Bruce Estes oral history interview, part 1 of 2, November 1, 2009

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0:00 - Introduction / Father and mother's background / Parent's relationship

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Keywords: Atlanta, Georgia; carpentry; construction; family; father; mother; parents

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3:21 - Siblings

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Keywords: brother; childhood; family home; relationships; sister; spoiled; youth

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4:33 - Growing up on family farm

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Keywords: animals; chores; crops; farm; firewood; livestock; vegetables; yard work

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6:38 - Childhood friends and activities

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Keywords: childhood; community; cousins; friendship; recreation; toys; transportation; woodwork

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9:22 - Travel around town

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Keywords: automobiles; church; community; family; Ford Model T; mule; transportation; wagon

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10:39 - Childhood education

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Keywords: education; English; grade level; grammar school; high school; teachers

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11:40 - Family values / Family history -- Ancestry

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Keywords: ancestry; Civil War; family; Georgia; honesty; kindness; parents; values

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13:17 - Recreational activities

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Keywords: Atlanta, Georgia; graduation; high school; movies; parents; recreational activities; Roy Rogers; Tom Mix

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14:26 - Reaction to attack on Pearl Harbor / Joining the military

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Keywords: Army; draft; high school; military service; news; Pearl Harbor; radio; World War Two

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16:34 - Induction at Fort McPherson / Basic training at Camp Fannin -- Weapons assignment

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Keywords: assignment; bivouac; carbine; Georgia; marksmanship; mortar; pistol; Texas

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18:54 - Serving as a mortarman / Working way up in rankings

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Keywords: ammunition carrier; combat patrol; company commander; front lines; machine guns; mortarman; platoon sergeant; squad leader

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21:05 - Isolated in mountains in France with the Lost Battalion

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Keywords: 141st Infantry Regiment; attack; battalion; cables; enemy fire; flanks; KIA; patrol

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24:12 - Lost Battalion -- Bunkering in foxhole for protection / Soldier killed during ration delivery

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Keywords: artillery; casualty; D-bars; foxhole; German soldiers; mortar; rations; supplies

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27:22 - Lost Battalion -- Water supply

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Keywords: Coleman stove; illness; K-rations; lemon powder; propane; purification pills; starvation; water

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29:29 - Lost Battalion -- Arrival of the 442nd

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Keywords: 442nd Regimental Combat Team; BAR; foreign troops; foxhole; Nisei soldiers; replacements; rescue mission

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31:22 - Lost Battalion -- Under constant German attack / Capturing German machine guns

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Keywords: attack; casualties; enemy fire; German soldiers; machine guns; nests; POW; rate of fire

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32:58 - Lost Battalion -- Pullback after rescue operation / Total casualties lost

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Keywords: "Bouncing Betty"; bath; casualties; company; food; KIA; platoon; pullout

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34:21 - Assignment following rescue

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Keywords: bath; clothing; combat missions; combat training; front line; mortarman; platoon sergeant

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35:41 - First battle experience in Anzio, Italy

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Keywords: aid station; artillery; casualties; combat experience; illness; malaria; platoon sergeant; vineyard

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38:20 - Operating and firing the mortar

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Keywords: accuracy; combat; gunner; mortar; observer; shell; sights; target range

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41:22 - Worst combat experiences in Italy / Reaching beachhead in southern France

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Keywords: "digging-in"; beach; enemy fire; harbor; landing craft; mountains; pillbox; water

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43:57 - Knowledge of Nisei soldiers before Lost Battalion rescue / Thoughts about treatment of Niseis and Japanese-Americans at home

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Keywords: "Stars and Stripes"; American citizens; Japanese-Americans; Lost Battalion; newspaper; Nisei soldiers; treatment; United States Army internment camps

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46:12 - Digging foxholes

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Keywords: camouflage; conditions; dirt; foxholes; improvements; leaves; trees; Vosges

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47:45 - Return to Europe after the war / Hearing the news the war was over / German POWs

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Keywords: Austria; cooperative; German soldiers; POW; teenagers; Telephone Pioneers of America; uniforms; Waffen-SS

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50:42 - Serving with the 36th Division in Austria during the last months of the war / Supplies

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Keywords: 36th Infantry Division; Austria; European Theater; France; Lost Battalion; marching; Switzerland; World War Two

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51:52 - War ends / Return home on troop transport

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Keywords: camp; cooks; evasive maneuvers; German soldiers; meals; seasickness; troop transport; World War Two

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55:06 - Communication with family during the war

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Keywords: family; letters; Lost Battalion; mother; parents; relatives; Virginia; World War Two

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57:31 - Wounded in France

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Keywords: aid station; bandage; face; military hospital; mortar; mountain; shelling; treatment

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