Lincoln D. Brennan Sr. was born in August 1925 in New Orleans, Louisiana and grew up in nearby Metairie. His father was a salesman for the New Orleans Public Service Inc. and performed in minstrel shows as a yodeler. Brennan was the youngest of four boys, all of whom served in World War 2. He wore his brother’s hand-me-down clothes and had to walk to school. His childhood was hard sometimes. He went into the woods to chop a tree down and cut it up for firewood. He was aware of the coming wars in Asia and in Europe while growing up in the 1930s. After the attack on Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941], Brennan was gung-ho to enlist, but was too young to do so, though his three brothers enlisted right away. One served in the Marine Corps on Guadalcanal [Annotator’s Note: Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands] and the two others were stationed stateside throughout the war. Everyone on the Home Front had to “tighten up” and go without to support the war effort. He was drafted into the Armed Forces and chose the Navy because it seemed to be cleaner than the Army.

Lincoln D. Brennan Sr. was drafted into the armed forces and chose to serve in the Navy. He boarded a train and was sent to San Diego [Annotator’s Note: San Diego, California] for his training. He learned to adjust to military life and regulations. He took a swimming class and marched a lot. After he completed his training, he had a short leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time] and went home. When he returned to base, he was given a carbine [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1 semi-automatic carbine], clothes, and equipment and received his orders for overseas deployment. He boarded a ship and headed to the Pacific Theater. It took 21 days for the ship to cross the Pacific Ocean because they were zigzagging [Annotator's Note: a naval anti-submarine maneuver]. He stopped in the Russell Islands and stayed there for three months. [Annotator’s Note: Someone comes into the room and interrupts the interview at 0:18:00.000.] He was then stationed on Guadalcanal [Annotator’s Note: Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands]. On the first night, he had to pitch a tent and accidentally set it up in a ravine. After he returned from watching a movie, he saw that his camp was gone because he had pitched it in a ravine. It rained and washed his stuff away. Brennan was assigned as an aviation metalsmith with Aircraft Repair Unit 145 (ARU-145). He was then sent to Vella Lavella in the Philippines, and Guam [Annotator’s Note: Guam, Mariana Islands]. He also had a side job of making ice cream. He had a mishap with the machine and almost killed himself. While stationed on Guadalcanal, he spent the day by the river, then floated down the river on a makeshift raft. While he was stationed on the various islands, there was never aerial bombardment. Sometimes the Japanese would try to sneak in the chow line, but were always caught.

Lincoln D. Brennan Sr. was deployed to the Pacific Theater as an aviation metalsmith with Aircraft Repair Unit 145 (ARU-145). He was stationed in the Solomon Islands, the Philippines, and Mariana Islands. While in transit between two islands, the ship Brennan was on was attacked by a Japanese submarine. He was trapped below deck in the dark as depth charges [Annotator's Note: also called a depth bomb; an anti-submarine explosive munition resembling a metal barrel or drum] were dropped. When the war came to a close, many of his friends were being sent home, and he was hoping he would be sent home too, but he was never called. He decided that he was going to stop working and hide in his bunk until they gave him orders to go home. He later found out that after he had left, a typhoon hit the Mariana Islands causing damage to the island and the ships in the vicinity. When he made it to Hawaii, the typhoon finally caught up to him. While Brennan waited to go home, he made several souvenirs in the machine shop and then sold them to other sailors. When his unit heard the war was over, they celebrated and drank a lot of beer. Upon returning to the United States, Brennan attended training to become a provost martial and was sent to New Orleans [Annotator’s Note: New Orleans, Louisiana] to watch over sailors on shore leave. He was on duty on Bourbon Street on Mardi Gras Day. He was discharged in 1946 with the rating of second class aviation metalsmith’s mate. After his discharge, he found a job painting the Huey P. Long Bridge. He always kept busy and hung out with his friends.

After his discharge from serving in World War 2, Lincoln D. Brennan Sr. remained in the Naval Reserve and was called up in January 1951. Forced to sell his roofing and sheet metal company, he was sent to Hawaii for nine months. He was sent to hydraulic school and cold weather school. He worked in the aviation metal department.

Lincoln D. Brennan Sr.’s most memorable experience of World War 2 was receiving his equipment right before he was sent overseas. He fought because he had no choice, but he also did what he had to do to “stop them from coming over here.” The war did not change his life, but was part of his life. He was able to join many veterans’ groups and feels proud to be respected by many for his service. World War 2 proves that Americans were and still are fighters and will do what needs to be done to defend themselves. Brennan believes there should be institutions like the National WWII Museum [Annotator's Note: The National World War II Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana], and that we should continue to teach World War 2 to future generations because it shows that America can accomplish things and be proud.