Prewar life

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Golden, James Childhood to Pilot Training
[Annotator's Note: Throughout this clip, a woman off camera interjects with comments.] James Ramsey Golden was born in...
Poulson, Ernest Childhood, Becoming a Pilot and Overseas Deployment
Ernest L. Poulson was born in Ephraim, Utah in March 1921. He lived a very rural life growing up. He did a lot of...
Kuskie, Glen Childhood, Joining the Army, and Attack on the Philippines
Glen Kuskie was born in February 1924 on a dairy farm in Lincoln, Nebraska. When his family moved to town, his dad...
Taylor, Amelia Children of Immigrants
Amelia Taylor was born in December 1923 in Santa Monica, California. She grew up there during the Great Depression....
Hayes, Raymond China and Korea
Raymond Hayes got word of the war ending before he left San Diego [Annotator's Note: San Diego, California] for Pearl [...
Rupp, Robert Choosing the Field Artillery
Robert Rupp liked the military. He decided while he was in school that if he was going to war, he would rather be an...
Cart, William "Bill" Choosing the Marines
William Cart completed V-7 [Annotator’s Note: V-7 US Navy College Training Program, 1940 to 1945] school and chose the...
Alexander, Samson Christmas Toys
Growing up, Samson Alexander used to follow around his brother who was in Boy Scouts. The white people had what they...
Auerbach, Gerald City Boy to Airman
Gerald Auerbach was born in New York City [Annotator’s Note: New York City, New York] in 1924. Because of the Great...
Cornelia, Matthew City Boy to Army Draftee
Matthew Cornelia was born in July 1918 and raised in Rochester, New York. His parents were both born in Ireland. At a...
Geller, Robert City Boy to Army Man
Robert Geller was born in July 1922 and grew up in New York City [Annotator’s Note: New York City, New York]. Geller’s...
Velfling, Jacob City Boy to Army Man
Jacob Velfling, Jr. was born in Cadillac, Michigan in May 1926. Velfling played many sports in high school and had a...
Beilman, Robert City Boy to Infantry Man
[Annotator's Note: Recording begins while interviewer is prepping Robert Lewis Beilman. Actual interview begins at 0:01...
Smith, Jacques City Boy to Jump School
Jacques Brewster Smith was born in September 1923, in Buffalo [Annotator's Note: Buffalo, New York]. Due to the Great...
Gambino, Elroy City Boy to Marines
Elroy Gambino was born in March 1925 in the Irish Channel [Annotator's Note: in New Orleans, Louisiana]. He grew up in...
Mittleman, Harvey City Boy to Seabee
Harvey Mittleman was born in New York City [Annotator's Note: New York City, New York] in May 1925. Mittleman and his...
Graham, Marvin City Boy to Staff Sergeant
[Annotator's Note: There is a background noise in the video.] In March 1923, Marvin Raymond Graham was born in New York...
Groel, Marilyn "Marilyn Strelow" City Life to Marine Life
Marilyn Strelow Groel was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1924 and grew up in Maplewood, New Jersey. Groel moved to...
Culp, Oscar Civilian Career
Oscar Culp performed much civic work for the city of Oceanside [Annotator's Note: Oceanside, California]. [Annotator's...
Guthrie, Richard Civilian in Hawaii
Richard Guthrie was born in November 1933 at the Quantico Marine Corps Air Station in Quantico, Virginia. His father...
Hanning, David Civilian Life to Military Training
David Hanning was born in May 1927 in Saranac Lake, New York. His mother, a nurse from Montreal [Annotator's Note:...
Estes, Bruce Civilian to Army
[Annotator’s Note: Video goes black at 0:11:11.000 – 0:11:18.000.] Bruce Estes [Annotator’s Note: born in Atlanta,...
Rineer, Robert Civilian to Military
Robert Rineer was born in May 1922 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He grew up with a twin brother and two sisters. His...
Crews, Lorenzo Civilian to Military Training
Lorenzo Dow Crews was born in April 1924 in Memphis [Annotator's Note: Memphis, Tennessee]. His father worked as a...
Curran, Philip Closing Thoughts
Philip Curran's most memorable experience of World War 2 was when they hit a typhoon outside of the Yellow Sea [...
Evans, Donald Closing Thoughts
Before he went in the service, Donald Evans never went to church. Over there, he prayed all the time to be kept safe....
Lee, James Closing Thoughts
James Lee's most memorable experience of World War 2 is the attack itself [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on...
Amoss, Walter "Jimmy" Closing Thoughts
Walter Amoss feels nostalgic when he visits the museum [Annotator's Note: The National WWII Museum in New Orleans,...
Spint, Robert Closing Thoughts
Robert Spint's most memorable experience of World War 2 is hard for him to say. He does not classify any of it. Some of...
Eakes, Thomas Closing Thoughts
Thomas Eakes says his time in the service would not be the same now. He was not cut-out for the service. He spent three...
Lochra, Albert Closing Thoughts
Albert Pultz Lochra, Jr. believes that kids today need to learn about World War 2. He also believes that everybody...
Dietrick, Alfred Closing Thoughts
Many times when Alfred Dietrick was on the front lines, he said that if he ever got out alive, he would not complain...
Sturman, William Closing Thoughts
[Annotator's Note: The interviewer asks William Sturman why getting his first command of men in the Aleutian Islands,...
Winnier, Lawrence Closing Thoughts
Lawrence Winnier did not stay in touch with anyone after the war. He has one grandson, three granddaughters, and two...
Lafferty, Ralph College
After high school, Ralph F. Lafferty went mountain climbing with his brothers. During that summer, he worked at a ranch...
Peak, Betty "Betty Taylor" College and Boeing Aircraft
Betty Peak had one year of college when the war started. She was 14 in October [Annotator's Note: 1937] and the war...

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