WORLDWAR II VETERANS CONCORDIA PARISH LOUISIANA

U.S. NAVY W. L. STEWART

Mine Sweeper – USS Garland (AM 238) Yeoman 2nd Class

The USS Garland received 2 Battle Stars for major engagements.

Awards: American Area Campaign Medal
Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal

I was born October 1, 1925 at Haynesville, Louisiana and lived at Bossier City, Louisiana until I entered the service January 26, 1944. I was a member of the initial crew when the USS Garland was commissioned in Puget Sound August 26, 1944.

The USS Garland departed San Pedro, California, November 12, 1944 with a convoy to Kossol Roads, Palau Islands, arriving there January 2, 1945, where she served as Entrance Control Ship. The Garland escorted convoys between Peleliu and Ulithi until May 20; then patrolled convoy routes between Ulithi and Eniwetok. She departed Ulithi June 28, escorting a 16 ship convoy to Buckner Bay, Okinawa, arriving there July 17, 1945.

Based at Buckner Bay, the Garland swept mines in the East China Sea July 22 to 31 and August 13 to 25. Next she shifted to Ominato Ko, Honshu, sweeping Japanese mine fields to clear the way for Allied transports, carrying occupation troops to the Empire. The Garland departed Ominato Ko October 20, serving as flagship of Mine Division 40 until November 20. Then she sailed for the United States, arriving at San Diego December 19. Departing San Diego January 31, 1946 and going through the Panama Canal, she went to Orange, Texas where she was decommissioned August 2, 1946.

I was released from service at Orange, Texas June 11, 1946. I moved to Concordia Parish in 1954. August 27, 1971 I married Valerie Finney, whose home was in Catahoula Parish. We now make our home at 143 Chandler Road, Ferriday.

Me as a Sailor

Poster on Bridge of USS Garland showing number of Japanese mines destroyed by the USS Garland

Explosion of a mine just aft of the Garland (Too close for comfort)

WORLD WAR II VETERANS CONCORDIA PARISH LOUISIANA

U.S. NAVY Jesse W. Speed
SOUTHWEST PACIFIC

Fleet Tanker-AO49-Neosho Petty Officer 3rd Class Fire Controlman

Combat Experience- 7 Months in South Pacific, refueling Naval Vessels

I was born December 9, 1925, in Winnfield Louisiana. We moved to Ferriday in the fall of 1936. I went to Ferriday High and on November 17, 1942, I talked my Dad into signing for me to enter the Navy before the legal age of entry (17). I had never been outside the State of Louisiana in my life, but when I was sworn into the Navy that November, I was sent to San Diego, California for Boot Camp.

From Ferriday, we went by bus to Jackson, Mississippi, and from there. by train to San Diego. We arrived at about 11:00 PM and were immediately sent to the mess hall for chow. The first person I saw there was Marion Barnett from Ferriday. Marion had arrived a little earlier and was already on KP duty.

While in Boot Camp, I shared a barracks with Henry Fonda. He was treated just like the rest of the men. He was a nice guy who pulled his weight.

After Boot Camp, I went to Fire Controlman School. They taught me to aim and direct gunfire at incoming aircraft. We learned how to operate the gunsite and the electronics and gun directors that control the movement of anti-aircraft guns.

After graduation from that class, I was transferred to Pacific Beach, California (outside San Diego), and was promoted to Fire Controlman, Third Class. I was introduced to 20 mm, 40 mm and 5 inch 38 anti-aircraft guns, I would teach the men how to put the gunsite on the target sleeve that was being towed by an airplane and how to set the range into the gunsite to control the lead needed in order to hit the target.
After about two years as an instructor at Pacific Beach, I was transferred to sea duty aboard a fleet tanker (the AO 49 named Neosho) bound for the South Pacific to join the fleet that was in action against the Japanese Navy and land forces. We refueled the fleet which consisted of battleships, aircraft carriers, cruisers and destroyers. We were re-supplied with fuel by the Merchant Marine, who tried to stay a safe distance from the battle zone. None of us probably realized what a high priority target we were as a supply vessel.

On the way to the South Pacific, we had stopped off at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and saw the ships that had been sunk December 7, 1941. From there we went to the South Pacific to the atoll islands which reach to the Philippines, while the army and marines were recapturing them from the Japanese.

My closest encounter to any action was during one of our re-fueling jobs near the atolls. We saw Japanese Kamikaze pilots fly over. We were instructed to put out smoke pots to look like fog covering the ship, so we would not be spotted. We were also instructed not to fire at the planes because they would follow the tracers and crash into our ships. In one of these encounters the plane was so low I could see its exhaust. In fact, one plane flew into a mast of one of our ships and crashed into the ocean.

After this, we operated with the fleet, about 50 miles off the coast of Japan, re-fueling the ships every morning so they could make night runs and shell the coast of Japan. This continued until the end of the war.

At the announcement of the war’s end, we were instructed to go into Tokyo Bay, We anchored about 1000 yards from the USS Missouri, where General Mac-Arthur signed the Peace Treaty with the surrendering General of the Japanese Army. I did get to go ashore and see some of the destruction we had caused the city and shipyards of Tokyo.

From Tokyo, we sailed back to San Francisco. I had shore patrol duty with no liberty our first and only night there. What a “Welcome Home” that was. We left the next day, going through the Panama Canal to Norfolk, Virginia, where the Neosho was decommissioned. I traveled by train to New Orleans where I was honorably discharged December 21, 1945. A bus ride returned me to Ferriday, where I have lived ever since.

WORLD WAR II VETERANS CONCORDIA PARISH LOUISIANA

ARMY AIR FORCE PERCY ROUNTREE
EUROPE

Headquarters 2nd Division, 8th Air Force Captain Base Adjutant

330th Squadron, 93rd Bomb Group, 8th A. F. Major Executive Officer

Today (September 11, 2002) we commemorate the unwanted and cowardly devastation brought to our homeland a year ago. We will never forget and we cannot forgive. In thinking about our past experiences, memories of World War II fill much of my thoughts by day and dreams by night. I graduated from LSU in 1941 — was much more interested in military as an ROTC Cadet, Lt. Colonel, Infantry than I was in my major subject — Journalism.

At this time I was only 20 years old and couldn’t accept my commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army until I became 21. This was a real disappointment, but I immediately got a telegram and then an official letter saying that if I would take my commission in the Air Corps instead of the Infantry, that they would order me to active duty immediately. I wired back that same day with, “Yes sir, I will.” I was ordered to Kelly Field, San Antonio, Texas where the Air Corps was getting ready for war.

Then came the infamous sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, where we briefly lost our Naval superiority to Japan. We were now at war with Japan, Germany and Italy. I left Kelly Field, and my wife and daughter, as a Captain in early 1943, going by train to Canada, and down to New York Harbor; then on a rough trip to Newfoundland, Greenland, Iceland and Scotland on the smallest troop ship in the convoy. From there to East Anglia England and the 8th Air Force, right on the North Sea across from Belgium.
The Eighth became the biggest Air Force in the world, commanded by General Jimmy Doolittle. There were three divisions; the First and Third with B-17 “Flying Fortress” bombers and the Second with B-24 “Liberator” bombers. I was at headquarters of the 2nd Division at Norwich, about 120 miles northeast of London. My job there was Base Adjutant, Assstant to the Base Commander, with additional duty as Station Defense Officer (because of my infantry training.)

Later, I was with the 93rd Bomb Group in England for about 2 ½ years. There, now a Major, I was Executive Officer of the 330th Squadron, 93rd Bomb Group.

When I first got to England in 1943, the German Luftwaffe had control of the skies and hit us every day and night with bombers, then with flying Buzz bombs and later with V-2 rockets.

As time went on, with the RAF “area” bombing at night and the U.S, Air Force “precision” bombing by day, we began to take command of the skies over Europe. This prepared the way for our invasions, first in North Africa, then Italy, and finally the beaches of Normandy, France. This opened a tough door into Germany.

As the B-24s, B-17s, the medium bombers and the RAF continued to devastate the German war machine, the end became in sight. When the war with Germany ended, the 8th Air Force came home to Sioux Falls, South Dakota to refit the B-29s. While waiting to return to the U.S. General Doolittle said that every soldier needed to know how to shoot. So he called for teams from every Bomb Group into rifle, pistol and skeet competition. My teams from the 2nd Division won the rifle and pistol competitions and were second in skeet. I was the only man on all three teams, scoring 2nd high with rifle, 4th with pistol and 1st in skeet. I am quite proud of this record, because this competition was for the entire 8th Air Force, the largest Air Force in the world.
We went to South Dakota as scheduled, and were ready to fly to Okinawa, Japan when the nuclear bombs were dropped. I stayed in the Air Force a few more months, then got out, but stayed in the Reserves.

I retired in 1961 after 20 years in the Air Force Reserve as a Lieutenant Colonel. If we do get into it again, I plan to ask for a mobilization assignment, like I had during the Korean War. I am 81 and in pretty good shape? My wife of 60 years says that is debatable.

Captain Rountree of the 2^nd Division Rifle Team

WORLD WAR II VETERANS CONCORDIA PARISH LOUISIANA

ARMY AIR FORCE ISAAC E. (IKE) ROBERTSON
EUROPE

379th Bomb Group, Eighth Air Force Captain, Pilot, B-17

Combat Experience——30 Missions over Europe

Awards: Air Medal with Oak Leaf Clusters

I was born March 13, 1920 in the Nebo community of La Salle Parish. ! was the seventh child of a family of ten. Our parents were Elijah Sparks Robertson and Janie Collins Robertson. We lived on a small farm at Nebo until the six boys were large enougn to farm. Then Papa bought and rented farm land on the east side of Catahoula Lake in the French Fork community. We raised cotton, corn, cattle and hogs, the livestock on open range.

It never occurred to me that I would finish high school and even go to college. In 1939, not many farm boys, with the farm as the only source of income, even dreamed of going to college. I graduated from Block High School and decided I wanted to go to college. On “Ole Jim” my cow pony, I rounded up some cattle, took them to market, sold them, and was ready to go to. That cash did not last long, but I got some help from my father and some friends. I got a job working at the college. Pay was 25 cents per hour, with monthly income limited to $15.
I was a student at Northwestern Normal, now Northwesern University at Natchitoches.

Early in the 1940s the clouds of war were becoming so heavy that every
boy and young man knew that sooner or later he would have to go.
There was a civilian pilot training course at the college. (CPA)
I had no intention of going into pilot training, but my roommate
couldn’t do his navigational problems. I thought that if I had to do his
problems, that I might as well take the course and get credit. You might
say that I got into flying by accident. I not only got to fly, but the ground
school included navigational problems and other courses related to flying.

Page 2
We started flying the little Piper Cub, with, I believe, a 60 hp engine.
We had a grass field, two men in the plane, and we had parachutes.
Sometimes it took us 400 yards to get off the ground. Then we had to
take 2 cross-country assignments. I got my private flying license in 1940
when I completed the course. Next was an advanced flying course at
Northeast Junior College, now the University of Louisiana at Monroe.
This more advanced course, moved us up to larger planes. We were
flying the Waco UPF7, a bi-wing,open cockpit unit with 220 HP
Continental engines, similar to the Steerman used in training Army and Navy cadets. It was a maneuverable biplane. They were still visualizing World War I dog-fighting. The Japanese used the Zero, because of its maneuverability. When I completed this phase of training, I had about 100 hours of flying time.

I volunteered for service about two weeks after the Japanese attack on
Pearl Harbor. I had a friend in Jackson, Mississippi, so I went over
there to enlist. My friend went into the Navy Air Corps and I went into
the Army Air Corps as a Cadet. At that time it was declared that the
Air Force was essential with priority. You could transfer to the Air Force from any other branch of the service. I applied for pilot training and was sent to Nashville for psychological and stress-induced screening. Some cadets washed out in every phase of training. They were transferred to some other type of training.

I next went to Montgomery, Alabama for college courses. I had more physics in three weeks than I had in an entire semester in my regular college days. We had some strict discipline and I learned Morse code, which I did not know the value of at that time. Over the years knowledge of the Morse code helped me to get oriented many times when it was very important. One time in particular, I was on a flight from Istres, France to a place called Dakar Africa which was over desert most all the way from Porte Lyautel, Africa. Without a checkpoint, and not knowing wind direction or speed, I was unable to know my position. I tuned in the radio frequency of Dakar Air Field and the radio beam was close. I was about to fly by the field. I do not know where I would have ended up if it had not been for the code sent out by that radio beam.

Page 3
The next stop was the Mississippi Training Institute in Jackson, Mississippi, for Primary Training. We were flying the Steerman PT-17s. This was a fabric covered plane that performed very nicely. One morning I was flying solo and had about an hour left. The weather changed and they closed the field. I had no radio and was happy, just flying around. In the meantime a cadet named Robinson had gone up without filing with the dispatcher. He crashed and they thought it was me. They were preparing to send a telegram to my family when I came in.

Those of us, not eliminated at Jackson went on to Bainbridge, Georgia
for Basic Training. We were flying Voltaire Vibrators, Basic Trainers
B.T. 13. This plane had flaps, a glass canopy and more controls than anything we had flown before. One young instructor had me do something that exceeded normal dangers. We were coming in to land and he had me turn the plane over and glide upside down. We were on the final approach before he let me turn it over and set down. This was not very wise for an instructor to permit or direct. We were very lucky.

Next was Advanced Training at Columbus, Mississippi. I had an idea
that with this training, that someday I could be an Airline Pilot. I
wanted to fly twin engines, never even dreaming that I would be flying
the big four engine ones. Training at each level was tougher. We had to
go into pressure chambers (low pressure), simulating 38,000 feet. If you
had nitrogen in your joints, you could not stand the pain. We flew AT-9s, AT-10s and the single engine AT-6. I qualified in all three.

April 29, 1943 I received my Pilot’s Wings and gold bars as a Second Lieutenant. We were not given a delay enroute or a leave so we
could go home and show off our gold bars and Pilot’s wings, due to the fact that the Germans were shooting down our planes so fast that the Air Force needed replacements and soon.

We went to Sebring, Florida and began training in B-17s, the big four
engine boys. This was a big step for a country boy used to riding a
black horse. They knew and I knew that I could fly that plane and keep
my cool. As fast as we were trained, we were to be shipped to England.

Page 4
At this time, the British were expecting invasion by the Germans. We
were to go there prepared for that event. When we were checked out we were given a brief leave and sent to Ephrata, Washington. There, our crew joined us and we did combat training on 16 hour days. This included gunnery, bombing and formation flying. Our next stop was Spokane Washington for more training, and then to Lincoln, Nebraska.

We went to England and our first stop was Hanley England. This was –
September, 1944 and it was so cold we had to sit in a room, wearing our
big coats, waiting four days to get our orders. We were assigned to the
379th Bomb Group as replacements. We were replacing crews previously lost in combat.

The Bomb Group was made up of four squadrons. We were assigned to
the 527th Squadron. On a combat mission three squadrons each sent thirteen planes ( if we had that many planes in flying condition) a total of thirty nine planes. One squadron got a day of rest. I was assigned lead position for our squadron.

When going on a combat mission, we would be awakened about 2:30 am and would go, in total blackout, to the mess hall for powdered eggs or flapjacks and syrup. You ate, knowing that your next meal would be that night (if you made it back). Next, we went to the briefing room. There was a big map on the wall, showing our route, our assigned target and hopefully, the worst flak areas, which we hoped to avoid.We were given German, Dutch and Belgian money, for use in efforts to escape, in case of forced or parachute landing. We also carried photographs of ourselves in civilian clothes, so that the underground could supply us with fake IDs.

The policy was to let a crew go back to the US when 25 combat missions
were completed. Very few survived that long. The crew of the Memphis
Belle were the first to receive that honor. They returned to the US and
went on a bond selling tour over the entire country. As our air
superiority improved and more crews were surviving, the mission
requirements were raised to 30, and later to 35. My required limit was
30 missions. Crew training is very expensive. We were told that at that
time it cost $50,000 to train a pilot.

Page 5
On a bombing run , the lead Bombardier is actually flying the plane
with the Norden Bomb Sight. All other Bombardiers are actually
“Toggliers”. They drop their bombs when the lead drops his. The lead
pilot has no control until the bombs are dropped. Planes are to stay in
formation.

Our Combat Missions:

1. 12/11/44 Manheim, Germany 2. 12/18/44 Coblenz, Germany

3. 12/19/44 Coblenz, Germany 4. 12/28/44 Bruhl, Germany

5. 12/29/44 Wittlich, Germany 6. 12/30/44 Kaiserlautern, Germany

7. 12/31/44 Neuss, Germany 8. 1/02/45 Daun, Germany

9. 1/03/45 St. Vith, Belgium 10. 1/06/45 Cologne, Germany

11. 1/08/45 Speicher, Germany 12. 1/10/45 Bonn, Germany

13. 1/13/45 Mannheim, Germany 14. 1/17/45 Paderborn, Germany

15. 1/22/45 Sterkrade, Germany 16. 1/23/45 Neuss, Germany

17. 2/01/45 Mannheim, Germany 18. 2/03/45 Berlin. Germany

19. 2/20/45 Nurenburg, Germany 20. 2/21/45 Nurenburg, Germany

21. 22. 2/24/45 Hamburg, Germany

23. 2/25/45 Freidrichshaben, Ger. 24. 2/26/45 Berlin, Germany

25. 2/28/45 Hagen, Germany 26. 3/01/45 Bruchsal, Germany

27. 3/02/45 Chimnitz, Germany 28. 3/04/45 Ulnr, Germany

29. 3/09/45 Kassel, Germany 30. 4/14/45 Brodeaux, France

Page 6
When we went on missions and visibility did not permit us to bomb
either our primary or secondary targets, we would dump our bombs in
the North Sea. Earlier in the war, such bombs were brought back to the
bases. This had proven dangerous and costly. On such missions, we
were not given credit. So, in essence I flew more than 30 missions.

On a mission to Bonn Germany, I was flying element lead. Major Davis
was flying on my left wing. After we dropped our bombs and closed our
bomb bay doors, the Group began a tight right turn and a steep dive to go to a lower altitude (a normal exercise in an attempt to avoid enemy flak). Davis, flying on the left, was on the outside of the turn and swung too far out on this maeuver. He was quite a way behind the rest of us. Apparently he paniced and was trying to re-join the rest of the squadron. He was coming toward our plane at a high speed, on a crash
course when he was spotted. I first tried to climb to avoid him, but Lt.
Gordon’s plane was there, so I went into a power dive. We escaped, but
Davis crashed into Lt. Gordon’s plane. Both planes were destroyed and no chutes were seen. The B17 was not designed for a power dive and I had to come out of the dive very gradually. I lost 11,000 or 12,000 feet before being able to do so. (I was told at de-briefing that I was reported going down out of control. I told him I was going down, but not out of control.) The Navigator said the Bombardier (who had shed his oxygen mask anticipating a jump) had passed out and asked, “What do you want me to do?” I told him to put him on 100% oxygen.

The flak was not that bad that day.We had some flak, what we called 88 millimeter, on every mission, but on that mission it was light. The worst we encountered was on a mission when the target was a river bridge at Manheim, Germany. We missed the bridge and had to go around again. The Germans were ready and waiting. I thought, this next mission, that we were gone. Oil was on the windshield, and I put my hands over my eyes for only a moment. We did make it back to the base. I counted 144 holes in the plane.

Page 7
We had a mission the following day, and flew with the 144 holes still
there. There had been no time to patch them. The fog was so thick and heavy that we had to take off by instruments. Over the target area we could not see the primary or secondary targets so we dumped our bombs in the North Sea. That day, we could not get back to
our base, so flares were sent up at another base to show us where to land. We had to come in 500 feet above the flare, coming down at 200 feet per minute. When I got down near the base of the fog, I flipped on my landing lights so others could see us. Shrapnel had cut the wires to the lights. When the switch was turned on, it ignited a fire, right at the collapsible rubber tanks in the wings. I saw it, and knowing that it was a very dangerous place for a fire, I did not tell the crew. I did not want to excite them. They saw it, but did not tell me. I was ready to leave the plane the minute we hit the runway and stopped. A sergeant with a fire extinguisher came out immediately. All the crew, including the co-pilot was at the escape door, except me. We were on a British field and they put the plane in a hangar for the night. I flew the plane back to base the next day, but did not turn on the light switch.

Since I was from Louisiana, the crew named our first plane
“Gator Bait”. When it was taken out of service we were put on the “Lucky Patch”.

Our longest mission was 9 ½ hours. We could not eat or drink water on
the plane. At sub-zero weather water was frozen and oxygen masks
precluded eating. I completed my 30 missions and was ready to go home.

During our combat flying, we got 3 day passes. I went to London,
Edinburg and other sites. On one train trip to Edinburg, I met a lady
and her daughter, who invited me to their home in Scotland. They had
fully expected a German invasion.

I went home on leave and then went to North Carolina on 30 days R&R (Rest and Recuperation). From there I returned to Sebring, Florida,
then to instructors school in Columbus, Ohio, then back to Sebring to
teach West Point graduates to fly B-17s. The war in Europe was over,
but not so in the Pacific.

Page 8
I was given the ultimate assignment at Wright-Patterson Field in Ohio,
but I asked for an overseas assignment, in lieu of attending Command
and Staff School. I ended up in Berlin with the European Air
Transportation Service. This was before the days of the Berlin Airlift.
We were flying DC-3s for Air France and the British, carrying regular
paid passengers. B-17s were converted to carry passengers, and they
could go long distances (as we already knew). I flew to Athens, Rome,
Norway, Sweden and Denmark; beautiful tours. While in Berlin I went
to the University and studied history and languages. Dean Acheson, President Truman’s Secretary of State, had a brother, Dr. Edward Acheson, who implemented the Marshall Plan. I flew him to Holland, Belgium, London, Sweden, Denmark and other places. During this assignment I was promoted to Captain. My last assignment was flying
along the coasts of Africa, Spain and all the Mediterranean, photographing the coast, for possible future needs.

I returned home December 23, 1947, not sure what I would do. I had received an offer to fly newspaper reporters to various assignments.
The Army Air Force had given me a sixty day leave, and during that time, Mr. Aubrey Brooks, Catahoula Parish School Superintendent, needed teachers for “On The Farm” training, and asked me to come see him. I was hired and went to work for $175 per month, a very desirable job.

Soon after I got home, I met Georgia Bradford. We were married August 21, 1948 at her home. Our honeymoon was very short because of work that needed to be finished. We have three beautiful daughters: Sandra, Susanne and Paula. Sandra married Michael Bruce Taylor and had three children: Chris, Jennifer and Sean. Chris died in 1991 at the age of 19. Susanne married David Shirley and had two children: Shana and Landon. Paula married Tommy Aiken and had three children: Jacob, Megan and Aaron. Of the seven surviving grandchildren, six are in college and Aaron is in the eighth grade ( in 2003).

I stayed with that job 3 ½ years. The time to claim my GI schooling was about to play out and I wanted to go back to college. I resigned from my job and enrolled at LSU. With my 75 hours at Northwestern and four years under the GI Bill, I was able to obtain my BS and MS plus thirty from LSU.
Page 9
I have been teaching school, farming and raising cattle ever since. My home has been at Wildsville, Concordia Parish since 1956. Here I have about 200 acres of land which I am renting out, and it sure does help supplement my teacher’s retirement check.

Ike Robertson and the Crew of the N17

 

Lieutenant Ike

WORLD WAR II VETERANS CONCORDIA PARISH LOUISIANA

MARINE CORPS ROBERT S. RIFE JR.

PACIFIC

24th Regiment, 4th Marine Division Corporal

Combat Experience Invasion of Iwo Jimo

I was born in Glen Allen, Mississippi in 1920. My family moved to Waterproof, Louisiana when I was in the fifth grade, which served as home until moving to Concordia Parish in October 1953. After finishing High School at Waterproof, I went to Louisiana Tech at Ruston, Louisiana, and was there until war began. I enlisted in the Marine Corps in the summer of 1942. “Boot Camp” was at Paris Island, with additional training at My Regiment was on Maui, Hawaii. The Group sailed from Honolulu and went to Guam. From there we went to Iwo Jima, and were a part of the second wave of the attack on Iwo Jima. We went ashore on landing craft March 3, 1945, and initially, were pinned down by a barrage. After dark, the Regiment made its way up to shelter under a cliff. The critical job was to get the Japs out of the caves, where they had hidden. Our last day on the Island, about a month after arriving there, a mortar shell hit, killing all the others in my unit. We returned to Maui, where I was offered a commission to stay in the service and take part in the occupation of Japan. I turned it down. I was ready to go home. The Group got to San Diego just before Christmas. I took a train ride home for Christmas, and spent one day there, before heading back to San Diego. Then I was discharged in January, 1946, and came home for good.

In 1948 I married Evelyn Ogden from Sicily Island. We moved to Concordia Parish in October, 1953 and it has been home ever since. Our oldest son, Stan is a retired Air Force Colonel, living in Abiline,
Texas. Our other children, John and Anna live in Concordia Parish.

Robert S. (Bob) Rife

WORLD WAR II VETERANS CONCORDIA PARISH LOUISIANA

U.S. NAVY THEO M. RABB
PACIFIC THEATER

Destroyer-Mine Layer–USS Preble–M.M. 1st Clas–U.S. Naval Reserve

Battle of Midway Battle of Palau Invasion of Phillipines

The USS Preble was credited with sinking 8 Japanese ships in waters from Alaska to the South China Seas.

The USS Preble received 8 Battle Stars for major engagements and Unit Citations from President Roosevelt, Admiral Halsey, Admiral Merrill, Lt. Com. W.A. Armstrong and the President of the Phillipines.

I was born December 4, 1919 in Catahoula Parish to Ivy H. and Alice Beard Rabb. I had two sisters, Ruby Rabb Irvin and Clara Rabb Adams. I graduated from Ferriday High School 1937, and went to work for Arkansas Fuel & Oil Co. in the oil fields at Olla, Louisiana. I was there until December 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor Day.

I joined the Naval Reserve December 10, 1941 and went to San Diego for my basic training. December 25 I was aboard a troop ship headed to Pearl Harbor. I arrived there about January 1, 1942. Ships were still burning in the Naval Harbor and everything was a total mess.

I was assigned to the USS Preble D M 20, a destroyer- mine layer. We went to sea immediately, hunting Japenese submarines around the Island of Oahu. We picked up sounding and began depth charges. The mine tracks were designed to open, drop a depth charge, and close. The track opened, but would not close. So, with the gate hung open, we unloaded all depth charges. We saw an oil slick and debris, but the concussion ruptered tubes in the condensers and we took on salt water. We had to go back to port for repairs.

We were in the Battle of Midway in 1942 followed by continuous action for the rest of the year and all of 1943 in the South Pacific. During the dark of the moon, we would slip into Japanese harbors and mine the entrances, and then get the hell out of there. Our planes would stir them up the next morning to get them started toward the open sea, so that their ships would hit the mines and sink.

There were two mine divisions, with four ships each. Each ship was credited for sunken ships. We were credited for 8. The USS Gamble was credited for 7. J.T. Jacobs of Ferriday was on the USS Gamble, which was sunk by a Japanese Kimakeze plane. J. T. survived.

We saw action from the South China Seas to Alaska, but most of 1944 and 1945 was in the Pacific as our troops moved north, island by island. One of my worst experiences was during the invasion of the Phillipines. We were in a typhoon. We would be about 90 feet high above the sea, and then we would crash down. I am not sure how, but we managed to ride it out. Following is an account of the Battle of Palau, September 1944, as written in a log by me at the time of the battle.

For the past two weeks a powerful task force has been gathering here at Talagi. It is task force 32.5 of the third fleet. There are battleship, carriers, cruisers, tin cans, mine layers, mine sweepers and marine transports. On Sept. 6 we got underway and the force was really a powerhouse. The trip was made @ 15 knots and the only trouble we had was a leaky tube in lube oil cooler. Repair was made in 3 hours, while we steamed on one engine. September 12, 1944, the big day has arrived, dog -3 day. @ 0430 all hands manned their battle stations and stood by for the coming attraction. At 0600 The ship made her daring run on the 100 fathom curve @ 25 knots. Our objective happened to be magnetic mines presumably dropped on the shoals of this 100 fathom curve. We were to drop 20 depth charges and blow our whistle and sirene as we passed around the curve. These mines were acoustically triggered, so it was hoped the additional sounds would cause some to detonate.

At 0610 Whistle and sirens were blowing and the charges were being rolled over the fan tail set @ 50 feet. All around me I could see men with that uncertainty in their eyes wondering if we would explode one of the mines too close to the ships hull and send all hands to their maker.

At 0620 Word was passed that all charges were dropped and that we were pulling that well known naval maneuver, “Getting the hell out of there.” We failed to find any mines, but as we were leaving out an anti-aircraft battery opened fire on us, but they failed to score a hit. We were ordered not to stick around and return fire and since we were only 800 yards off the beach, we continued our present course to the open seas.

At approximately 0700 we were heading back between the two islands with mine sweepers and barrage after barrage of heavy shells were exploding on the beach. Our battleships, cruisers and tin cans were really giving those Japs hell. After the sweeps cleared a channel through the two islands, we dropped buoys to mark the cleared area. Several mines were cut loose and with orders to explode them, our gun crews opened up with 3”, 20mm,50 cal. and 30 cal. I believe our bag was 4 mines, and what a terrific explosion.

Next came the dive bombers, and as they went into their dives, they opened fire with their guns and strafed the ground below them. Now it really was a living hell for all on the island. Picture; bombs being dropped from dive bombers, shells from cruisers, battle wagons and tin cans exploding, fires burning fuel tanks, ammunition dumps sending billows of smoke, debris and what have you, a hundred feet in the air, trees broken like match sticks and strewn around. And the Japs were trying to escape their just punishment.
We were now in pretty close to the beach and Nolan and I were watching the chaos on the beach, when we saw the water kicking up about 50 feet from the ship. Our first thought was of shrapnel, but when we heard a zip, zip, zip noise we decided we had business elsewhere and fast.

This destruction continued throughout the day and @ 1800 we retired to neutral zone to await the following morning, dog day -2. What is in store for them for the next few days is something they will remember as long as they live, which I would judge as being extremely short. September 13, 1944, today, dog day -2, was rather eventful. I slept from 2000 to 2345 and then went on watch until 0400. @ 0445 all hands manned battle stations and we started in following the sweeps.

The battleships, cruisers, tin cans and planes have started their unmerciful pounding once more. I have noticed a big fire started on the beach for the third time, and those little yellow bastards have put it out each time. They can’t possibly escape death leaving their foxholes and bomb shelters in order to fight fire, but it seems they will fight to the last.

At approximately 1000 we sighted a mine and promptly sank the same. The sweeps are taking strip after strip to get rid of these highly explosive mines. It is a tedious operation and one slip could cause lots of trouble.

Looking through the glasses at the town you can see some rather nice looking dwelling houses and a large phosphate mine and plant. The population of this town was between 30,000 and 40,000, but since it is now near complete ruins, I cannot estimate its present population.

At 1418 the Perry, mine sweep, steaming about 200 yards ahead of us hit a mine. The ship is listing badly and we are trying to pick up the survivors. The lookout watchers have sighted several mines, one 10 feet off the bow and the Captain gave me a full backing bell. I guess you know he got it and then some. There is another just aft of the fan tail.
We are in one hell of a fix. Japanese snipers are in the trees on the beach and men are leaving the stricken ship. The men are swimming frantically in order not to be swept to that beach and to get out of the oily water. Death faces them from several sides now. Jap snipers, sharks and the main one happens to be those mines about 6 feet under the water. If we hit one, or if the Perry drifts into one, all men in the water will be killed instantly.

After an hour and 15 minutes of this and we have the survivors aboard and are getting out of there. These we took to the Cleveland and the Tennessee. The Perry was hit in the forward firerooms and all on watch were killed instantly. A score of others were hurt pretty bad. She stayed afloat one hour and 45 minutes before sinking.

It is almost dark now so we will retire to a neutral zone and await the coming day, dog day –1, then we must clear those mines before dog day, which is invasion day.

These Japs are a strange people. I can’t see why they haven’t sent some planes from the Phillipines or some other near base to contest our actions. We have wiped out the airfield here and one report I heard was that the Jap planes are a mass of wreckage strewn about the island. Tomorrow is another day and I will sign off with my thoughts of what will happen then, War is certainly hell.

Dog day-1. Old lady luck seems to be riding with us still. The big boys shelled the beach all last night and this morning we were destroying some mines in close to the beach. We were fired on twice, presumably by a 6” shore battery. I found out for certain that another destroyer was sunk, either by shore battery or enemy mine night before last. We destroyed 8 mines today and shrapnel fell all over the ship.

In the morning (Dog day) @ 0800 landing will be made on the beaches. According to plan, we should be in full possession of them in 72 hours. I know now, why the Japs failed to send planes down from the Phillipines. We have another force ther pounding them into submission. (I hope)
Due to so much firing of guns and exploding mines, two more tubes carried away in after cooler. Repair was made in 3 hours. Eng. room temp 120 degrees, injection 86 degrees, Topside 108 degrees. I would give $25 for a good night’s sleep and the same amt. for a good meal. (lots of money then) By Theo Rabb M.M. 1 C. I was discharged in September 1945 and returned to Ferriday, which has been my home ever since.

February 24, 1946 I married Jean Galloway and we are enjoying life here on Lake Concordia. We had 3 sons: Morris Rabb, Mike Rabb and Mark Rabb (deceased).

Machinist Mate Theo Rabb

 

Our ship the USS Preble was credited with sinking 8 enemy ships and 1 submarine. In recognition of this 9 Japanese flags were shown on a poster mounted on the bridge. Many years later, I had the opportunity to have my picture made with this poster.

WORLD WAR II VETERANS CONCORDIA PARISH LOUISIANA

U.S. ARMY Thomas L. (Leo) Purvis
EUROPEAN THEATER
CAMPAIGNS: Ardenees, Rhineland, Central Europe

Co. D 305th Medical Battalion Private First Class Surgical Technician

Awards: Expert Rifleman (In Basic Training)
Letter of Appreciation from President Truman

Leo Purvis was born January 28, 1914 to Mr. and Mrs. W.T. Purvis, a farm family living near Polkville, Mississippi. He grew up in rural Mississippi near Puckett. After finishing high school, he attended Copiah-Lincoln Junior College, where he was introduced to college football.

Next was the University of Southern Mississippi at Hattisburg. There in 1935 and 1936 more football. He played half-back on offense and safety on defense. He was also a punt return man. Apparently he was fast, because he was known as “Jack Rabbit” Purvis. Later, he was enrolled in the Southern Mississippi University Football Hall of Fame.

Following college he became a teacher and football coach at Carthage, Mississippi, where he met and married Margaret Elizabeth Williams, who at that time was a postal employee. Their first child, Thomas L. Jr. (now Dr. Purvis) was born there.

Their next move was to Philadelphia, Mississippi as Principal and Coach at the local high school. While there, their second child, Rebecca (now Becky Daye) was born.

January 11, 1944 his draft board gave him his notice. He began active service at Camp Shelby, Mississippi, February 1, 1944. His basic training as an infantry man was at Fort McLelland, Alabama. There he earned recognition as an expert rifleman. Dr. Purvis was a young boy at the time, but he remembers the long rides going to visit Daddy. While in training and ready to go overseas, Leo was granted a rare leave of absence. He was allowed to go and be present at the birth of his daughter, June 20, 1944.

A few weeks later, as a foot soldier with an M-1 rifle, and a member of a rifle platoon he went ashore at Normandy. These troops landing a few weeks after D Day were sometimes refered to as the second wave. Earlier casualities were so severe that there was a critical shortage of medics. Leo was offered the opportunity to transfer to the Medical Corps. He accepted and became a part of Medical Company D. He traded in his M-1 rifle for a 45 caliber pistol and a trunk full of narcotics, which was his primary responsibility. These were vital needs in emergency surgery and treatment. Medical Company D. as a unit of the 305th Medical Battalion was a support unit and part of General Patten’s drive across Europe to Germany.

Like many veterans, he did not talk a lot about these experiences, but there were a few stories, some about the speed and distance traveled, others about emergency calls of nature while riding in a convoy. There were times when they fell behind, because fuel trucks could not keep them all supplied with gasoline. He also remembered walking down dark streets and suddenly having to dodge into alleys and buildings to avoid strafing from German aircraft.

Leo received an Honorable Discharge from the Army, December 5, 1945

In 1947 Leo and his family moved to Louisiana to join his brother, Virgil in the automobile business. His Dealership, originally Purvis Pontiac, remained an active Ferriday business until 1979. While in Ferriday, Leo was an active member of the Methodist Church, Ferriday Rotary Club and the Quarterback Club.

Leo’s death came November 8, 1980 at one of his favorite locations, a Louisiana deer camp in the Glade Woods.

Submitted by his daughter, Rebecca (Becky Daye) and
his son, Dr. Tom Purvis

Leo Purvis  Medical Corps

WORLD WAR II VETERANS CONCORDIA PARISH LOUISIANA

ARMY Cleveland Payne
EUROPE 3rd ARMY
514th Quartermaster Service Company Platoon Sergeant Truck Unit
Awards: Good Conduct Medal
European Theater of Operations Ribbon

I was born in Mississippi in 1922. Ferriday has been my home since 1931. I entered the service April 17, 1943 at Camp Beauregard near Alexandria, Louisiana. My basic training was at Fort Meade, Maryland and at Roanoke, Virginia. My trip to England began at Camp Kilmer, New Jersey. We were based at Liverpool.

We were a service unit for General Patton’s Third Army. We were a few days behind the D-Day Invasion, and with the forces only five miles inland, we waited in the Channel two days before we went ashore. My Platoon had eight 2 ½ ton trucks, known as 6 by 6s. Our main job was to move Infantry Men to the front lines. This continued as General Patton moved across France and Germany. As we got close to Berlin, we had another assignment.

The Russians were also advancing on Berlin. The German soldiers did not want to be captured by the Russians. Some actually ran to the US forces to surrender. Our new job was to haul prisoners of war to the west. I left the military service at Camp Shelby, Mississippi December 20, 1945.

WORLD WAR II VETERANS CONCORDIA PARISH LOUISIANA

ARMY AIR FORCE LLOYD F. LOVE
EUROPE MAJOR AIR FORCE RESERVE

37th Bomb Squadron, 17th Bomb Group Pilot B-26

Combat Experience————73 Missions over Europe 1/19/44 to 11/4/44

Awards: Air Medal with Eighteen Oak Leaf Clusters
Expert in Aerial Gunnery

I was born July 15, 1921 near Eva Louisiana on Black River on property previously owned by Louis Campbell. I am the son of James Hartwell Love and Sadie White Love. My great grandfather was Louis Campbell who was one thirty-three children of Beasley Campbell.

I graduated from Monterey High School in June 1938 and entered LSU in September 1938. While a student at LSU, from 1938 to 1942, I was in the ROTC and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in Infantry. I also participated in the CPT (Civilian Pilot Training) program and learned to fly. I was ordered to active duty at Fort Knox, Kentucky in June 1942. Later I transferred to the Army Air Corps and did my pilot training in Texas. I had primary training in Corsicana, Texas and then went to Sherman, Texas for basic training. I graduated, after advanced training at Aloe Field, Victoria, Texas.

I graduated from single engine school in August 1943 and was sent to Barksdale Field, Shreveport, Louisiana where I was assigned to training in the Martin Marauder B-26. This airplane was called “The Widow Maker” and “The Flying Prostitute”, among other things; obviously, a dangerous airplane.

Our crew was sent to Europe in December 1943. We flew from West Palm Beach, Florida to Borinquen Field, Porto Rico, to Atkinson Field, British Guiana, to Belem, Brazil, South America. From there we crossed the Atlantic to Africa with a stop-over at Ascension Island, a rock in the ocean with a 3000 foot runway. Finally we reached Sardinia, a large island in the Mediterranean Sea. There we were assigned to the 37th Bomb Squadron of the 17th Bomb Group.

This was the group, that had previously flown the Tokyo Raid with Colonel Jimmy Doolittle, later to become General Doolittle and command the Eighth Air Force.

We flew tactical missions over Italy and France. Tactical missions were those in direct or advanced support of our ground forces. I flew 73 combat missions. I went on my first combat mission January 19, 1944. We bombed an airdrome in Italy. Other types of targets were viaducts, railroad bridges, support of the Anzio beachhead, railroad marshalling yards, highway bridges, port facilities, gun emplacements and fuel storage. D Day for the invasion of Southern France was August 15, 1944. A bridge was our target that day. Our trip home was in December, docking in New York harbor December 14, 1944.

We had a narrow escape in January right after we got to Sardinia. On take-off the right tire blew out just as we got to 150 miles per hour. The wheel twisted off and came back into the bomb bay. It knocked one of the bombs off so that it was bouncing around. After we skidded to a halt, we discovered that the bombardier had pulled the safety pins while we were on the ground. It was a live bomb. We survived only by the grace of God.

In January 1945 I was sent to Laughlin Field, Del Rio, Texas, where I flew until the war ended. After the war ended, I was sent to Chennault Field, Lake Charles, Louisiana. I had intended to stay in the Army, but in September, I went to Baton Rouge to see an LSU- Alabama football game. That weekend, I met Ann Jackson from Tennessee. I went back to Chennault Field and told the Army that I wanted out of the Army, so that I could go to Law school.

I married Ann Jackson August 31, 1947. And graduated from LSU Law School in May 1948. We moved to Ferriday in September 1948. We have four children; Phyllis, married to Richard Mayo, Louis, a single man; Julie, married to Bernard Cole; and James (Jimbo) a single man. We have four grand children, Jake and Erik Mayo, and Emily and Katie Cole. I have been as active as I could, for the benefit of the community, and have been very active in the Ferriday Rotary Club and the LSU Alumni Foundation.

WORLD WAR II VETERANS CONCORDIA PARISH LOUISIANA

U S ARMY FREDERIC (FRED) JOHNSON
EUROPE
CAMPAIGNS: Rhineland-Ardennes

Hospital Train # 22 Captain Detachment C.O.

Awards: American Campaign Medal
European, African, M.E. Campaign Medal with 2 Battle Stars
World War II Victory Medal

Sunday morning, December 7, 1941, when I came down the steps of the Blessed Sacrament Church on Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood California I joined Peter Lind Hayes, Skeets Gallager and Frank Fay in conversation, and for the first time heard the words “Pearl Harbor”. I soon realized that we were at war.

Among the radio announcements of that time was one that the Coast Guard needed officers. Since I rather fancied myself in blue, I inquired about what I needed to do to apply. I submitted my application, including my Birth Certificate and College Transcript. While waiting for their response, I received “Greetings” from the local Draft Board. I called the Draft Board and explained about the Coast Guard application. They said, “OK, let us know how this goes.” When I received the notice from the Coast Guard that I had not been accepted, I called the Draft Board and within two weeks, I was a “Dog-Face” Private in the Army.

I entered the Army January 27, 1943 at Fort McArthur, California and was immediately shipped to Camp Grant, Rockford, Illinois. This was a medical replacement center. Since I knew the “Manual of Arms” from my earlier stint at the University of Illinois. I was immediately put on the color guard. This helped, because I received special favors such as attending dinners and receiving cartons of cigarettes.

After being promoted to Corporal, I was sent to Camp Barkley, Amarillo, Texas. There I attended Officer Candidate School, and graduated as a 2nd Lieutenant and was sent back to Camp Grant, to become a training officer.

After a little more than a year of helping to make soldiers out of civilians, I was shipped to Fort McHenry, near Boston. We were loaded on a French ship, the Colombie and joined the largest convoy that had been formed up to that time. We sailed May13, 1944. After crossing the Atlantic we went up the Firth of Clyde to Glasgow, Scotland. Next to the north coast of Wales and eventually to Southampton, England. There we picked up an English Hospital Train, loaded it on a ferry and sailed to Cherbourg, France.

I will tell you about our Hospital Train. It was made by the English, mostly of wood. There were about 15 cars, each equiped with 5 racks, 3 tiers high, on both sides of the car. These racks held the stretchers on which the wounded had been placed. Near the middle of the train was the pharmacy car, carrying medicine and medical equipment. When traveling with wounded, the dining car was busy, but when the train was empty, the personnel, equiped with booze, congregated in the dining car. There they could read, write letters and play games.

The first car behind the dining car was a regular coach type car for the walking wounded. The officer’s car had staterooms for the doctors, the nurses and myself and a so-called recreation room. Our supply sergeant and corporal were handymen, so they made bunks for themselves in the utility car. They put linoleum on the floor and installed a barber,s chair (which we had liberated in Aachen, Germany.) We found a car on a siding in Belgium, which we added to our train (without any questions). It had four berths, a bathroom and some benches. This gave us some leeway for storage and personnel use. The personnel cars had an aisle down one side and staterooms for 4 on the other side. This created some minor morale problems, when corpsmen tired of looking at each other. I frequently pointed out to them that this beat sleeping ina foxhole.

Personnel included about 50 corpsmen, 2 doctors and 4 nurses. The nurses were kept busy tending to the wounded, but they were also a tremendous asset as morale builders.

Of course, strafing was a problem. Some pilots saw the red crosses on top of our cars and went on their way, but others did not. I found that the best place to be when being strafed by the enemy was at the end of each car, where there was an overhead water supply and porcelain sinks underneath. Of course this was not a secret and usually became a meeting place for personnel.

One thing that puzzled me. During the campaign was that I was instructed to show a 1st Lt. MAC(Medical Admistrative Corps) on my morning report. I did so, but never saw Lt. MAC until after the war. It turned out that he was General Omar Bradley’s foot doctor.

The civilians operating the locomotives were French and Belgian. We learned to keep an eye on them, because when they heard warning sirens, they would go to their own shelters, sometimes letting the boiler fires die down. Of course, that meant no steam to propel the engine.

We were now we were an active part of the war. For the next several months, we followed the troops to the front in Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany, bringing the wounded back to Paris.We were strafed and came under enemy fire, especially during the Battle of the Bulge. On Christmas Eve, 1944, we picked up some patients, including Woody Davis, who later became my close friend in Ferriday. Shortly after we picked up the patients, a “buzz bomb” hit one of the hospital tents we had left, causing many casualties.The next day we left for the front again. Shortly thereafter the train station we had just left at St. Lazare was blown to smithereens.

We made continous trips. Go to the front and pick up wounded patients, take them to a hospital, unload and go back again. This went on for several months, with hundreds of patients transported each trip. I have no idea of the total number of patients we served. There is one thing that I remember, of which we were quite proud. In all these trips we lost only one patient, and that was a German POW.

After the Peace Agreement was signed at Rheims, France, we picked up American POWs and brought then back to Paris. During the demobilization, I was appointed Adjutant of the Dispensary in Paris, where I lived for about a year, in the American Hospital in Neuilly. February 1,1945, I turned the hospital over to civilian authorities. I spent the next few weeks at Villa Juif south of Paris. I came home on the ship, Ernie Pyle and was released from active duty at Fort Dix, New Jersey, August 10, 1946 as a Captain. I was later promoted to Major while in the Reserves.

In Burbank, California, January 1966 I met the former Suzanne Moulle through the LSU Alumni Association. We were married in September 1967 when I retired from Technicolor. We moved to Ferriday, Louisiana December 1976. This has been my home since that date.