Interviews
We decided we wanted to know more about what it was like during World War II, both at home and in the war. We interviewed people from our churches, relatives, and anyone else we could find in order to learn more about what happened. These are pieces from some of our interviews.
"We came into New Jersey, and I had an aunt that lived in New York City. Now we were Massachusetts people so she came down to meet me in New York City. We were going from New Jersey to the Grand Central Station in New York City. It was a huge station and seeing it I said 'Now how am I going to find Barbara?' All of the sudden across the cavern, there was a pretty little girl that I recognized and after that it didn't take very long to get from this point to there." - Harold Bailey Jr.
Interview conducted by Marissa Hallen and Lizzie Hinchliffe.
Interview conducted by Marissa Hallen and Lizzie Hinchliffe.
Interview by: Marte Brynjulfsen and Erin Wessler.
Richard Wahlstron's Job in the War
"I was called the gunner, the gunner is the one that sets the sight and you have an observer out front that sees where the shell is going. He says if you have to move to left so far he would give the command and the leader would get that and tell me right 32 or left 15 and I had a sight that I had to put that on and then when you set you men in an area and set up with the tanks we put out a post that we sight on and you fire and get that calibrated so you know where you are. I was on the left side of the gunner on the right side another feller does the elevating and he also pulls the lanyard when they say fire. We had on the tank in the firing area we had the sergeant, who would be up there getting the command over the phone and tell me what to do and the gunner what to do. There would be another fella up there to take the shell. There was two guys on the ground would get shells."
Interview by: Tucker Kerkhove and Skyelar DeVaney
"I was called the gunner, the gunner is the one that sets the sight and you have an observer out front that sees where the shell is going. He says if you have to move to left so far he would give the command and the leader would get that and tell me right 32 or left 15 and I had a sight that I had to put that on and then when you set you men in an area and set up with the tanks we put out a post that we sight on and you fire and get that calibrated so you know where you are. I was on the left side of the gunner on the right side another feller does the elevating and he also pulls the lanyard when they say fire. We had on the tank in the firing area we had the sergeant, who would be up there getting the command over the phone and tell me what to do and the gunner what to do. There would be another fella up there to take the shell. There was two guys on the ground would get shells."
Interview by: Tucker Kerkhove and Skyelar DeVaney