| Title |
Frederick T. Baird, Provo, Utah: an interview by Benjamin Bahlmann, August 30, 2002: Saving the Legacy tape nos. 528 & 527 |
| Alternative Title |
Frederick T. Baird, Saving the legacy: an oral history of Utah's World War II veterans, ACCN 2070, American West Center, University of Utah |
| Creator |
Baird, Frederick T., 1924- |
| Contributor |
University of Utah. American West Center; Bahlmann, Benjamin J. |
| Publisher |
Digitized by J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah |
| Date |
2002-08-30 |
| Date Digital |
2015-12-16 |
| Access Rights |
I acknowledge and agree that all information I obtain as a result of accessing any oral history provided by the University of Utah's Marriott Library shall be used only for historical or scholarly or academic research purposes, and not for commercial purposes. I understand that any other use of the materials is not authorized by the University of Utah and may exceed the scope of permission granted to the University of Utah by the interviewer or interviewee. I may request permission for other uses, in writing to Special Collections at the Marriott Library, which the University of Utah may choose grant, in its sole discretion. I agree to defend, indemnify and hold the University of Utah and its Marriott Library harmless for and against any actions or claims that relate to my improper use of materials provided by the University of Utah. |
| Spatial Coverage |
Germany |
| Subject |
Baird, Frederick T., 1924- --Interviews; Veterans--Utah--Biography; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; World War, 1939-1945--Military operations, American; World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Europe, Northern--Personal narratives, American |
| Keywords |
Army Air Corps; Marines |
| Description |
Transcript (81 pages) of an interview by Benjamin Bahlmann with Frederick T. Baird on August 30, 2002. From tape numbers 322 and 333 in the "Saving the Legacy" Oral History Project |
| Collection Number and Name |
Accn2070, Saving the Legacy oral history project, 2001-2010 |
| Abstract |
Baird (b. 1924) describes his childhood and life on a Utah farm. After enlisting in the Army Air Corps in 1943 and receiving basic training in Texas, he was assigned to Walnut Ridge, Arkansas, as a records clerk, then to Columbus, Mississippi. During December 1944, he was reassigned to the infantry for European duty and shipped eventually near Aachen, Germany, for combat with the 52nd Armored Infantry Battalion, 9th Armored Division, operating from a half-track. He discusses his combat experiences. At the end of the war, was assigned occupation duty in Munich, where he returned to records management with the 39th Machine Records Unit. He was discharged in 1946. Mr. Baird worked thirty-four years for Geneva Steel before retiring in 1984. Interviewed by Benjamin Bahlmann. 81 pages. |
| Type |
Text |
| Genre |
oral histories (literary works) |
| Format |
application/pdf |
| Extent |
81 pages |
| Language |
eng |
| Rights |
 |
| Scanning Technician |
Mazi Rakhsha |
| Conversion Specifications |
Original scanned with Kirtas 2400 and saved as 400 ppi uncompressed TIFF. PDF generated by Adobe Acrobat Pro X for CONTENTdm display |
| ARK |
ark:/87278/s64q9x2g |
| Topic |
Personal narratives--American; Veterans; World War (1939-1945) |
| Setname |
uum_slohp |
| ID |
1030066 |
| Reference URL |
https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s64q9x2g |
| Title |
Page 42 |
| Format |
application/pdf |
| Setname |
uum_slohp |
| ID |
1030026 |
| OCR Text |
Show FREDERI K T. BAIRD T apply in the new and more pecialized organization within the divi ion Thu , Mr. Baird's experience of being assigned to an armored infantry battalion, without havin 2 02 any training in armored cars or the tactics employed in working the car with the accompanying tanks, was typical rather than the exception. It was all learn by doing. Fortunately, the Army had placed a few men at the squad level, like Mr. Baird's armored car driver, who evidently had a lot of on the job training a evidenced by his survival for so long .. By 1944, Armored Infantry Battalions were supposed to consist of a headquarters company and three armored infantry companies. Each of a battalion's three armored infantry companies was supposed to consist of six officers and 245 enlisted men. Each company was supposed to be equipped with, in addition to M 1 rifles, three 57 mm antitank guns and carriages, sixteen half-tracks, three jeeps, two "deuce and a half" trucks, ten .30 caliber heavy machine guns, six .30 caliber light machine guns, one .50 caliber heavy machine gun, twenty-five .45 caliber submachine guns (Thompsons and "grease guns"), eighteen 2. 3 6 inch rocket launchers, three 60mm mortars and three sniper rifles. The half-tracks served the purpose of today' s armored personnel carriers. Presumably, each company was further divided into three platoons and each platoon was divided into several squads. The two or three half-tracks that went with Mr. Baird's probably constituted his platoon, while his particular half-track probably constituted his squad.] I don't remember just exactly what their responsibility was or what they had on them. But basically for our 52nd Infantry Battalion, we were the main half-track. There were probably some others, too. But they would maybe take a different road or a different way. We couldn't always stay together. BB: Most often did you travel on established roads? 42 |
| Reference URL |
https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s64q9x2g/1030026 |
