Robert Gorman was born in Manchester, Connecticut in July 1922. He had two brothers, but one was killed early in life. He also had a foster brother. He helped his father run a gasoline station. The family lived over the top of the station. He saw a lot of his father, and they got along well. The same was true of his brother who also went into the service. Gorman's father served in World War 1, so he was not shocked when his son went into the service. Gorman graduated from college before his service. He took ROTC [Annotator's Note: Reserve Officer Training Corps] classes in his first two years at Niagara University [Annotator's Note: Niagara University is a Catholic university in Lewiston, New York]. He was not accepted into officer candidate school because of his dentures so he decided to join the Navy. He was rejected again because of his dentures. The Marines did the same. He was classified 1-A [Annotator's Note: available for military service] by the Selective Service. He wanted to finish college, so he went to the chairman of the town Selective Service Board to request consideration. After he graduated he got his draft notice. He is grateful that he finished before his service. He went to college in 1940. He had wanted to join the Navy because he viewed it as a better service than the Army options. He felt the same about the Marines. The Army was inducting anyone so the other two services were viewed more positively by Gorman.

Robert Gorman was inducted [Annotator's Note: into the Army] at Fort Devens, Massachusetts. He was then sent to Camp Gruber, Oklahoma. It was a new experience for him. He was eventually assigned to the 557th Field Artillery Battalion where the majority of members were from New England. They were referred to as the Yankee Battalion. The gun they were using was the 155mm gun mounted on a tank [Annotator's Note: the M12 Gun Motor Carriage was a self propelled 155mm gun mounted on an M3 Lee/Grant tank chassis]. It could fire nine miles. The guns had been used in World War 1 so the rifling had been worn down. Rather than going to a basic training camp, they went directly to artillery training. The unit was told that they would remain together throughout the war. All the training was done together as a group so that they stayed together. Gorman was inducted in July 1943 and went into training. He was assigned to Battery B in the survey section which determines where the artillery will be placed and to perform forward observation in combat situations. They are instrumental in calculating targeting missions for the battery. There were six members of the section. Gorman was inducted with older men in their later thirties or early forties. He was one of the youngest men in the section. Each man was pretty smart. Some were managers and teachers in civilian life beforehand. [Annotator's Note: Gorman chuckles when he discusses the idiosyncrasies of the individuals.] Computations were very important to the correct targeting of the enemy. Physical training put them in good shape. In calculating targets, the men were trained in the use of the transit [Annotator's Note: a transit is a survey measurement device to determine horizontal and vertical angles] to determine locations and performing surveys. The slide rule [Annotator's Note: a slide rule was a manual handheld instrument to provide complex mathematical calculations by sliding two portions of the ruler in opposite directions to align the components of the calculation and then reading the result with a third sliding part] was also used. A battery commander scope [Annotator's Note: the battery commander scope was a binocular instrument which adjusted in viewing a target such that measurement of angles and distances could be derived by the forward observer then provided by a forward observer to the artillery battery further behind him so the battery could plan a fire mission on the enemy target] was used in forward observation. It gave a good view of long distance targets. Gorman qualified as a marksman with a Springfield rifle [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1903 rifle, also known as the Springfield]. In combat, he carried a carbine [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1 carbine] which he never fired at a person. He never fired the carbine before deployment. Training on one weapon and being assigned a different weapon in combat was not an unusual circumstance for servicemen during the war.

After nine months at Camp Gruber, Robert Gorman and the 557th Field Artillery Battalion went to Louisiana for maneuvers. He had never left Camp Gruber except went he went into Muskogee, Oklahoma to visit a USO Christmas event. At the USO facility, he recorded a message for his wife. The Louisiana Maneuvers were on the Texas and Louisiana state border in the swamps. That was about a six week experience. It exposed him to insects that caused diseases. During maneuvers, Gorman purchased a wedding ring for his fiancée in Jasper, Texas. Gorman was not a drinker. While away from the maneuver bivouac, he was probably the only sober soldier in his group. He experienced live fire at the maneuvers. His battery had started live firing at Camp Gruber. He did not do surveys in relation to the practice firing in Louisiana. He did experience the rigor of outdoor field life during this time. Although he had considered entering the Army Specialized Training Program, he barely missed the required score to enter. [Annotator's Note: Gorman learned that disbanded Army Specialized Training Program, or ASTP, members were latter assigned to the infantry with minimal training as manpower needs demanded.] Gorman enjoyed the activities inside training camp without having to leave the encampment. The other consideration was the lack of funds to go outside camp.

Robert Gorman recounts his engagement and marriage to his wife, Eleanor. [Annotator's Note: Gorman enjoys remembering these experiences.] His marriage occurred prior to his deployment overseas. After the marriage, he returned to his outfit in Camp McCain in Mississippi. Traveling was difficult during this period so he ended up being a day late in his return but there was no penalty. Gorman had no intention to be late. His wife came to visit him. She was always a resourceful person. At Camp McCain, the 557th Field Artillery had additional training and waited on further orders. They then shipped out to Camp Shanks [Annotator's Note: Camp Shanks was located near Orangetown, New York and was a major point of embarkation for troops going overseas] for deployment overseas.

Robert Gorman was only in Camp Shanks for a few days before sailing in a convoy for Europe. His wife tried to visit him, but he shipped out before they could meet. It was upsetting to Gorman that the meeting did not happen. The 557th [Annotator's Note: 557th Field Artillery Battalion] had experienced gas mask training in Camp Shanks. That was the only special training they did in camp. The convoy was composed of 52 ships. It took ten or 12 days to get to Scotland. The trip was made on the SS Dominion Monarch. The return after the war was on the SS Mariposa. The troops were packed in on the ships. Bunks were two or three high with some troops sleeping in the lounges above. The sleeping in the bunks was done on a rotation basis. There was a constant movement of men. Food was served twice a day and boiled in the English manner. Cards and gambling were the main recreation for the troops. They arrived in Scotland at the Firth of Clyde. None of the troops knew what to anticipate when they landed. They moved through Scotland quickly and were shipped to England in trucks. They slept in two tier bunks with black out curtains on the windows. The gun crews had more to do than the survey unit. When a man left the base, he had to have a condom in his wallet. There was a warning film shown on sexually transmitted diseases. Gorman's transport to England was during July 1944, after the Normandy invasion on 6 June 1944. The 557th went into action after the St. Lo breakout in September 1944. While in England, the unit was in Stafford. Gorman saw very little of the destruction of England, but he noticed the distribution of live shells throughout the English countryside. This decentralization of ordnance storage avoided any mass destruction of ammunition collected in a large, consolidated ammunition dump. The civilians in England treated the American soldiers well, but Gorman did not have much interaction with them. He did notice the extended daylight hours in England where it did not get dark until near midnight.

Robert Gorman left England by transiting through Wales. In Wales, the 557th [Annotator's Note: 557th Field Artillery Battalion] adapted some of their mobile guns for combat before going to France. Bulldozer blades were installed on the front of the tanks to plow up the hedgerows. Ship out to France was through Southampton. Prior to the voyage, the soldiers slept in tents that would accommodate eight or ten men at a time. The tanks traveled narrow roads through small English villages. The tank engines ran hot as they drove through the countryside to their port of debarkation. Gorman rode in the back of a truck rather than on a tank. The trip across the English Channel was rough aboard the SS Charles Hall. The ship sat offshore for three days before the men offloaded. There was a significant amount of seasickness. Gorman had no problem with seasickness. The food was C rations, canned food and crackers. The canned food could be heated in by tossing them in larger cans filled with boiling water. They arrived in France in September 1944 at Utah Beach. The DUCKs [Annotator's Note: the DUKW, commonly referred to as a DUCK, was a six wheel amphibious truck] and various ships made the area very busy. Gorman was very impressed with the scope of activity on the one beach he saw in Normandy. The men were focused on doing their particular assignment rather than seeing all that was going on. Gorman first encountered death in the field when he and some buddies saw a graves registration unit moving a stack of dead bodies onto the back of a trailer. They had signaled to Gorman and his buddies to come help them. Gorman hesitated because, other than family funerals, he had never seen death before. There were 20 bodies on the trailer and it was a shocking sight. After a few months, it became a common sight.

Once the Americans had broken through St. Lo, Robert Gorman and the 557th [Annotator's Note: 557th Field Artillery Battalion] were assigned to go up the Brest peninsula to locate the German submarine pens. The first survey that Gorman ran was to get the guns into position. He and another man used measuring tapes to locate pins that they would stick in the ground. As they were doing their work, they heard voices on the opposite side of the hedgerow. Not knowing who they were, the men became frightened. They thought it could be the enemy. It turned out to be Americans. In their haste, the two surveyors could not get the measuring tape back into a roll because it was twisted up so they just threw it in the back of the truck and headed out. Their sergeant was aggravated by their lack of care for the tape because it was unusable. Gorman's battery [Annotator's Note: Battery B] fired the first shots for the battalion on the enemy on this mission. The Germans had zeroed in on the 557th location at a road intersection. The enemy 88mm artillery returned fired on the 557th. The 557th experienced their first casualties and deaths as a result of their inexperience in positioning their battery at an intersection. A few days later, the 557th shot at the submarine pens from behind a hill. It would be an indirect fire mission over the hill as opposed to having direct view of the target. Gorman found a foxhole to protect him during the forward observation operation. He was fully loaded with weapons and ammunition. During this time, a bus load of Free French soldiers arrived at his location. The German artillery fired on the bus. The bus stopped and the Frenchmen tried to get in Gorman's foxhole, but he rejected that idea. The French left without casualties. That was Gorman's first experience with incoming enemy fire and with meeting Free French soldiers. Both circumstances were exciting. The men who had been lost in combat earlier were nice guys. Their loss was an eye opener for the 557th, Battery B. During this mission, the battery was using a new armor piercing shell and fuse. The accuracy was very effective. Reports were typed by Gorman on the effectiveness of the new munitions. The battalion major received a Bronze Star for his role in the action. During the night, the Germans would repair the areas damaged during the daylight hours by the American artillery.

While on forward observation with Task Force Sugar, Robert Gorman received a stack of mail from home. He learned that he would become a father in a letter from his wife. In learning about his future fatherhood, Gorman was happy but felt removed being so far away from home. Concurrently, the Germans raised the white flag to surrender their pillbox. The group that surrendered was only about 300 soldiers. Watches and other valuables were taken from the captives. There were several thousand Germans remaining in the submarine pens. Gorman felt some sympathy for those surrendering, but he had no sympathy for the enemy cause. Shortly, the whole German Army in the Brest peninsula surrendered. This resulted in some respite for the 557th [Annotator's Note: 557th Field Artillery Battalion]. They saw Mont St. Michel and waited until receiving orders to proceed on to Germany. There was some limited interaction with the French civilians. The locale consisted of basic countryside. From the Brest peninsula, the 557th went very quickly through Paris. The convoy moved to, and then through, Paris but there was time for Gorman to give his confession to a French priest on the opposite side of the city. That was important to him because of his Catholic upbringing and relationship with his religion. There was a chaplain available occasionally for the troops, but there was not one specifically dedicated to his battalion. The battalion's mobile guns were loaded on flat cars for this trip. The men traveled by truck and jeep. Ultimately, the destination was Belgium.

Robert Gorman arrived in Belgium after transfer from the Brest peninsula. The time frame was approximately October or November 1944. They stayed in this location for a length of time. They also went into Holland at this time. The troops had the opportunity to shower and refresh themselves during this period. The Americans were impressed with the surroundings and the people in Holland. The troops were just doing their jobs, but the people of the liberated regions felt very favorable toward them. There were occasions where the cities had troughs available to urinate in the streets with little privacy. This shocked the troops. The cargo carrier for the battery [Annotator's Note: Gorman was a member of Battery B, 557th Field Artillery Battalion] was strafed during this time frame. The men in their truck took off to avoid the fire. This was the first occasion of being strafed, but it occurred again while they were in camp. The Americans did manage to bring down one of the enemy aircraft. There was also an experience with friendly fire during this time. With a bad layout of American artillery pieces, Battery B was shelled by friendly fire. The winter of 1944 and 1945 brought on the Battle of the Bulge. Word was received about German soldiers wearing American uniforms. The Americans were on guard. On Christmas Day, Gorman had his Christmas dinner on a truck headed to the northern flank to support the English under Montgomery against the German advance. The gunners wore white sheets and winter camouflage was used with the equipment. As they traveled to the front, they rested in a barn and found some warmth. Guard duty was very cold. Army blankets were folded over and sewed on edge to make a sleeping bag. The men were given tanker uniforms which were heavily lined overalls so they were comfortable and flexible. They were fortunate for that protection from the bitter weather.

Prior to the Battle of Bulge, Robert Gorman saw the American infantrymen passing the 557th [Annotator's Note: 557th Field Artillery Battalion] on the way to their foxholes on the front. Those men had heavy coats but were not dressed well for winter conditions. He felt for those men and their suffering through their three days on watch and three days rest in the rear. Gorman and his units slept in an old French barracks with the roof half destroyed, but at least they had a stove that served as a heater in the space. On Christmas Day [Annotator's Note: 25 December 1944], the 557th reached Aldenhoven, Germany. The survey group found a railway station and managed to be more comfortable than those in exposed positions. The unit saw little action at this time because Montgomery was sitting in a defense mode rather than being very active. The 557th was constantly moving to where they might be needed because they were a unique outfit. The 558th [Annotator's Note: 558th Field Artillery Battalion] was the other battalion similar to them with the mobile 155mm guns. While nearby in Loverich, Germany, Gorman had helped set up an observation post overlooking the Roer River. They were looking at German activity across the river. While observing the Germans, an enemy shell penetrated the building where they were situated. One of Gorman's buddies was wounded but would eventually return to the 557th. During this time, the Germans launched Nebelwerfer battery attacks. Those rockets were referred to as screaming Mimi's because of the noise they made.

For Robert Gorman, crossing the Roer River was a serious point in his combat experience. Both sides shelled heavily during the preparation for the attack. There were numerous German machine gun emplacements for the Americans to assault. The casualties were heavy. It was the worst action that Gorman saw. Americans crossing in the face of machine gun fire was said to be as bad as the Normandy beach assault. With the infantry pushing the Germans ahead of them, Gorman's unit [Annotator's Note: Battery B, 557th Field Artillery Battalion] moved forward over pontoon bridges. Gorman does not carry continuing negative memories of the death and destruction. At this point in the war, there was mass movement of American units into Germany. German farmers lived in towns and worked the fields during the day. Meanwhile, the German Army would hole up in those towns. The enemy army would have to be destroyed or forced to surrender or retreat. The 557th would batter the towns in order to defeat the German soldiers. After the enemy stopped defending the town, the Americans would assure that no enemy troops were left behind. Following that, the Americans would move forward. On one occasion after Gorman's unit searched a town and moved forward, there was unseen German armor in the town. It was a little scary when the enemy fired on the 557th unexpectedly. This was Gorman's only experience with German armor. It was critical for the enemy not to be left behind in the rear of the advancing Americans. Gorman had his first view of German jets during the crossing of the Roer River. He was struck by their speed and maneuverability, but the Allies knew that limited fuel was a problem for the German jets to stay airborne for any extended time.

In March 1945, Robert Gorman learned that he was a father. He received a telegram giving him the news. Everyone in his unit was excited. It was also a day that the 557th [Annotator's Note: 557th Field Artillery Battalion] was strafed. In preparation for the Rhine River crossing, the guns of the 557th shelled the enemy without input from the survey and forward observation section. There was heavy shelling overnight before the crossing. By midday, the 557th crossed the Rhine. Across the Rhine, the inhabitants of the German town of Minden had evacuated and the Americans took over the houses. There was a party and Gorman cooked up a celebration meal for his mates. He had to improvise on the food, but the men did manage to find a stash of wine to help with the festivity. The officers wanted to get into the stash, but the enlisted men managed to maintain control over the wine. When Gorman first entered Germany and saw destruction of the civilian homes, he was struck by the religious pictures and objects in those homes. He felt compassion toward the civilians. Many of them were probably Catholics or Lutherans. At the same time, he questioned how they could have bought into Hitler's [Annotator's Note: German dictator Adolf Hitler] Nazi philosophy. He realized that in that mass psychology, many could not speak out and likened their situation to those who feel reluctant to speak out against authority today.

Robert Gorman arrived at the Elbe River before the main body of the 557th [Annotator's Note: 557th Field Artillery Battalion]. German resistance was very light. The men lived off the land when they traveled. The unit took over a farm with animals so food was plentiful. There was liquid refreshment also. There were East European displaced persons near his location. Germans were swimming the river to avoid capture by the Russians. The Americans disregarded orders to not let the enemy cross. Some Americans crossed the Elbe, but the directive was to not cross to the Russian side. From his location, Gorman could barely see Berlin through some of his survey scopes. He had no interaction with the Russians. The notice of the end of the war in Europe was first seen on a signpost. In reading it, Gorman felt very good. Gorman took a photograph of German children who were in custody. The children were about 12 years old. It was shocking. [Annotator's Note: Gorman does not elaborate but the children may have been some of those drafted into the German Army for homeland defense.]

Following the surrender of Germany, Robert Gorman and the 557th Field Artillery Battalion was assigned to occupation duty in Wolfsburg, Germany. The men lived in a hotel. They played volleyball and protected various civilian stores to prevent looting. They also watched over Russians who had been captured by the Germans and were in a German prisoner of war camp. The Russians were given control of their camp. The Americans played volleyball with them. The Americans enjoyed camp shows provided by the Russians. Gorman found the Russians intimidating. The 557th returned to the United States on the SS Mariposa and landed in Boston Harbor in July 1945. The New England troops in the 557th enjoyed a 30 day leave at home. At this time, the Japanese surrendered. That was exciting news. With his father running a gasoline station, the word came down that rationing would be over. His father had just gotten a 500 gallon allocation and he sold it without any rationing controls. That was the family way of celebrating the victory over Japan. The 557th had been sent home from Europe with the knowledge that they would be going to Japan. Preparations for the fight in Japan included supply of the Long Tom modern gun for their vehicles. The new gun was capable of firing 50 miles instead of the nine mile range of their existing gun. The 557th was to train and mobilize for deployment in California. Gorman did not like the idea of having to fight the Japanese. When the atomic bombs were used on Japan, Gorman felt no regrets. Gorman never liked President Roosevelt [Annotator's Note: President Franklin D. Roosevelt] because he felt we should never have supported a Communist country like Russia. He spoke in public forums about the Four Freedoms and he did not like Russia because they did not support those concepts. [Annotator's Note: President Roosevelt had mentioned the Four Freedoms in a 1941 speech. He had said the war against the Axis powers was to protect freedom of speech and expression, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear.] Gorman could not wait to vote against Roosevelt when he turned 21 years of age. Discharge for Gorman was at Fort MacArthur in San Diego, California in October 1945. His rank was T-5 [Annotator's Note: Technician 5th Grade], equivalent to a corporal. He was given several hundred dollars to travel across the country. Gorman would use the G.I. Bill to take legal courses but his grades were not to his satisfaction. He decided to not continue his education in that field. He was working for an attorney at the time. Gorman had no issues with nightmares during this time. There were no difficulties in transitioning back to civilian life because his dad had the gasoline station and Gorman worked there. He had more than enough to do. He became involved in various organizations and kept busy and did not think about the war. He and his family lived over the gasoline station with his parents. They only stayed a short time there. Gorman's wife found an apartment for them. Gorman dealt with the transition without having difficulties.

The most memorable thing about World War 2 for Robert Gorman related to friendships formed during the war. He was fortunate to work with steady guys like himself. Gorman fought in the war because he knew he had to go. He knew Hitler [Annotator's Note: German dictator Adolf Hitler] was a bad person and had to be prevented from bringing war to the United States. Gorman did what he had to do. World War 2 slowed him down for a couple of years. Before the war, his goal was to be an attorney and make a lot of money. That did not work out. Money did not become the big thing as much as taking care of the family. He felt he did his share in the war effort. World War 2 has lost its reality to today's world. The war on terrorism makes citizens aware of the importance of veterans and the Four Freedoms. [Annotator's Note: President Franklin D. Roosevelt had mentioned the Four Freedoms in a 1941 speech. He had said the war against the Axis powers was to protect freedom of speech and expression, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear.] Museums and memorials as well as history itself are important for people to remember. The cost of our freedoms is symbolized by museums such as The National WWII Museum. History should be a number one subject in high school and college.