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  New Blog - The History Geek
Posted by: Walt's Daughter - 09-26-2007, 03:47 PM - Forum: General discussion - Replies (1)


http://www.history-geek.com

 

The History Geek - by a friend of mine named Peter Culos

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  Introducing Myself
Posted by: kate - 09-25-2007, 11:56 PM - Forum: Introduce Yourself! - Replies (21)


My father, Harold O. Nelson was in the 208th Army Engineering Combat Battalion. I have been communicating with veterans and family members from the 208th off and on for a few years as well as doing research about WWII and the 208th.

 

In August, 2007 one of my sisters (Karin) and I drove south to Kansas (from Minnesota) and met two men from my Dad's Company. I learned more in three days than I have in the past three years. Floyd and Lew are awesome men, and I will be visiting them again. ...the sooner the better.

 

I was introduced to Floyd and Lewis from a man (Gary Swanson) who is involved in the Veteran History project, of which I want to participate in very soon.

 

My goal is to have a website about the 208th by January 1, 2008. There's very little on the internet about the 208th. It's very fitting...to honor the 208th Army Engineering Combat Battalion in 2008!

 

Ruth Nelson Schumi

Cottage Grove, Minnesota

post-386-1190775067_thumb.jpg



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  WW2 Cadets at Miami Beach
Posted by: Cadetat6 - 09-25-2007, 09:53 PM - Forum: The Papa Art Section! - Replies (1)


To:Army Air Force,com I have tried to locate John W. Wingfield, Jr. who posts to your web, trying for info on his father. I could not find any to help. His father was 416th Sqdn Gunner. Herv is the info John needs.

 

Post #1

 

 

General

 

 

Group: General

Posts: 6240

Joined: 30-March 02

From: San Francisco

Member No.: 15

 

 

 

Posted by: cadetat6 Jul 28 2003 2:21 PM

 

Army Air Corps: When the Army Air Force recruited the college students in 1942 as Aviation Cadets from the colleges and universities across the land, then they told the students that they were needed as officers in the rapidly expanding Army Air Force and would become pilots, navigators, or bombardiers. Furthermore, those that did not choose to fly and had two years of college would become an Aviation Cadet Ground Crew and commissioned in armaments, communication, meteorology, photography, or engineering. But, when the AAF discovered at the end of 1943 that their over zealous recruiting and over estimation of loss rate had created a large surplus of pilots, they ignored all of the promises made to the college students and began transferring them to technical schools. This did not create a pleasant situation for the schools or the ex-cadets.

~~~

Posted by: cadetat6 Jul 28 3002 10:24 AM

 

Enlisted Reserve Corps, Boot Camp:

AIR CADET. 1942 I received my civilian pilots license from Hartung Airport at Gratiot and 10-½ mile. 1943 I enlisted in the Army Air Corps. ERC (enlisted reserve Corps). I was sent to Miami Beach, Florida for basic training. We stayed in Netherlands Hotel on Ocean Drive across from the Atlantic Ocean. The Air Corps took over about 300 hotels on south Miami Beach. The first morning the sergeant walked on all the floors blowing whistle and telling every one to fall out in front of the hotel in 4 lines. We were marched (walked) to the Tide (green latrine) hotel for breakfast. As we lined up to go in, 2 kids walked along selling orange juice, pineapple juice and grapefruit juice.

 

Our training took place on the city streets and golf courses and theaters. A typical day was up at 5:10 A.M. to fall out in front of the hotel for Reville, 5:30 back to our rooms to clean them, 5:45 fall out in front and march to breakfast 6:30 back at our hotel to make our beds and clean the room, 7:00 we marched from our hotel to the drill field (which is the golf course), We trained until 11:00 marched back to our hotel at 11:30. Now we got our mail, and at 11:45 went to chow (lunch), then back to our hotel to clean it up again. At 1:00 P.M. we march back to the drill field and trained until 2:45 and got back to our hotel at 3:15. We change to our bathing suits and walk across street for P.T. on the sand beach, finish P.T. at4:45 and go back to our rooms and put on our Class A uniforms. We have Retreat 5:15 and chow at 6:25. The rest of day is ours. Lights out at 9:00 P.M. and in bed at 10:00 P.M. We trained 6 days a week, Sundays off, and I went to church on Sundays in town.

 

November 1943 finished training and men were shipping out, I was not so I went to the Air Inspector Office to check out when I would be shipped out. He looked for my records and said I would be shipped out in 24 hours and I was. We went by train to Gettysburg College Dec. 5, 1943.

~~~

Posted by: cadetat6 Jul 29 2003 6:15 AM

 

Almost AWOL Christmas

Christmas Season 1943. I had been away from my fiancee for only 4 months

when I arrived at Gettysburg College as Air Corps Cadet. I was a homesick

fly boy. I called my Charlotte (Micky) and told her I missed her and was going

A.W.O.L. and come home to see her. Bang!! I got a stern voice saying, "No

you stay there†and she would come to see me. On Friday Dec 24 Micky came

with my mother and father. I met them at 9 A.M. The next three days were great.

Sunday night I walked (Gettysburg was only a couple of blocks in those days)

them to the Bus Stop. I said goodbye and slowly walked back to "Old Dorm."

which was our barracks and as the old song said "tears flowed like wine."

~~~

Posted by: cadetat6 Jul 29 2003 11:55 AM

 

Army Air Corps, 3 Things Not To Do

 

I had my pilot’s license before I enlisted in 1943 and found 3 things not to do.

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  Story of Charlie Brown - B17 pilot
Posted by: Walt's Daughter - 09-25-2007, 07:15 PM - Forum: ANYTHING WWII - No Replies


Story of Charlie Brown - B17 pilot

 

http://www.waltsrchanger.com/html/b-17_f__ye_olde_pub_.html

 

http://www.robertedselblog.com/index.php/2...-charlie-brown/

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  1942 Pocket Guide To North Africa
Posted by: arve - 09-25-2007, 03:22 PM - Forum: ANYTHING WWII - Replies (14)


I have a "Pocket Guide To North Africa" given to the GIs in '42.

It's got alot of instruction as well as information & some of it is

pretty humorous:

 

" North Africans are great eaters of bread. If you enter a bakery, leave your

shoes at the door, as the baker slides the loaves pit of the oven onto the floor

and the customers object to having dirt tracked in from the street."

 

"These few rules are to be strictly observed with relation to the Moslem women:

Never stare at one.

Never jostle her in a crowd.

Never speak to her in public.

Never try to remove the veil.

This is most important. Serious injury if not death at the hands of Moslem men

may result if these rules are not followed."

 

"The social life of North Africa is very different from our own...because Moslem men do not

make companions of their women. A man's wife attends to the home, bears children, and may work in the fields, but she is in the position of chattel. If her husband cannot afford to

support more than one wife, he can still divorce her with ease and be free to marry again."

 

 

"When Moslem men want the company of women at a party, they engage a troupe of professional dancing girls. These professionals have a unique social position, not as low

as that of the prostitute, but still somewhat degraded. They are said to be more interesting company than the Moslem wife because they get around a great deal and know all the answers. They dance for the men, not with them. Men have dances of their own, but when a Moslem gentleman is seen dancing it is usually a sign that he is a bit plastered."

 

"When you meet a Moslem he will want to shake hands. Do it gently! Do not pump his

hand or squeeze too hard. Many of them, especially the city Moslems, have fine hands which are easily hurt. A Moslem may even kiss your hand...do not laugh at him; it is his way of showing politeness. If they laugh at you, take it; don't get angry. Above all, NEVER

STRIKE THEM. They do not know how to box; one right on the jaw would knock a Moslem down. You would make an enemy of everyone that saw you, and word would spread around that all Americans are bruisers. Moslems fight with knives, and they probably are alot better at it than you are."

 

In the list of "Do's and Don'ts":

 

Don't drink liquor in the presence of Moslems :drinkin:

DON'T enter mosques.

Discuss something else - NEVER religion or women.

Don't refer to the people as heathen; they are very religious.

don't bring a dog into the house :woof:

Leave food in the main bowl - what you leave goes to the women & children.

When you see grown men walking hand in hand, ignore it. They are not "queer".

Avoid talking about or praising Europeans.

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