William J. Alexander | Oral History

William J. Alexander

OH 1518

Engineer. His experiences while aboard the battleship USS Wyoming, light cruiser USS Boise, and submarine USS Mackerel during World War II. His pre-war education and employment; enlistment in the Navy, July 8, 1942; boot camp at Great Lakes, Illinois; fire control school, 1942; assignment to the training battleship Wyoming, December, 1942; transfer to the Boise, April, 1943; volunteering for assignment to the U.S.

OH 1327

His experiences as a demolitions expert in the China-Burma-India Theater during World War II. Education in West Texas; his work as an oil well shooter in the West Texas oil fields, 1930s; enlistment in the Army, 1941; assignment to the 12th Cavalry Regiment, Fort Brown, Brownsville, Texas, 1941-43; transfer to the 124th Cavalry and assignment to Burma, 1943; combat against Japanese forces around Mong Wi and Myitkyina, Burma, 1943-45; his battle wound and evacuation, July, 1945; sundry readings from his personal journal.

OH 1376

His experiences in the Mediterranean Theater during World War II. Assignment as executive officer for PT-309, PT Squadron 22, at Bastia, Corsica, 1944; interception of and engagements with German barge traffic along the western coast of Italy and the southern coast of France, 1944-45; encounters with German “F-lighter” armed barges; invasion of southern France, November, 1944; engagements with German shore batteries; participation in commando landings; capture of Italian MAS torpedo boats.

OH 1444

His experiences while aboard the destroyer USS Phelps during the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941; his subsequent experiences aboard the Phelps in the Pacific and Atlantic Theaters during World War II.

OH 1382

His experiences in the China-Burma-India Theater during World War II. Enlistment in the Navy and boot camp, Corpus Christi, Texas, 1942; advanced schooling in meteorology and aerology, 1942; volunteering for duty in China; accounts of insurgency operations and intelligence gathering in China, 1943-45; comments about the Sino-American Cooperative Organization.

OH 1257

His experiences as a naval officer assigned to the Combat Intelligence Unit, Pearl Harbor, during World War II. Assignment to Station HYPO, February, 1942; comments about Joseph Rochefort, Jasper Holmes, Edwin Layton, and Chester Nimitz; comments about the breaking of JN- 25; role of intelligence in the Battles of the Coral Sea and Midway; role of intelligence in the shooting down of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto's plane; role of intelligence in U. S.

OH 1357

Federal prison administrator. His experiences in the Pacific Theater and China during World War II; also his experiences during the Korean War.

OH 1378

His experiences in the Pacific Theater during World War II. Pre-war youth; entry into the Army and basic training, Camp Blanding, Florida, 1942; combat on Guadalcanal, 1943; New Georgia Campaign, 1943; Munda Campaign, 1943; Bougainville Campaign, 1943-44; Philippine Campaign, 1945; battle for Manila; his battle wounds on February 13, 1945, and medical evacuation.