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Pearl Harbor
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Anderson - April 2, 2007
Where were you when you first learned of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor? I was attending a birthday party in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with one of the boys that had come down during the summer. It was his birthday and his family invited me up for his birthday. And three of the boys that were there, well, right after that, I guess, within in a few months they all joined the military. But I think the funniest part, well it’s not funny now, but we didn’t even know where Pearl Harbor was when they interrupted and said that Roosevelt was on the radio saying we had just been attacked at Pearl Harbor. They didn’t even know where Pearl Harbor was. Two of those three boys were killed over in Europe.

Montgomery - January 26, 1944
Jan. 26- At 07:30- arrived & entered Pearl Harbor and tied-up at the destroyer Base-Jan. 27- Refueled ship and took on more ammunition & stores-Jan. 28- Tied-up in Pearl Harbor Jan. 29- Underway at 06:44 with 5 carriers, 1 heavy battle cruiser, and 7 destroyers. Our destination is on an island named Ulithi which is one hundred miles Northwest of Japan. Here we will join Task Force ‘58’ of the Fifth Fleet.

Black - April,2006
One of the interesting instances that I’ve been asked about on occasion was just before the war, WWII, started Pearl Harbor Dec 7, 1941. I’d been in the Navy three or four years and I was on the USS WASP, which was a new aircraft carrier. None of us had been in battle at the time, but we were in Bermuda preparing to obviously be in a war. Although we didn’t know that the Japs were gonna bomb us, [chuckles] it was pretty obvious from the way that things were happening on the ship, like taking out all the portholes and welding them up with steel plates, [chuckles] that something was gonna happen. We were doing some flying, I flew a lot as a Red Sea radio gunner in dive bombing outfits mostly’ and this morning they were catapulting planes off the carrier at sea and a squall came up and they took us off the catapult and moved us back. The squall, which usually only lasts about ten minutes, was followed by a beautiful sunny morning, everything soaking wet of course.

Manasco
Shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, George C. Manasco learned that freedom was not something that was guaranteed to a person when they were born in America. The attack opened his eyes to the reality that war was upon America.

McGinnis - February 20, 1945
It was the one that was with Jack all through their training they were at Pearl Harbor together and they were both on the ship when it was sunk and the only time they were separated was the day it happened on Saipan.

McGinnis - April 10, 1944
He sent them from Pearl Harbor. I think they are swell.


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