Hammer
02-23-2005, 04:15 PM
Another thread by elkguy about his son made me think of my departed grandfather and his WWII experience.
In February 1942 (shortly after the Pearl Harbor bombing and WWII declaration for you non-history buffs), my grandfather enlisted. He chose the Navy.
He was very patriotic as was the great majority of the country then, and he wanted to serve. Like many, he enlisted. He did have one desire, however, and that was to NOT be in the Marines. It wasn't that he didn't like Marines, he did, and he respected them. He just didn't see himself first in and under all the fire.
He was sent to the Great Lakes Training School shortly after he enlisted for further studies. I still have some of his notes and a lot of his other personal items in my WWII display here at home. I'm a RN, so I have enjoyed looking back at all the things he had to study and learn as much of it was included in my studies.
He became a Pharmacist's Mate First Class. I've researched these duties, and although it sounds like it would be working with a Pharamacist distributing medicines, there was a whole lot more to it than that. First aid was a big part of the job as well as other medical duties. Some of you might know where this is going...
The marines had no medical corps (and I still don't think they have one), so during WWII, they depended on Naval personnel to perform these duties. Well, guess what? Grandaddy was attached to the Fighting 4th (Marines) after their redployment in 1944. So, in his quest to enlist with the Navy so he could get his first choice and not have to be a Marine, he was attached to the Marines, and he saw his share of hell.
This was one of the few things he ever told me about his wartime experience. I've found out many of the veterans didn't like to speak directly of what they saw or went through, and he didn't either. The other thing he told me about was being on a pineapple truck on Saipan that was ready to transport some men to a different location on the island. His CO called his name and had him get off the truck to give him an assignment, and that truck, after he got off, was hit directly by an artillery shell and completely destroyed.
He was involved in 4 amphibious assaults in the Pacific, and all but 1 are noted to have been extremely treacherous and bloody. He was in direct action on Roi-Namur, Saipan, Tinian, and Iwo-Jima.
In February 1942 (shortly after the Pearl Harbor bombing and WWII declaration for you non-history buffs), my grandfather enlisted. He chose the Navy.
He was very patriotic as was the great majority of the country then, and he wanted to serve. Like many, he enlisted. He did have one desire, however, and that was to NOT be in the Marines. It wasn't that he didn't like Marines, he did, and he respected them. He just didn't see himself first in and under all the fire.
He was sent to the Great Lakes Training School shortly after he enlisted for further studies. I still have some of his notes and a lot of his other personal items in my WWII display here at home. I'm a RN, so I have enjoyed looking back at all the things he had to study and learn as much of it was included in my studies.
He became a Pharmacist's Mate First Class. I've researched these duties, and although it sounds like it would be working with a Pharamacist distributing medicines, there was a whole lot more to it than that. First aid was a big part of the job as well as other medical duties. Some of you might know where this is going...
The marines had no medical corps (and I still don't think they have one), so during WWII, they depended on Naval personnel to perform these duties. Well, guess what? Grandaddy was attached to the Fighting 4th (Marines) after their redployment in 1944. So, in his quest to enlist with the Navy so he could get his first choice and not have to be a Marine, he was attached to the Marines, and he saw his share of hell.
This was one of the few things he ever told me about his wartime experience. I've found out many of the veterans didn't like to speak directly of what they saw or went through, and he didn't either. The other thing he told me about was being on a pineapple truck on Saipan that was ready to transport some men to a different location on the island. His CO called his name and had him get off the truck to give him an assignment, and that truck, after he got off, was hit directly by an artillery shell and completely destroyed.
He was involved in 4 amphibious assaults in the Pacific, and all but 1 are noted to have been extremely treacherous and bloody. He was in direct action on Roi-Namur, Saipan, Tinian, and Iwo-Jima.