Partial Transcript: Raymond C. Wells is born May 5, 1922, in Eagle Colorado. Julian Minor Quayles, Jr is born January 15, 1917, in Staunton, Virginia. Both men serve in the 141st Infantry Battalion during World War Two.



Julian's father is Julian M. Quayles is born during the Civil War. In 1929, Julian's father passes away. However, when Julian is born, his father retires, and they plenty of father and son bonding time. Previously, his father is a Congressman, a lawyer, and a circuit court judge. Julian describes his father's characteristics and appearances.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: employment; family; siblings

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Partial Transcript: Julian's mother is Camellia Taylor. His mother lost her mother at a young age and lives with her uncle in Baltimore, Maryland. Julian's mother is a traveler and happens to meet Julian's father in Augusta County, Virginia.



Ray discusses his father Robert "Bob" A. Wells. Growing up, Ray and his brothers call their father, Bob. Rays say his father is a kind, calm man and serves in World War One. Post-war, his father works on the Santa Fe Railroads. Julian recalls growing up as "railroad kids".

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: employment; family; post-war; siblings

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Partial Transcript: Ray's mother's name is Bessie May Green, from Indiana. Bessie's family moves to Eagle, Colorado when she is a toddler. He describes his mother's characteristics and appearance. Ray says the discipline comes from his father. Ray mentions his grandfather being nine years old during the Civil War. His grandfather moves from Missouri to Texas. Ray shares a story about horses.

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Keywords: child rearing; family

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Partial Transcript: Ray discusses his mother. She is hardworking and cares for the family. She is a kind-hearted person to everyone. Ray's mother dies at an early age from cancer. Ray reflects on his memory of his father. He recalls sitting and talking to his father about his family history. Ray says his father is his hero.



Julian says he spends a lot of time with his father after his retirement. They love walking together and discussing his father's history. Julian's father is born in Caroline County Virginia. Julian discusses slavery and friendship. Julian's mother is a petite and determined woman. He shares of his mother wearing a skirt and flying an airplane.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: education; family; friendship; siblings

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Partial Transcript: Julian lists his siblings by age - Mary, Camellia, and himself. Julian is closest to his mother; although, he loves his sisters.



Ray has two brothers. His oldest brother, Irvin Elmer Wells, is 17 months older than Ray. Ray's oldest brother recently passes away. He discusses the incident of the shrapnel. The youngest brother is Robert "Bob" J. Wells (nickname Baby Toe). Ray's youngest brother serves during World War Two and is assigned to the Arm Guard.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: family; German soldiers; Prisoners of War; shrapnel; World War Two

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Partial Transcript: Ray discusses his mother receiving two telegrams from Western Union on the same day. One for Ray's older brother missing in action, and a second message regarding Ray being wounded in action. Ray's mother had support from her friends and a priest to get through the news of her sons. Ray says the true victims of the war are the family members and friends who are left behind to wonder what is happening. A correspondence normally takes six weeks to be delivered.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: family; World War Two

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Partial Transcript: Ray recalls his childhood home in New Mexico, a railroad town. The house is two stories with an outside restroom. There is no running water inside the home. To access water, you have to carry the water into the house. Moreover, there is no refrigerator or air conditioning. Besides recalling his childhood home, Ray mentions a story about the cowboys and wild mustangs. Ray discusses his first day of school.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: childhood activities; living conditions; primary school

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Partial Transcript: Despite the living conditions in New Mexico, Ray says the family has a happy life. There are many friends to play with Ray. He describes an accident with a horse that breaks his leg. Ray's father takes him to Albuquerque to a hospital for treatment. Ray also mentions there is no electricity in the house. The family uses oil lamps for light.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: childhood activities; friendship; living conditions; siblings

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Partial Transcript: Julian recalls his childhood home. The Quayles family sells their home to a church for a Sunday school building. The Quayles family then builds a two-story home on the edge of Stanton. Each sibling has a separate bedroom. Julian reflects on some happy times and shares his childhood stories. Julian and his sisters live in that until their father passes away in 1929.

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Keywords: living conditions

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Partial Transcript: Julian discusses the amenities and different rooms in his childhood home. On the first day of school, Julian has an altercation with Worthington. Julian's mother is later informed of the event by a teacher. At school, Julian's favorite subject is history. Julian's hero during the Civil War is Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, a Confederate General.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: education; living conditions; primary school

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Partial Transcript: Julian recalls the family moving to Florida and buying property. Unfortunately, the family loses the home during the Great Depression. During Julian's school years, he enjoys football. After his father passes away, Julian enrolls at a Military Academy at Fort Defiance. At the Academy, Julian enjoys boxing and looks up to one of the founders. The qualities that Julian admires about the founder are his way of speaking and leads by example.

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Keywords: education; family

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Partial Transcript: Ray discusses his school years. Due to his father working on the railroad, the Wells family moves often. This results, in Ray changing different schools in New Mexico. Ray attends school in Secora the longest.

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Keywords: employment

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Partial Transcript: Ray recalls the school in Secora is a convent and falls in love with a nun. He shares a story about someone stealing and placing the blame on him. Ray says he will never forget how the nun stuck up for him. The Wells family moves to El Paso, Texas. In Texas, Ray becomes the Principal's favorite student. Ray reflects on the class going to Fort Bliss and missing the bus. The following day, he is called into the Principal's office and tells the truth. From then on, Ray is the captain of the football team and captain of the patrol boys.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: childhood activities; sports; travel

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Partial Transcript: Ray graduates from El Paso High School. During Ray's sophomore year, he joins the National Guard at the age of sixteen years old. Ray's brother also joins the National Guard but at the age of eighteen years old. Ray attends high school for two years and then goes into the service. In the service, Ray obtains his college credentials. He retires twenty-two years later. When Ray is discharged, the documents show two dates of birth, 1920 and 1922.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: high school; higher education; youth organizations

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Partial Transcript: In high school, Ray delivers newspapers before school and after school. Ray did not have an opportunity to participate in social activities because he is busy working. Besides having fond memories of the nun at Secora, Mr. Jones at El Paso high school makes a strong impression on him. Ray says he can recall all his grade school teacher's names. However, in high school, he only remembers Mr. Jones's name. After two years of high school, Ray joins the National Guard. He goes into active duty on November 25, 1940.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: childhood activities; employment; social activities

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Partial Transcript: Ray is still in high school when the 36th Division is called into active service. Everyone in Ray's Company is from El Paso, Texas. Ray recalls Livorno, and the men in his squad are his high school classmates. In 1940, there are many National Guard divisions inducted - 34th Division, and 35th Division to name a few. There are three Companies from El Paso - Heavy Weapons, Rifle, and Mortars. Ray is in H Company. He says all the officers in the Company are Mexican American. The Company wants to stay exclusive. However, when they face casualties, the Company accepts replacements from other places. The Company Captain is killed in action by a sniper.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: high school; Livorno; mortar; rifle; squad; World War Two

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Partial Transcript: Ray reflects on the events at Rapido River in Italy. During the battle, Ray is in the hospital. The troops try serval times to cross the river because the bridge is blown up. The only way to cross the river is by swimming. The Battalion Commander is wounded six times crossing the river. The Battalion Headquarters is destroyed by artillery fire. Ray discusses Milton Landry. Milton is a Major then promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. Due to the wounds he receives in action, Milton is medically discharged.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: artillery; artillery fire; European Theater; German soldiers; Italy; World War Two

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Partial Transcript: Before being active in the National Guard, Ray says they have been training every Thursday night and receive one dollar a week for training. E Company is another Company from El Paso, Texas, and they train on opposite days of Ray's Company (H Company). Ray trains in machine guns and maneuvers. His uniforms are uniforms from World War One. On November 25, 1940, Ray gets notice for active duty. Interesting fact, the Company Commanders are responsible for making their troops ready for battle. During this time, the Great Depression is happening. Many people are looking for jobs to survive. Ray recalls getting civilians to sign for service with turkey dinners.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: civilians; Lieutenant Colonel; machine gunner; mortar; troop; World War Two

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Partial Transcript: Ray discusses those who enlisted for the National Guard. One man is fifty-six years old with no teeth. Another is a thirteen-year-old boy. Ray says almost every one of them made good soldiers. Active training is every day for a year at Camp Bowie Texas until the war. On December 7, Ray is on Kitchen Patrol Duty (KP). He hears the news about Pearl Harbor over the radio. Ray at the time did not know what Pearl Harbor is. Within 24 hours of the attack, the 144th Regiment is deployed along the West Coast. At Camp Bowie, Ray and the other National Guards lives in tents. Three years later at Camp Edwards, Massachusetts, Ray, and the others have an opportunity to live in an actual building.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: living conditions; World War Two

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Partial Transcript: Julian graduates from Augusta Military Academy at Fort Defiance in June 1935. After graduation, he plans to go to college. Julian attends the University of Miami for four years and graduates in 1939. He majors in Business Administration. In college, he joins the National Guard. Julian has experience from the Military Academy and close-order drills. With the experiences Julian obtains previously, he quickly becomes a Sergeant.

Segment Synopsis:

Keywords: barracks; higher education; living conditions; social activities; sports

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