Henry Ratcliff was born in January 1923 in Columbia, Louisiana. He had five brothers. He grew up in the area of Jonesville, Louisiana. After the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression [Annotator's Note: The Great Depression, a global economic depression that lasted from 1929 through 1945], the family almost starved to death. His neighbors seemed to be going through the same problems. Food was hard to come by. His father died when Ratcliff was less than two years old. His mother remarried but Ratcliff's father could only find work for a dollar a day in the WPA [Annotator's Note: the Works Progress Administration was a federally sponsored program that put unemployed Americans to work during the Great Depression] after FDR [Annotator's Note: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States] took over. Ratcliff's mother had two more boys and two girls for a total of ten children. Ratcliff worked for the CC Camp - Civilian Conservation Corps starting at the age of 17, and did that for 18 months. He was in Louisiana, Oregon, and northern California with the CCC. He was there when Pearl Harbor was attacked [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941]. The CCC was disbanded at that point and Ratcliff returned home. He journeyed with his stepfather to Mississippi to help build an airbase. He did not stay there long. He returned home and in November 1942, Ratcliff enlisted in the Army.

Henry Ratcliff joined the Army Air Forces and went many places including California where it rained a lot. Eating in the rain was difficult. He slept under a truck. He went to boot camp in several places including in the mountains of California. He was dissatisfied, went up the chain of command, and requested a transfer. He was sent to a big airbase at Riverside, California. Eight men were in the company when he arrived. More men arrived and Ratcliff was made a corporal in no time. Soon after, he made sergeant. He went to San Francisco [Annotator's Note: San Francisco, California] to board a Liberty Ship [Annotator's Note: a class of quickly produced cargo ship] for overseas deployment in 1943. He voyaged unescorted for 23 days to Australia. When there was a concern about an enemy submarine, the passengers had to settled down and not walk or talk. While in Australia, he had nothing to do initially. He was with the Aviation Engineers assigned to the 5th Air Force [Annotator's Note: 860th Aviation Engineer Battalion, 5th Air Force].

Henry Ratcliff sailed into Oro Bay in New Guinea [Annotator's Note: as a member of the 860th Aviation Engineer Battalion, 5th Air Force in early 1944]. A long airstrip was built there out of steel matting clipped together. From Oro Bay, he went to several island locations building airstrips and bridges using the battalion's heavy equipment. When the surface was firm enough, the steel matting was not necessary. Instead the engineers used pea gravel and asphalt. The next location was Biak [Annotator's Note: Biak Island, West New Guinea] where the smell lingered miles away from the unburied Japanese troops. A long grave was dug to bury the bodies. The smell was sickening to Ratcliff. Leaving Biak, the battalion went to Owi [Annotator's Note: Owi Island in the Schouten Islands, Indonesia] where the battalion only had to scrape the surface to create the airstrip for the B-24s [Annotator's Note: Consolidated B-24 Liberator heavy bombers]. At times, the planes would barely lift off the strip in time to take flight. The battalion also went to the Netherlands East Indies before their assignment to Mindoro in the Philippine Islands.

Henry Ratcliff almost arrived home after his outfit did [Annotator's Note: 860th Aviation Engineer Battalion, 5th Air Force]. Ratcliff had wanted to go to Europe but that did not happen. He went home instead. It was December [Annotator's Note: December 1945] and he arrived home on New Year's [Annotator's Note: 01 January 1946]. He got married and stayed with his wife for 56 years until she died. The Army sent Ratcliff to Mississippi. He was very disgusted. He called his wife to join him, but he was transferred to northern California before she could arrive. He was tasked with guarding German prisoners. He was in bad shape starting at Mindoro in the Philippine Islands. His condition resulted from the fear he experienced from kamikaze [Annotator's Note: Japanese Special Attack Units, also called shimbu-tai, who flew suicide missions in aircraft] attacks. Ratcliff talked to a German prisoner who was a doctor. The prisoners were content to stay under guard and not try to escape. Ratcliff left his machine gun position overseeing the Germans to talk with the doctor. The physician sent Ratcliff to Fort Lewis Hospital [Annotator's Note: near Tacoma, Washington] where he was given medication. Ratcliff was interrogated there to confirm he was sick. Soon afterward, he was discharged in 1946. He was sent home. He tried to get situated with his new wife. He was in real bad shape and was given disability. The VA [Annotator's Note: Veteran's Administration] continually cut his disability until he decided not to report back to them. He lived in Cameron [Annotator's Note: Cameron, Louisiana] and was hit by Hurricane Audrey [Annotator's Note: in 1957]. He retired in 1983. He and his wife decided to move to Lacassine, Louisiana in the same year to avoid the devastation of hurricanes. She soon was diagnosed with cancer. She suffered with it for 16 years. When Ratcliff could not care for her anymore, she contracted two more cancers and passed away. He sold the house in Lacassine. He moved to Jennings [Annotator's Note: Jennings, Louisiana] and had his disability increased. Ratcliff was diagnosed with psychoneurosis [Annotator's Note: another term for neurosis, a relatively mild form of mental illness]. He suffered from sleep deprivation and was in bad shape resulting from the posttraumatic stress of the kamikaze attacks. He tried to live with his sister in Texas but then went to live with his son. Ratcliff was not able to drive any longer. He gave his new car to his daughter-in-law. Ratcliff tried to use the G.I. Bill [Annotator's Note: the G.I. Bill, or Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, was enacted by the United States Congress to aid United States veterans of World War 2 in transitioning back to civilian life and included financial aid for education, mortgages, business starts and unemployment] to attend school but his first born came along and he could not concentrate on his education.

Henry Ratcliff was most affected by the kamikaze [Annotator's Note: Japanese Special Attack Units, also called shimbu-tai, who flew suicide missions in aircraft] attacks during the war. Eight ships were sunk while 65 Zeros [Annotator's Note: Japanese Mitsubishi A6M fighter aircraft, referred to as the Zeke or Zero] were sunk. They hit the first ship in the center of his convoy. It was loaded with ammunition and high-octane gas. It blew up in route to Mindoro [Annotator's Note: Mindoro, Philippines]. Ratcliff fought for freedom during the war. He was ready to die for the country. Unlike Vietnam [Annotator's Note: Vietnam War, or Second Indochina War, 1 November 1955 to 30 April 1975], where things were different. The flag [Annotator's Note: United States flag] and taps [Annotator's Note: final call of the evening in the US military, also used at military funerals] make him emotional. The war turned Ratcliff upside down. He would not take back his service but would not go through it again. The country was close at that time. Without the war, America would be speaking Japanese and using Hitler's [Annotator's Note: German dictator Adolf Hitler] language. After the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941], their soldiers did not try to advance more. Ratcliff did not understand why not. The Japanese never made it that far again. The United States had no planes, ships, or tanks until the building programs ramped up. One ship was built in seven days. He sailed on a big ship that dropped its ramp and unloaded heavy construction equipment that Ratcliff's outfit used [Annotator's Note: 860th Aviation Engineer Battalion, 5th Air Force]. He slept topside on the ship for fear of the ship being torpedoed. The National WWII Museum [Annotator's Note: in New Orleans, Louisiana] is worth the money to keep the history alive. The youth of today should have military training in order to preserve the country. The president [Annotator's Note: at the time of this interview] seems to be taking the ability to fight away from the country. Ratcliff considers his mortality but concerns with that are not as serious as was his hunger and deprivation during the Depression [Annotator's Note: The Great Depression, a global economic depression that lasted from 1929 through 1945]. Young people need to love our country. After the World War 2 [Annotator's Note: generation] is gone, things will possibly go down.

Henry Ratcliff reached Mindoro [Annotator's Note: Mindoro Philippines, as a member of the 860th Aviation Engineer Battalion, 5th Air Force in December 1944.]. There was much work to be done there and the battalion stayed there longer than at any other site in the Pacific. Ratcliff has difficulty finding any information on his outfit. He did not work with the Navy Seabees [Annotator's Note: US naval construction battalions]. The Seabees had good food and accommodations compared to Ratcliff's battalion. His battalion began building airstrips as soon as they arrived in Mindoro. The 860th erected their tents while the Seabees put wood in the base of their tents. The Seabees had a better lifestyle than Ratcliff experienced. Prior to Mindoro, the battalion went to Leyte [Annotator's Note: Leyte, Philippines] first. While in Leyte Gulf in a convoy, kamikazes [Annotator's Note: Japanese Special Attack Units, also called shimbu-tai, who flew suicide missions in aircraft] circled the ships. Several P-38s [Annotator's Note: Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter aircraft] tried to protect the convoy. The ships knocked down 65 enemy aircraft. The battalion was glad to go to work in Mindoro after reaching there. Ratcliff was in Mindoro when the war ended. He reenlisted in the regular Army while he was there despite not being in good health after 25 months in the jungle. The 860th went to Japan which Ratcliff did not want to do. He caught a ship to Manila [Annotator's Note: Manila, Philippines] but did not think he would ever get home. He had a furlough [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time] when he reached San Francisco [Annotator's Note: San Francisco, California].