (05:15)
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The trip to Yuma was his first cross-country trip. It was a long train ride. (05:27)
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At this time, he was not yet assigned to a company. (05:43)
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The dirt in Arizona was black, powdery and very dusty. (06:21)
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He had his winter clothes on because he had left Michigan in September. Arizona temperatures
reached the hundreds, and his clothes made him even hotter. The dust stuck to his sweat.
(06:21)
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They were split into four companies, A through D. He was in company A. (06:46)
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The base was in a mountain. (07:03)
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Basic training was in Yuma. It was mostly field hikes, and rifle training, but he missed most of
it as he was very sick. (07:10)
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He felt sick, and passed out in front of the doctor's office. (07:50)
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He had a fever of one hundred and four. (08:18)
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He was rushed to the hospital tent. (08:25)
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His sickness may have been infection from the water. He was hospitalized for forty-nine days.
(08:45)
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He didn't do much, but eat and sleep. He gained a lot of weight during his hospital stay. The
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lack of activity was a drastic change to his life at home on the farms. (09:00)
A man wanted him to change units. (09:18)
He talked with his superior officer about a transfer, and was denied. (09:42)
He didn't find out about his duty until after basic training, which he had not still finished.
(10:00)
He drove a truck, and took care of garbage on the base. (10:30)
Later on, he filled gas cans. There were about twenty truck drivers. (10:55)
Patton trained his men nearby. Les brought fuel to him, and took the empties back for refill.
(11:09)
Patton was training a large armored unit, which used large amounts of gas. (11:32)
Les' grandson later trained in the same area as a Marine. (11:48)
Still in Yuma while he was driving trucks. (12:14)
Big trucks brought in gasoline, which they pumped into five gallon drums. (12:18)
Sometimes trains brought the gas instead of trucks. (12:40)
He spent six months in Arizona. (12:49)
Next he was sent to Fort Preston, FL for amphibious training. (13:00)
He was assigned to a unit responsible for supplying gasoline. (13:12)
During the amphibious training he had to be able to swim two miles and climb a mock ship.
(13:25)
He didn't practice climbing down nets onto landing craft. (13:54)
He went from practicing on a fake ship to practicing on actual ships. (14:04)
He practiced loading ammo cases filled with sand onto amphibious trucks called “ducks.”
(14:17)
The exercises didn't have much to do with driving trucks, but he followed the orders despite the
seeming impracticality. (15:04)
He did not have a discipline problem. (15:21)
Some of the men had problems with discipline, but not many of them. (15:30)
Many of the men disliked digging foxholes, including himself. (15:45)
He once was training in foxholes, and found a pre-made foxhole. He planned on using the
foxhole, but decided to make a new one when he noticed the rattlesnake inside. (16:07)
Fort Pierce was about fifty miles north of Miami, halfway between Miami and Jackson. It was
on an island. (16:33)
The base being on an island made it hard to get into trouble. (17:06)
He was in Fort Pierce for about six months, late 1943. (17:19)
He was next sent to Camp Pickett, VA for more training. They had marching and an infiltration
training course. (17:29)
As part of the course, they had crawl up a hill on their hands and knees around fake land mines.
The “mines” were very noisy and startled. They activated with strings. (17:55)
He did well on the course. (18:33)
The Army usually sent about ten men through the course at a time. (18:44)
His training was not related to truck driving, it was in case of capture. (18:54)
By this time, he was in a company which he trained with. (19:06)
He had a fourteen day furlough. He spent most of it with his girlfriend. (19:21)
He had asked his girlfriend to marry him before he was drafted. He then asked her father for his
approval. Her father preferred them to wait as Les had been drafted. Les decided to follow his
advice, and believes it was the correct decision. He didn't want to start out on the wrong foot
with his in-laws. (19:42)
He frequently received letters from his girlfriend, but did not answer them often as the Army
kept him very busy. (20:40)
�Deployment/Scotland and Wales
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He was at Fort Pickett about two months, and then shipped out at Boston. (21:04)
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The ship was an old gambling ship, the Evangeline, the ship came to Boston from New Orleans.
(21:16)
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The ship had been converted to a troop ship, but it still had many accoutrements from its life as
a gambling ship. The dancing floor was still intact. (21:44)
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The ship held 300-400 men. The bunks were stacked about three high. (22:22)
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The ship was not very crowded. (22:34)
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He was shipped out fall or winter of 1943. (22:42)
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Once, during the night, the ship supposedly scraped sides with another ship in the convoy. He
didn't hear the scrape, and didn't see evidence of it. (22:50)
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The ship was bound for Glasgow, Scotland. They took the long way around to avoid U-boats.
(23:27)
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The convoy was large and involved about twenty ships. (23:54)
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The weather was cold, but the sea was probably calm as he doesn't recall being sea-sick.
(24:15)
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Next, he was put on a train to South Wales. (24:51)
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He stayed in South Wales, but didn't do much. (25:02)
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They were in tents, in winter, in Wales. It was very wet, but not too cold. (25:15)
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The tents were set up off ground a bit. (25:41)
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There was a lot of mud. (25:52)
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Trucks brought in sand to counter-act the mud. (26:00)
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They were waiting for the invasion of Normandy. (26:18)
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They also made roads, and improved the base. (26:30)
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There were not many towns in the area. (26:46)
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Swansea was the nearest town in the area, but he didn't go. (27:08)
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His company was the only one there at the time. It was a small unit. (27:29)
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They were sent to Plymouth, as a “holding tank” before the invasion. They were only there for
a week. (28:05)
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The invasion was soon underway. About sixty “ducks” were sent, but only about sixteen made
it. (28:48)
Service on the Continent
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He was in Plymouth during D-Day. There were many German planes flying over that day.
They didn't drop bombs; he assumes they were reconnaissance planes. (29:04)
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He landed on June 23, he didn't remember a storm. (29:46)
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Landed at Omaha Beach. (30:20)
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France had many hedgerows. (30:36)
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He drove the truck off of a landing barge, an LST with a drop down door [probably an LCT—
ed.]. (30:48)
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He dropped into water about four feet deep. (31:18)
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Some of the later trucks partially flooded after dropping off. As each truck dropped off the
transport, the transport floated higher in the water because of the lost weight. Each truck
dropped from a higher point, and as a result the later trucks were splashed with water. (31:40)
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Before the landing, he had to waterproof his truck with a layer of grease. After the landing the
grease had to be removed. (31:45)
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The ordinance outfits set up a tent. (32:05)
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After they captured the area, they had to pick up loads and distribute them. (32:38)
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Two men were assigned to each truck, one drove at a time in shifts. This way they were able to
drive in forty-eight hour stretches. (32:50)
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The beach was sandy. (33:12)
There was not much traffic, some roads were just trails. (33:33)
He mostly transported food supplies. He only drove, other men loaded and unloaded the trucks.
(33:50)
After they took St. Lo, the travel distance increased. (34:16)
Some WWII movies were very accurate, and brought back memories for him. (34:42)
He drove along a road one day, and went to turn when about a hundred yards away he saw a
cannon. The cannon had fallen over, and was pointing right at him. It scared him badly.
(35:42)
The Americans had a pipeline for gas which went through the English Channel. (36:58)
The first time they used the pipeline, the gas was about ninety percent water. He got blamed for
it. (37:55)
Most supplies continued to come from Normandy, as it was the best place for a base for a while.
The train tracks had been destroyed and could not be used. (38:55)
A German bomber dropped a “blockbuster” bomb near his truck, sending large fragments of
clay near him. (39:24)
Back at the base, large tanks of water were used for showers. The tanks warmed in the sun,
providing a warm, but not hot, shower. (40:13)
He never had a problem with food. (40:42)
Sometimes he stole food out of the trucks with his friends. Canned peaches were a frequent
favorite. (41:05)
He had to deliver gas to a nearby unit. (41:55)
The unit wasted gas, the soil was moist from it. Some of the men got lead poisoning and lost
their legs because of the gas. (42:07)
As the troops moved forward, so did his supply trips. (43:18)
He stayed in France until they entered Germany. (43:29)
He supplied Patton's Army. After the war, Patton was killed near the area. (43:38)
His unit began using refrigerated trucks after the war. (44:06)
He was not in much danger, aside from the bomb incident. (44:26)
He observed very little of the action, but knew how the war was going. The Army kept him
informed. (44:40)
Once, they had an emergency at an airfield. One of the planes couldn't get its landing gear out
in time. He saw the pilot’s body in a nearby tree. It sickened him. (45:08)
He met some of the French people, but didn't like them because he thought they were dirty. He
believed they had low morals, and he was also not impressed by their public latrines. (46:36)
He was once set to the outskirts of Paris to pick up empty gas cans. (47:38)
He went to Paris on furlough once, and was not impressed. (48:28)
He thought Germany was cleaner, despite the wreckage of Mannheim. (48:50)
Some of the men moved into a nearby building, which had been an old girl's school. They used
the classrooms as bedrooms. They played basketball in the gym, and used the showers and
footbath in the basement. (49:29)
He drove refrigerated semi-trucks later on. He had never driven a semi-truck before. (50:41)
He went from Mannheim to Heidelberg, and a few other small towns. (51:42)
The trips were about sixty to seventy miles. (52:06)
He carried food supplies around in the semis. (52:10)
When they stayed at the school, the officers put on a party which had a lot of alcohol. They had
a dance, and brought in a few girls as well. The party helped him keep his mind off the war.
(52:38)
He left Europe shortly after, and arrived home Christmas Eve. (53:54)
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He went from Manheim into France, and disembarked on a Liberty ship from Marseille,
through the Mediterranean Sea. They passed the Rock of Gibraltar. (54:27)
Before leaving, the commander announced a storm was on the way. He asked the men if they
wanted to try and beat the storm or wait it out. The men decided to go right away. They beat the
storm. (55:12)
They landed in Boston, it was cold. The ship was covered in ice from water that had splashed
up at sea. (56:02)
When they arrived home, they were given fresh milk. They had had powdered milk in Europe.
(56:45)
He called his brother to pick him up to avoid using a bus or a train. His brother was initially a
little reluctant because it was the Christmas season. His brother offered to bring Les' girlfriend
along, but Les advised him not to as the car would be full of men. His brother was also picking
up a few men in his outfit who were from Grand Rapids. His brother thought she would be
miffed at the exclusion, but went forward with it anyway. (57:29)
His girlfriend/wife knew some of the men from school. The other men were from Grand
Rapids, but from other parts of it. (59:20)
He married January 30th. (59:52)
He worked at a lumber company for twenty seven years, counting the years before the war. He
started in 1939. (01:00:03)
The company closed, and then he worked with a hi-lo. He only had two jobs, aside from
working on the farms. (01:00:28)
He doesn;t think the service changed him all that much, but it was a good experience.
(01:00:42)
Believes enlistment would help some kids with discipline issues. (01:01:10)
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Veterans History Project
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Grand Valley State University. History Department
Description
An account of the resource
The Library of Congress established the Veterans History Project in 2001 to collect memories, accounts, and documents of U.S. war veterans from World War II and the Korean War, Vietnam War, and conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, and to preserve these stories for future generations. The GVSU History Department interviews are part of this work-in-progress, and may contain videos and audio recordings, transcripts and interview outlines, and related documents and photographs.
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
1914-
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Subject
The topic of the resource
Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American
Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981--Personal narratives, American
Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American
Michigan--History, Military
Oral history
Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American
United States--History, Military
United States. Air Force
United States. Army
United States. Navy
Veterans
Video recordings
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Smither, James
Boring, Frank
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
RHC-27
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project interviews (RHC-27)</a>
Oral History
A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Alcumbrack, Lester (Interview outline and video), 2008
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Alcumbrack, Lester
Description
An account of the resource
Lester Alcumbrack was drafted into the army in 1942. Les became very sick during basic training, and became a truck driver. He trained as a fuel truck driver and received amphibious training. He began duty in Scotland and Wales prior to the Normandy Invasion, and continued to serve as a truck driver in France and Germany during and after the Invasion. After the German surrender, he spent his last months working with a refrigeration unit delivering food to US occupation troops.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Smither, James (Interviewer)
Kentwood Historic Preservation Commission (Kentwood, Mich.)
WKTV (Wyoming, Mich.)
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
United States. Army
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
Video recordings
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Moving Image
Text
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2008-02-28
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
AlcumbrackL
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Format
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application/pdf
video/mp4
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives
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PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veterans History Project Interview
Name of War: Iraq
Interviewee Name: Michael Adams
Length of Interview: 00:30:35
Background
He wanted to be in the armed forces since he was six or seven. In his junior year, he
began researching the different branches and decided on the Marines.
Training (1:02)
He trained in boot camp in San Diego, CA. He was there for 13 weeks.
While he was there he spent about 80% of his time in a classroom. It is just a myth that
when you are there you run all the time.
At first it was hard to get used to someone yelling at you inches from your face, but then
by the last third of boot camp, it became humorous.
After boot camp he spent eight weeks in infantry training. There he learned how to fight
and use his weapons.
He would then proceed to a specialty school for three weeks, in which he learned antitank assault.
He would then be transferred to Chesapeake, VA where he would learn security force
assault training, or SWAT school, after which he would work SWAT on and off for three
years. He would go back and forth to VA for three years going to school and getting
more training. (6:10)
When he worked on the SWAT team, they would train all day and then work out in the
evenings.
Active Duty (10:25)
In spring of 2003, he was sent to Kuwait, to serve in “Operation: Iraqi Freedom”
He spent six weeks at Camp Ripper, and trained for chemical warfare while they waited.
When it was time to invade Iraq, they actually heard that they were invading through a
broadcast over the BBC before they were told by their commanders.
When they were in combat they spent most of the time on the offensive because of their
aggressive colonel.
His first experience on Iraqi soil was coming out of an Amtrak and seeing a woman and
her child there. He did not expect any civilians.
While he stayed with the civilians, he found that they were very pro-American. (15:45)
When his team entered Baghdad, his team was greeted by the local population who asked
them to tear down the statue of Saddam Hussein, so they did.
His team never stayed in one place more than two days and they always slept in foxholes.
When they got to different cities they would enter, sweep through it and clear it the best
they could and left. The units behind them would occupy the cities. (20:23)
�
When the statue came down they thought the war was over, so they set up camp in the
middle of the desert and ran security for six weeks.
When he was there the whole Marine Corps unit was stopped by a huge sandstorm. It
was difficult to keep everything clean. Most could not go outside their vehicles or they
would suffocate in the sand.
After six months of service they took Kuwait public buses back to Kuwait and flew home
to CA in civilian planes.
After Active Duty (25:45)
When he was home he and his team spent their time preparing to go back. Most of his
team did end up going back but he got out of the Marines a year after returning.
The last four months he spent going to different funerals for the people who were killed
in his unit.
He spent some time visiting injured Marines as well.
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Veterans History Project
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Grand Valley State University. History Department
Description
An account of the resource
The Library of Congress established the Veterans History Project in 2001 to collect memories, accounts, and documents of U.S. war veterans from World War II and the Korean War, Vietnam War, and conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, and to preserve these stories for future generations. The GVSU History Department interviews are part of this work-in-progress, and may contain videos and audio recordings, transcripts and interview outlines, and related documents and photographs.
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
1914-
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Subject
The topic of the resource
Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American
Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981--Personal narratives, American
Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American
Michigan--History, Military
Oral history
Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American
United States--History, Military
United States. Air Force
United States. Army
United States. Navy
Veterans
Video recordings
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Smither, James
Boring, Frank
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
RHC-27
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project interviews (RHC-27)</a>
Oral History
A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Adams, Michael (Interview outline and video), 2010
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Adams, Michael
Description
An account of the resource
Michael Adams was a marine who served in Operation: Iraqi Freedom in 2003. He served as a security forces specialist who would be one of the first team of Marines to enter Baghdad. He reports observing the destruction of the statue of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad. His unit mostly patrolled in the desert after the fall of Baghdad, and he does not report problems with local civilians.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Oberlin, Cody (Interviewer)
Higley, Blake (Interviewer)
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
Iraq War, 2003-2011--Personal narratives, American
United States. Marine Corps
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Moving Image
Text
Relation
A related resource
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2010-05-13
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
AdamsM
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project collection, (RHC-27)</a>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
video/mp4
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/8b2ca37aeff7318c62a4b7476ef1061a.mp4
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5d655c31f182e92c98e7d723e5cd229d
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veteran’s History Project
World War II
James Abrams Interview
Total Time: 1:20:33
Background
(00:12) Born in Sparta, Michigan, in 1923
(00:27) His father worked on a railroad
o Two siblings; mother died in 1928
(1:00) After his mother died, they headed west to California
o They eventually moved to Montana, which is where Mr. Abrams spent most of
his time growing up
(1:55) In Montana, his family raised sheep
o Mentions that his father was a very good mechanic
(2:35) Mr. Abrams said he didn’t suffer during the Great Depression; his family always
had food
(2:41) Went to school up until the 8th grade in Montana, then moved back to Michigan
o Joined Civilian Conservation Corps camp
o Moved to Grand Haven, met a friend
o Got a job at Clark Piano Factory
o Soon met his future wife
(4:20) Mr. Abrams joined the Marines
o His friend joined two months before he did; ended up going to the 101 st airborne
(5:14)Enlisted in the Marines in 1942 after Pearl Harbor
o Said the Pearl Harbor incident was why he went
�Training
(6:38) For basic training, Mr. Abrams went to San Diego
o They got him to San Diego by train
o Remembers the train going through the edge of Mexico
(7:26) The first day of boot camp was rough
o The drill sergeant told him as he goes down the landing ramp, the only person he
can depend on is himself
(8:13) They worked all the time in boot camp; recalls when they were in formation one
day the drill sergeant asked for volunteers to drive a truck somewhere
o Said the truck had one wheel and two places to steer
o Mr. Abrams said this is the first time he learned “never to volunteer for anything
in the Marine Corps”
(10:30) Mr. Abrams said it was easy for him to adjust to life in the Marines, although
sometimes he would get mad
o Learned his serial number – still remembers it today
(12:04) Says he “got even” with the drill sergeant
(13:44) Said he was in good physical shape during training
(13:54) He learned to use weapons in training and mentions that he eventually became
a squad leader
(14:07) Trained on a 30 caliber, 50 caliber machine gun, 37mm anti-tank gun, he also
shot a 75mm a few times
o Talked about halftracks
(15:30) Basic training was 60 days
o Said that the first few days in the Marine Corps, new recruits are like prisoners
o There were instructors telling them what they could and couldn’t buy
o Mr. Abrams said there is something he bought because it was the only thing he
could buy at that time
(16:38) After the first 60 days, Mr. Abrams said they went into their regular outfits
o Went on liberty, etc.
�
(16:57) After boot camp, he shipped out right away
Overseas
(17:16) Shipped overseas in a ship that was bigger than a LST, but not an ocean liner
(18:11) Remembers crossing the Equator
(18:40) Landed in the Solomon Islands
o Went to Melbourne a few months later
o After that, went to New Guinea
(20:39) Talked about Ernie Pyle being killed at Iwo Jima (Ie Shima, off Okinawa)
(21:14) Guadalcanal – there was still a bit of fighting when Mr. Abrams arrived here
(22:15) When he arrived, Mr. Abrams went into the 1st Marine Division, 1st Regiment,
Weapons Company
(23:38) Base camp on Pavuvu Island
(24:06) In Melbourne, he says there were “15 women per man,” all the Australian men
were in the Islands during this time
(25:02) Melbourne was mostly for R&R, but also “in case something happened”
(25:24) Remembers sleeping in a football field in Melbourne
o Military beds on the bleachers
(25:55) When Mr. Abrams first joined the 1st Division, he said there were never any
problems with the soldiers who had been there a while
o Only one guy they had a problem with
(26:22) After Melbourne, they went to Cape Gloucester, New Britain
o (27:08) Here was the 2nd battle he participated in
(27:22) Mentions that in Guadalcanal, he was shot at
o Mr. Abrams shot back
o At this point they were in the jungles, no base camps were built here
o (28:12) Mentions that he went to sniper school; at this point he was a sniper
(28:32) The first time he shot someone: says he will remember it the rest of his life
(29:35) Mr. Abrams learned how to shoot as a kid; this was helpful
�
(29:56) “Always shoot the guy with the most stripes on.”
o This is why the Marines never wore stripes in combat
o Shoot the highest ranking soldier in line before anyone else
(30:31) He was in an ambush position
(30:50) On Cape Gloucester, all of the Japanese big guns were out
o US landed here on Christmas day (1943)
o The Japanese were waiting for them when they got off the landing craft on the
beach
o (33:44) Japanese also used Molotov Cocktails
o After they captured the point, they were there about a week
o (35:05) While they were here, Mr. Abrams said the enemy tried to bomb them
(36:17) After Cape Gloucester, they went back to Pavuvu
o Red Cross had a tent here; served coffee
o Ran into medics that told him of an instance where a man had been decapitated
on another island by the enemy
(39:12) The next battle Mr. Abrams was in took place at Pelelieu
o May have had one meeting about it to prepare them for the mission
(39:54) Says the people at Melbourne knew where his group was going to land before
they did
o Information leaked; this is why the man who was in charge would change plans
at the last minute
(40:34) In Peleliuu, he said they “blew the hell out of everything”
o Fire coming from both directions
o Lost a lot of guys here
o Believes this was the worst battle they experienced in the Pacific
o Japanese had a lot of tanks
(41:08) They had 3 squads of 37mm antitank guns
o Japanese had 105’s
(41:41) Remembers something like a big shotgun (canister round)
�
(42:40) Supported the weapons company
(43:07) They had 50 caliber machine guns, and tank destroyers
o Each tank destroyer was open on the top
(44:17) M-7 (self-propelled howitzer) fired up as well as straight (used indirect fire)
(44:44) Mr. Abrams said he tried to stay as far away from the Japanese as he could
o Says he was safer over in Japan, and mentions some injuries when he came back
to civilian life
(46:18) Stayed in Peleliu even after the fighting was over
o Doesn’t remember shots being fired after Japanese surrendered
(46:45) Didn’t see any prisoners; says he didn’t pay much attention to them
(47:30) Recalls a time when a fellow soldier was ordered to shoot a Japanese prisoner
(48:40) Remembers the first person he shot; something Mr. Abrams will never forget
o Had to pull the trigger because he knew the enemy spotted him; the guy reached
for his gun and Mr. Abrams shot him
(51:20)After Pelelieu, Mr. Abrams went to smaller islands nearby
(52:03) After Pelelieu, they started moving up the Pacific
o Eventually went to Okinawa
(52:25) In Okinawa, Mr. Abrams was put in a Reserve Squad to go home
o In a group of 5 or 6 men
o Captain Thomasma; shot in the chest
o Remembers a friend who was killed who had a girlfriend in Boston
(53:34) When they first landed in Okinawa, they fought
o Didn’t run into the Japanese until they were on the other side of town (the
capital, Naha)
(56:00) Talks about seeing the old capital city of Okinawa in a magazine years later,
looking much better than what they had seen
o “Had nicer buildings than we did in Grand Rapids”
o American contractors were sent over there
(57:05) Mr. Abrams was involved in some of the key fights in Okinawa
�o Remembers that it rained a lot
(58:05) Still used tank destroyers and large weapons on Okinawa
(58:23) Mostly offensive fighting on Okinawa
(1:00:41) After Japanese surrendered, Mr. Abrams went to the Casual Platoon
o In a group of about 4 men
o Waiting for a boat to take them home
o New captain says they were going to China because Mr. Abrams volunteered
(1:01:54) Went on a ship to China
o
(1:03 :35) Was to stay there for 6 months
o Mr. Abrams didn’t enjoy it
o His job was to protect the Japanese here
(1:05:40) Recalls stopping riots in China
(1:08:09) Recalls seeing Japanese comfort women
o Traveled with them
Going Home
(1:09:50) Mr. Abrams got back to the U.S. on a slow boat from China
o Took a train once he got to San Diego
o Train to Chicago
o Great Lakes Naval Station
(1:11:24) Got discharged March 17th, says he had malaria
o This was the first time he had it
o Had bouts of malaria later in life also after being married
(1:12:55) After getting home, Mr. Abrams got a job in Muskegon at a cement block plant
o Injured his leg on the job
(1:13:40) Eventually went to work in Grand Rapids
o Retired from here
(1:18:11) Mr. Abrams said being in the Marines helped him grow up fast
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Veterans History Project
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Grand Valley State University. History Department
Description
An account of the resource
The Library of Congress established the Veterans History Project in 2001 to collect memories, accounts, and documents of U.S. war veterans from World War II and the Korean War, Vietnam War, and conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, and to preserve these stories for future generations. The GVSU History Department interviews are part of this work-in-progress, and may contain videos and audio recordings, transcripts and interview outlines, and related documents and photographs.
Coverage
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1914-
Rights
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Subject
The topic of the resource
Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American
Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981--Personal narratives, American
Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American
Michigan--History, Military
Oral history
Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American
United States--History, Military
United States. Air Force
United States. Army
United States. Navy
Veterans
Video recordings
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Contributor
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Smither, James
Boring, Frank
Relation
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Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Identifier
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RHC-27
Language
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eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project interviews (RHC-27)</a>
Oral History
A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Abrams, James (Interview outline and video), 2011
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Abrams, James
Description
An account of the resource
James Abrams was born in Sparta, Michigan, in 1923, and eventually grew up in Montana. After moving to Grand Haven, Michigan, he joined the Marines after Pearl Harbor. After boot camp in San Diego, he was shipped to the Solomon Islands and joined the Weapons Company of the 1st Marine Regiment on Guadalcanal toward the end of the campaign there. The regiment refitted in Melbourne, Australia, and then went to New Guinea prior to landing on Cape Gloucester, New Britain. After that battle, they went on to the hard fight at Pelelieu, and went on from there to Okinawa. After the Japanese surrender, he spent several months in China escorting Japanese soldiers and civilians who were being sent home.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Smither, James (Interviewer)
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
Video recordings
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
United States. Marine Corps
Language
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eng
Rights
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Type
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Moving Image
Text
Relation
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Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Date
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2011-06-14
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AbramsJ1116V
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<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project collection, (RHC-27)</a>
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application/pdf
video/mp4
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/21c035099f635cbfd82d6d87d4987523.mp4
6f500cb750dcc2f5474d102e89b01bc1
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/976fcd145c96bd179dbd33846a5f45af.pdf
3c01e829e91175ea432b23d8a47183b2
PDF Text
Text
Grand Valley State University
Veterans History Project
The Cold War
Marvin Abbott
Interview Length: (00:36:56:00)
Pre-enlistment / Training (00:00:38:00)
Abbott was born in June 1938 on a farm in Decatur, Michigan; growing up, Abbott
attended a country school before going to Decatur for high school (00:00:38:00)
After graduating from high school, Abbott attended Michigan State University from 1956
until 1960; at the time, attending ROTC was mandatory, so Abbott volunteered for the
second two years (00:01:02:00)
o When Abbott graduated from Michigan State, he received a commission having
successfully completed the ROTC program (00:01:22:00)
o One aspect everyone in the ROTC program had to complete was a basic training
portion and Abbott completed his between his junior and senior years; all ROTC
students from Michigan State and other colleges and universities in the area went
to Fort Riley, Kansas for the basic training, so in the summer of 1959, Abbott
spent six weeks there, satisfying the basic training requirement (00:01:33:00)
During the six weeks, the students went through the traditional basic
training, including: KP, guard duty, physical training, work on the rifle
range, hand to hand combat, tactics, marching and inspections among
other things (00:02:09:00)
o Abbott returned to Michigan State in the fall and upon graduation, received a 2nd
lieutenant commission in the artillery branch, specifically in the air defense
branch (00:02:33:00)
o After receiving his commission, a soldier either served two years or six months
and a lot, including Abbott, received a six-month enlistment because there were
so many of them at the time and not a lot of conflict in the world (00:03:03:00)
Abbott’s initial orders were for a six month active-duty enlistment and he
was told not to report until the following May, so he took a job near where
his parents lived (00:03:14:00)
Once he finally did report, Abbott drove to El Paso, Texas and Fort Bliss, where the air
defense artillery school was located (00:03:31:00)
o When Abbott reported in early May, he first went through the officer orientation,
which was an eight week class (00:03:45:00)
o During the training, the soldiers had to receive security clearance because they
dealt primarily with the Nike missile, which could be loaded with nuclear
warheads (00:03:56:00)
There were also classes that dealt with the radio codes that the soldiers
would be using; a typical Nike site was spread out over twenty or thirty
acres and sometimes the soldiers would communicate using telephones
and other times by using radios (00:04:20:00)
�
The soldiers also worked with computers, as primitive as they were at the
time, and needed security clearance for that (00:04:40:00)
o The Nike missile was the primary missile the soldiers studied and it had two
variants, the Ajax and the Zeus; the Ajax was the initial version of the missile but
before Abbott arrived at Fort Bliss, the Army developed the Zeus, which was four
Nike mortars put together, allowing for a larger warhead, higher altitudes, and a
longer range (00:04:53:00)
o One of the highlights of the training was one morning, all the soldiers were woken
up and driven into New Mexico, where the was a practice firing range for the
missiles (00:05:28:00)
Most of the missile units around the country at the time were run by
National Guard troops, although there were some Reserve- and ActiveDuty-run sites, and every so often, each unit would have to leave their
assigned location, travel to New Mexico, and set up there to go through
firing missiles at drone targets (00:05:50:00)
They would start the drone at the south end of the range and flew it
towards the missile, which were located at the north end of the
range; as soon as they acquired the drone, the crew would fire a
missile (00:06:21:00)
The range that the soldiers fired the missile on was itself larger
than the state of Rhode Island (00:06:34:00)
o Abbott and the other soldiers graduated in the beginning of July and because he
still had four months left on his original enlist, Abbott was told to report to Fort
Knox, Kentucky at the end of July (00:06:45:00)
Active-Duty (00:07:12:00)
Once he arrived at Fort Knox, Abbott was assigned to the Army Training Center and a
specific basic training company as an executive officer (XO) (00:07:12:00)
o As an XO, Abbott did not have a full-time job because the company commander
was there and Abbott would just occasionally fill in so that the commander could
have a little time off (00:07:40:00)
o However, Abbott received other assignments, including being the guard post
officer several times, which was a little different at Fort Knox because of the gold
supply stored on the base (00:07:52:00)
The guards were stationed in a building not too far away from where the
gold was stored and the commanders made sure they all understood what
to do if something happened with the gold supply (00:08:07:00)
When the soldiers pulled guard duty, there where three shifts, two of
which stayed in the guard building; once retreat came, one of the two
waiting shifts would take the flag down, fold it and a reveille the next
morning, put the flag up (00:08:29:00)
The commanders made sure the guards had enough vehicles, more than
the guards really needed because if something happened to the gold, the
guards had run out and drive the vehicles to the gold supply (00:09:20:00)
�
However, the guards were never told what to do when they were at
the building where the gold was kept, only to wait outside the gate
(00:09:37:00)
Not every assignment required the guards to carry live ammunition; all the
guards carried weapons but only in certain areas, such as the bank, PX, or
any place with money, did the guards carry ammunition (00:09:47:00)
Most of the time, the weapon a guard carried was either for show
or was a night stick (00:10:07:00)
One time, they loaded halve a dozen bus loads of soldiers who had been
trained at Fort Knox and took them to Fort Riley for a weekend and
Abbott ended up having to do escort duty for trip (00:10:22:00)
In August, the soldiers noticed that the Russians and East Germans were building a wall
around West Berlin, which really excited President Kennedy, who called up a lot of
higher ranking officers and NCOs and shipped them to Germany (00:10:41:00)
o As best the soldiers who remained in the United States could figure, the deployed
soldiers were either keeping an eye on what the Russians and East Germans were
doing or stationed in West Germany in case anything went wrong (00:11:16:00)
o At the beginning of September, Abbott was not due to be discharged until a
month later but he received orders that he would be extended for another twelve
months on active-duty on top of the original six months, meaning Abbott would
have a year and a half enlistment (00:11:41:00)
Further down the road, Abbott extended for the remaining six months,
making his enlistment a full two years (00:12:04:00)
Towards the end of October, about three weeks before the original six months were
complete, Abbott assumed command of the basic training company next to the company
he had been working with as the executive officer (00:12:28:00)
o Abbott stayed with the training company for the better part of fourteen months
and completed six, eight-week basic training cycles; Abbott usually had between
a few days and a couple of weeks off between training cycles (00:12:53:00)
o When new recruits came in, Abbott went to the processing center and watched as
the recruits received hair cuts and uniforms, which took a few days to happen;
afterwards, Abbott, plus his platoon leaders and NCOs, went to the processing
center and tried to march the recruits back to the company area (00:13:16:00)
Abbott and the other instructors had eight weeks to try and make soldiers
out of the recruits by putting them through similar exercises that Abbott
had gone through while at Fort Riley (00:13:52:00)
o Just before his commanders turned over command to the lieutenant who was his
XO, Abbott was promoted to 1st lieutenant (00:14:27:00)
In October 1962 was the Cuban Missile Crisis, which caused excitement even Fort Knox
and some soldiers from the base, although none from the training center, had to deploy
(00:14:48:00)
o At the time, Fort Knox was the main armored training center and some of the
older soldiers on the base who had served during World War II told stories of
General Patton coming to the base for training (00:15:05:00)
During the same period of time, there were around a thousand Cuban exiles who had left
Cuba and there was a program that they could join the military; however, when the
�
Cubans joined, the Army kept them as a separate unit, about the size of a battalion, and
kept that battalion near where Abbott’s training company was (00:15:47:00)
o Most of the Cubans could not speak English, only Spanish, so in order to have
cadre for the battalion, the commanders pulled any Spanish-speaking cadre out of
Abbott’s battalion and sent them to the Cuban battalion (00:16:25:00)
Abbott did not have any Spanish-speaking cadre in his company but the
company he had left had two (00:16:47:00)
Every now and then, the Spanish-speaking cadre would drift back and talk
with Abbott and the others and revealed that they feared for their lives
working with the Cubans (00:17:03:00)
The cadre stayed with the Cubans all the time and they eventually
determined they needed someone awake in each barracks every
night because the Cubans would steal anything and everything,
from weapons to ammunition, and get into fights (00:17:16:00)
The Cubans' assumption when they joined the program was they would
receiving training and either the United States would invade Cuba or they
would send the Cuban forces back, similar to the Bay of Pigs, which
happened a month before Abbott went onto active-duty (00:18:05:00)
o The NCOs who came back said that the Cubans had a lot of trouble accepting the
concept of teamwork; each one had decided that when he went back, he was
going to be the commanding general (00:18:32:00)
o As well, the Cuban soldiers complained about almost everything (00:18:54:00)
For Abbott’s recruits, they had to march to reach the firing range and
march back but the Cubans did not like that idea and they complained
enough that the commanding general decided to use trucks to transport
them around (00:18:57:00)
During one day in the fall, it was a rainy and chilly and Abbott’s company
was on a firing range while the Cubans were on another range about a mile
to a mile-and-a-half away, although Abbott did not realize it
(00:19:36:00)
Once they finished on the firing range, Abbott had the recruits
ready to march back when all of the sudden, they heard trucks
coming and they knew what that meant (00:19:56:00)
The sergeant Abbott had running the recruits looked at Abbott,
asked if he thought they should “shanghai” some of the trucks, and
Abbott told him to go for it (00:20:23:00)
The sergeant went down, waved his hands, and the trucks drivers
pulled up to the range, where the recruits loaded up and were
driven back to their barracks; it took a couple of loads but the
drivers took Abbott’s recruits back first before going to pick up the
Cubans (00:20:40:00)
Around the end of November, Abbott was relieved of his company command and
assigned to the battalion headquarters to work as the S-1/S-3 in-charge of personnel and
training for the battalion; however, at that level, Abbott had a sergeant major who did
most of the work for him (00:21:06:00)
�o At the time, the battalion had a newly-arrived commander, a major who was out
to make a name for himself; although the battalion was good before he arrived,
the major decided he wanted to sharpen it up (00:21:42:00)
o The major told Abbott that he would take care of training with the company
commanders and Abbott would take care of the paperwork (00:22:01:00)
Every company had a training NCO who had to keep track of the records
for every recruit going through the training at the time; on occasion, a
recruit would be sick or have another assignment that took him away from
training and they had to get the training made up (00:22:16:00)
Towards the end of the eight weeks, usually in the seventh week, there
was a large inspection and the higher-level officers would come down to
inspect the paperwork (00:22:47:00)
The major had Abbott going to all the training companies, none of whom
had the same schedule because they picked up their recruits at different
times, which was a lot of the work Abbott did (00:23:00:00)
o Another one of Abbott’s assignments was running an Article 32 investigation on
damaged radio equipment that a soldier had taken out and returned damaged but
refused to pay for (00:23:23:00)
An Article 32 investigation was similar to a grand jury, meaning it was
typically run by one person, and after Abbott’s investigation, the soldier
would still not relent, so he went through a court-marshal (00:23:46:00)
o During that time, Abbott also served in the general court-marshal board for
around a month to six weeks (00:24:02:00)
The board typically met once a week and heard whatever cases came
before them for that typical day (00:24:10:00)
Reserve Duty (00:24:26:00)
On May 9th, 1963, Abbott was released from active duty and assigned to the Army
Reserve Control Group in Battle Creek, Michigan; Abbott did not have to immediately
report, so he arrived at the assignment in July (00:24:26:00)
o At the time, there were two reserve units stationed in Benton Harbor, Michigan;
one was platoon-sized, with around fifty soldiers, and the other was companysized with around one hundred soldiers (00:24:48:00)
o Abbott’s commanders attached him to the smaller unit, the 511th Transportation
Platoon, which dealt with transporting soldiers and equipment around and was a
B.A.R.C. (Barge Amphibious Re-supply Cargo) unit (00:25:07:00)
The B.A.R.C. was a massive four-wheeled vehicle that could not be drive
down the city streets, so none were in Benton Harbor (00:20:30:00)
The unit’s summer camp was at Fort Story, Virginia, which was where all
the B.A.R.C.s in the country were kept; the base itself was located where
the James River flowed into the Atlantic Ocean, downstream from
Norfolk, Virginia (00:25:48:00)
Larger Navy ships had to sail up the James in order to reach
Norfolk (00:26:06:00)
There was a Navy post next to Fort Story called Little Creek and
smaller ships, such as LSTs, were located there (00:26:12:00)
�
The B.A.R.C.s were large enough to haul an M-60 tank, the largest tank
the military had at the time, or an entire company of soldiers
(00:26:28:00)
There was a ramp in the front that could be dropped so forklifts
could haul cargo off or vehicles could be driven off (00:26:45:00)
The unit’s actual training with B.A.R.C.s happened for the two weeks they
were at Fort Story in the summer and Abbott attended the camps 1964
until 1968 (00:27:01:00)
o Although Abbott was attached to the unit in August, he was not assigned to it
until November because the unit’s previous commanding officer had been
promoted to major and the commanding position was only available to a captain,
so they moved the major on, promoted his XO to lead the unit and brought in
Abbott as the XO, where he stayed until the end of his Reserve duty
(00:27:21:00)
Abbott originally joined the Army in the artillery branch but when he was assigned to the
B.A.R.C. unit, he changed to the transportation branch (00:27:54:00)
o The Vietnam war was looking close at that point, although actual combat was still
a few years away (00:28:07:00)
While Abbott was at Fort Knox, on some Saturday mornings, the officers
and senior NCOs went to an auditorium and received lectures about what
was happening in Vietnam; the war had not yet broken out but the Army
was constantly putting Special Forces into the country (00:28:16:00)
Whenever a soldier went to Vietnam in the early part, he was a volunteer
and Abbott knew several soldiers who did volunteer to go (00:29:03:00)
o When he switch to the transportation branch, Abbott went to Fort Eustis, Virginia,
which was there the Army Transportation Corps was located, to take a basic
officer extension course (00:29:22:00)
o Abbott finished the extension course in a couple of months and in Dec. 1963, the
Army sent out orders that he had completed the course and had switched to the
transportation branch (00:29:41:00)
Abbott stayed in the service but the 1968, the Vietnam War was hot; Abbott was due out
at that time but he hung on, hoping for a promotion and within a few months, received a
promotion to captain (00:30:07:00)
o Once he received the promotion to captain, Abbott asked for and received a
discharge, finally leaving the Army in Sept. 1968 (00:30:34:00)
Reflections (00:30:53:00)
Abbott feels that his time in the service helped him a lot, especially the time spent at the
training center, although the first training cycle was horrendous (00:30:53:00)
o Abbott had only been in the Army for five months and although he had been
around the training, he had never had an responsibility in the training, so he did
not know what he was confronted with and it was tough (00:31:03:00)
The company he took over had been the top company in the battalion for
several years under the previous commanders and the top NCOs in the
company had been there for the better part of a year, so the history was
important to them (00:31:24:00)
�
The company went from the top to the bottom but the one thing Abbott
learned was that he had to start studying (00:31:45:00)
At one point, the first sergeant told Abbott that he was signing all
the inspection orders and the other sergeants knew this, so they
were writing down anything (00:31:52:00)
The other NCOs knew Abbott did not really know what he was
doing and were nice to him, while the only one who confronted
him was the first sergeant, who was a World War II vet that spent
most of the war in POW camp and had been around (00:32:19:00)
Abbott’s brother graduated from Michigan State three years after Abbott and by the time
the brother got into the military, the hot war was starting in Vietnam; the brother was part
of the quartermaster branch, went to Vietnam for a year, and helped set up a supply depot
to the north of Saigon (00:32:53:00)
o The brother did not have much experience in the enemy actually firing at him but
every now and then, he would send a letter home saying that someone had driven
past the depot in a jeep and the soldiers on the depot heard gunfire (00:34:06:00)
Abbott’s brother-in-law also went to Vietnam and because he chose to make the military
a career, deployed to Vietnam twice; the brother-in-law was also in the artillery branch,
but in field artillery, and worked as a forward observer (00:34:31:00)
Examination of photographs (00:35:36:00) - (00:36:56:00)
�
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Veterans History Project
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Grand Valley State University. History Department
Description
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The Library of Congress established the Veterans History Project in 2001 to collect memories, accounts, and documents of U.S. war veterans from World War II and the Korean War, Vietnam War, and conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, and to preserve these stories for future generations. The GVSU History Department interviews are part of this work-in-progress, and may contain videos and audio recordings, transcripts and interview outlines, and related documents and photographs.
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1914-
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Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American
Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981--Personal narratives, American
Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American
Michigan--History, Military
Oral history
Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American
United States--History, Military
United States. Air Force
United States. Army
United States. Navy
Veterans
Video recordings
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
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Smither, James
Boring, Frank
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Veterans History Project (U.S.)
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RHC-27
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eng
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<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project interviews (RHC-27)</a>
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Abbott, Marvin (Interview outline and video), 2010
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Abbott, Marvin
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Marvin Abbott was born in June 1938 in Decatur, Michigan and after graduating from high school, attending Michigan State University. While at Michigan State, Abbott went through the ROTC program, which included a six-week basic training course at Fort Riley, Kansas. After graduating from Michigan State, Abbott received an officer commission and went to Fort Bliss, Texas for air defense artillery training. Once he completed the training at Fort Bliss, Abbott went to Fort Knox, Kentucky and served as part of the training units there. Following his active-duty service at Fort Knox, the Army transferred Abbott to an Army Reserve transportation unit using B.A.R.C.s (Barge Amphibious Re-supply Cargo). Abbott stayed with the Reserve unit for another five years, until 1968, when he received his discharge.
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Bodnar, Christine (Interviewer)
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Oral history
Veterans History Project (U.S.)
United States--History, Military
Michigan--History, Military
Veterans
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Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American
United States. Army
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eng
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Veterans History Project (U.S.)
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2010-03-30
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AbbottM
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<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project collection, (RHC-27)</a>
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-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/7099f06bf3c907857377b07ef649d826.pdf
a27ea3d6371ee8b97427ae51bfeb5202
PDF Text
Text
Cpl. Earl Dennis Diary Highlights
April 9th, 1942: Inducted into the Army at Camp Custer, Battle Creek, Michigan
April 18th
: Arrived at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri
June 1st
: Arrived at Groton, Connecticut
June 2nd
: Started to cook
July 15th
: Boarded Louis Pasteur
July 16th
: Left New York Harbor for Freetown, Sierra Leone
July 24th
: Arrived in Freetown,
July 25th
: Left Freetown for Durban, South Africa
August 3rd
: Arrived in Durban, South Africa
August 6th
: Left Durban, South Africa for Port Suez, Egypt
August 18th
: Left for and arrived in Haifa, Palestine (Israel)
August 21st
: Haifa bombed. Watched the flashes as German planes flew over all night
September 9th : Left for El Alamein, Egypt.
October 1st
: Promoted to Private First Class
October 23-27 : Account of Second Battle of El Alamein
October 24th
: Made 1st Cook
November 16th : Passed through Tobruk, Libya. Described the devastation of the town and the
carnage on the road from Alexandria, Egypt to Tobruk
December 2nd : Spent the day in Derna, Libya
December 7th
: Left Derna, Libya for Ajdabiya (Agedabia], Libya
December 10th : Arrived in Ajdabiya, Libya
December 11th : Attacked by a German bomber. Anti-aircraft shot the bomber down. Two of the
crew were killed, but a third survived
December 13th : Third German bomber crewman died the night before
�December 18th : Became 1st Cook again after sergeant was transferred to another squadron
December 24th : American rations come in. Sprains back.
December 25th : Went to Doc for sleeping pills and aspirins. Had another sandstorm. Good
Christmas dinner
December 31st : Left Ajdabiya, Libya for the front. Stopped at night to rest. Watched the
bombing of Marble Arch, Libya. Rode in cab of truck with bad back.
January 1st, 1943 : Passed through Marble Arch. Roads and bridges shredded from bombs
January 4th
: Arrived at new airfield. 16 German ME-109’s strafed and bombed the convoy as
soon as they arrived. 7 men killed and twenty were wounded. 10 more died the next day
January 6-16th : Continued German bombing. 3 Pilots and 5 Enlisted men were detailed as being
killed.
January 19th
: Left the airfield for Dufan, Libya
January 20th : Arrived in Dufan, Libya with “A” echelon. Fighters keep harassing the German
retreat to Tripoli
January 23rd
: Tripoli falls in the morning. This was the main task
February 4th : Received pay. Recounted baking till 2AM then going back on duty at noon.
Made pumpkin pies and bread.
February 9th : Passes to Cairo, Egypt cancelled. Move to Castle Banda canceled as well. One
stove working. Pancakes for breakfast
February 14th : Packages from home came. One from parents, Gertie (his wife), Shirley, and
Mary Lou Byrges. Sandstorm let up.
February 28th : No missions. Had a fever of 101 degrees and a bad back. Went to see Captain
Cook in the 66th squadron. Stayed in bed. Cold wind all night. Went to the slit trench once.
Bombs fell all night and almost took out the heater
March 1st
: Airfield ahead was attacked. Enemy has broken the lines and a group in the
squadron is moving up to stop them, followed by more later. Raid to be expected
March 7th
: Received a new tent. The old one was shredded. Poole helped put the new one up
away from the fort. The fort has become the new Non-Commissioned Officer’s club. 2 German
planes flew over the kitchen and everyone ran for cover.
�March 15th
: Big mission. 5 planes and pilots lost. Flares and bombs dropped. American
bombers flew over as well. Kitchen and chow line for the 79th strafed killing 20 men.
March 21st
: Moved up 28 miles. Could see the Mareth Line from the position. 2 German
planes flew over at 5:30PM. At night flares were dropped, and heavy anti-aircraft was seen
March 24th
: Got shots for typhoid. Pilots went on one mission. General Strickland and Gen.
Guard (sp) inspected and had dinner.
April 4th
: Pulled out at 2PM and went to a field 1 mile south of Medenine. Pitched tent in
a wadi (valley) under an olive tree. Just west are the mountains of the Mareth Line
April 7th
: Sfax, Tunisia fell
April 9th
: Inducted into the service a year ago. One mile south of Medenine and within
sight of the Mareth Line.
April 12th
: Pulled out. Went through Medinine and Gabes and joined “B” party about 50
miles south of Sfax. Headquarters’ stove blew up, fed part of their personnel as well
: Pulled out again. Went through Sfax going to a field near El Djem, Tunisia
April 14th
about 50 miles from Sousse.
April 18th
: Details Roman colosseum near field. Ju-88 bomber circled the field, but antiaircraft guns drove him away. At 5PM 80 to 100 German transports flew over from Sicily. The
group, along with others, went to meet them. 77 German planes were shot down, 18 being
credited to the 65th. (This was the “Palm Sunday Massacre”)
May 1st
: Paid in francs. Rainy. Pilots had 2 missions
May 7th
: “The Yacht Club Boys” performed for the troops. 3 replacements came in.
Tunis and Bizerte fell.
May 12th
: Artillery still firing all night to the west. Signed payroll. END OF WAR IN
AFRICA. Celebrated by shooting flares and guns
May 22nd
: Went to Sousse and went swimming in the Mediterranean Sea. Souse is 35
miles from Kairouan, Tunisia. Ships sunk in harbor and town is wrecked from battle
May 24th
: Pulled out and arrived on a beach about 50 miles from Zarzis, Tunisia. Half of
the group stayed behind in Kairouan to train new pilots.
June 8th
were killed
: The 33rd Fighter Group was bombed and strafed. 25 men from the ground crew
�June 15th
: Part of the 65th caught up. 60 men left at Cape Bon. Clothing check and bags
have to be packed by 6PM June 16th. No one knows where they are going
June 30th
: Hot day. Received orders to leave for Tripoli on July 2nd and leave on a ship
July 2nd
: Left for Tripoli. Arrived at 4:30PM. 136 degrees in the shade
July 3rd
: Boarded a barge to Malta
July 4th
: Arrived in Valletta, Malta. Drove about 10 kilometers and set up
July 10th
: Invasion of Sicily.
July 13th
: Pulled out to a field on Malta. Received 15 letters from home. Planes from the
th
65 Fighter Squadron came in as well
July 15th
: Moved out to a field near Hamrun, Malta. Kitchens are in old wrecked concrete
buildings with the cooks sleeping on the roof
July 18th
: Left Malta on invasion barges. Lived on K rations for the day.
July 19th
: Arrived in Pozzallo, Sicily.
July 26th
: An hour before daylight, German air raid. Italians celebrate Mussolini’s
assassination. [He was not assassinated, but was dismissed and arrested]
July 31st
: Pulled out for central Sicily. Got lost and was 3 miles from the front lines. Heavy
artillery was firing over group
August 2nd
: Hot day. Catania, Sicily was shelled by the British and American Navy. Big
flashes seen all night. Mt. Etna is within sight. 2 planes shot down, 1 pilot killed, another in the
Mediterranean.
August 11th
: Lost 2 planes. Mt. Etna smoking
August 12th : Germans attacked for an hour overnight. 32 men killed and 45 wounded nearby. 3
fires set and an ammo dump lit up the countryside
August 17th : Messina, Sicily taken by the Americans. No more Germans on Sicily, except a
few snipers. Very hot day
August 22nd : Pitched a game of baseball against the officers and won. During the game a P-40
overshot the runway and crashed. Pilot was ok, but the plane was upside down (Last entry)
�
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/d2e84ddf50255e6aaa7807a4f015ec14.pdf
f276b6b6b5775069d335cd4420e96b7d
PDF Text
Text
WWII Diary of Cpl. Earl L. Dennis
65th Fighter Squadron, 57th Fighter Group
Middle Eastern, North African, & European Theaters
Transcribed by Thomas A. Dennis, Feb., 2012.
Preface:
My dad grew up on a small farm, along with 5 other siblings, about 5 miles west of
Coopersville, MI. He met my mother, Gertrude R Mosulff, originally from
Cheboygan, MI, in Detroit in the late 1930's where both were working. They were
married on June 9, 1941. Dad later was drafted at the age of 29, only 10 months after
being married.
The 57th Fighter Group, consisting of squadrons 64, 65, and 66, was the first American
aviation unit to see combat in the North African and Mediterranean theaters. They
arrived in Port Suez on August 16, 1942 and were attached to the British 8 th Army to
fly support for them and other units later in the war when Sicily and Italy were invaded.
The 57th was the first American fighter group to shoot down a German plane in North
Africa and had the highest kill to loss ratio of any other unit. They also held the record
for shooting down 74 German planes in one single air battle known as the “Palm
Sunday Massacre” on April 18th, 1943.
In North Africa, the squadrons flew P-40 fighters and later in the war, while stationed
on Corsica, they were the first to fly P-47 fighter bombers against the enemy in Italy in
operation “Strangle” to cut supply lines. The 65 th squadron was also the first to attach
two 1,000 lb bombs to a fighter. This, along with eight .50 cal machine guns, and later
six 5" rockets, made the P-47 quite a formidable weapon. By the time the war ended in
Italy, the 57th Fighter Group had been awarded 3 Presidential Citations and 2 French
Croix De Guerre medals for their actions.
My dad didn’t talk much about the war as I was growing up. Not until after his death in
2002, did we find his diaries. After reading them, I have the utmost admiration for him
and the others that endured the hardships and “death from above” while fighting that
war.
Page 1
�April, 1942
9th - Inducted into the U.S. army at Camp Custer Michigan.
10th - 3 inches of snow. Vaccination in one arm and a shot in the other.
Swept and mopped the barracks. Fire guard duty, lights out at 9:00 PM.
11th - Fire guard duty and runner. Detail duty at warehouse.
12th - Got up at 6:45. My folks, Uncle Vin., Dorothy, Jay, Carol, and
Shirley came to see me today.
13th - Watched men drill and some that got shipped out. Went to a show
tonight.
14th - Watched men off.
18th - Boarded the train and landed at Jefferson Barracks Missouri at
10:00 PM.
19th - Different tests and processing for one week. 18 days of steady
drill.
20th - Guard duty.
21st - Stand in Retreat, Manual of Arms, and Bayonet practice.
22nd - I drilled a bunch of 40 recruits.
23rd - Drill instruction.
24th - Drilled 6 day men.
May, 1942
29th - Boarded the train. 4 hours in Chicago.
30th - Ate breakfast in Philadelphia. Changed trains in New York City.
31st - Arrived in Boston, MA at 4:00 PM. Stayed here about 24 hours.
Bad food! Left here in a truck convoy.
Page 2
�June, 1942
1st - Arrived at Groton, CT.
2nd - Started cooking today.
8th - Went to Rentscler Field near Hartford, CT, a field of pig weeds
and no running water.
July, 1942
5th - Went to Fort Dix in New Jersey.
15th - Boarded the Louise Pasteur ship at 8:00 PM. Emergency drill.
Slept in the harbor. A 30,000 ton ship, 5,000 men on board. An escort
of 2 destroyers and 2 planes.
16th - Left New York harbor at 8:00 AM. Port holes and windows
closed. The Louis Pasteur has 4,800 soldiers on board. At noon 2 depth
charges were shot at a German sub.
17th - Yesterday afternoon 2 more submarines were depth charged. One
of them sank. Oil on the water. We wear our life preservers at all times.
Sweating the chow line. Quit sea, flying fish were seen all over.
18th - Our escort sighted a sub today and sank another one. The escort
went back, so now we are on our own. Sighted a raft and life belt. We
are setting our clocks ahead 1 hour at midnight.
19th - Sea is choppy. Sunday services on the “A” deck. Slept on the
deck last night. Flying fish, sharks, and porpoises seen all day.
Beautiful sunset.
20th - Sea is choppy. Physical exercises today. Many men are seasick.
The ship fired its 20mm guns today as a test. Poor chow - mutton, soup,
and tea day in and day out - caused a lot of arguments.
21st - We are now 300 miles off Bermuda Is. Rifle and general
inspection. I located Appel on “C” deck today, a friend from Grand
Haven, MI. Clocks set ahead I hour tonight.
22nd - Sea choppy. A soldier dropped his rifle overboard today. I was
Page 3
�put on a detail for the day.
23rd - We sighted a friendly ship. Two whales and some sharks were
seen. Also, a periscope from a German sub was seen sticking out of the
water about a half mile away. We made a sudden turn which almost
tipped the ship on edge. Physical inspection.
24th - Arrived in Freetown, Africa at 4:00 PM. Docked in the middle of
the harbor and stayed there all night. A bunch of natives came over in
small canoes. We dropped pennies in the water and they would dive for
them. Grass houses and palm trees. Another shot in the arm.
25th - Left Freetown at 5:30 AM today in the rain. Headed towards
Cape Town.
26th - Sea rough. Sighted a friendly ship. We are close to the equator
and the weather is very hot. Hundreds of flying fish all over.
27th - Sea is quiet. We had a picture show today. Went to intelligence
class on “C” deck. Lecture on gas and gas masks. Torpedoed at twice
today.
28th - Weather is cooler. Inspection - rifle, feet, mess kits, and gas
masks. A wireless picked up that we were sunk yesterday, and all lost,
just off of Freetown by the Axis.
29th - Weather cooler and sea rougher.
30th - Sea rough and weather cold. We changed to heavy clothes. Two
whales seen today.
31st - I was put on a detail today to distribute some Red Cross sewing
kits, etc. All the cooks caught this. We carried them up from the lower
deck.
August, 1942
1st - We are about 150 miles off of Cape Town. A friendly ship was
sighted on the port side. We were paid $5.00 today as a partial
payment. Sea is very rough. No sleep at all last night. Guns, mess kits,
Page 4
�etc. were thrown about the ship from the high waves.
2nd - Sea very rough. We were all watching for land most of the day,
but none was seen.
3rd - Arrived at Durban, South Africa at 9:00 AM. Remained on boat all
night. South African soldiers came on the dock and sang for us and we
sang for them. A beautiful mountainous harbor.
4th - We had shore leave from 11:30 AM to 8:00 PM and had to keep
with at least 5 in a group. The two story buses were free to us. Native
rickshaw pullers. I visited a zoo, saw a show, watched the celebration
of the King’s birthday, and ate 6 meals today. Blackout on ship, a
soldier was injured
5th - Shore leave from 11:30 AM to 7:30 PM. Two fellows and I took a
ride on a bus for a sight seeing trip. A very enjoyable day. Bought a
few souvenirs and had several dishes of ice cream. Saw some Italian
prisoners.
6th - Left Durban at 8:00 AM. Sea is quit. Two whales were seen tied to
a boat. One fellow came to the boat late and got left behind so he had
someone with a speed boat catch up with us. He climbed up a rope
ladder.
7th - Sea is choppy. Rifle inspection today. We are now near the island
of Madagascar.
8th - Sea is quiet. Nothing but water.
9th - This is our 4th Sunday on the sea. Church services on the deck.
10th - Sea is quiet. Did exercises. Warmer weather. Lots of flying fish
and porpoises.
11th - Rifle and mess kit inspection today. Saw one whale.
12th - Sea is quiet. We had 4 full weeks of sailing today. Weather is hot.
Near the equator again.
Page 5
�13th - Weather is very hot. We entered the Gulf of Aden early this
morning and sighted land. The Red Sea. I saw several sharks,
porpoises, sword fish, and whales today. Two ships were seen on the
port side.
14th - Weather is very hot. About 12 ships were seen and several small
islands and all kinds of fish. Gas mask drill at every formation.
15th - Weather is very hot. Islands were seen today. Physical inspection
again.
16th - Arrived at Port Suez today. We got off in small boats operated by
natives out in the harbor. Today we passed Mt. Sinai in Arabia.
17th - Another fellow and I worked in the kitchen with some natives.
They were driven around with whips.
18th - We got up at 3:30 AM and boarded a wog train. Rode all day thru
hot, dusty, and sandy dessert. I stood guard on two cars and pushed one
native off as he tried to step on in a wog village. Arrived at Haifa,
Palestine at 2:00 PM and went in trucks to Maquibila, (about 45 miles).
19th - We heard that our supply ship was sunk with all trucks, bunks,
etc. We have to sleep on a cement floor now. This field is just 20 miles
from Nazareth. Our pilots are on the island of Cyprus now, but will be
here soon.
20th - The weather here is very hot and dry. Flies are thick. Nightmares
kept a lot of guys awake all night. Most of our kitchen tools were lost
with the other supplies.
21st - Haifa was bombed last night. We all got up and watched the
flashes. German planes flew over us all night.
22nd - Us cooks took a truck today and went swimming in a pool where
they say David and Gulyas were at. It was a rock bottom spring near a
mountain not far from Nazareth. The water was very clear and
refreshing. Minnows would nibble our toes if we stood still.
23rd - Major Salesbury flew here from Cyprus and told us we would go
Page 6
�to the dessert soon near the front line.
24th - Tonight at 5:30, Crow, Esperson, and I started out afoot to Haifa,
a distance of 45 miles. We got two rides and got there soon after dark.
We ate some wog food in a place and then tried to sleep on the
sidewalk while one of us stood guard. The Arabs got too thick so we
moved on.
25th - We awoke at 6:00 AM and started back to camp. We spent the
rest of the of the night sleeping on the floor of an English depot. About
half way back, we passed King Solomon’s stables which were on the
side of a mountain. Holes were dug all over from curiosity.
26th - The water truck busted down today so we are out of water. We
are very short of trucks, as our own were sunk. We had a late supper
because we had no water.
27th - Still no water today. The weather is getting hot and quite a few
are sick.
28th - A very hot day.
29th - Appel and I went to Nazareth today. We started at 5:00 PM and
got one ride. As soon as we got there, we were surrounded by about a
dozen kids who wanted to show us around, since we were the only
Americans there. We picked out one little kid to show us Christ’s
workshop and a few noted churches, etc. There was no place to sleep. It
was so dirty around we couldn’t sleep anyway, so we started back to
camp, 20 miles distance. We went back down the mountain at 8:00 PM
and reached camp at 4:00 AM all tired out.
September, 1942
9th - We left for the front today near El Alamein, Egypt in the dessert on
an old wog train.
11th - Muqeibila, Palestine bombed and destroyed (the place we left on
the 9th).
26th - Spent all day in Alexandria, Egypt. Bought souvenirs and ate.
Page 7
�Went with Fisher and Dunnahoe.
October, 1942
1st - I was made PFC today.
13th - Dunnahoe and I went to Alexandria, took some pictures, and did
my Xmas shopping. Sent Gertie’s package out. Came back in a pickup
with the PX supplies, 4 of us.
15th - A terrible sand storm started at noon and blew all night and part
of the next day. The worst storm I’ve ever seen. At night when I tried to
sleep, sand would come in and cover everything like a snow drift. It
was hard to breath without the gas mask.
23rd - The “big push” started in Egypt at 10:30 PM. A steady rumble of
heavy artillery all night.
24th - Railroad and 14 cars of our supply line was bombed. Black
smoke seen all day. Became 1st cook today.
25th - 3 enemy planes were shot down by one of our pilots today.
26th - 2 more enemy planes were shot down by Lt. Wymond.
27th - Big tank push.
November, 1942
9th - We are traveling towards the front and sleeping wherever night
overtakes us. Slept under a truck last night. A bomb hit near and shook
the truck.
13th - An English truck ran onto a booby trap and blew up right in front
of us. The ground is still full of them (mines) which were set by the
Germans.
14th - Went thru Hells Fire Pass. While coming down the mountain, we
hit another truck on a sharp curve. I was riding on top of the truck as a
lookout at the time. Later, the top fell in but no one was hurt.
Page 8
�16th - We went thru Tobruk today and saw burning buildings, a terrible
destruction. Thousands of trucks, planes, and tanks scattered all over in
ruins all the way from Alexandria. Dead bodies were along the road.
21st - At 4:00 AM, we were bombed. A Jerry tried to destroy our water
hole. The bombs hit within 100 yards of it. Our ack-ack shells were
bursting by the hundreds but couldn’t hit him. Our P-40's were up after
him but the gunfire was too hot for them to do much fighting. I made
tracks for the nearest hole at a rapid speed.
23rd - A German Messersmitt was shot down over the sea.
30th - A German plane flew over and dropped 4 bombs at the water hole
about 4:00 AM but all missed.
December, 1942
1st - Bombed early this morning near water hole. Two men killed in a
truck by strafing German plane. We all ran for the slit trench. Dive
bomber dove 3 times, 7 flares dropped.
2nd - Spent one day in Derna, Libya, a very beautiful scene from a
distance down the mountain. All buildings just plastered with holes
from gunfire and bombs. Narrow dirty streets. Souvenirs for sale from
Germans and Italians.
4th - One air raid last night. Flares and 4 bombs dropped, no damage.
5th - We had 4 bomb raids early this morning. The first at 11:30 PM,
then 2:00 AM, 3:00 AM, and then at 5:00 AM. Killed one man and
wounded 3 in the 66th Squadron. Running for slit trench all night, no
sleep, flares being dropped.
6th - Pilots left for the front near Tunisia. Raining everyday. Trenches
very muddy.
7th - Left the field near Derna and headed for Ajdabiya, Libya, a 3 day
ride. Beautiful mountain scenery west and south of Derna. Destruction
all along the way - planes, trucks, buildings, etc.
Page 9
�8th - I rode on top of the truck as a lookout. Near Cyrene, we were
stopped by some machine gun fire ahead of us. Nothing happened to
the convoy.
9th - A plane came right down the road at one place. We stopped the
trucks and ran from the road. It turned out to be a friendly plane.
10th - Arrived in desert 20 miles from Ajdabiya at 5:00 PM. The first
thing we did was to dig a slit trench as things were kind of hot. The
ground is very rocky here with light sand.
11th - At 3:30 PM today, a German bomber flew very low over us and
started strafing but no damage was done to us. We opened up with
heavy ack-ack fire and shot him down. I watched him burst into flames
and crash to the ground. Two men were killed in the plane and a third
badly injured with a broken back and both legs. We buried the dead
right there. We all hit the ground before this happened with bullets
whistling over our heads.
13th - The other Jerry died last night.
18th - Sgt. Schlemmer got transferred to another squadron. Went back
to field 174 near Alexandria. Became 1st cook again.
19th - At 4:30 this morning flares were dropped near Alexandria and
bombs blew 3 trucks to pieces. One man’s legs were cut off by shrapnel
as he was running for a hole.
20th - Sand storm.
21st - Sand storm.
24th - American rations flew in today. Sprained my back.
25th - Called on Doc at 1:30 AM for sleeping pill and aspirins. Sand
blew all day. Swell Xmas dinner.
26th - Thunder storm last night.
28th - Formation
Page 10
�31st - Left this field at Ajdabiya 10:00 AM and headed towards the
front. Pulled beside the road for the night. Just after dark, we watched
the bombing of Marble Arch, a large airdrome. Very pretty fireworks.
Rode in the cab with lame back.
January, 1943
1st - Passed thru Marble Arch, a large arch over the road. The roads
were all cut up and bombed for hundreds of miles. Bridges were blown
up, so we went around them on mountainsides.
2nd - Still on our way west thru the desert. Left the main road at Nufilia
and traveled southwest across the desert. A bad sand storm came up
and blew all night.
3rd - Sand storm so bad that we didn’t move a foot. We were about 1
mile from the field we were going to, about 20 miles from the front
line. Low on water and no sign of anymore.
4th - Left here at 1:30 PM and just as we stopped at the new field still in
the convoy, 16 German ME-109's attacked us strafing and bombing.
They killed 7 men and wounded 20. I ran for a truck and about half
way there, I dropped and crawled the rest of the way. Shells and
shrapnel were hitting all around me.
5th - Ten more fellows died today from yesterday’s raid. My back is still
lame but I managed to help dig my slit trench. No water found yet.
6th - We were attacked today by 20 German ME-109's. We were all
gathered around the kitchen eating dinner at the time. They strafed us
and dropped 9 bombs on the line. Still no water. Bombed again at
supper time, killing 3 men and injuring a few. Everyone is very
nervous.
7th - We were strafed and bombed at 9:00 this morning by 6 German
planes. Again at 2:00 PM by 4 more planes and again at 6:00 PM by 12
planes. About 21 bombs came down. Watched a dog fight between 2
British Spitfires and 2 German ME-109's. Ack-ack shot 7 planes down
in the last 3 days. One tonight. Two more men killed.
Page 11
�8th - This morning a bunch of Spitfires intercepted some ME’s. We
watched the dog fights. Two Jerry’s were shot down. One English pilot
had his foot shot off but jumped safely. We had 5 air raids today, but
not much damage was done. Everyone’s nerves are on edge.
9th - At 3:00 this morning 12 German JU-88's bombers flew over us but
no damage was done. Some P-40's came in this afternoon from the 66 th
squadron. It makes us feel a lot better with more protection. We heard
that 1,600 tanks and trucks of the Axis are on their way after us. Today
they were bombed and strafed by our planes.
10th - We had 3 air raids today but no damage done. This morning 27
German planes started for us but were intercepted by our Spitfires. Ten
more tried it again tonight but were chased back. At 3:00 this morning,
a JU-88 flew over but dropped nothing.
11th - Three air alarms today. In the west I watched a dog fight between
our fighters and 30 ME-109's. Four German planes were shot down but
the 66th Squadron lost 2 P-40's and 1 pilot. Six German Stuka dive
bombers were driven back this morning. One of our planes was shot up
this afternoon but the pilot safe.
12th - At 8:15 this morning, 30 German planes attacked us. Four were
shot down. They dropped 5 screaming bombs at us, one landed 75
yards away from me which shook everything. Pieces of steel shot in all
directions. One truck and 5 planes were damaged. Unexploded
butterfly bombs lay everywhere. Three air raids today. One dog fight.
13th - At 9:00 AM we had an air alarm but they were driven back. We
lost 2 pilots and 2 planes. The “A” echelon pulled in last night. When
we told them what we went through, they could hardly believe it. B25's started bombing today. Sand storm starting.
14th - Two air alarms today, no damage to us. Twenty ME-109's were
shot down by our fighters. Capt. Clark got 4 of them. Our bombers
started the shuttle system today. Heavy artillery was heard all night in
the front line. About 104 of our bombers went over the line and 2 were
lost. Received my first package from home today.
15th - Our P-40's took off several times today to raise hell with Jerry.
Page 12
�Strafing and bombing them with 40 pound bombs. Six to a plane.
Tonight some JU-88's were flying around trying to bomb our ammo
dump. Went back to cooking today. Pilots all back safe.
16th - No sleep last night. German planes were flying over all night and
so we spent most of the time in the trench. Every few minutes they
would drop bombs. Cooked by a dim flashlight to avoid giving our
position away. Sand blew all night.
17th - The “A” echelon pulled out tonight. Our pilots went on several
missions today. One of the pilots made a direct hit on a German chow
line and kitchen killing everyone. The Germans are all running wild
retreating towards Tripoli.
18th - Last night we had a picture show on the side of a truck for the
group. About half way through, a British plane flew over which caused
a great panic among about 500 men. We thought it was Jerry. Some
men got hurt. When I stopped running, I was half way back to my tent
so I kept right on going home.
19th - Left this field at 10:30 AM and headed west. A very rough and
dusty ride. About noon a Jerry flew over us up around 20,000 feet and
made a cloud of in the sky.
20th - Arrived at Dufan today with “A” echelon. Quiet field. Bombers
left here to bomb Rome today. Fighters are very busy night and day
pestering the Jerry retreat convoy heading towards Tripli.
23rd - Tripoli fell this morning at 5:00. Great news for us as it was our
goal. Our task is finished.
27th - Norris is chasing a couple of wogs with a truck past my tent. Shot
at them today. One came right up with his donkey but we soon chased
him away. The Germans gave some of them hand grenades to throw at
us. Some spies left here dressed in wog clothes.
28th - Some of the fellows took a truck and went out Gazelle hunting
today and returned with 15 of them. A Gazelle is from the deer family
with single straight horns. They run in herds.
31st - The 65th played a game of ball with the 66th today but lost. I
Page 13
�pitched 4 innings. Hudlow and I went out and fired our rifles this
morning. The men were playing with an English cannon, a 20mm. Two
more Gazelles were shot today.
February, 1943
2nd- The 65th called off 38 numbers for passes to Cairo, Egypt soon. I
will go next week on a transport a distance of 1800 miles. We are all
getting a week’s leave in Cairo. Made some pancakes tonight.
4th - We got paid today at the NCO tent. Received 5 ½ pounds. Last
night I baked until 2:00 this morning and went on duty again this noon.
Crow and I made pumpkin pies and bread. Two big cow pumpkins
came from a wog village.
5th - Caught a bad head cold last night.
6th - I went over to headquarters today and sorted out rations for the 65 th
which came in on a DC plane.
7th - A bad sand storm came up at 10:00 AM and is still blowing
tonight. It blew away out tent and left our bunks and blankets scattered
all over the desert. It was an awful sight to see, lost men being blown
about. Only 10 men found the kitchen to eat at noon.
8th - Sand storm
9th - The passes to Cairo were called off today. We were supposed to
move to Castle Banda but it also canceled. I had pancakes for
breakfast. Only one stove working.
10th - Baked bread and pies tonight. Wind blew hard all night and
today. Crow made some pies today but are all covered with sand. Some
guys thought it was cinnamon on top.
11th - Our move was called off again today. Sent home a money order
of 5 pounds. Only a few showed up to eat today on account of the
storm. Out of sugar and no mess kit water.
12th - Sand blew all night and day. Ten men came to eat out of 130.
Page 14
�Some got lost in the storm. Four tents blew down today. The “A”
echelon didn’t serve dinner so some came and ate with us. Short of
water.
13th - I got up at 4:00 this morning and cooked breakfast. Only a few
came to eat. The first time in 4 days we could wash any pots and pans.
A bowser left today for some more water. Still no sugar and the flour
we got is brown with sand.
14th - Four packages came today. One from folks, Gertie, Shirley, and
Mary Lou Byrges. The sand storm let up today.
15th - Received one package today from Nellie & Bill. Physical
inspection for the cooks.
17th - Hudlow, a cook in my tent, left us today for a hospital. He has
been sick for a week from the sand. We all are pretty well filled up with
sand and bark like dogs. I was up at 4:00 AM today to get breakfast.
19th - We joined the “A” echelon’s mess today, 2 cooks and a baker on
shifts. Movies tonight at headquarters mess tent. The last time they
tried to have a show, we had an awful panic when an air plane flew
over very low. A British plane.
23rd - We left this field today at 8:00 AM and headed towards Tripoli.
Saw a sunken ship in the harbor. Pulled to the side of the road in an
olive orchard and slept under an olive tree about a mile from the sea
and 150 miles from Tripoli.
24th - We were back on the road at 8:00 AM and went thru Tripoli at
11:00 AM and stopped at Zuara near an old German fort made of stone
and cement, full of ammunition. Went on duty at noon. Air field is all
plowed up and rough.
25th - Got up at 4:00 AM and cooked by a flashlight. Planes were flying
over all night. Yesterday, two JU-88's went over us and took pictures,
dropped nothing. Ammunition in the fort set afire and was going off all
day.
26th - We are now operating from Zuara, 25 miles from Tunisia. Two
Page 15
�missions today. The first time we were driven back by 15 ME-109's
Their target were 20mm and 88mm guns. Capt. Clark shot down a ME
this afternoon. A camel almost entered our tent today. Some 1,000
pound bombs went off.
27th - We had 2 missions today. Capt. Sneed and Lt. Kimball were shot
down and killed this afternoon. Sneed was seen as he hit the
Mediterranean Sea in a spin. Almost every plane was shot up some.
Tripoli harbor was bombed last night. “A” echelon joined us tonight.
Capt. Clark shot down two ME-109's.
28th - No missions today. Sick with 101 deg. temperature and bad back.
Went to see Capt. Cook in 66th squadron. Stayed in bed. Cold wind all
night. Hit the slit trench once. Bombs fell all night in the distance
almost putting out our heater.
March, 1943
1st - An air field was strafed and shelled just ahead of us and about 12
Spitfires were forced to land here. One of them cracked up landing
after dark. The enemy has broken our line, so a bunch in our squadron
are moving up in the morning to stop them with many more to follow.
Raid expected tonight.
2nd - Most of the boys were ordered to sleep inside the fort last night. I
stayed in my tent but didn’t sleep. Corn fritters for breakfast. Salmon
patties for dinner.
3rd - The ack-ack guns went off last night several times as a test. We all
got another shot in the arm today. One alert at noon, another enemy
plane flew over very high. I drew 35 more rounds of ammunition
tonight. One mission after dinner, no losses. One enemy plane shot
down.
4th - Two English boys came over last night and we made some coffee.
Hutch and Bess, heavy ack-ack men. Another Jerry reconnaissance
plane went over this noon taking pictures. Cold damp wind all night.
5th - Hudlow came back from the hospital a few days ago. His lungs
and feet still bother. He was in one hospital in Tripoli he said they
Page 16
�bombed every night and sometimes the shrapnel would hit the sides of
the hospital breaking windows.
6th - Six fellows went to Tripoli on a 3 day pass. The place is bombed
every night. Food is very scarce. Our boys get eggs by trading 3
cigarettes for one egg from stray wogs and Italians. Esperson is still
back at the last field.
7th - Today we drew a new tent. Our old one was full of holes and all
ripped. Poole and I put it up way out away from the fort. Our NCO club
is in the fort now. Two German planes came over the kitchen tonight at
supper time. All the men ran for a hole.
8th - Hudlow and I walked down to the Mediterranean this afternoon
and took more pictures. He borrowed Capt. Mitchell’s camera. It was
about a 6 mile walk and we went right thru Zuara. Saw skeletons and
human bones along the beach. One mission today. Picked up sea shells.
9th - I sent $42. 85 home today. The wind blew hard all day. Went after
rations this afternoon. “Uncle Bud,”(rooster mascot), rode on the axle.
Eleven months in the Army today. The advanced echelon were within 7
miles of the enemy and were shelled for 16 hours killing about 20 men
and damaged a few planes.
10th - Moved towards the front again this morning. Went thru Zuara and
40 miles beyond. Arrived here in Tunisia about 5:00 PM. Just as we
pulled on the field, two ME-109's were above us. Ack-ack opened up
on them and they soon left.
11th - The Trans. truck ran on a mine last night which wrecked it but no
one got hurt. Pieces flew in all directions. Capt. D. Mitchell and Lt.
Gatti ran onto a mine today with a jeep injuring both of them, Mitchell
very seriously. The jeep was blown to bits. We had a good mail call
today.
12th - Capt. D. Mitchell died this morning. Both of Lt. Gatti’s ear drums
were pierced. I took care of E. Mitchell’s photo developing outfit while
he and Hudlow went back to pick up an old car. Lots of mail came in
today. Water shortage.
Page 17
�13th - A German reconnaissance plane flew over again at 5:30 tonight.
We had a big mail call today. Hit the slit trench once tonight and found
it filled with almost 15 guys in it. I ran about 100 yards to another one.
Col. Salesbury went up with a P-40 after him but didn’t get a shot.
14th - Esperson and the rest of the boys that were about 100 miles
behind us came here tonight. Heavy artillery heard from the front. Two
Scottish boys were here tonight that we got acquainted with at 174
field. Fixed Epie’s bed on the ground.
15th - One big mission today and we lost 5 pilots and planes. Flares
were dropped last night and a few bombs dropped. American bombers
went over today. The chow line and kitchen of the 79th was strafed
today and killed 20 men. Germans came over at meal time. Sent a
message home.
16th - Flares and bombs were dropped all night long over our field. We
were all up all night and no sleep. I dug my trench a little deeper today.
A very uncomfortable night. At one time there were 14 flares in the
sky. Heavy artillery heard early tonight.
17th - Sand storm. One mission today on some heavy German guns.
Moved out. We had no water for two days, nothing to cook with.
Everything is dirty and greasy. Flares and bombs were coming down
until about 11:00 last night.
18th - The water truck came in tonight. It broke down on the way back.
Sand blew all day. We camouflaged our tents last night because the
moon is brighter every night. I took the old Crosley over and got some
rations. Right hand steering wheel.
19th - Epie and I went on shift again this afternoon. We had raisin pie
that was just brown on top with sand. The wind blew all day. Every
drop of the pie was cleaned up, sand and all. Only one stove that’s any
good out of 5. The rest are plugged up with lead from 100 octane gas.
One blew up today. Made pancake batter tonight.
20th - The “A” echelon moved ahead today, we follow tomorrow.
Bombers and our fighters were after Jerry all day using the shuttle
system. Tonight at 8:30, the heavy artillery started, a continuos rumble.
Page 18
�We are very uncomfortable last night. Lame back all day.
21st - We moved up 28 miles. Started at 9:30 AM and pulled in here at
5:00. We can see the Mareth Line from here. Two German planes flew
over at 5:30 PM. Last night, flares were dropped and a heavy ack-ack
barrage was seen.
22nd - German flares were dropped all night. Some got no sleep. Heavy
gun fire heard all night at the Mareth Line. Two German
reconnaissances planes flew over at 5:00 PM.
23rd - I got up at 2:30 this morning and fried pancakes for breakfast.
Flares dropped all night which kept a lot of fellows up all night. Every
few minutes German planes were heard flying over us. We get our
water from Medinine, Tunisia, 6 miles from the front.
24th - We got a shot in the arm for typhoid today. Our pilots went on
one mission. Our guest for dinner today was Gen. Strickland and Gen.
Guard (sp). They inspected the kitchen. Heavy guns were rumbling
during their inspection.
25th - German planes flew very low over us all night. About 2 a minute
came for 2 hours, but it was so dark, nothing was dropped. Spent most
of the night in a fox hole. Heavy guns pounded all night. Big offensive
at the Mareth Line.
26th - Baltimore’s, Maryland’s, and Spitfires were flying over all night.
Jerry came over early this morning. A very hot wind and sand storm
today. Several missions this afternoon. Advanced crew went to
Medinine to operate this afternoon. Planes came back tonight.
27th - Capt. Reed was shot down in flames yesterday and an English
officer brought him back in a jeep today. He was thrown out of the
plane and came down in his parachute. Everybody suffered from the
awful heat today. Some were sick from it. Three bombs woke me up at
1:00 this morning. Flares a little ways off.
28th - I went on shift with Sgt. Crow today and he got busted to a PFC
for talking too much. One mission at 12:00 noon. An awful sand storm
came up at 3:00 PM and blew down the tent we bake in. Some pies and
Page 19
�the spaghetti were ruined with sand. Very hot today.
29th - We had 4 missions today. Lt. Wymond and Jaquea are missing.
Germans driven out of the Mareth Line at 9:00 this morning. The town
of Gabes, Tunisia, was taken today. We were all decorated with a bar
for the Middle East and Northern Africa campaign tonight.
30th - A German plane tried to spot us at midnight but failed. Flares
were dropped in every direction, a very pretty sight in the clouds. Lt.
Wymond made a beach landing near Gabes to try to rescue Jaquea who
landed in the sea 2 miles out. Lt. Jaquea was dead.
31st - Lt. Wymond came back today but went back again with some
more to get his plane out of the sand. Two missions today. Heavy guns
were heard all day beyond the Mareth Line. Cpl. Hudlow is printing
some pictures for me tonight. The weather was fine today.
April, 1943
1st - A hot sand storm came up tonight and blew down the baker’s tent.
Only a few stayed to eat.
2nd - Three bombs went off at 10:00 last night which caused most of us
to move pretty fast.
3rd - A cool wind blew sand all day. This morning at 4:30 a Jerry flew
over and circled us but dropped nothing. Epie and I were on shift so we
waited until he got out of hearing distance before we lighted any
stoves. Breakfast was out on time.
4th - Today at 2:00 PM we pulled out and went to a field 1 mile south of
Medinine. We pitched our tent in a wadi under an olive tree. The “A”
echelon will follow up tomorrow. Just west of us are the mountains of
the Mareth Line.
5th - Early this morning our planes came in and later the “A” echelon.
P-40's were flying over all day on missions. We hear Gabes fell today.
6th - Today B-25's were going over bombing Jerry. They got him on the
run for the sea. English and American P-40's also hit them heavy.
Page 20
�Stained back again.
7th - S fax, Tunisia, fell today.
8th - I went to the infirmary and they taped my back up and was put on
supervision duty in the kitchen. KP pusher until I get better. Everybody
is getting ate up by sand fleas, which stay in their blankets.
9th - I was inducted into the service just one year ago today. We are one
mile south of Medinine, Tunisia, in sight of the Mareth Line. The 12 th
Bomb Group gave us a scare tonight. They came over us to land after
dark.
11th - The “A” echelon pulled out this morning at 10:30. They are going
beyond S fax, a two day trip.
12th - We pulled out at 10:30 AM. Went thru Medinine and Gabes and
joined the “B” party at about 50 miles south of S fax. Nothing but wild
barley, snakes, and lizards. The headquarter’s stoves blew up today and
burned down the whole kitchen so we fed part of the personnel.
14th - We pulled out at 9:30 and went thru S fax and stopped at a field
near El Djem, Tunisia, about 50 miles from Sousse. We passed
thousands of acres of olive trees. Also, a few peach trees which had
green peaches about the size hen’s eggs on them.
15th - Our pilots flew in today at 1:00 PM. We are in sight of the great
Roman Colosseum, built BC. A two story stone building. It’s wall is
about 3 feet thick. The 50 Franc note has a picture of this building on
it.
16th - Epie and I butchered sheep until 11:00 PM last night for today’s
dinner. Some more fresh meat came in today. We got up at 4:00 this
morning and went on shift. The “A” echelon caught up with us today at
2:00 PM. Eight men were killed in an explosion of an ammo truck.
17th - Today, wogs were found setting land mines around camp, so
some of the fellows killed 15 of them. From now on we try to keep
them away. These mines are some the Germans left for them to set.
Some shots were fired at an enemy plane over us.
Page 21
�18th - This Roman Colosseum that we are near is one that they used to
turn lions in on prisoners of war. The king sat up near the top to look
on and watch the lions kill the men. A JU-88 circled over us this
afternoon. The ack-ack fired a few shots. Tonight, at 5:00, between 80
and 100 German transports started over here from Sicily. Our group,
with others, went out to meet them and shot down 77 of them. The 65th
got 18. One pilot, as he came back, landed and tipped over breaking his
arm. A few bombs were dropped last night.
19th - The “A” echelon was supposed to pull out today but it was called
off. Our pilots broke the world’s record yesterday on their mission at
5:00. The pilot that crashed last night shot 4 Jerry’s down. Three of our
pilots are still missing.
20th - We had our worst air attack last night. The first raid was at 9:30
and lasted a half hour. Six German planes came over from Sicily with
500 lb. bombs, butterfly bombs, and anti-personnel bombs which were
dropped all over. One man was killed and several injured in the 64 th
squadron. A few were injured in the 65th. Some were blown out of their
bunks and a lot of men took off across the field. I stayed in my slit
trench in the wadi, and two flares came down in a parachute just a few
yards from me. Everything was lit up like a Xmas tree. One plane from
the 65th was hit and burned up. Everybody is very upset today. No
sleep last night.
21st - We were bombed twice again last night. Twelve German JU-88's
came over and were dropping 1,000 and 2,000 lb. Bombs which blew
holes 15 feet deep. Also, butterfly and anti-personnel bombs were
dropped. One truck was blown to bits and a plane hit. Tents also got
hits. I took my blankets and went in the field away from everything and
slept on the ground along with most everybody. It rained and this
morning we were all wet. Most of us got about an hour’s sleep. The
“A” echelon is pulling out at 10:00 AM and headed out for or near
Kairouan, the city with the most churches in the world. We also moved
and joined them at 5:00 PM.
22nd - Rain. I was scared out of my wits about 2:00 this morning when
some bombs burst about 15 miles away. The German plane was circling
over us but dropped nothing. Yesterday we saw some American
soldiers from the 1st Army. I dug a deep slit trench tonight. Our first
Page 22
�chance to sleep in 2 days.
23rd - Rain. Some enemy planes tried to find us last night, but nothing
was dropped close. Most everyone today is shaking like a leaf from
being dive bombed so much at night. Some are getting used to it and
some are getting worse. Heavy artillery heard at the front.
24th - Rain. We were up and in our slit trenches most of the night
listening to 6 German planes circling over us, but it was too dark for
them to spot us. Tunis is expected to be taken in 2 days. Heavy artillery
heard in the west. Air raid expected tonight.
25th - A steady rumble of guns heard all morning. At 6:30 AM I went to
Sunrise Service at Group Headquarters. About 5 photographers were
taking pictures of us to be put in the “Yank” magazine. We met some
more American soldiers today and they were asking us how an air raid
felt.
26th - The weather today is very hot and the flies were thick and how
they did bite. A German reconnaissance plane was taking pictures over
us at 1:00 PM. He was up high, no shots were fired. This makes the 4th
day without sugar. Two missions today.
27th - One big mission at 5:00 PM. Heavy artillery barrage all night.
The fire from the guns made great flashes in the sky. Shelling was
heavy and steady all morning. Rations came in tonight. We cut up a
beef to be made into hamburgers tomorrow. Went on duty at noon.
28th - Oatmeal and raisins for breakfast. Fried hamburgers all morning
in hot tent for dinner. Several men are going into Kairouan every day.
The NCO club tent was put up last night. Met some American soldiers,
engineers.
29th - We had the chance to send a Mother’s Day greeting so most of us
did, (a cablegram). We had 4 missions today. Their objective was ships
in the harbor at Tunis.
30th - Cloudy. Our pilots went on several missions today. They hit a
German ship yesterday. I ordered my US Theater of Operations ribbon
from Sgt. Bertry today.
Page 23
�May, 1943
1st - Rain. A quiet day. Pilots had 2 missions today. We got paid in
Francs today at 1:30 PM.
2nd - Two missions. Quiet day.
3rd - I went along on the water run today, 8 miles west of Kairouan.
Stayed in Kairouan about 2 hours. French and wog people. The place
was full of American soldiers. Made out a money order of $27.18
today.
5th - The Major gave us a talk tonight about the present situation.
Bizerte is expected to fall any time. Several missions. One plane after
another was flying over us all night about 5 minutes apart. It kept most
of us awake all night.
6th - Bombers were flying over all night which caused some fear among
some. They turned out to be British Halifax’s. The “Yacht Club Boys”
were supposed to give us a 50 minute program tonight, but was called
off. This is the first thing like this we’ve had so far.
7th - Rain. The “Yacht Club Boys” gave us a program tonight in the
rain. Three new American soldiers joined us today. One of them sleeps
in our tent. They left the States in February but came her from Cairo.
Tunis and Bizerte fell today which was wonderful news for us.
8th - Rain. Bombers were flying over every 5 minutes all night. Heavy
artillery heard and flashes and flares seen. One Jerry plane flew over
here and dropped his bombs a few miles off.
9th - I attended church today at the NCO tent. A new chaplain gave us a
talk on Mother’s Day.
10th - We are going to have movies in the NCO tent tonight, 65th only.
“Cross country romance”.
11th - At 3:30 PM today there was no more bomb line in the Bon
Peninsula. The Axis are separated into 2 pockets in the mountains and
are fighting for their lives. Heavy guns and the Navy were heard
Page 24
�pounding enemy positions all night.
12th - Heavy guns were still at it all night just west of us in the
mountains. Signed pay roll today. Minor and I got up at 4:00 AM and
fried French toast for breakfast. END OF WAR IN AFRICA! Tonight
we celebrated by shooting flares and guns.
13th - Yesterday, 5 Canadian sailors stopped here for dinner. The 79 th
Fighter Group accidently bombed their ship and they were on their way
back to Tunis. Sun helmets were issued today.
14th - Some fellows went into Tunis and picked up several trucks and
cars which were taken from German and Italian prisoners.
15th - We were over seas just 10 months today.
16th - Our squadron started giving 2 day passes to Tunis yesterday. The
65th has rented a building to sleep and eat in.
18th - Rain.
19th - Rain. The “A” echelon moved out today and are going to a field
near Zuara. We will go soon. Passes then will be in Tripoli. It was just
a few weeks ago that we were stationed there.
20th - Weather is hot.
21st - Weather is hot.
22nd - I went to Sousse today and went in swimming in the
Mediterranean Sea. Ships sunk in the harbor and buildings badly
wrecked through the heart of town. This place is 35 miles from
Kairouan.
23rd - Very hot. A swimming truck left again for Sousse.
24th - We pulled out at 10:30 AM and arrived at a place on the beach
about 50 miles west of Zarzis for a rest. Half of the squadron is staying
here at Kairouan to train pilots.
Page 25
�25th - Weather hot. Some of the boys went fishing today but the wogs
won’t take them out where the best fishing is.
26th - We played a game of baseball with the 64th tonight.
June, 1943
8th - The 33rd Fighter Group who are stationed on Cape Bon, 10 miles
from the 65th, were bombed and strafed this morning at 6:00 which
killed 25 men of the ground crew.
9th - I sent a pillow case home today that I bought. We all went on a
hike this morning and swimming this afternoon. Those who could
swim had to swim 50 yards in rough water. I was classified as #2. The
orders are now to drill an hour in the morning and go for a swim in the
afternoon.
10th - We all swam 100 yards today and did other exercises. Picture
show tonight - “The Hard Way”.
11th - I went deep sea fishing today, out about 12 miles. One fish was
caught. Archer, a Red Cross man, a wog, and I had one little sail boat
about 15 feet long. The wog dove for sponges, clams, star fish, etc. for
us. On the way back, the sea got real rough and we all got wet.
14th - Our planes came in today and landed on the beach.
15th - Part of the 65th caught up with us tonight. Only 60 men left at
Cape Bon. Sand storm. Clothing check. Our bags have to be packed by
6:00 PM tomorrow. Nobody knows where we are going.
20th - Yesterday, the rest of “B” echelon pulled in after being broken
down for 4 days near Sousse. We had our teeth checked and issued our
needed supplies. There are 110 of us on the advanced commando raid.
We are taking 2 blankets and a pup tent and food enough for 10 days.
21st - Movies last night.
22nd - Most of “A” echelon moved towards Zarzis, a field 10 miles from
there.
Page 26
�23rd - The rest of us moved today to a field in an olive orchard near
Zarzis. I am in “A” echelon now with the advance party. They say we
will stay here about 10 days.
29th - Rifle inspection, equipment with sun glasses, and everything we
are short of for a party. I took another bath at the sulphur springs. Very
hot today. Movies about every night.
30th - Very hot. We got our orders to leave 7:30 AM on the 2nd of July
for Tripoli and board a boat.
July, 1943
1st - We got paid today, “A” party only. We are leaving here at 7:30
AM for Tripoli tomorrow to board a boat. Nobody knows where. Appel
went to a hospital today.
2nd - We left at 7:30 AM for Tripoli by truck. Arrived at 4:30 PM at
transit camp. Very hot, 136 deg. in the shade.
3rd - We left here and boarded a barge at Tripoli harbor. Six barges in a
convoy. About 300 men to a barge. Slept on wooden seats below deck,
rather tried to.
4th - Arrived at Valletta on the island of Malta at 4:30 PM. Loaded our
baggage on English & Maltese buses and drove about 10 kilo’s and set
up.
5th - Formation at 9:30 AM. Passes started today. At 12:00 midnight,
we had an air alert, siren, etc. This afternoon 3 fellows and I walked to
the sea and went swimming. Stopped at a spring on the way back and
washed the salt off. Island very hilly and rocky.
6th - One air alarm last night, search lights, etc. Walked to St. Paul’s
Bay. Sent laundry out by a native kid. Went on shift this afternoon.
Three sheep to cut up. Made stew.
7th - I had a half day’s pass this afternoon to Valletta and Sliema. Went
across to Gazo in a ferry and back in a small boat. Took some pictures.
Page 27
�8th - McFall and I hitched hiked to Valletta and Rabat and bought a few
souvenirs and took some pictures. We are located near Imgarre (sp), a
small village.
9th - A Maltese boy took me to his home tonight and showed me the
garden, etc. Went into the house and his mother made a cup of tea for
us.
10th - Invasion of Sicily. Spent a few hours in the village after I got off
duty and ate apples and mulberries. Took another bath in the side of the
cliff. A native came to the kitchen with his mule and cart and took me
for a ride.
11th - Two airdromes were taken in Sicily. My name is on the board to
move to Gazo in the morning.
13th - We pulled out today and went to a field near Rabat, Malta. From
here we will operate to Sicily. Our planes came in tonight from Africa.
Received 15 letters, the only ones in 2 weeks.
14th - I walked over to Mosta and found a place to have laundry done.
15th - We all pulled out today and went to a field near Hamrun. Here we
have our kitchen in an old wrecked cement building and us cooks sleep
on the roof.
16th - A year ago today we sailed out of New York. We are operating to
Sicily from this field in Malta.
17th - No operations all day. Rumors of moving.
18th - We left Malta by invasion barges tonight headed for Sicily. We
waited just outside the harbor until 11:00 PM before we took off. Lived
on K rations.
19th - We got up at 6:00 and landed at Pozzallo, Sicily at 9:00 AM and
walked ashore on a floating pier and waited for our trucks. They came
about 4:00 PM and we went to a near by field. Bridge was bombed.
20th - Our pilots had several missions all day, 2 planes cracked up.
Page 28
�Capt. Wymond bailed out, but is reported safe. Last night a great fire
bomb dropped a little ways off.
21st - We had several air alarms last night. German planes flew over us
but dropped nothing. A heavy barrage was seen a little ways off. Also,
a sniper during the night fired a few shots at some of the boys.
22nd - German planes flew over us several times last night and dropped
bombs not too far away. We hit the dirt 3 times from 2:00 AM to 4:30
AM. Several missions all day. Col. Salesbury is missing. Capt.
Wymond is in the hospital. Sgt. Poole was sent back to US on account
of asthma.
23rd - Col. Salesbury came back after being shot down and bailed out.
Two German planes came over at 11:00 AM. Four missions today.
24th - Early this morning the enemy sunk an oil tanker in a harbor near
by. Black smoke rose several thousand feet and made a big cloud. From
1:00 AM to 4:00 AM ack-ack tracers light the sky.
25th - At 4:00 this morning, the guards saw 3 German planes shot down.
The guns woke us up, but we didn’t see them burst.
26th - About an hour before day light this morning, the Germans flew
over and gave us another air raid. I skinned my leg and cut my foot
getting to the slit trench. Shrapnel whistled by but no damage was
done. Cheering of Italians over Mussolini’s assassination.
27th - Very warm. We had another raid early this morning. One German
plane was seen shot down. A steady ack-ack barrage over Syracuse was
going on for two hours.
28th - The “B” echelon came here today from Tripoli. At 11:00 AM, a
German ME-109 tagged our pilots back from the front and circled our
field at about 500 feet and probably took plenty of pictures. We fired at
him but it was too late before he was identified. We have 2 German
planes captured of the same kind.
29th - “B” party pulled out today at 10:00 PM. Last night, another field
was bombed near Syracuse.
Page 29
�30th - At 10:00 last night, we were raided by 9 German JU-88's. About
15 flares and a few bombs were dropped but caused no damage. The
ack-ack didn’t open up on them because it would give away our
position.
31st - Very hot. We pulled out today from southern Sicily and went
towards the center of the island. On the way, we got on the wrong road
and was just 3 miles from the front lines. Heavy artillery was behind us
and were shooting over our heads.
August, 1943
1st - Hot. Two Jerry JU-88's came over at 11:00 AM. We are now 5
miles behind the line. Heavy guns steady all night.
2nd - Hot. Catania shelled all night by British guns and American Navy.
Big flashes seen all night. We are in sight of Mt. Etna, which is beyond
the front line. We lost two planes, one pilot killed, with the other in the
Mediterranean afloat.
3rd - At 4:00 AM, we were awakened by German dive bombers. A
heavy barrage seen over Catania near Mt. Etna.
4th - Hot. A fire started in a wheat field and burned all afternoon. We
finally got it put out before dark. Fighters flew over all night.
5th - We hit the slit trench at 3:30 AM when dive bombers were playing
around upstairs. No flares were dropped.
6th - Hot. We lost 6 planes. Two of them crashed landing and others
shot up. Capt. Wymond came back from the hospital.
7th - One pilot was shot down and killed. German planes circled us all
night. Big flashes seen near Catania and Mt. Etna.
8th - Hot. Our pilots went on strafing and bombing missions. One pilot
killed.
9th - Hot weather. We got a shot in the arm and Small Pox Vaccination.
Page 30
�10th - Last night at 10:00 PM, several German planes circled over us
and dropped most of their bombs on Syracuse. We watched 3 planes
get shot down and burst in flames.
11th - We lost 2 planes. Mt. Etna smoking.
12th - We were attacked last night at 10:00 which lasted an hour. 32
men were killed and 45 wounded near by. Three fires were set and an
ammo dump which lighted the whole country.
13th - Some fellows took off for the hills last night. Nothing happened.
14th - One new pilot was killed when the motor stopped over a
mountain. Our firing squad turned out at the funeral.
15th - Yesterday, “C” echelon pulled in from Africa with “Uncle Bud”.
Eclipse of the moon tonight.
16th - Weather very hot.
17th - Messina taken at 5:00 PM by Americans. No more enemy
existence in Sicily except for a few snipers. Weather very hot.
18th - Doc. Sayouge (sp) brought 2 German busses back from Messina.
Dead people were piled up 4 feet deep.
19th - Rifle inspection. A few Canadian nurses visited the officers.
20th - Sent a cablegram home. Issued mosquito boots which we should
of had a year ago.
22nd - I pitched a game of ball tonight against the officers and we won.
During the game we were chased off the field by a P-40 which over
shot the field and crashed. We all ran over but the pilot was not hurt.
The plane was upside down when it stopped.
My dad’s diary ends here. The preceding pages were taken from two
very small books measuring approximately 2 ½” x 3 ½ inches. I don’t
believe he ended his detailed recordings here, but another diary
probably existed, but was lost. He did record his movements and dates
Page 31
�in another small book where he goes on to air fields in Italy near Bari
in 9/25/43, Foggia in 10/3/43, and near Mt Vesuvius in 3/2/44. He
later moved in 4/5/44 to Bastia, Corsica and on to Alto air base 18
miles south of Bastia where the pilots of the 57 th fighter group (64th,
65th, & 66th fighter squadrons), bombed the Germans in Italy less than
100 miles away. After about 5 months, he and his outfit moved back to
Italy in 9/11/44 to a field near Grosseto. This was his last recorded
place and date that was written in his travel log. He returned to the
States sometime during the summer of 1945 and was discharged from
the service at Ft. Sheridan, IL on August 15th, 1945.
Earl L Dennis
Page 32
�65th Fighter Squadron, Corsica
Page 33
�
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c4c61b46945d223618675413adf13bb4.pdf
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PDF Text
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Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Veterans History Project
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Grand Valley State University. History Department
Description
An account of the resource
The Library of Congress established the Veterans History Project in 2001 to collect memories, accounts, and documents of U.S. war veterans from World War II and the Korean War, Vietnam War, and conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, and to preserve these stories for future generations. The GVSU History Department interviews are part of this work-in-progress, and may contain videos and audio recordings, transcripts and interview outlines, and related documents and photographs.
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
1914-
Rights
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Subject
The topic of the resource
Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American
Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981--Personal narratives, American
Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American
Michigan--History, Military
Oral history
Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American
United States--History, Military
United States. Air Force
United States. Army
United States. Navy
Veterans
Video recordings
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American
Publisher
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Contributor
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Smither, James
Boring, Frank
Relation
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Veterans History Project (U.S.)
Identifier
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RHC-27
Language
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eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project interviews (RHC-27)</a>
Still Image
A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
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RHC-27_Earl_Dennis_Diary_Contents
Title
A name given to the resource
Diary of Earl Dennis (Outline, transcription and scan)
Subject
The topic of the resource
World War, 1939-1945
United States--History, Military
Army Air Corps
Military life
Soldiers
Diaries
Description
An account of the resource
Diary kept by Earl L. Dennis grew up outside of Coopersville, Michigan. He was drafted into the Army in April, 1942, at the age of 29. He trained at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, and was then stationed in Groton, Connecticut, where he became a cook for a fighter squadron 65th Fighter Squadron, 57th Fighter Group, 9th Army Air Force. He shipped out from New York and sailed around Africa to Egypt, where his unit supported the British 8th Army from the Second Battle of El Alamein through the conquest of Tunisia. They then went to Malta and supported the invasion of Sicily, and then went on to bases on Sicily. His diary covers his time in the service through the Sicilian campaign.
Both the scanned version of the diary and a transcription are provided, with an outline acting as a table of contents.
Creator
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Dennis, Earl
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1942-1943
Type
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Text
Format
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application/pdf
Source
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Veterans History Project Interviews, (RHC-27)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
World War II
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Rights
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Publisher
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives