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Elvin Urquhart, a World War II veteran who worked at the radio interception station in Pearl Harbor and helped break Japanese Naval Code prior to the Battle of Midway, talks about the makeup of Japanese Naval Code, how the United States broke the code, and how this victory affected the war. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries, the Museums of Western Colorado and the Mesa County...
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Evie Smith describes growing up on a pineapple plantation on the Island of Oahu in Hawaii that was run by her father. She talks about the different ethnic groups inhabiting camps on the plantation, including Chinese, Filipino, and Japanese workers. She speaks about the US military’s war games that preceded the attack on Pearl Harbor in the week prior to December 7, 1941. She describes the bombing of Hawaii by Japanese forces and the deaths of civilians...
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John Andrew Sigmon describes lying about his age so that he could join the US Navy in 1931. He tells about life in the Navy and working on destroyers prior to World War II, and about transferring to submarine duty just prior to US involvement in World War II. He talks about being stationed in Hawaii during the attack on Pearl Harbor, and about receiving commendation for shooting down a Japanese plane on December 7, 1941. He describes submarine munitions,...
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Jack Williams, an automotive dealer and realtor from Grand Junction, Colorado, talks about his experiences in World War II’s Pacific Theater. He describes sitting on the deck of a destroyer in Pearl Harbor when the bombing began on December 7, 1941. He describes the aerial attack by Japanese forces, the mobilization of US Naval forces, and receiving credit for the downing of a Japanese plane. He discusses engaging with Japanese submarines in the...
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Julia Harris discusses hearing about the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, when she was hosting a Republican Party event for a special congressional election at her home on the Grand Mesa. She describes finding out about the bombing from the radio and from a local telephone operator who called people in the region to inform them. She talks about younger relatives of hers who joined the Navy after Pearl Harbor, about the general absence...
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Melvin Feller talks about being stationed in the Philippines, where his US Army Air Corps unit slept on dikes in the rice paddies because they anticipated a Japanese attack in the two weeks prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He speaks about the Japanese attack on US bases in the Philippines the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He describes evacuating from the Philippines on a ship and being most probably the only surviving member of his company....
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Lloyd Bullington talks about his enlistment in the Army 18th Engineers just prior to US involvement in World War II, his recruitment into the then new 804 Engineers, and constructing a runway in Kauai at the time of Pearl Harbor. He discusses his experiences building runways in contested areas just behind the front lines in the Pacific Theater. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County Libraries...
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Helen Johnson talks about helping teach a WPA-funded dance class during the Great Depression. She speaks about other government programs, such as the Civilian Conservation Corps, and how they helped the people of Mesa County, Colorado during the Great Depression. She describes working for Douglas Aircraft in Los Angeles to manufacture airplanes during World War II, where she became the lead in her section. She talks about her brief career teaching...
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Thatcher Shaw, a foot soldier and occupation lawyer during and after World War II, talks about the reaction of people in the United States to the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. He speaks about attitudes towards German and Japanese people at the start of the war. He discusses his experiences as a private and officer during World War II. The interview was conducted by the Mesa County Oral History Project, a collaboration of Mesa County...