The National Museum of the Pacific War (Admiral Nimitz Museum) Center for Pacific War Studies Fredericksburg, Texas Interview with William L. Brewer June 16, 2003 US Na -TBM Radioman-Gunner USS Bataan CVL. —1— My name is Richard Misenhimer and today is June 16, 2003. I am interviewing by telephone Mr. William L. Brewer, 158 Lakewood Dr., Williamsburg, VA 23815. Phone 757-253-2762. This interview is in support of the National Museum of Pacific Wars Center for Pacific War Studies for the preservation of historical information related to World War TI. Richard Misenhimer: 1 want to thank you for taking time to do this interview today. Let me start out by reading to you this agreement with the Nimitz Museum. It says Admiral Nimitz State Historic Site National Museum of the Pacific War, Center for Pacific War Studies, Fredericksburg, Texas, Oral history project. The purpose of the Admiral Nimitz State Historical Site National Museum of the Pacific War Oral History Project is to collect, preserve and interrupt the history of World War II and role of Chester W Nimitz by means of taped recorded and/or video taped interview. Taped video recording of such interviews becomes part of the Center for Pacific War Studies Archives of the National Museum of the Pacific War Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. These tape recordings will be made available for historical and other academic research by scholars and members of the family of the interviewee. Any transcription, which can be subsquently produced from the tape recording will be conducted with the knowledge of the interviewee by the National Museum of the Pacific War. We the undersigned have read the above and voluntarily offer the National Museum of the Pacific War full use of the information contained on video or tape recordings of these oral history research interviews in view of the scholarly value of this research material we hereby sign rights, title and interest pertaining to it to the National Museum of Pacific War, Texas Parks and WildIifi. Is that satisfactory with you? William Brewer: Yes it is. Richard Misenhimer: All right. Yes or No to this. Give permission for excerpts to be used in the Nimitz News. William Brewer: -2- Yes it is okay. Richard Misenhimer: Okay fine. Thank you very much. Let me start off by asking you where were you born? William Brewer: I was born in Graves County, Kentucky. It is down in the Western part of the state a little town Mayfield. Richard Misenhimer: What is your birth date? William Brewer: Apr. 23, 1924 Richard Misenhimer: Did you have brothers and sisters? William Brewer: I have 4 brothers and 3 sisters. Richard Misenhimer: Were any of your brothers in World War II? William Brewer: All of them were. Richard Misenhimer: Did they all come home? William Brewer: Yes they did. Richard Misenhimer: What was your parent’s occupation? Your father’s occupation’? William Brewer: My father was a farmer. -_, - Richard Misenhimer: Where did you go to high school? William Brewer: 1 went to high school in Reidland High School in Reidland. Kentucky. Richard Misenhimer: What year did you finish there? William Brewer: 1942 Richard Misenhimer: 42 okay. Now Dec. 7 Japan of course attacked Pearl Harbor. Do you recall where you were when you heard about that? William Brewer: I have never forgotten. I was working in a Shell Service Station at the time when I heard the broadcast and I was only about 17 years old. That was the first time I had honestly heard of Pearl Harbor. Richard Misenhimer: Right. What was your reaction when you heard it? William Brewer: I wanted to enlist. Richard Misenhimer: When did you go into the service? William Brewer: I went in on my 19’’ birthday Apr. 23, 1943. Richard Misenhimer: You had to wait until you were 18 to be able to volunteer without your parents permission? William Brewer: -4- Right. We — there was about three other seniors went down the next day to enlist but then our parents — at least my parents wouldn’t sign the agreement so I had to wait. Richard Misenhimer: What branch did you go into? William Brewer: United States Navy Richard Misenhimer: How did you choose the Navy? William Brewer: I just thought it would be more interesting and I like the way they trained for war. I really wanted to get into the aviation part of it, I thought it would be the best. Richard Misenhimer: When you went into the Navy where did you join? What location? William Brewer: When I joined I was in Detroit, Michigan and then they sent me to boot camp at Great Lakes, Illinois. Richard Misenhimer: What all did you do in boot camp? William Brewer: Oh he usual stuff, a lot of drilling, learning the code of the Navy. Richard Misenhimer: Did you have any weapons training in boot camp? William Brewer: Not too much in boot camp, just some basic training with rifles. Marching with it and so forth. Richard Misenhimer: How about swimming? Did you have to learn how to swim or did you know? -5- William Brewer: I already knew but I think I had that later when I was in gunnery school. Richard Misenhimer: How long was boot camp? William Brewer: Let me think, I think I went in about April, 1943 and got out of there about October, 1943. Richard Misenhimer: So that was more than just the boot camp there was other training also? Is that right? William Brewer: It was basically just the boot camp training I don’t remember how many weeks, but I was in a company I believe was 542’ and you had so many weeks of the training and then you had to select what phase of the service that you wanted. What you wanted to do then, they would send you to a different training school. Richard Misenhimer: Did you have any knot tying while you were in the Navy there? William Brewer: Any what? Richard Misenhimer: Knot tying? Tying knots in ropes. William Brewer: Oh yes they trained you in all the different knots to tie. Seamanship. Richard Misenhimer: When you had a chance to choose a school or other training what did you choose then? William Brewer: I chose to be an aviation radioman-gunner. Richard Misenhimer: -6- Did you think about pilot training or just William Brewer: I did in fact I was very interested, but at that time, due to my age ijust didn’t make it. Richard Misenhimer: Okay. William Brewer: I recommended later, but the war was over. Richard Misenhimer: When you went into this radio training where was that? Was that still there at Great Lakes? William Brewer: No, that was at Millington, Tennessee near Memphis. Richard Misenhimer: When did you get there? William Brewer: October till maybe May of the next year. Richard Misenhimer: Okay so Oct. 43 to May of 44. William Brewer: Right. Richard Misenhimer: What kind of base was this in Tennessee? William Brewer: It was definitely a Training Center. I mean you went to school, you had all kinds of exams, you learned the Morse code and how to operate the radios and repair them. Mainly the operation of them, because they had another technician that did the repairing part of it. You trained with radio and radar -7- equipment. Richard Misenhimer: What did you live in there? William Brewer: Where did we live? Richard Misenhimer: Yes, was it barracks or what? William Brewer: It was very nice; it was a former military academy in Hollywood, Florida. We had no fences around us and everybody was more or less on their own but you had certain hours you were suppose to he in. Certain things you had to do during the day. The food was very good and we had excellent services and the quarters were very nice. Richard Misenhimer: Was this in Tennessee or Florida did you say? William Brewer: It was in Florida. Richard Misenhimer: How long were you in Tennessee? William Brewer: Tennessee I was there — I got there in about October and was there until the next May or June. Richard Misenhimer: Okay you were there until May in Tennessee. What did you live in there? William Brewer: Regular barracks. Richard Misenhimer: -8- 1-low was the food there’? William Brewer: Typical Navy food. Good some days. better the next day. We had beans for breakfast. Richard Misenhimer: Navy beans right? Then you went from there to Florida? William Brewer: Yes. Richard Misenhimer: Now when you finished in Tennessee what rank did you have’? William Brewer: I think when I finished there I was Aviation Radioman third class. Richard Misenhimer: What type of training did you get in Florida? William Brewer: I went to gunners’ school — aerial gunners school. Richard Misenhimer: Okay. Up until this point you had been assigned to any particular type of airplane? William Brewer: Not at that time, No. Richard Misenhimer: At gunners school were you assigned to any kind of airplane there? William Brewer: No. Richard Misenhimer: How long did that school last? -9- William Brewer: I’m trying to think around June because we had the winter in Florida and we shipped up to Maine for the summer, which at the time was just perfect. Richard Misenhimer: When you left Tennessee it was about May of 44? Is that right? William Brewer: I’m in training in radio school. Richard Misenhimer: That’s right. William Brewer: I could have left there earlier; I’m trying to think because I went thru training at gunnery school and then we had operations over in Opaloca, Florida, and that is where we were assigned to a certain plane and we had a lot of aerial gunnery at that time.