In the South Pacific

Boot camp completed, I was sent to Morehead Teachers College in Kentucky. The course work was generally Math &Science. After Graduation, With two other Sailors, we were  sent to an Army Base in New Jersey.We blended in wearing Army clothing, taking field trips etc. Our purpose of being with the Army...

Continue reading
  2039 Hits

Mr. Christmas

  Defining Moments       Since becoming a StoryKeeper I’ve found something. Every one of us has defining moments in our life, an event or experiences of such physical or emotional intensity that it has a profound impact on the nature and direction of our life.       Moments such as...

Continue reading
  2443 Hits

They All Went to War

Willard, my third oldest brother was next in line to become a soldier.  He became a proud cavalryman.  The Cavalry’s history of riding off to battle while the regimental band played “Garry Owen” and brave young ladies waved yellow ribbons, gave the Cavalry a glamour second only to the Air Corps...

Continue reading
  1646 Hits

Smitty

After we had been in Viet Nam for awhile we were able to take a week R & R (Rest & Relaxation) a sort of vacation if you care to say . If you had the money . Some went to Bangkok , Thialand some went to Tokyo , Japan some...

Continue reading
  1722 Hits

Frogs

After the Monsoons quit and the rain quit  we had thousands and thousands of frogs to deal with . You see where our compound was , it was at the bottom of a huge hill . All the water during Monsoon season would come running down the side of that hill...

Continue reading
  1756 Hits

My Gaurdian Angel

After returning To Ft Meade Maryland to join back up with my unit we all boarded a plane to fly to  San Fran Cisco . We went and stood in line on the docks for several hours waiting to board this huge Ocean Liner ( Merchant  Marine Ship ) USS General...

Continue reading
  1625 Hits

John Luther Branch

Many people believe the War for Southern Independence (or the War of Northern Agression) started in April of 1861 at Fort Sumpter.  My family lore would disagree. We argue that the first shots were fired on January 9, 1861 against the Star of the West. My great great great uncle, John...

Continue reading
  2345 Hits

NOT ALL MEMORIES ARE GOOD........

. FAMILY HISTORY: Adolph Christian Ferdinand Moll immigrated to America from Germany in the early 1850s and settled in St Louis where he started a retail grocery store. In 1858 at the age of 24 he became a US citizen. On Feb 2, 1861, Adolph married Hedwig Balleseau who had been...

Continue reading
  10506 Hits

Session-5 Life After Discharge

It's been quite a journey since returning hone and being discharged. Like any life story there is too much to include in any one story. The highlights are, among other things, my 10 year career in a rock band with my brothers in the 70's. To see a slide show of...

Continue reading
  2018 Hits

Session-3 Viet Nam to R&R

Boys will be boys. We worked hard and we played hard whenever we could. R&R was in Tapei. It was a real eye opener for me. Here is a card from the Asia Hotel where I stayed. And below a card I got from one of the night clubs.    ...

Continue reading
  1803 Hits

Session-4 Coming Home

  This audio contains reflections of life after discharge and my career since Viet Nam. When I came home I could hardly recognize my parents. They were like aliens to me. I couldn't wait to shed the uniform. Here's the picture of my mother's greeting me, secretly whispering in my ear,...

Continue reading
  1991 Hits

Session-2 Viet Nam-A

  This recording talks about every day life like what we ate, how we got through our typical day etc. Here I am standing in front of the ammo dump at our command base in An Hoa. Three days after this photo, incoming rockets blew it into oblivion.   Whenever we...

Continue reading
  1324 Hits

Session-1 Military Bio

These recorded sessions were conducted by my Christine and I as part of the Library of Congress' Veteran History Project. To comply with their standards the interview was broken into 5 sessions. This recording includes some biographical information as well as some stories of the early part of my military service....

Continue reading
  2068 Hits

Thanks to Honor Air

I would like to thank Honor Air Knoxville, a non-profit organization that has flown over 500 area residents who are World War II veterans to Washington D. C., to visit the World War II Memorial

Continue reading
  1597 Hits