Edgar Harrell was born in October 1924 in Cadiz, Kentucky. He was 18 when he joined the United States Marine Corps in Indianapolis, Indiana. He did his boot camp in San Diego [Annotator's Note: San Diego, California], and then he was sent to sea school. After completing school, Harrell was sent to San Francisco [Annotator's Note: San Francisco, California] to join the crew of the USS Indianapolis (CA-35). Harrell was part of many of the missions of the USS Indianapolis including Kwajalein [Annotator's Note: Kwajalein Atoll, Marshal Islands], Saipan [Annotator's Note: Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands], Tinian [Annotator's Note: Tinian, Mariana Islands], Guam [Annotator's Note: Guam, Mariana Islands], sea battles in the Philippines, Peleliu [Annotator's Note: Peleliu, Palau], Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: Iwo Jima, Japan], Okinawa [Annotator's Note: Okinawa, Japan], and part of the three air strikes on Tokyo [Annotator's Note: Tokyo, Japan]. He was a Marine guard guarding parts of Fat Man [Annotator's Note: Fat Man; codename for atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan 9 August 1945] and Little Boy [Annotator's Note: Little Boy; codename for atomic bomb dropped Hiroshima, Japan 6 August 1945] atomic bombs for the ship's secret mission beginning on 16 July 1945. After the ship was damaged by a kamikaze [Annotator's Note: Japanese Special Attack Units, also called shimbu-tai, who flew suicide missions in aircraft] at Okinawa, it was brought in for repairs [Annotator's Note: at Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo, California]. After repairs were completed, a large crate was transferred onto their quarter deck. He was not told what was in it but was told to guard it. Some air force official boarded the ship and had unusual equipment with padlocks. The ship docked in Tinian after 10 days of passage. The crate was unloaded, and they did not find out that they were holding the atomic bombs until after they were rescued from the sinking [Annotator's Note: the ship was sunk 30 July 1945]. Captain McVay [Annotator's Note: US Navy Captain, later Rear Admiral, Charles Butler McVay III] of the USS Indianapolis had requested an escort but was denied it by the Navy. The ship was sent out into the Pacific with no protection as they made their way to Guam. On 30 July 1945, just after midnight, the USS Indianapolis was struck by two Type 95 torpedoes[Annotator's Note: Japanese torpedoes], one in the bow and one amidships, from a Japanese submarine, captained by Commander Mochitsura Hashimoto. Before being struck, the captain decided to no longer zigzag [Annotator's Note: a naval anti-submarine maneuver] and allowed the sailors to sleep out on the deck. When Harrell completed his watch duty for the night, he went below deck and grabbed his blanket to make a pallet on the deck. After the torpedoes hit the ship, Harrell made his way to midship to get to his emergency station. He had no life jacket and wanted to grab one that was still stored above his emergency area, but the lieutenant Marine told him not until they receive orders to abandon ship. Harrell knew that it was only a matter of time because water was already coming on the main deck of the ship. They eventually cut the life jackets down and Harrell grabbed one. The ship lost all electrical power, so it was passed down orally when to abandon ship. As Harrell looked over the quarter deck holding on to a cable he could see tons of oil in the water, even thought it was in the middle of the night. He thought that he was going to die that day and began praying to the Lord. He leapt into the water and found two of his fellow Marines. One had oil in his eyes and the other had several broken bones and died within the hour.

Edgar Harrell was floating in the Pacific Ocean with a life jacket while other were not [Annotator's Note: after he abandoned the sinking USS Indianapolis (CA-35), 16 July 1945]. Many were injured and over a dozen men died that first night. The first morning after the sinking, Harrell could see sharks swimming by which scared everyone. As time passed, some men began to hallucinate and when they swam away from the group, the sharks attacked them. During the day, it would get to over one hundred degrees. Harrell was dying of thirst but did not drink the salt water. Men continued to perish due to injury, exposure to the heat during the day, freezing at night, saltwater, and sharks. Harrell's tongue began to swell but he still did not drink the salt water despite being desperate for water. Other men who did drink the saltwater began to hallucinate. At one point a rain cloud came over them and they were able to drink some rainwater. By the third day, Harrell could hear the men still alive praying to God to save their lives. His life jacket was losing buoyancy, and he had to work to keep his head above water. By the end of the third day there was only 17 men still alive around him. At one point during the third day, they saw a raft in the water. As the raft came closer to their group, they saw a group of sailors hanging onto it. They had created a makeshift raft and used a variety of equipment to make it float. The sailors helped the Marines create a raft as well using their life jackets. The sailors, Harrell, and a couple of other Marines decided that they must make their way closer to the Philippines so they can be spotted. On their way, Harrell spotted debris in the water. He swam over to see that it was a container of potatoes. Even though they were rotten, he peeled one and ate it. After telling some his friends, they ate some too. The waves died down at night. [Annotator's Note: phone rings in background and video breaks at 0:36:16.000.] Harrel reunited with some other sailors and Navy Lieutenant that evening, and then on the fourth morning, he woke up to realize he was separated from everyone but a sailor and the Navy Lieutenant. The sailor eventually died.

Edgar Harrell had very little energy and was just hoping for someone to discover him [Annotator's Note: while floating in the ocean for four days after he abandoned the sinking USS Indianapolis (CA-35), 16 July 1945]. Harrell spotted a plane flying a few thousand feet high and began waving at it. The pilot [Annotator's Note: US Navy Lieutenant Wilber Chuck Gwinn] saw a reflection of a mirror and thought it was a Japanese submarine. He realized it was men floating in the water. Lieutenant Marks [Annotator's Note: US Navy Lieutenant Commander Robert Adrian Marks] received communication from Gwinn and flew a PBY [Annotator's Note: Consolidated PBY Catalina amphibious aircraft] to the area. He spotted men scattered all over the waters with sharks nearby. Against his commander's orders, Mark landed the plane in the water to rescue the men from being killed by the sharks. Marks was able to collect 56 men out of the water. The plane was unflyable and used as a flotation device. Harrell recognized one of his friends, Spooner [Annotator's Note: US Marine Private Miles "Mike" Spooner], who survived. He was eating some bean water. After nightfall, the destroyer escort USS Cecil J. Doyle (DE-368) finally arrived, and Harrell was loaded on a stretcher and boarded the ship. He was stripped of his clothing, cleaned, and given new clothing. He was taken to a hospital in Peleliu [Annotator's Note: Peleliu, Palau] for a couple of days and then transferred to Guam [Annotator's Note: Guam, Mariana Islands]. He remained in the hospital for several weeks. On 6 August 1945, Harrell found out what he was guarding after the United States dropped the atomic bomb [Annotator's Note: nuclear weapons dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, 6 and 9 August 1945] on Hiroshima. Harrell received a Purple Heart [Annotator's Note: the Purple Heart Medal is award bestowed upon a United States service member who has been wounded as a result of combat actions against an armed enemy] while he rested in Guam.

Edgar Harrell stayed in a hospital in Guam [Annotator's Note: Guam, Mariana Islands] for some time [Annotator's Note: after surviving the sinking of the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) and being rescued at sea after four days] before being transferred to the United States on 2 October 1945. He was supposed to have a 90-day leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time], but he felt sick the night before it commenced. He went to sick bay, and they eventually sent him to a hospital in California to operate on him. His appendix was leaking poison into his body. Unfortunately, the doctor refused to operate because his white blood cells count was low. Instead, he was given penicillin [Annotator's Note: an antibiotic] for 29 days and eventually became well again. In January 1946, he finally returned home to his family. Harrell could not talk about his war experience for a very long time. A friend of the family convinced Harrell to tell his story to him, which he did. Harrell felt weight come off his chest after he was able to confide in someone. Harrell suffered from posttraumatic stress and struggled to blend back into civilian life. He worked with his dad as a contractor and learn how to be a civilian again. He eventually was given a job at Pella window company as a distributor in Iowa City [Annotator's Note: Iowa City, Iowa] and Rock Island, Illinois for the next 35 years. He retired in 1985 and wrote a book about his experience on the USS Indianapolis in 2005 that became widely successful [Annotator's Note: "Out of the Depths: An Unforgettable WWII Story of Survival, Courage, and the Sinking of the USS Indianapolis" by Edgar Harrell and David Harrell].

After listening to Walter Winchell [Annotator's Note: Walter Winchell, American newspaper columnist] on the radio talking about the Marines, Edgar Harrell wanted to join the Marines Corps instead of being drafted. After bootcamp and a short stateside service in 1943, Harrell was assigned to the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) [Annotator's Note: sometimes referred to as "Indy"] in March 1944. When he saw "Indy" for the first time, he was in awe on how massive the ship was. He and 39 other Marines supervised all guard duties including the brig and anti-aircraft guns. Harrell was selected to be a captain's orderly. He made friends with many Marines and sailors. While on guard duty one day, he came upon a sailor on duty sleeping with a .45 gun [Annotator's Note: .45 caliber M1911 semi-automatic pistol]. Harrell took the gun and left. When he returned, he woke the sailor and asked where his gun was, which the soldier did not know. Harrell took the sailor to the bathroom and made him wash his face to wake up. Harrell gave the gun back to the sailor and made him promise not to say anything about this incident to anyone. Harrell wrote a successful book [Annotator's Note: "Out of the Depths: An Unforgettable WWII Story of Survival, Courage, and the Sinking of the USS Indianapolis" by Edgar Harrell and David Harrell] and was invited to speak all over the United States. [Annotator's Note: Interviewer pauses interview at 1:08:45.000.] While aboard the USS Indianapolis, Harrell lived in a large room and was assigned to a top bunk. He was homesick at the beginning of his tour and missed his family desperately. He was a country boy that knew how to work and take orders, so he never had any conflicts about his duties on the ship. One of his battle stations was to man, load, and supervise a 40 millimeter [Annotator's Note: Bofors 40mm antiaircraft automatic cannon]. Later he was given orders to man a five-inch gun [Annotator's Note: five-inch, 38 caliber naval gun]. All the guns were hooked up to radar. While at the battle of Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: Battle of Iwo Jima, 19 February to 26 March 1945 at Iwo Jima, Japan], a kamikaze plane [Annotator's Note: Japanese Special Attack Units, also called shimbu-tai, who flew suicide missions in aircraft] was coming in his direction, and he began firing at it. The guns were so loud and had so much force that Harrel was knocked down and his ear began to bleed. He was told to report to sick bay. He suffers from hearing loss today.

After being assigned to the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) [Annotator's Note: sometimes referred to as "Indy"], Edgar Harrell's first tastes of combat were at Kwajalein [Annotator's Note: Battle of Kwajalein, 31 January to 3 February 1944 at Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands] and Eniwetok [Annotator's Note: Battle of Eniwetok, 17 to 23 February 1944 at Eniwetok Atoll, Marshall Islands]. His unit was given orders to "clean up" the islands. There was some enemy fire as he stormed the beach, but it was not heavy, and the USS Indianapolis did not receive a battle star [Annotator's Note: service star; a device worn to denote subsequent awards on medals and ribbons; also called campaign stars or battle stars] for this event. Their participation at Saipan [Annotator's Note: The Battle of Saipan, part of Operation Forager, 15 June-9 July 1944; Saipan, Mariana Islands], Guam [Annotator's Note: Second Battle of Guam, 21 July to 10 August 1944 at Guam, Mariana Islands], and Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: Battle of Iwo Jima, 19 February to 26 March 1945 at Iwo Jima, Japan] were much more in depth and they received heavy enemy fire. The USS Indianapolis observed the Marines planting the flag on Mount Suribachi at Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: United States flag raised on Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima, Japan, 23 February 1943]. Harrell witnessed the Marines storming the beach, fighting the rocky terrain, and encountering the enemy. To provide support for the troops on the island, the USS Indianapolis was part of a task force and travelled through bad weather three times to strike Tokyo [Annotator's Note: Tokyo, Japan]. The ship was successful in all three missions. Prior to the Battle of the Philippine Sea [Annotator's Note: Battle of the Philippine Sea, 19 to 20 June 1944], Harrell heard over the ships intercom that they were not running from the enemy but heading towards them. When they encountered the enemy, the American forces were well prepared for the fight and had an advantage going into battle. Harrell's task force shot down over 400 Japanese planes. There was so much fire in the sky, it was impossible for the Japanese air force to get through the sky. Harrell watched plane after plane crash into the water. Some of the Japanese pilots were taken prisoner and interrogated on the USS Indianapolis. When the USS Indianapolis was at Okinawa [Annotator's Note: Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, 1 April to 22 June 1945 at Okinawa, Japan] they bombarded the beach head. They were at a very close range from the beaches and made some great hits. Harrell was manning the 40-millimeter [Annotator's Note: Bofors 40mm antiaircraft automatic cannon]. A Japanese bomber plane dropped a bomb onto the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) during this battle. The bomb plummeted through the deck, into the crew's mess hall, down through the berthing compartment, and through the fuel tanks before crashing through the keel and exploding in the water underneath. The propeller shaft was damaged, and the ship was given orders to head back to the United States. Before the ship did, the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) was a sitting duck for kamikaze [Annotator's Note: Japanese Special Attack Units, also called shimbu-tai, who flew suicide missions in aircraft] ships and planes. They were successful in protecting the ship before they could head home.

Edgar Harrell was assigned to the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) [Annotator's Note: sometimes referred to as "Indy"] serving under Captain McVay [Annotator's Note: US Navy Captain, later Rear Admiral, Charles Butler McVay III] as his orderly. Harrell was treated very well by the captain and had great respect for him. In the 1960s, the USS Indianapolis survivors had a reunion and invited Captain McVay. Harrell met him at the airport. During one of their rest periods during World War 2, they were at a small island, and McVay and Harrell went fishing together. McVay was court-martialed [Annotator's Note: a judicial court for trying members of the armed services accused of offenses against military law] for the sinking of the USS Indianapolis [Annotator's Note: 17 July 1945]. Harrell knew that it was a cover up because he was the only captain that was put to trial for losing a ship. The Navy refused to give McVay an escort after delivering the atomic bomb [Annotator's Note: nuclear weapons dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, 6 and 9 August 1945], knowing that there were enemy submarines nearby. Harrell claims that the communication records that should have exonerated McVay from the charges against him. Nevertheless, McVay was court-martialed, and blamed for the sinking of the ship. He received many letters from widowed wives and family members that lost their husbands and sons that died in the sinking. McVay eventually killed himself because of the guilt. Many of the survivors fought the military and Pentagon [Annotator's Note: the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Washington D.C.] in defense of McVay. Harrell spoke of a boy who became interested in the sinking of the USS Indianapolis and began researching it. He proved that McVay was not responsible for the sinking and was able to get the captain exonerated.

Edgar Harrell suffers from posttraumatic stress from his experience on the USS Indianapolis (CA-35), but as a Christian man, he knows that God was always protecting him. Harrell pleaded to God to keep him alive, when he questioned if he could endure the time in the sea. It feels like yesterday to him. Harrell gets emotional when he talks about his rescue to others. He thanks the Lord every day for bringing him through the ordeal. Harrell wants future generations to know that there was no easy solution to end World War 2. Harry Truman [Annotator's Note: Harry S. Truman, 33rd President of the United States] was faced with a very difficult decision when he chose to drop the atomic bombs [Annotator's Note: nuclear weapons dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, 6 and 9 August 1945] in Japan. Harrell believes Truman made the right choice, and today Japan is our friends. We [Annotator's Note: Americans] do not respect our veterans today as America should. The government had failed Americans since World War 2. Harrell enjoys telling his World War 2 story because so many people do not know about it.