Video: Collections: Iowa's WWII Stories
On December 7, 1941, the United States entered World War II. By the time the war ended on August 15, 1945, almost every person on earth was affected in one way or another. Iowans who were at home had major roles to play in winning the war as well. Their sacrifice helped determine what kind of conditions, both political and social, would exist once the war was over. More than 276,000 Iowans went into military service during World War II. 8,398 never returned. Iowa Public Television's collection of veteran's oral histories is a tribute to those Iowans who put their lives on hold for more than three years to fight against the Axis powers of Germany, Italy and Japan. This collection preserves the memories of some of those Iowans who served on the home front and the battlefront.
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World War II Veteran: Donald R. Vaughn (Don)
Don Vaughn of Ottumwa, Iowa talks about his training after being drafted in the Army in March, 1943 and his service in Europe as Staff Sergeant in the coast artillery and field artillery. 10:25
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World War II Veteran: Harold Lamont Schoolen
Harold Schoolen of Ottumwa, Iowa was a truck driver in the 2nd Cavalry Division. Harold shares his adventures hauling troops and ammunition in France and Italy. 09:47
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World War II Veteran: Richard Henneman
Richard Henneman talks about surviving a brutally cold winter in France, Germany and Belgium. 10:21
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World War II Veteran: Richard O. Keep (Dick)
Dick Keep learned to speak German from his mother and grandmother growing up on the farm. He served as interpreter for his little squadron or platoon of 20 soldiers. 10:18
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World War II Veteran: Robert A. Helgerson (Bob)
Bob Helgerson of Ottumwa, Iowa talks about his '90 day wonder' training in the Navy, and his experiences aboard the Intrepid. 10:58
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World War II Veteran: Russell Smith
By mid-summer 1944, members of company "I" were attacking German troops somewhere north of Rome, Italy. "Bill" Smith was returning to the battlefield after requesting an artillery barrage when he came ...
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World War II and the Home Front: Jeanne Ersland and the Des Moines Ordnance Plant
As more men were sent away to fight, women were hired to take over their positions on the assembly lines. Before World War II, women had generally been discouraged from working outside the home. Now, ...
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World War II and the Home Front: Working at Maytag in Newton | Hollys "Pat" Harrison
Maytag was one of the Iowa firms that stopped producing consumer goods and started making war supplies.
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World War II and the Home Front: Rex Holmes
As the battle raged on in Tunisia, 15-year old Rex Holmes of Red Oak waited in the Western Union Telegraph office in the Red Oak Hotel.
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World War II Veteran: Thelma Kardon
For some, joining the service was a chance to relocate. Thelma Kardon, formerly Sherman, was a 21 year-old native of Chelsea, Massachusetts who joined the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps in November of 1942. ...
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World War II and the Home Front: Ed Tubbs
To help win the fight from the home front, the U.S. government asked its citizens to increase production of everything from ammunition to food. Ed Tubbs went to work for the Jasper Country Extension Service ...
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World War II Veteran: Malcolm Amos
Army Corpsman Malcolm Amos of Afton was among those captured in the Philippines on April 9, 1942. He became one of the more than 75 thousand allied forces, including and estimated 12,000 Americans, who ... 01:16
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World War II Veteran: Paul Aschbrenner
Aschbrenner was assigned to the battleship USS Oklahoma. On Sunday, December 7, 1941, the Oklahoma was docked in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The attack began at 7:55am, Hawaiian time.
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World War II Veteran: Aurelio Barron
During the battle for Faid (fa-YEED) Pass, Sergeant Barron's mortar squad was nearby, perched on a hill, waiting to protect the retreating Allied troops. Barron began to survey the road below his position ...
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World War II Veteran: Verle Buck
Technician Fourth Grade Verle Buck, a 21-year old from Jubilee, had been drafted in January of 1943 and was now a part of the 149th Combat Engineer Battalion. On June 6, 1944, a day that became known ...
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World War II Veteran: Galen Kittleson
In early 1945, 20-year old Galen Kittleson from St. Ansgar was stationed in the Philippines as part of an elite unit called the Alamo Scouts. The Scouts were made up of small highly trained units that ...
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World War II Veteran: Henry Leonard
Private First Class Henry Leonard, a 19-year old draftee from Ryan, was sent to fight in the Philippines in January of 1945. He was assigned to the Bush Masters, a group of National Guardsmen from Arizona, ...
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World War II Veteran: Dean Lettington
As part of the 559th Field Artillery Battalion, Lettington had spent the last few months fighting across France.
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World War II Veteran: Glenn McDole
McDole was at the Cavite Naval Base in the Philippines when the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor began. Because the Philippines are on the other side of the international dateline, the battle began on ...
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World War II Veteran: Ruth Miller
After being commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, Ruth Miller was assigned to the 110th Evacuation Hospital and sent to Europe in 1944. The 110th's job was to set up near the battle front, bandage wounded ...
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