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OH 1540

About the Interviewee

IntervieweeSMITH, William I. (b. 1923)
ProfessionsFarmer
Military ServiceU.S. Navy WWII Veteran

About this oral history

Interview ID #OH 1540
Date(s) of interview
DescriptionFarmer. His experiences aboard the escort carrier USS Kadashan Bay in the Pacific Theater during World War II. His rural background in West Texas; his decision to join the Navy, in 1943; boot camp and fireman’s school, San Diego, California, 1943; assignment to the USS Kadashan Bay, 1943; shipboard routine; the assault on Peleliu, September 14, 1944; the battle of Leyte Gulf, October, 1944; the Luzon landings and being hit by a kamikaze, January 3, 1945; ship’s overhaul and repairs in San Francisco, February, 1945; meeting his future wife in Boston, Massachusetts while decommissioning the Kadashan Bay.
Interviewer(s)Ronald E. Marcello
Physical Description73 pp. plus documents (7 pp.)
Terms of UseOpen