US Merchant Marine

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Johnsen, Erik Early Life and Enlistment
Erik Frithjof Johnsen was born in New Orleans, Louisiana in August 1925 and had one brother who had been born in 1922....
Langrall, Clarke Early Life and Entrance into Service
Clarke Langrall was born in December 1924 in Baltimore, Maryland. Growing up during the Great Depression, things were...
Crump, Ralph Early Life and Moving to California
Ralph Crump was born and raised in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The years of the Great Depression were "terrible," Crump said...
Whitaker, Harold Early Life and Reuniting with Family
[Annotator's Note: Interview begins with the interviewer introducing himself.] Harold Whitaker was born in Henrietta,...
Broll, Walter End of the War
Walter Broll and the Grace Abbott left Bari, Italy and headed for the ocean. Broll and the deck crew secured the...
Wellington, Harold Entrance into Service
Harold Wellington remembers Pearl Harbor was attacked on a Sunday [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl...
Harrison, William Farm Boy to Merchant Marine
William Jennings Bryan Harrison, Jr. was born in Shreveport, Louisiana in December 1926. He was named after his father...
Johnsen, Erik Final Thoughts
Erik Johnsen served in the US Merchant Marine during World War 2. Thinking about the war, he says that during it he...
Shaw, Roger Final Voyage
Roger Shaw boarded another ship after his assignment as captain of the Army transport. The ship had a radio operator...
Crane, James First Convoy
James Crane experienced a great change in the Merchant Marine. He was concerned about making the first convoy, but he...
Shaw, Roger First Mate
Roger Shaw wanted to ship out on a vessel that traversed the Mississippi River frequently. This would better enable him...
Campbell, John First Ship and Navy Guards
John Scott Campbell's first ship was on the Great Lakes [Annotator's Note: also called the Great Lakes of North America...
Johnsen, Erik First Ship Assignment
Erik Johnsen was a Cadet in the US Merchant Marine and his first ship assignment was the SS Dolly Madison which they...
Hughes, William First Voyage
William B. Hughes was sent to Merchant Marine boot camp in St. Petersburg, Florida. Afterward, he went to New Orleans...
Yoho, David First Voyage
David Yoho had his first voyage on a tanker shakedown trip to Halifax, Nova Scotia. After the shakedown, the ship went...
Shaw, Roger First Voyage as a Captain
Roger Shaw made a big mistake in his first opportunity as a ship's captain. He was assigned to an Army transport and...
Crump, Ralph From Deferment to Enlistment
In the beginning of 1943, Ralph Crump's draft status required that his boss write a letter every six months to the...
Campbell, John From East to West
John Campbell returned to the United States from Europe in April 1945. Everything on the East Coast was shut down...
Whitaker, Harold From the Merchant Marine to High School
By the time Harold Whitaker made his first voyage carrying grain to North Africa the war in Europe was over so there...
Broll, Walter German Air Raid on Bari Harbor
Walter Broll saw the raid on Bari, Italy start at about 7:30 at night while the Grace Abbott's cargo was being...
Broll, Walter Going to Sea
Walter Broll sailed north of Iceland on his first convoy. The ship zig-zagged over the course of the voyage. He did...
Langrall, Clarke Hauling Hazardous Cargo
When Clarke Langrall arrived at the gate leading to his ship [Annotator's Note: SS Vernon L. Kellogg], he was checked...
White, Dee Homefront Views of the War
Dee Wayne White has vivid memories of his life on the Home Front in Richmond, California during the World War 2. From...
Campbell, John Hostile Journalism
John Scott Campbell says that Westbrook Pegler [Annotator's Note: Francis James Westbrook Pegler, American journalist...
Saunders, David In the Army Now
By May 1944, David R. Saunders had joined the Army and was sent to Camp Beauregard [Annotator's Note: in Pineville,...
Balabanow, William In the Merchant Marines
William Balabanow was born in February 1926 in Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania. His stepfather was a miner. During the...
Campbell, John Integration in Merchant Marine
In 1944, John Campbell came back from Karachi Annotator's Note: Karachi, Pakistan] with a load of British trucks to...
Crump, Ralph Introduction to a Career in Maritime Engineering
After he graduated from high school, Ralph Crump opted against college, because he considered it a low-cost recruitment...
Whitaker, Harold Joining the Air Force
After high school, Harold Whitaker was bumming around and getting trouble until his mother and a family friend...
Whitaker, Harold Joining the Merchant Marine
Harold Whitaker and a few friends went up to San Francisco in the summer of 1945 and joined the Merchant Marine. They...
Yoho, David Joining the Merchant Marine
As a 13 year old, David Yoho did not have friends of draft age. He did keep company with older boys and took on a tough...
Campbell, John Joining the Merchant Marine
A neighbor of John Scott Campbell's had gone to sea. He would come home and tell sea stories and that sounded good....
Campbell, John Joining the US Merchant Marine
John Campbell was mostly selling newspapers while in high school. He was making as much as a lot of men who were...
Broll, Walter Joining the US Merchant Marine
Walter Broll passed through the station [Annotator's Note: the Merchant Marine training station at Sheepshead Bay in...
Campbell, John Journalist Lies
[Annotator's Note: The interviewer asks John Campbell about the journalists Walter Winchell and Westbrook Pegler]. They...
Lindsey, James Korean War Air Force Service
In September 1947, James T. Lindsey enlisted in the US Army Air Forces to become a pilot. Because of his background in...

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