Arthur L. Eads was born in Plainville, Kansas [Annotator's Note: in August 1920]. His father was a farmer, but then quit when Eads was seven and started working at a hardware store. Eads and his two siblings were sent his to live with his aunt and uncle for a year. Later, his father found another job in Meade, Kansas and Eads' family remained there for some time. The town was very small. Not long after they moved there, the Dust Bowl [Annotator's Note: The Dust Bowl was a period of severe dust storms that greatly damaged the ecology and agriculture of the American and Canadian prairies during the 1930s] began and then the market crashed [Annotator's Note: The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash, was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929] and Eads' father lost his job and did not find another until four months later. One day, Eads was outside selling oranges and saw a large black cloud rolling in his direction. He found shelter at a nearby building. When dust bowls came through, he could not see anything in front of him because it was so thick. During his eighth-grade year, he lived with his uncle and went to school in Iowa but returned home at Meade for his ninth-grade year. He wanted to play for the school's football team, but the coach told him he was too small. Eads found a clothes cleaning job and made three dollars a week. When the owner could not afford to keep him anymore, Eads went to work for the railroad company. He graduated high school in 1938 and then followed in his uncle's footsteps and entered the plumbing trade. He completed a four-year apprenticeship and received his license four months before going into the service. Eads did not want to be drafted into the Army, and instead enlisted into the Navy at Des Moines, Iowa. After a physical, the Navy told him that he was not fit for sailor duty but could join the Seabees [Annotator's Note: members of US naval construction battalions]. On 7 August 1942, Eads joined the Seabees as a 3rd class shipfitter and was sent to Camp Peary [Annotator's Note: in Williamsburg, Virginia] for training in high pressure boilers. He contracted pneumonia [Annotator's Note: an infection of one or both lungs] and had to stay in the hospital for some time. After he was discharged from the hospital, Eads was assigned to the 45th Seabees [Annotator's Note: 45th Naval Construction Battalion]. He was sent to California and stayed there for a few weeks before boarding a ship at the Seattle [Annotator's Note: Seattle, Washington] port. Eads' battalion disembarked at Kodiak, Alaska [Annotator's Note: on 28 January 1943]. The trip over to Alaska took about five days, and Eads was seasick for all five days.

[Annotator's Note: In late January 1943,] Arthur L. Eads [Annotator's Note: as a third class shipfitter for the 45th Naval Construction Battalion] was stationed at Kodiak, Alaska. His battalion was given orders to build a camp for the Army. Eads' main detail was in the ship's warehouse where all the plumbing and heating equipment were stored. His battalion remained at Kodiak for about nine months. The weather was very cold and very windy. Eads' company was sent to Tanaga [Annotator's Note: Tanaga Island, Alaska] to make log roads. He enjoyed the food while he was in Alaska and gained some weight. Eads and the 45th left the Aleutians [Annotator's Note: Aleutian Islands, Alaska] nine months later [Annotator's Note: on 4 May 1944] and went to Camp Parks in Oakland, California. His battalion was decommissioned because there were too many older men. Eads was given a 30-day leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time] and when he returned, he was assigned to a ship's company and worked in a store 24 hours on and 24 hours off. His detail was to keep everything clean. He was shipped to Honolulu [Annotator's Note: Honolulu, Hawaii] on the USS Mississippi (BB-41). He enjoyed his voyage over because the water was very smooth. When he arrived at Honolulu, he was assigned to the 133rd Naval Construction Battalion. [Annotator's Note: In October 1944] Eads and the 133rd received news that they were attached to the 4th Marine Division and were sent to Maui [Annotator's Note: Maui, Hawaii] to train with them. On New Year's Eve 1944 [Annotator's Note: 31 December 1944] , Eads boarded a ship with his battalion and headed for Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: Iwo Jima, Japan]. On the way over, they stopped at various islands to practice amphibious landings. Eads volunteered to take care of all the fire equipment while on the ship. Eads was promoted to 1st Class Shipfitter before landing on Iwo Jima.

On 19 February 1945, Arthur L. Eads [Annotator's Note: as a first class shipfitter for the 133rd Naval Construction Battalion] was aboard a ship in the Pacific and was given a steak breakfast before making the amphibious invasion on Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: Battle of Iwo Jima, 19 February to 26 March 1945 at Iwo Jima, Japan]. Eads and his group made their landing at noon thinking that they were in a secure area. However, they were wrong and had to dig in to avoid the incoming mortar [Annotator's Note: a short smoothbore gun which fires explosive shells at high angles] shells. His job was to bring in supplies on to the beach, but he was under such heavy fire that he could not do very much until three days later. [Annotator's Note: Phone rings and video break at 0:24:24.000.] While he tried to get out of the foxhole, a piece of shrapnel hit his helmet and put a gash in it. When he began unloading down on the beach, Eads dug a permanent foxhole to sleep in at night. He slept in that foxhole for 26 days. There was a time, when a shell came over his ship as Eads was unloading. He ran to his foxhole and found someone in it. Close to his foxhole was a 16-inch gun [Annotator's Note: unable to verify] and someone used it to hit the enemy that shot at them. The Americans began to cheer when the enemy was killed. After 26 days, they felt the island was better secured and moved into tents. However, the first night in their tents, some Japanese soldiers killed some fighter pilots in their bed. Eads moved into his tent with other plumbing men. His crew worked to turn the ocean water into fresh water for the troops. He also did other plumbing detail until August 1945. Eads saw the raising of the first American flag on Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: United States flag raised on Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima, Japan, 23 February 1945]. Because he did not have enough points [Annotator's Note: a point system was devised based on several factors that determined when American servicemen serving overseas could return home] to return home, Eads was sent to Japan in October 1945. He lived in a Japanese barracks and worked at an aircraft plant. He went into town a few times while he was there. In December 1945, he returned to the United States and disembarked at San Diego, California. He was discharged, took a train to Meade, Kansas and arrived home on New Year's Eve 1945 [Annotator's Note: 31 December 1945].

Arthur L. Eads met his wife not long after he returned home from World War 2. He married her in February 1946. He started a sheet metal and plumbing business with a friend, and later started his own business in commercial plumbing. He retired when he was 63 years old and sold his business to his partner. During his retirement, he and his wife travelled to Arizona in their motorhome during the winters.

Arthur L. Eads [Annotator's Note: as a 1st class shipfitter for the 133rd Naval Construction Battalion] was on a ship for a week and was given the news that his unit would take part in the Iwo Jima invasion [Annotator's Note: Battle of Iwo Jima, 19 February to 26 March 1945 at Iwo Jima, Japan]. After he made the landing on the beach, he remained there for 26 days in a foxhole. He had to help bring supplies in, but it was very difficult because of all the mortar fire. It was not until three days later after the landing that supplies were readily coming in. [Annotator's Note: Video break at 0:48:24.000.] Eads' company had a very high casualty rate but he believed an angel was protecting him the whole time. The first day, he made it up to an airstrip, but his company was told to return to the beach. The second and third day, Eads helped board wounded Marines onto the ships, which was difficult for him, especially seeing the Marines that had lost their minds [Annotator's Note: now called posttraumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, a mental health condition triggered by a terrifying event either experienced or witnessed]. While he was at Kodiak [Annotator's Note: Kodiak, Alaska] the weather conditions were cold and very windy. He lived in Quonset huts [Annotator's Note: prefabricated metal building] and watched shows outside. Eads worked in a warehouse, made good friends with the guys he worked with, and remained friends after the war. After the war, Eads attended reunions for the 45th Naval Construction Battalion. When he worked in Sitka [Annotator's Note: Sitka, Alaska] it rained a lot. He was given liberty [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time] a few times while he was stationed there. He attempted to ski a couple of times, but never actually did it. He broke his tooth while on Sitka and had to have it repaired. Eads and his unit always had enough food to eat. One of the Army captains refused to eat with the Seabees [Annotator's Note: members of US naval construction battalions] and did not allow the men in his unit to eat with them either. The Army captain was eventually transferred off the island. Overall, he enjoyed his time on Sitka and liked his duty of installing log roads [Annotator's Note: Screen blacks out at 1:00:49]. On his return to the United States, he boarded a rigged-out cruise ship and was able to stay in a cabin. They disbanded his battalion at Camp Parks [Annotator's Note: in Dublin, California].

Arthur L. Eads [Annotator's Note: as a 1st class shipfitter for the 133rd Naval Construction Battalion] was stationed at Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: Iwo Jima, Japan]. One of his tent mates accidently shot himself in the foot. Eads had to carry him to the aid station and just as they got there, the air raid siren went off. Three Japanese planes flew by but were shot down. Eads was interrogated by his commanding officers about what happened to determine if the man shot himself on purpose. Since Eads did not see it happen, he could not say. There was another incident where a guy was laying in his bed with his leg up. All a sudden a bullet ripped through the tent and through the man's leg. No one knows where the bullet came from. When Eads returned home from World War 2, he met and married his wife. They have been married for 62 years.

Arthur L. Eads did not talk about his World War 2 experience for many years. Fireworks make him very jittery. The war did not change Eads morally or philosophically. He had good morals and was a Christian when he left for the Pacific. Family comes first after God. He loves his family and are very close with his children and grandchildren. The war cost America many lives and the country suffered greatly because of that. Some Americans do not appreciate the sacrifice other made for the price of freedom. The nation is lacking in patriotism. Young Americans should have military experience. The world was changed due to World War 2. America should not trust Putin [Annotator's Note: Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, president of Russia]. Eads believes the World War 2 dismantled evils of the world, but people are not remembering what the war did for the country. There should be institutions like the National WWII Museum [Annotator's Note: The National WWII Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana], and they should continue to teach World War 2 to future generations because it will show the sacrifice men made for Americans to have freedom. While on Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: Iwo Jima, Japan] a Japanese soldier came over to his camp area to give himself up. The prisoner had been educated in the United States and could speak English well.