Arles J. Doss was born in October 1920 in Vivian, Louisiana. He remained in that town until he was 23 years old. He then moved to Houma [Annotator's Note: Houma, Louisiana] and went to work at Texaco [Annotator's Note: Texaco, Inc., also known as The Texas Company]. His father worked for Texaco in north Louisiana. His mother was a very good cook. His father was an outdoorsman. Doss learned to fish and hunt. He would go out with his brother to catch things. His mother would give him a skillet and lard and let him go out for days in the forest. He enjoyed camping, fishing, and hunting. He finished high school in 1938 and got married on 10 September 1939. Doss was raised near the Texas border. He was in Texas getting gas with his wife when he was asked to bring someone to Paris, Texas for a funeral. When he got back home, he was told about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941]. He was working for a contractor digging shallow wells in Louisiana. While in Vivian one night, he met a man who got him a job working for Texaco. Texaco changed its business name several times before he started working there. Doss had four brother who worked for the company, plus his father.

Arles J. Doss was drafted into the Army in March 1944 and did his basic training in Little Rock, Arkansas. He trained there for 17 weeks and then had 14 days leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time] before shipping out overseas. He landed near London, England. He then crossed the English Channel, landing on Omaha Beach [Annotator's Note: Normandy, France] sometime after the invasion [Annotator's Note: D-Day; the Allied invasion of Normandy, France on 6 June 1944]. Doss thought it was something to behold. Before he went into the military, when working near the shore [Annotator's Note: Louisiana coast], he was told by the Coast Guard to keep all of the lights out. It was difficult because all of the windows were painted black. At some point, he was working when U-166 [Annotator's Note: German submarine Unterseaboot U-166] blew up a tanker near Doss' camp. Parts of the ship remained above water, so Doss climbed aboard the vessel. He found gun shells in the ship. The ship never got to fire a round. Oil fires burned around the ship. Doss worked on salt domes for Texaco [Annotator's Note: Texaco, Inc., also known as The Texas Company]. Some of the domes were large and others were difficult to drill in. He needed to use special mud to drill into the domes. After doing that work, he joined the military. After his service, he went back to work in the same area. The oil factories then started drilling offshore, leading Doss to do work in the Gulf [Annotator's Note: Gulf of Mexico]. It was dangerous work at first because the ships moved around while the men tried to get on and off the platform. When the ship was in rough water, it became very dangerous to get on the platform. Doss never heard anything about enemy spies in the country. Doss knew a man who claimed to be the only Navy man to sink a submarine with a "Y Gun" [Annotator's Note: Depth Charge thrower; anti-submarine weapon] Doss could never verify that claim.

When he arrived in France, Arles J. Doss went to Saint-Lo [Annotator's Note: Saint-Lô, France], which had been totally destroyed. He served in the 104th Infantry Division [Annotator's Note: Company F, 2nd Battalion, 413th Infantry Regiment, 104th Infantry Division], commanded by General Terry Allen [Annotator's Note: US Army Major General Terry de la Mesa Allen, Sr.]. The 104th Infantry Division trained in night fighting. Doss did his basic training at Camp Joseph T. Robinson near Little Rock, Arkansas. When he left basic training, he was a buck private [Annotator's Note: private]. He was trained to kill people and to be tough. He also did survival training. Doss quickly learned how to follow orders, march, and take care of his rifle. He always had to keep his rifle clean. He trained with the M-1 Garand [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1 semi-automatic rifle, also known as the M1 Garand], which he thinks is the finest infantry weapon ever made. It weighed over nine pounds and could fire eight bullets. Doss does not think today's soldiers could carry the rifle he used. He carried his rifle and 70 to 80 rounds plus bandoleers. He was also given two hand grenades. One night, he was pinned down, but his hand grenade did not function correctly. Doss delicately released the explosive on the ground. The Germans were so close so Doss almost had to go into hand-to-hand combat. Two men around Doss were killed. He crawled to a ditch and found a dead soldier. Doss ran to a different area, then made it back to his original area. All of the men were scattered. He had to give a password to get back into his line. One person was so afraid, he forgot the password, but was able to convince the guards that he was an American. His captain was killed, but he was sent to take the town that night. He went from Belgium to Aachen, Germany, where he was in his first fire fight. Doss fought through the Siegfried Line [Annotator's Note: a series of defensive fortifications roughly paralleling the Franco-German border built by Germany in the 1930s]. He saw large pillboxes and tank obstacles. Some Americans managed to nullify the obstacles by pushing dirt onto them so the tanks could get over. The pillboxes had a slit to see through and a machine gun. The various pillboxes were able to cover each other with their machine guns. The Americans were able to get through by shooting into the slit, but most the time, the Germans left the bunkers if they knew Americans were coming. One man was able to speak German, so he interrogated a German officer who then offered to give up his men in a pillbox. The German did not return, so the G.I. [Annotator's Note: government issue; also a slang term for an American soldier] threatened to blow up the pillbox. The next morning, the Americans got into the pillbox, but the Germans were gone. The American soldier never gave up. [Annotator's Note: Doss shows emotion.]

Arles J. Doss has had a good life. He ate several different rations. He enjoyed the C rations [Annotator's Note: prepared and canned wet combat food] and the K-Ration [Annotator's Note: individual daily combat food ration consisting of three boxed meals] was a chocolate bar. The rations were in a heavy wax and cardboard carton. Doss would crush the carton so he could put bits of the ration in his pocket for later consumption. The K ration was not given to the soldiers often. Sometimes it had cheese, Spam, crackers, and candy in it. The rations always came with a small role of toilet paper. The C ration came in a small can. The food was very salty. Doss learned to cope with the cold food. The cheese was good and the Spam was alright. Sometimes, the soldiers would be given a hot meal when they came across a kitchen. While in Belgium, Doss was given pancakes to eat, which he enjoyed. On the frontlines, a mess sergeant would bring the men something to eat, even under fire. The cook would also bring cigarettes. The first time cigarettes were passed out, Doss took four packs, but it rained so much that two packs were wasted.

The night Arles J. Doss was wounded, the ambulance drove around without lights because the Germans could see them. Doss was wounded in Eschweiler, Germany. He was brought back to an aid station, then a field hospital, then evacuated to Westminster [Annotator's Note: Westminster, England] for treatment. He has three pieces of shrapnel the doctors left in him. When the shrapnel went in, it was very hot. Another person near Doss was also hit by the same shell. He was wounded 17 days before the Battle of the Bulge [Annotator's Note: Battle of the Bulge or German Ardennes Counter Offensive, 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945]. The battle was south of where Doss was located. The 106th Infantry Division was hit hard. Ten days prior, they were in New York. Doss's comrades took some German prisoners. Doss had to shoot a prisoner. He had a wife and a child at home and did not want the German to kill him. The whole time he was in Europe, Doss never received a letter from his wife, even though she wrote every day. It was not until he was in the hospital that he started getting the letters. He was sent to Miami [Annotator's Note: Miami, Florida] for rehabilitation. He received 60 letters while he was in Florida. His letters were sent through V-Mail [Annotator's Note: Victory Mail; postal system put into place during the war to drastically reduce the space needed to transport mail]. Doss tried to write to his wife when he could. His son was two years older when he returned home. His wife stayed with Doss's parents during the war. His mother lived through three wars. His father fought in World War 1. He worked in south Louisiana for two years before going into the war. After returning to the United States, he was put in a hospital in Macon, Georgia. He was given papers to return home for two weeks. He then went to a hospital north of Dallas [Annotator's Note: Dallas, Texas], which Doss did not like. There were not very many people or things there. He then went to Fort Ord, California, where he worked as a regimental armorer. After that, Doss was transferred to somewhere else where he was discharged as a buck sergeant [Annotator's Note: sergeant]. Sometimes, he wished he would have stayed in the service because he could have gained more rank. He supplied 14 companies with clothes and guns and led 44 men.

Arles J. Doss was north of Dallas [Annotator's Note: Dallas, Texas] when Germany surrendered. When the Germans surrendered, the German POWs [Annotator's Note: prisoners of war] near his camp were put under armed guard. He was then sent to Fort Ord [Annotator's Note: California]. He enjoyed his time there. His wife moved there and got a job on post. They had an apartment Doss could live in. At some point, Doss took a road trip with his wife and stopped at the University of Arizona [Annotator's Note: in Tucson, Arizona]. He stayed with a professor on campus. Doss served in Company F, 413th Infantry Regiment [Annotator's Note: Company F, 2nd Battalion, 413th Infantry Regiment, 104th Infantry Division]. While he was in Europe, Doss was friendly with French civilians. After bringing food to a family, the family signed a handkerchief and gave it to Doss. The towns had cobblestone paths and some of the kids wore wooden shoes, which made a lot of noise. The Germans that Doss crossed usually became prisoners. After a two day train trip, Doss arrived in Paris [Annotator's Note: Paris, France], and immediately went into town. Some French people told him that his train left him with all of his gear in it. Hundreds of soldiers missed that train. When he arrived back at his lines, he was put in the stockade. He never got his gear back, so he was reissued a kit. One time while he was at the front, Doss was volunteered to go into the German lines to see what they were doing. The Germans heard the Americans. Two Germans were taken prisoner, but the Americans could not take them, so Doss killed one. On his way back to his line, Doss was under fire. His commander was not happy that the prisoners were killed, despite telling Doss not to take prisoners. That episode weighed on Doss for many years. A preacher told him he was not responsible. For six weeks, Doss did not take his clothes off. He eventually made it to a town with baths in it, but he had to put back on the dirty clothes. [Annotator's Note: Doss discusses American football with interviewer.]

When he left for the military, Arles J. Doss's job at Texaco [Annotator's Note: Texaco, Inc., also known as The Texas Company] was guaranteed to still be there when he returned. Texaco paid his life insurance while he was in the service. Many of his coworkers were older, so they did not go into the service. When he came back, he found out some of them fought in the war. One was a Marine on Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: Iwo Jima, Japan] and another was in the Air Force. Doss had a six man crew and really liked the men. The different crews would compete with one another. Doss used a steam rig to drill his holes. The machine was much faster than other systems. Doss enjoyed his work. In the military, he had a different kind of boss than in the oil business. Also, in the oil business, he had a mission and was paid well for his work. In the military, Doss could slack off a bit more, even if he got fussed. Oil work was harder work for Doss than military life. Later on in life, he worked as a company man on rigs. After leaving Texaco, Doss went to work for himself as a consultant. He worked for a family from Houston, Texas. He did not learn anything in the military that crossed over into the oil business. He had a gun hobby after the war. He loaded his own ammunition. The military was very different from the oil business. In the oil business, if a person does not get the work, they are let go. In the military, people will be transferred somewhere else. When Doss graduated from high school, a college education was not important, so he went to work. His father worked for Texaco as well. Doss went to Nigeria and Trinidad while working for Texaco. He did not like Nigeria, but thought Trinidad was somewhat better. He thinks the American people are the best. He thinks the various people of America are all different. He thinks southern women are very pretty.

There was a Czechoslovakian man who could not pronounce Arles J. Doss's name. During basic training, a man would play the harmonica, but Doss did not like the song he played. Doss watched a sergeant polish his boots well enough that the soles of his shoes were shiny. There was another man who could not put his uniform on correctly. That man was put in the airborne. Doss was offered a spot in the Rangers, but he decided not to join. He saw three Rangers in a stockade while he was also in one. The Rangers escaped that night. Doss saw a German prisoner put on a jeep and driven around so an American would shoot him. Doss also saw commissioned officers being arrested for going AWOL [Annotator's Note: absent without leave]. He does not know how the United States won the war because everyone was going anywhere they wanted. He is proud to have done his duty. His son served as a Marine in Vietnam. He also had two grandsons who served in the Marine Corps.

Arles J. Doss does not know if any military equipment was used in the oil business. He used a drill and mud to do his work. Having the correct weight and amount of mud was very important when drilling. If Doss did not use the correct weight and amount, there could be a blow out on the rig. Every drill spot was different. A new man on an oil rig was called a worm and they would be hazed. When the Americans made it into Germany, things started slowing down for the Germans. Doss was hit right before his unit [Annotator's Note: Company F, 2nd Battalion, 413th Infantry Regiment, 104th Infantry Division] crossed the Rhine River near Cologne [Annotator's Note: Cologne, Germany]. The Germans could not move equipment fast enough to stop the Americans. There was a pipeline that ran through Germany to Cherbourg, France, that pumped gasoline for the Germans. The French learned how to steal gas from that pipeline. Doss thinks the Germans underestimated how much they needed gas and oil. They put the 88mm gun [Annotator's Note: German 88mm multi-purpose artillery] on all their tanks. Doss thinks the Americans copied all their weapons from the Germans, except the M-1 Garand [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1 semi-automatic rifle, also known as the M1 Garand]. He believes the Americans could improve anything. Doss was trained to spread out when moving. He pushed far enough ahead that his unit had to post guards in their rear as well as the front. The Germans liked to lure their enemies in close, then encircle them. Doss moved through beet fields and towns. In one town, a commander ordered his men cleaned and shaved. Doss found a razor in a house he raided. In another town, the Americans found a single chicken, which they promptly cooked. It was dangerous to drink the water found in the towns.

Arles J. Doss returned to Europe twice. He visited Italy and Germany on one trip. In the Black Forest [Annotator's Note: Germany], he was shown large ant hills used to help with disease. He also visited the Coliseum in Rome [Annotator's Note: Rome, Italy]. He was impressed with the architecture. The Romans kept slaves in some of the stone rooms. Doss was interested in the engineering of the building. He wondered where the stones came from and how they were moved. Doss saw many pieces of art by Michelangelo [Annotator's Note: Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni; Italian artist]. He was impressed by the Sistine Chapel [Annotator's Note: Vatican City, Italy]. On another trip to Europe, he visited friends in Venice [Annotator's Note: Venice, Italy]. He saw a few shows. His friend was a millionaire. Doss enjoyed how he was raised, his time in the oil business, and his military career. He liked working offshore. He liked working on the drilling tender. It could be dangerous getting on it when there was a swell in the water. Doss never saw anyone fall off of the drilling tender. One time, he was hoisted on deck by holding onto a hook. The men liked to play jokes on each other. Everyman used to wear khaki clothing. One night, Doss swapped the clothing of a tall worker with the clothing of a smaller worker as a joke. They tried to put the clothing on in the dark. They played various pranks on one another. One man was not used to working during the summer and was sweating a lot. Most of the men contracted athlete's foot, so they had medicine for it. They convinced the sweating man to put the athlete's foot medication on his chaffed skin, which caused a burning problem. Doss gave him something for the burning, but it made it worse. In the mornings, they could watch the cook sail in to make them pancakes. There was rice with every meal.

In 1959, Arles J. Doss went on vacation in California and took pictures and videos. While in Switzerland, he took pictures of the mountains. Doss later found out that every mountain looked alike and decided to never take pictures of mountain again. He put all of his pictures on long rolls of film. One of Doss's friends liked taking pictures. [Annotator's Note: Doss shows pictures to the interviewer.] There was a ship torpedoed by U-506 [Annotator's Note: German submarine, Unterseeboot U-506] just 12 miles from Doss's work camp. Some of the survivors were brought to a hospital in Morgan City [Annotator's Note: Morgan City, Louisiana] and Houma [Annotator's Note: Houma, Louisiana]. After that episode, they started building bigger hospitals in the area.