World War Two History

[Srt201]

I can remember growing listening in awe of my grandfather's stories from WW2 as a marine anti-aircraft gunner in task force 38. But after he passed away while I was in high school I thought I would never get to know more about what he and his fellow ship service marines did during the Occupation of Japan. Well I still have a lot to learn but I have found a lot on information to fill in some of the gaps. So please enjoy a few links to learn about the first occupiers of Japan. The United States Marine Corps (with some Navy and Royal Navy personnel)

http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a438971.pdf

http://www.marines.mil/Portals/59/Publications/The%20United%20States%20Marines%20in%20the%20Occup ation%20of%20Japan%20%20PCN%2019000411500.pdf

[Bully13]

I've watched countless documentaries on ww2 south Pacific battles but the history channelso I watch almost never cover the occupation which I find disappointing. To the best of my knowledge, the roll in with the occupation went without incident.

[Srt201]

It really is sad how they fail to cover the occupation there's so much that could be covered even though the occupation was effectively without any major incidents there are so many stories that could be told. My dad recently me a story of how his platoon was put up in an old school house in rural Japan without a translator. And that they took turns watching the caretaker because they were scared something would happen while they slept.

[Bully13]

Would like to hear some stories from your grandad if you care to share.

[Srt201]

It'll take a while to write them all out but one that always made me laugh was they somehow got ahold of peanuts and grew some aboard their carrier so they could have boiled peanuts. Well they start eating them and some of the northern boys come over and ask what they're eating. Well showing good hospitality they shared the boiled peanuts but didn't tell to shell them first. "The Yankees" ate them and were disgusted by them and asked the southerners how they could eat these things. One the other marines said we shell them first. My grandfather did tell me they told the ones they liked to shell them first though.

[BrunswickDawg]

I can remember growing listening in awe of my grandfather's stories from WW2 as a marine anti-aircraft gunner in task force 38. But after he passed away while I was in high school I thought I would never get to know more about what he and his fellow ship service marines did during the Occupation of Japan. Well I still have a lot to learn but I have found a lot on information to fill in some of the gaps. So please enjoy a few links to learn about the first occupiers of Japan. The United States Marine Corps (with some Navy and Royal Navy personnel)

http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a438971.pdf

http://www.marines.mil/Portals/59/Publications/The%20United%20States%20Marines%20in%20the%20Occup ation%20of%20Japan%20%20PCN%2019000411500.pdf

Grew up with that same awe with my grandfather and his 6 brothers who all served. Granddaddy was 3rd wave at Omaha, captured near St. Lo, escaped by tackling a guard and propelling both off a prison train, and made it through to the Elbe River. 1 brother was a tank commander in North Africa, 1 was at Pearl, 1 survived a year shipwrecked in the Pacific hiding in caves from the Japs, and one was too old for the Air Corp and went Canada and lied about his age and joined the RAF. I wish I had been a little older before they started dying and I could have interviewed them more formally. I still heard wild stuff as a kid.

A couple of tips for more info - get his service records, the research his unit. A lot of units published unit histories shortly after the war with incredible pictures. I have my grandfathers.

[Srt201]

Those sound like some interesting stories it would be awesome if you could share more about those stories too. And I know we have some of his service records somewhere in my parents house but it'll be hard to find it. All I know about he was drafted into the navy and volunteered for the marines in navy boot camp. Then he was shipped out aboard the USS Yorktown CV-10. I think carriers had 60-80 marines to keep the navy in line.

Brunswick did they bring back any souvenirs they showed you? And stories of how they got them?

[Bully13]

It'll take a while to write them all out but one that always made me laugh was they somehow got ahold of peanuts and grew some aboard their carrier so they could have boiled peanuts. Well they start eating them and some of the northern boys come over and ask what they're eating. Well showing good hospitality they shared the boiled peanuts but didn't tell to shell them first. "The Yankees" ate them and were disgusted by them and asked the southerners how they could eat these things. One the other marines said we shell them first. My grandfather did tell me they told the ones they liked to shell them first though.

That's 17ing hilarious man. Lmao. Keep em coming if you are so inclined.

[Bully13]

Grew up with that same awe with my grandfather and his 6 brothers who all served. Granddaddy was 3rd wave at Omaha, captured near St. Lo, escaped by tackling a guard and propelling both off a prison train, and made it through to the Elbe River. 1 brother was a tank commander in North Africa, 1 was at Pearl, 1 survived a year shipwrecked in the Pacific hiding in caves from the Japs, and one was too old for the Air Corp and went Canada and lied about his age and joined the RAF. I wish I had been a little older before they started dying and I could have interviewed them more formally. I still heard wild stuff as a kid.

A couple of tips for more info - get his service records, the research his unit. A lot of units published unit histories shortly after the war with incredible pictures. I have my grandfathers.

This thread is starting to rock. Thank you all for sharing.

[Srt201]

That's 17ing hilarious man. Lmao. Keep em coming if you are so inclined.

Haha I'm glad you liked that one. When my grandfather died he left me a book about the entire World War Two history of the USS Yorktown and apparently there were a lot of pranks and things that happened. Supposedly someone replaced the Stars and Stripes with the Stars and Bars and caught hell from the admiral.

I remember him telling me about how he snuck a rifle out of a jap warehouse under his uniform and he was only six feet tall and the rifle was 50.2 inches long. He said everyone turned a blind eye to it. And he didn't let the mum get ground off either.

[Bully13]

From my memory, the Japanese rifles were inferior to ours. Would still be cool to shoot one though. Wasn't the Yorktown one of ours that was sunk during a battle ? Wasn't it a carrier?

[Srt201]

Well I grew up thinking the jap rifles were inferior to ours but I've done a lot of research into them and as crazy as it sounds the the jap rifles were some of the best quality of all the axis powers. The quality of the rifles suffered approximately around 1944 when the war started out but they'd probably be safe to fire. The problem was a lot of rifles brought home were marked "for training only" or "blanks" only and those were dangerous. The rifle I have is a type 38 manufactured in 1916.

And my grandfather served on the second Yorktown. The navy decided they would name the Yorktown after the carrier they lost at the battle of Midway to confuse the Japanese who thought it had been sunk.

[Bully13]

Good info. When these things pop up, I don't cheat and go to Google. I just spout off. Love the way we screwed the japs on the intel on the "failed water supply" deception to get a leg up at midway. Was the turning point for the good guys.

[Srt201]

It really is crazy that they fell for deception and they even attacked some islands in Alaska. But another story I remember is him meeting (I think it was, I'll have to ask my dad) Charles Kerlee who was the photographer who documented life aboard the Yorktown. My grandfather used part of his time taking classes about photography which led to him working in the news paper industry after the war. Not bad for a guy who was drafted before he finished high school.

[parabrave]

My Dad served in the occupation from 45-46. We still have a Jap 25cal rifle with the chrysanthemum emblem filed off. And he had a samauri sword. After the war we were filling up landing craft with jap weapons and dumping them into Tokyo Bay. My dad said that US soldiers would go down to the craft and get what thy wanted to send home. All Jap weapons had the emblems filed off before the surrender since this was the symbol of the emperor. And no you don't want to shoot them. The 11th Airborne was the first unit to "invade" Japan since we didn't know what their response would be.

[Srt201]

My Dad served in the occupation from 45-46. We still have a Jap 25cal rifle with the chrysanthemum emblem filed off. And he had a samauri sword. After the war we were filling up landing craft with jap weapons and dumping them into Tokyo Bay. My dad said that US soldiers would go down to the craft and get what thy wanted to send home. All Jap weapons had the emblems filed off before the surrender since this was the symbol of the emperor. And no you don't want to shoot them. The 11th Airborne was the first unit to "invade" Japan since we didn't know what their response would be.

Do you still have the arisaka? I can probably help you find more information on it including manufacting location and approximately what year it was made.

http://oldmilitarymarkings.com/japanese_markings.html

This is the main online source I have for Jap type 38s, I have more information that I scanned out of a book from the library of congress during some research.

[parabrave]

Do you still have the arisaka? I can probably help you find more information on it including manufacting location and approximately what year it was made.

http://oldmilitarymarkings.com/japanese_markings.html

This is the main online source I have for Jap type 38s, I have more information that I scanned out of a book from the library of congress during some research.
I thing Coastratdog, my brother, has it. The thing is so beat up from me playing with it growing up that I bent the sights and barrel on it. It was a cool "toy". I still have a pic of my dad in his Eisenhower Jacket standing on the bridge going into the emperors palace.

[parabrave]

One of the big Bulldog supporters from Crystal Springs, who owns a large Materials supply company in Jackson served on the 2nd Yorktown. He still has a ship painting that was down during the War. He is 94 and still goes to Patriots Point every year for a reunion.

[Srt201]

Well it still sounds amazing and if you want I can message you all the research I have. And if you ever want to try to restore it I can help you find parts I have a few websites that carry parts for those rifles.

And could you give me his mailing information if it's possible? I have probably that same painting at my parents house, my grandfather loved going to Patriots Point and one day when my wife and I have the money we'll go. Ha but working for the state doesn't pay to great.

[Bully13]

Wow. As a lover of ww2, this thread rocks. Wish I could share some family shit but I don't have any. Just a brain full of t.v. documentaries. Thank you all so much. I know a lot about the main events but these personal things makes it so much more interesting.

[Srt201]

Growing up with my grandfather I wanted to know so much more about everyone's stories. I just wish I had been. One a decade earlier.

And this is a movie about Yorktown. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ta31h8OAXLI . Slightly propaganda but I grew up watching this with him along with Midway and Tora! Tora! Tora! It was great watching all these as a little kid and I'm thankful I had the chance for that.

[parabrave]

4 movies that you can actually say are historically factual: 1. The Longest Day, 2. Tora Tora Tora, 3. Midway and 4 The Bridge To Far. I met Maj Julian Cook, Robert Redfords Character in The Bridge too far, and asked him how Redford did and he said Spot on. Just cause there was no blood and gore, ala Saving Private Ryan, doesnt make it accurate. And the Movie Pearl Harbor was a joke.

[Srt201]

I love all of those movies and I grew up watching the first three you named. Movies these days just don't focus as much on the truth which is sad. I'm excited for that Dunkirk movie to come out.

One more grandfather story I remember was how he said food ran low in the South China Sea and bugs got into their bread and the cooks told them to eat in the dark so wouldn't see them.

[Bully13]

Damn. Have a hard time watching pearl Harbor stories cuz the AZ story breaks my heart. Can't watch anymore INDIANAPOLIS stories either for the same reason. Unless I'm watching Jaws. Always liked that movie and the way it brought the hidden secret to light.

[parabrave]

When my dad was coming back home in 46 they also ran out of food and fresh water for 2 days. This was after the war of course so they didn't have the logistical support that was available during the war. And because of the band of brothers people think the the 101st was the only airborne div in WW2 and not the 82nd ABN Div which had 4 combat jumps and was the unit along with a combat command of the 9th Armored which was responsible for turning back the main armored thrust of Sepp Deitrich at Webromont and Trois Point during the bulge. PS I served in the 82nd during the mid 80s.

[Srt201]

It definitely is hard hearing some of the Pearl Harbor stories. To me some that are almost worst are the Wake Island stories. And Parabrave the 101 definitely gets way more attention because of that series. The 82nd had the tougher road but nowhere near the name recognition during world war 2.

[parabrave]

It definitely is hard hearing some of the Pearl Harbor stories. To me some that are almost worst are the Wake Island stories. And Parabrave the 101 definitely gets way more attention because of that series. The 82nd had the tougher road but nowhere near the name recognition during world war 2.

There was a controversy that after the war there was only going to be 1 ABN DIV. Rumor was that it was going to be the 101 because of being Saved by Patton at Bastogne. . However there was a guy that was on Gavins staff named Barney Olefield who was a big powerbroker in Hollywood before the War. Well he got his PR machine in hollywood going and that's what saved the 82nd. The 101 was deactivated and reactivated in 1952 and was Jump Status till the late 60s when it became a Air Assault Unit. They carry the Tab because of historical significance but are a bunch of legs or cherry jumpers unless having previously served in a abn unit..

[Srt201]

There's no denying the airborne were the elite of world war 2. I have a lot of admiration for the airborne.

Oh by the way the rifle my grandfather when he got back to mathiston after the war him and his brothers tied the rifle to a stake and tied a rope around the trigger to fire it just in case it was booby trapped. But it fired and he kept it stored and just took it apart to clean every now and then. Which it's super easy to take down did it in 10 minutes first try

[Bully13]

It definitely is hard hearing some of the Pearl Harbor stories. To me some that are almost worst are the Wake Island stories. And Parabrave the 101 definitely gets way more attention because of that series. The 82nd had the tougher road but nowhere near the name recognition during world war 2.

Wake island still pisses me off to this day.

[HereComesTheSpiral]

When my dad was coming back home in 46 they also ran out of food and fresh water for 2 days. This was after the war of course so they didn't have the logistical support that was available during the war. And because of the band of brothers people think the the 101st was the only airborne div in WW2 and not the 82nd ABN Div which had 4 combat jumps and was the unit along with a combat command of the 9th Armored which was responsible for turning back the main armored thrust of Sepp Deitrich at Webromont and Trois Point during the bulge. PS I served in the 82nd during the mid 80s.

According to Band of Brothers, Easy Company won the entire war by themselves.

[msstatelp1]

According to Band of Brothers, Easy Company won the entire war by themselves.

As a former member of the 101st, I can assure you that this is a true statement. Any sane, intelligent observer will tell you that a company of 101st infantry is equivalent to a brigade in any other ABN division and the same as 4 or more divisions of leg infantry.

[parabrave]

As a former member of the 101st, I can assure you that this is a true statement. Any sane, intelligent observer will tell you that a company of 101st infantry is equivalent to a brigade in any other ABN division and the same as 4 or more divisions of leg infantry.
Dam screaming chickens

[Srt201]

Wake island still pisses me off to this day.

The history channel episode said it the best. Survivors said they didn't like being called the Alamo of the pacific because they knew what the Alamo was.

[BrunswickDawg]

Those sound like some interesting stories it would be awesome if you could share more about those stories too. And I know we have some of his service records somewhere in my parents house but it'll be hard to find it. All I know about he was drafted into the navy and volunteered for the marines in navy boot camp. Then he was shipped out aboard the USS Yorktown CV-10. I think carriers had 60-80 marines to keep the navy in line.

Brunswick did they bring back any souvenirs they showed you? And stories of how they got them?

Unless you count a steel plate for half a skull for my tank commander great uncle, no, no souvenirs. I do have a great collection of photos from my grandfather. Everything from training in Tennessee, Canada, and England to on the move in France. Below is my favorite. On the back it reads "VE Day, near Elbe R. - Old Hard Hearted Hunter has laid down his gun and will fight no more."
http://i356.photobucket.com/albums/oo8/BrunswickDawg/IMG_0002_zpsfogea145.jpg (http://s356.photobucket.com/user/BrunswickDawg/media/IMG_0002_zpsfogea145.jpg.html)

[BrunswickDawg]

4 movies that you can actually say are historically factual: 1. The Longest Day, 2. Tora Tora Tora, 3. Midway and 4 The Bridge To Far. I met Maj Julian Cook, Robert Redfords Character in The Bridge too far, and asked him how Redford did and he said Spot on. Just cause there was no blood and gore, ala Saving Private Ryan, doesnt make it accurate. And the Movie Pearl Harbor was a joke.

Longest Day is a terrific movie. But The first 30 minutes of Private Ryan destroyed me. It was so much like what my grandfather described Omaha that I almost puked. Totally wigged me out.

[Srt201]

Unless you count a steel plate for half a skull for my tank commander great uncle, no, no souvenirs. I do have a great collection of photos from my grandfather. Everything from training in Tennessee, Canada, and England to on the move in France. Below is my favorite. On the back it reads "VE Day, near Elbe R. - Old Hard Hearted Hunter has laid down his gun and will fight no more."
http://i356.photobucket.com/albums/oo8/BrunswickDawg/IMG_0002_zpsfogea145.jpg (http://s356.photobucket.com/user/BrunswickDawg/media/IMG_0002_zpsfogea145.jpg.html)

If you could share any stories please do, I'd love to hear some of them.

[msstatelp1]

Dam screaming chickens

"AA" = All Amateurs?

[parabrave]

"AA" = All Amateurs? No rather be called a Jumping Junkie than dope on a rope. True story, I straphanging on a DISCOM jump on June night in 1986 when I noticed a Hot looking female officer, really filled out those BDUs, a couple of jumpers behind me. So when the jump commands were finished we had about 6 mins before stand in the door. So I started talking to her finding out that she went to the W. Well soon this Smartass Cherryjumping Major told me to be quiet and get ready to jump. This being about my 50th Jump in my 3rd Year I disregarded him and asked him where the hell he was from an where did he go to school. Expecting to hear West Point he answered Mississippi State graduating in 1971. I asked him if he knew my cousin Richie Collins who also got his Commission from State that year. He said he did and they were best friends in ROTC. Well Green Light came on and out we went. Well Major Mitchell I never got back to you cause one of your idiot troopers who was fing off in the air stole my air about 150 feet off the ground causing me a little stay at Womack. All I want to know is WHO was that dam good looking 2nd LT from the W.

[Srt201]

No rather be called a Jumping Junkie than dope on a rope. True story, I straphanging on a DISCOM jump on June night in 1986 when I noticed a Hot looking female officer, really filled out those BDUs, a couple of jumpers behind me. So when the jump commands were finished we had about 6 mins before stand in the door. So I started talking to her finding out that she went to the W. Well soon this Smartass Cherryjumping Major told me to be quiet and get ready to jump. This being about my 50th Jump in my 3rd Year I disregarded him and asked him where the hell he was from an where did he go to school. Expecting to hear West Point he answered Mississippi State graduating in 1971. I asked him if he knew my cousin Richie Collins who also got his Commission from State that year. He said he did and they were best friends in ROTC. Well Green Light came on and out we went. Well Major Mitchell I never got back to you cause one of your idiot troopers who was fing off in the air stole my air about 150 feet off the ground causing me a little stay at Womack. All I want to know is WHO was that dam good looking 2nd LT from the W.

Could you figure out what unit she was in go from there?

[Srt201]

One last story I remember (before having to ask my dad which ones I've forgotten) is about my grandfather sleepwalking from his bunk below deck to his battlestation in the middle of the night. It's a wonder he didn't go overboard in his sleep.

[Bully13]

Sounds like an example of how stressful a situation they were all in.

[parabrave]

Could you figure out what unit she was in go from there?

DISCOM had about 7,000 officers and troops and about 20 sep units under it's command.. I spent a few weeks in bed and yes I tried to find out but I ets shortly after.

[Srt201]

DISCOM had about 7,000 officers and troops and about 20 sep units under it's command.. I spent a few weeks in bed and yes I tried to find out but I ets shortly after.


I figured you had tried but who knows maybe one day you'll run into her. I can't say I know a lot about the military. All I can say I respect them a lot.

[BrunswickDawg]

If you could share any stories please do, I'd love to hear some of them.

After my granddad got captured after St. Lo, he was put on a prison train to be taken into Germany. Just before the French border, he realizes there is only 1 guard on the rail car and the door was open. He turned to the guy next to him and said "I'm rushing the guard, pass the word and we can all jump out of the train. He tackled the guard from behind, wrapped him up and launched them out the door. He landed on the ground on top of the guard - breaking his neck and killing him. Grandad looked back at the train and saw no one else had jumped. He was alone, miles behind the lines. He travelled at night toward the sound of guns, until one night he was caught by a French farmer. The farmer turned out to be an American who had deserted in WWI. He helped granddad get with resistance fighters who smuggled him back to the lines. When he got back, he realized the Germans had taken his dog tags - and he got thrown in with the German POWs. He only got out when a friend from our hometown walked past and ID'd granddad and got him out.

[Bully13]

Damn BrunswickDawg. Hell of a story. Thank you sir.

[BrunswickDawg]

Damn BrunswickDawg. Hell of a story. Thank you sir.
Thanks. Amazingly, he didn't even have the best stories in the family. His older brother Jack was a SeaBee, stationed at Pearl. He survived the Jap attack and then went to work rebuilding the fleet. He talked some about the horrors of diving into the ships to repair them enough to refloat them and finding bodies in all sorts of odd places. Jack later was headed to somewhere like Guadalcanal to build an airstrip when the boat he was on got torpedoed. He swam onto some island with a couple of other survivors that turned out crawling with Japs. They lived in caves on the run for 18 months. The whole family thought he was dead, then the island gets liberated and he got sent home. The oldest brother, Herbert, had built the first airplane and airport in Cobb County, Ga. He volunteered for the Air Corps, but at 40, they said he was too old. He went to Canada, lied about his age, and joined the RAF. He flew one supply mission to England before they found out his age and discharged him. Spent the rest of the war as the head of the Civil Air Patrol, and would buzz Downtown Marietta in his biplane during air raid drills.

My grandfather and his brothers were the best bunch of guys you would ever want to meet. Smart, athletic, funny as hell, and giving. I miss them all almost daily.

[Bully13]

Most people don't know but the most dangerous missions in all of ww2 were the fly boys leaving England into France and Germany. Some 22,000 flew 1 or more missions. Close to 3000 never made it back. Their units had the highest mortality rate of all military units in ww2.

[Bully13]

Percentage wise that is.

[parabrave]

2 great movies about the Army Air Corps Twelve O'Clock High and one with Steve McQueen in it "the War Lover"

[Bully13]

2 great movies about the Army Air Corps Twelve O'Clock High and one with Steve McQueen in it "the War Lover"

WAR lover. Is that the one that ends in a plane crash?

[Srt201]

I really love The Great Escape one of my all time favorites and along with the Stalag 13? movie.

[parabrave]

WAR lover. Is that the one that ends in a plane crash?

Yep. Great final scene. AS a former aviator I do know what it's like trying to get the last bit out of your aircraft.

[Liverpooldawg]

One of the REAL Band of Brothers still lives in Caledonia Mississippi. I had the distinct honor of meeting Bradford Freeman a few years ago. He signed my copy of the book. He did not feature in the show but he IS in the book.

[Srt201]

Two must read books are "Flags of Our Fathers" and "Flyboys". They are well worth the read if you have time.

[Liverpooldawg]

My list of must read WWII books is long. It includes but is NOT limited to Ambrose's D-Day, Band of Brothers, and Pegasus Bridge; Atkinson's Liberation Trilogy; Ryan's The Longest Day and A Bridge Too Far; Churchill's six volume The Second World War; Colville's The Fringes of Power; Motimer's The Longest Night; Stafford's Ten Days to D-Day; Webster's Parachute Infantry; Holland's The Battle of Britain; Prange's Miracle at Midway; Brown's Bodyguard of Lies; Lord's Day of Infamy; Hornfischer's Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors; Sledge's With the Old Breed; and May's Strange Victory. I'd also say that while not strictly confined to the war years themselves these also belong on the list: Toland's Rising Sun: Schirer's The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich and Berlin Diary; Gilbert's The Appeasers; Faber's Munich, 1938; Martin's France 1938; and Macmillan's Paris, 1919.

Edited to add one more, Salisbury's The 900 Days: The Siege of Leningrad.

[parabrave]

You can't go wrong with any Ryan book. One of the unknown ones is James McDonald "Time for Trumpets" about his fighting in the battle of the bulge. It's very detailed and you will go into information overload. Be careful reading Ambrose. He just rehashes everything in all of his books.

[Srt201]

If you ever want books about the history and development of specific firearms that were used in World War 2 you can always look online at the library of congress. If they have it, you can request it from your local library and they'll send it from the library of congress. I did that with the Arisaka type 38.

[TStationDawg]

I love this thread. My grandfather served in the 503rd in the Pacific. Was part of the jump on Corregidor. Later transitioned to the 11th where he was part of the first wave of the occupation of Japan. He had many brutal and humorous stories. I will share two:
1. First kill: comes out of a fox hole and comes face to face with soldier that looked "younger than I did- I froze and so did he. My friend reaches over and pulls my trigger for me and kills him. He says, the first one is on me, next one's on you". This always made him tear up.
2. Caught in tree: Night jump; Supposed to land into clearing surrounded by jungles occupied by enemy- of course, he misses LZ and lands in jungle and gets hung in tree. Jet black- no moon/star light. Has to hang for hours (no idea how long), couldn't cut down bc he had no idea who was below him. Couldn't piss- nothing. First beams of sunlight come out enough for him to see in front of his face, he said "I'm maybe 2 feet from the ground; all this time I was worried about falling on someone and I should have been worried about someone walking in to me!" This one always made him laugh.

[parabrave]

I love this thread. My grandfather served in the 503rd in the Pacific. Was part of the jump on Corregidor. Later transitioned to the 11th where he was part of the first wave of the occupation of Japan. He had many brutal and humorous stories. I will share two:
1. First kill: comes out of a fox hole and comes face to face with soldier that looked "younger than I did- I froze and so did he. My friend reaches over and pulls my trigger for me and kills him. He says, the first one is on me, next one's on you". This always made him tear up.
2. Caught in tree: Night jump; Supposed to land into clearing surrounded by jungles occupied by enemy- of course, he misses LZ and lands in jungle and gets hung in tree. Jet black- no moon/star light. Has to hang for hours (no idea how long), couldn't cut down bc he had no idea who was below him. Couldn't piss- nothing. First beams of sunlight come out enough for him to see in front of his face, he said "I'm maybe 2 feet from the ground; all this time I was worried about falling on someone and I should have been worried about someone walking in to me!" This one always made him laugh.
Wow the 503rd, You never hear much about that unit. When you read about their jump onto the Rock, you will wonder why the entire unit wasn't wiped out.

[TStationDawg]

Wow the 503rd, You never hear much about that unit. When you read about their jump onto the Rock, you will wonder why the entire unit wasn't wiped out.

I think something like 40% didn't even survive the jump. But the ones
That did kicked butt in record numbers. They are what lead To HALO jumps. Real roughnecks. It's perfect for my grandad. Heck of a price a lot of 18-21 yr olds paid for us. My grandad didn't even know what a "paratrooper" was when he signed up. He found out real quick.

[Srt201]

Does anyone have pictures they'd like to share?

[TStationDawg]

I have a photo somewhere of my g'dad with a friend soaking up some Sake in Japan somewhere. Its either here or at my parents house. I'll see if I can't round it up and post it on here.

[parabrave]

Actually HALO got its start during the Vietnam war by trying to get SOG teams into Laos and Cambodia. A good account of the Corregidor or any other WW2 Airborne Operations is "Paratrooper" by James Devlin.

[TStationDawg]

Actually HALO got its start during the Vietnam war by trying to get SOG teams into Laos and Cambodia. A good account of the Corregidor or any other WW2 Airborne Operations is "Paratrooper" by James Devlin.

you are correct- that was my stupid iphone autocorrect. I meant to type LALO. Tough way to make a living.

[Bully13]

Watching some pacific theatre right now. The amphibious beach assaults of Guadalcanal and Tarawa were indeed before Normandy. The Tarawa landing was a disaster because they made a huge mistake arriving at low tide forcing the Marines to get out of their landing crafts early. Wading thru the water with sharp corals all around, the awaiting and dug in japs mowed several hundred marines down before they ever got to the beach.

The saipan landing went much better which I think was just a few days after Normandy.

After that there was a disagreement between McArthur and king as to what to do next. King wanted to go take Formosa (Taiwan). It would have provided a base where bombers could reach Japan. But McArthur wanted to do more island hopping including the Philippines.

I think king's plan could have worked because even though the islandstill would have remained undefeated, kings plan would had them isolated. If king's plan had been implemented and had been successful, over 200K lives would have been saved. Maybe McArthurs promise to the Philippines should have been delayed?

[louisvilledawg]

Late to the thread and don't have any really interesting stories, but my grandfather served during WWII and was a POW in Japan for almost two years (I think.) He did the Bataan Death March and at one point caught malaria and was also bayoneted in the thigh while on the march.

Don't quote me on this, but i think he received a bronze star, and for some reason he turned down two purple hearts.

I know my grandmother still has the draft letter, as well as the letter to his family saying he had been captured and was a POW.

Next time i'm home i'll try and find them if that's something y'all would be interested in.

[Bully13]

Late to the thread and don't have any really interesting stories, but my grandfather served during WWII and was a POW in Japan for almost two years (I think.) He did the Bataan Death March and at one point caught malaria and was also bayoneted in the thigh while on the march.

Don't quote me on this, but i think he received a bronze star, and for some reason he turned down two purple hearts.

I know my grandmother still has the draft letter, as well as the letter to his family saying he had been captured and was a POW.

Next time i'm home i'll try and find them if that's something y'all would be interested in.

OMG Louisville . I've seen multi documentaries on Bataan. Dude, anyone who survived that march PLUS endured the 2 years at the camp is one tough SOB.

Did he ever talk about the rescue raid? If you can, please send more!

GREAT POST!!

[Srt201]

Please tell us more if you can, do you know which POW camp it is? One the links posted earlier talks about the camp liberations in the direct aftermath of the war.

Also guys today is the anniversary of using the code AF to trick the Japanese.

http://ww2db.com/battle_spec.php?battle_id=6

[Bully13]

The AF trick was amazing. Midway, that was a big WTF moment for the japs. Turned the tide of the Pacific.

[Srt201]

Not my grandfather but this is a picture he had up in his house when I was growing up.

https://s12.postimg.org/6p7yqqi71/IMG_2635.png

[parabrave]

Not my grandfather but this is a picture he had up in his house when I was growing up.

https://s12.postimg.org/6p7yqqi71/IMG_2635.png
Thats a british Bren.

[Srt201]

Thats a british Bren.

Close, it's a type 99 jap light machine gun. Basically it's a copy of the Bren with French influences. But man it would be fun to shoot.

[Bully13]

These pics and comments about these guns are awesome. Thanks guys.

[Mjoelner34]

Awesome thread guys! I don't venture over to Scatology often and just now saw this thread.

My dad was in the navy from toward the end of WWII to the end of Korea. The closet he said they ever came to action was in WWII when a lone Japanese bomber got to within a couple of miles of them but then turned and went the other way. He was on a liberty ship hauling naval ammunition. If you've ever seen the Henry Fonda movie Mr. Roberts, that was his ship except Mr. Roberts was hauling toilet paper. Daddy told me that it had to have been one of his shipmates that wrote that story. Boring duty, a tyrannical captain....... He said "We even had a damn palm tree!" He ran the laundry on the ship and said that he had it made. He'd sleep on a table in the laundry with a fan blowing fresh air from the deck on him to keep the mosquitoes off of him. He would let the officers come take hot baths in the tubs in exchange for liberty papers when the captain wouldn't give the crew liberty and he'd let the cooks come take hot baths in exchange for special food privileges. He told me "I never ate with the captain but I ate what the captain ate." One time during Korea while re-arming the Missouri, they rammed it and ripped the railing off from bow to stern on one side. A call from the Missouri, which had an admiral on board, came in requesting to send the captain over. They strapped him in the chair and sent him over and never saw him again. I asked daddy if he thought the guy steering the ship rammed it on purpose. He said "It wouldn't surprise me a bit."

[Mjoelner34]

Here is a very cool story a late friend of mine from Natchez told me. I've shared this on the main board before on Memorial Day or D Day I believe.

He ran one of the carriage tours in Natchez. One time someone contacted him and said that a retired general from Ohio (I think) and his wife were in town and the guy asked a question they thought my friend could answer. He went and met the general and the general asked him about the military history of Mississippians. My friend wasn't sure what the general was getting at with such a broad question so the general explained it to him. He told him that during WWII, he was the aide to the general in charge of the landing craft on D Day. As they were having their last briefing with the landing craft drivers when they were crossing the channel, the general asked if any of the drivers were from Mississippi. Several of the guys raised their hands. The general then informed them that their boats would be leading the first wave. As all the other drivers were hooting and hollering, the general said "If you're wondering why I picked you, it's because you sons of bitches from Mississippi are too stupid and hardheaded to turn and run when you're getting shot at and all we need for this invasion to fail is for the first wave to turn and run." The retired general said he always wanted to know why the general had said that. I don't know what my friend told him but I'm betting some of it has to do with general Barksdale and 4 brigades of Mississippians at Gettysburg. If you've never read about his charge, please go read about it.

A couple of years after my friend told me that story, I relayed it to another friend of mine from Jackson. His eyes welled up and in a cracking voice he told me "My grandpa was a landing craft driver in the first wave there." Well it got real dusty in that room to me all of a sudden too. He went on to tell me that it was so bad that his grandpa said he had to carry a Thompson across his shoulder and threaten the men with it to get them off his boat when he'd drop the ramp. I can't imagine and don't want to imagine all of the shit they had to go through that day. God bless them!!!

[Bully13]

Awesome Mjo, thank you sir for that.

[Liverpooldawg]

I am a healthcare practitioner NE Miss. I had a client, he died a few years back, who was a coxswain, IE the commander, of a landing craft at Omaha Beach on D-Day. He was the nicest old GENTLEMAN you could have ever wanted to meet. He never spoke to me about it. I never would have never known about all except by accident. As he never mentioned it to me I asked his wife about it one time. I told her I was deeply interested, but I would understand if he didn't want to talk about it. She said he didn't like to talk about it but she would relay my interest to him. She said let him bring it up, if he wants to. He never did, and I respected that as much as I wanted to hear his story. His wife DID tell me WHY he never wanted to talk about it. He piloted a landing craft in the first wave at Omaha, and beyond.. He told her that he dropped the ramp on the first run into the beach, and every single one of the boys on his boat were cut down as soon as they left his boat. She said she asked him once, after one of his nightmares, what he did. He said he turned around and went back for another load. He was just a kid too. Hat's off to Mr ****, and those boys he dropped the ramp for. God bless them all.

[Srt201]

I am a healthcare practitioner NE Miss. I had a client, he died a few years back, who was a coxswain, IE the commander, of a landing craft at Omaha Beach on D-Day. He was the nicest old GENTLEMAN you could have ever wanted to meet. He never spoke to me about it. I never would have never known about all except by accident. As he never mentioned it to me I asked his wife about it one time. I told her I was deeply interested, but I would understand if he didn't want to talk about it. She said he didn't like to talk about it but she would relay my interest to him. She said let him bring it up, if he wants to. He never did, and I respected that as much as I wanted to hear his story. His wife DID tell me WHY he never wanted to talk about it. He piloted a landing craft in the first wave at Omaha, and beyond.. He told her that he dropped the ramp on the first run into the beach, and every single one of the boys on his boat were cut down as soon as they left his boat. She said she asked him once, after one of his nightmares, what he did. He said he turned around and went back for another load. He was just a kid too. Hat's off to Mr ****, and those boys he dropped the ramp for. God bless them all.

That's just a crazy story I couldn't imagine going through something like that. Have you ever heard of the Bedford boys?

[Liverpooldawg]

That's just a crazy story I couldn't imagine going through something like that. Have you ever heard of the Bedford boys?

I have the book on them.

[Srt201]

I have the book on them.

You're the first I've known to have that book. But it's devastating what can happen to these small towns.

[Srt201]

Got one more story, post War my grandfather was in the navy reserve and got called up for the Korean War and served on some destroyer. I wish I knew which one. But he was from Mathiston, MS and his first day at sea he gets called to the captains cabin, well the guy showing my grandfather his bunk said now you're in for it and you just got here. Well my grandfather goes to meet the captain nervous and guess what. Captain only wanted to see him because he was from Mathiston himself.

[Bully13]

Thank you srt. That kicks ass. Thank you all for these great stories.

What amazes me so much about Korea is how much a nations combat readiness can deteriorate in such short period of time when you let your guard down assuming evil no longer exists.

[Srt201]

Thank you srt. That kicks ass. Thank you all for these great stories.

What amazes me so much about Korea is how much a nations combat readiness can deteriorate in such short period of time when you let your guard down assuming evil no longer exists.

My favorite book is The Coldest Winter: America in the Korean War. It's a great book about the initial phase of the war. If you want I can try and find my copy.

[Srt201]

Another thing that gets me is the impact of the Cold War on the Eastern European countries. A documentary I would recommend is "the invisible front" it is well worth the watch.

[Srt201]

I'm still trying to find pictures to share, I haven't found many of my grandfather's. But I feel comfortable sharing this one I found while researching the ship he served on. This is a jap plane destroyed by 5" shells.

https://postimg.org/image/ugn55c6il/

[Bully13]

I'm still trying to find pictures to share, I haven't found many of my grandfather's. But I feel comfortable sharing this one I found while researching the ship he served on. This is a jap plane destroyed by 5" shells.

https://postimg.org/image/ugn55c6il/

Holy crap SRT!! where did this pic come from? do you know what South Pacific Campaign? what island?

[Bully13]

here's what I know about the zero's. they were indeed bad ass planes. they were more vulnerable to bullets though than the Mustang. but they were fast and very maneuverable and in the beginning had very talented pilots. we lost a lot of planes and pilots due to them (ask Bush Sr.) the Mustangs were protected better due to thicker steel and we covered our gas tanks with thick rubber where a bullet wouldn't explode the plane. in the end, we whipped them with numbers and planes that could withstand bullets much better than the zero and we ended up killing their experienced pilots. thus , in the end, they had to resort to suicide bombers. we also learned a lot about zeros when we confiscated a crashed one in the Aleutian islands.

[Srt201]

Holy crap SRT!! where did this pic come from? do you know what South Pacific Campaign? what island?

Bully I went back to where I got the picture. It was taken on December 4, 1943 off of the island of Kwajalein. I look up information in the online national archives. It's tough finding useful information because of how it's organized but there is a ton of useful and awesome pictures on there.

This is another cool document I found on there. https://catalog.archives.gov/OpaAPI/media/27579396/content/presidential-libraries/roosevelt/fdr-fdrmrp/mr0865.pdf#pdfjs.action=download

[Srt201]

To any one interested I’ve found a few things that I thought would entertain you.

https://s13.postimg.org/ilrocli37/825_F10_C7-90_EC-4722-_A81_B-0952743_F1300.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/ilrocli37/)

https://s13.postimg.org/5udi630lf/A88_EA693-366_B-49_EB-9_D86-_A5144_AD0_BD47.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/5udi630lf/)

https://s13.postimg.org/r414h0wcj/3511_C562-9636-43_DE-_B635-6_EDF59_F91179.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/r414h0wcj/)

https://s13.postimg.org/xuhlqgr83/A9_C0_F30_C-2225-4_EBA-9_D1_D-8621322_C9854.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/xuhlqgr83/)

https://s13.postimg.org/lfutq57fn/AAAED521-_A74_F-4127-_B590-3534233_DFA5_B.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/lfutq57fn/)

[parabrave]

If you want to see great pics from every ship in the US in thr 20th century check out NAVSOURCE

[Liverpooldawg]

WWII battlefields: Have any of you ever been to any? I spent a day in the American sectors in Normandy back in 2010. I have been to St. Petersburg/Leningrad. I've been to what is left of three 8th Air Force bases in Norfolk, England. I've been to London, you can see where a lot of the bombs landed if you know what to look for. I've been to the Imperial War Museum at Duxford. That is the former RAF Duxford that was such a key base in the Battle of Britain. If you ever get a chance to go to that place, DO IT. I've been to Berlin, you can certainly still see where battle damage was patched on the Brandenburg Gate. I'm going to be taking a Rhine River cruise in August. We will be in Amsterdam a day or two prior to the cruise. I'm exploring taking a day trip out to some of the Market Garden areas. Hopefully it will be daylight when we sail by Remagen.

[BeardoMSU]

WWII battlefields: Have any of you ever been to any?

When I was interning in England back in 2013, by GF and I took a 10 day trip to France. We rented a car and drove all through Normandy, seeing Pointe du Hoc and Omaha Beach, as well as the American Cemetery. It was pretty amazing.

[redstickdawg]

WWII battlefields: Have any of you ever been to any? I spent a day in the American sectors in Normandy back in 2010. I have been to St. Petersburg/Leningrad. I've been to what is left of three 8th Air Force bases in Norfolk, England. I've been to London, you can see where a lot of the bombs landed if you know what to look for. I've been to the Imperial War Museum at Duxford. That is the former RAF Duxford that was such a key base in the Battle of Britain. If you ever get a chance to go to that place, DO IT. I've been to Berlin, you can certainly still see where battle damage was patched on the Brandenburg Gate. I'm going to be taking a Rhine River cruise in August. We will be in Amsterdam a day or two prior to the cruise. I'm exploring taking a day trip out to some of the Market Garden areas. Hopefully it will be daylight when we sail by Remagen.

I've been to several over the years, Normandy 2X, Bastogne, Dunkirk, Maginot Line, Buchenwald, several areas that were in eastern Germany. Most interesting is definitely Normandy.

[Srt201]

WWII battlefields: Have any of you ever been to any? I spent a day in the American sectors in Normandy back in 2010. I have been to St. Petersburg/Leningrad. I've been to what is left of three 8th Air Force bases in Norfolk, England. I've been to London, you can see where a lot of the bombs landed if you know what to look for. I've been to the Imperial War Museum at Duxford. That is the former RAF Duxford that was such a key base in the Battle of Britain. If you ever get a chance to go to that place, DO IT. I've been to Berlin, you can certainly still see where battle damage was patched on the Brandenburg Gate. I'm going to be taking a Rhine River cruise in August. We will be in Amsterdam a day or two prior to the cruise. I'm exploring taking a day trip out to some of the Market Garden areas. Hopefully it will be daylight when we sail by Remagen.

The only place I can say I have been is Rome and I’ve been inside the building Mussolini gave his speeches in. I admit it was pretty neat.

[BrunswickDawg]

I?m jealous of those who have been. My Dad and I discussed taking my Grandad to Normandy for the 50th back in 1994. Unfortunately, Grandad had a major coronary late in 93. Even though he survived, he was done with travel like that. I?ll make that trip someday.

[BeardoMSU]

I?m jealous of those who have been. My Dad and I discussed taking my Grandad to Normandy for the 50th back in 1994. Unfortunately, Grandad had a major coronary late in 93. Even though he survived, he was done with travel like that. I?ll make that trip someday.

Really sorry to hear that, Brunswick.....would've been the makings of some awesome memories for y'all.

[Bullmutt]

Gentlemen, I have thoroughly enjoyed this thread and hope that it continues for a while as more people see it.

I was glad to see some of the "reading lists" mentioned and want to offer another "must read" book dealing with the war in the Pacific. Hell To Pay was written by D. M. Giangreco, and it documents the hundreds of thousands American and possibly millions of Japanese lives which were ultimately saved as a result of Truman's decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The planning of a conventional assault or invasion of the Japanese mainland actually started in 1943, and it was estimated American casualties would be between 400-800K and that Japanese casualties would be 1-5M. This book is incredibly well-documented (almost half the pages cover documentation of sources) and serves to convincingly make the case that dropping "the bomb" was the right and humane decision.

[Bully13]

Good post bull and your right, we had no choice due to the Japanese mentality.. when you have 100k on an island and only 22 surrender coupled with suicide bombers, you get the picture. They were training kids with knives attached to bamboo poles. They were cutoff and people were starving to death. Even after the 1st bomb, they refused to surrender. And remember , more civilians died via our conventional bombings than ths 2 nukea.

Aa strange as it may sound, Truman's decision saved lives.

[parabrave]

Good post bull and your right, we had no choice due to the Japanese mentality.. when you have 100k on an island and only 22 surrender coupled with suicide bombers, you get the picture. They were training kids with knives attached to bamboo poles. They were cutoff and people were starving to death. Even after the 1st bomb, they refused to surrender. And remember , more civilians died via our conventional bombings than ths 2 nukea.

Aa strange as it may sound, Truman's decision saved lives.

Even after the emperor decided to surrender the military tried to overthrow him. We would've had to kill almost half of the population. My dad had no problem with the dropping of the bomb.

[Bullmutt]

Good post bull and your right, we had no choice due to the Japanese mentality.. when you have 100k on an island and only 22 surrender coupled with suicide bombers, you get the picture. They were training kids with knives attached to bamboo poles. They were cutoff and people were starving to death. Even after the 1st bomb, they refused to surrender. And remember , more civilians died via our conventional bombings than ths 2 nukea.

Aa strange as it may sound, Truman's decision saved lives.


You're right, 13. The book says that they were training children as young as seven to fight using garden implements. They were absolutely determined to fight to the last person.

[Srt201]

https://postimg.cc/image/86i422565/

Check this out.

[parabrave]

OK guys if you want to watch videos from ww2 - vietnam go to youtube and type critical past. They have collected a whole sload of old signal corps videos, uncut I might add. You will see a lot of dead both theirs and ours.

[parabrave]

https://postimg.cc/image/86i422565/

Check this out.

Cool. I'm going to ask Mr Conn if he remembers this.