| Title |
Robert D. Shaffer, Salt Lake City, Utah: an interview by Becky B. Lloyd, April 29, 2002: Saving the Legacy tape no. 448 and 449 |
| Alternative Title |
Robert D. Shaffer, Saving the legacy: an oral history of Utah's World War II veterans, ACCN 2070, American West Center, University of Utah |
| Creator |
Shaffer, Robert D., 1917-2015 |
| Contributor |
Lloyd, Becky B.; University of Utah. American West Center |
| Publisher |
Digitized by J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah |
| Date |
2002-04-29 |
| 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 |
Hawaii; Solomon Islands; Guam; Bonin Islands, Japan; Japan; Korea |
| Subject |
Shaffer, Robert D., 1917-2015--Interviews; Veterans--United States--Biography; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; Marines--Biography; World War, 1939-1945--Naval operations, American; World War, 1939-1945--Military operations, American; World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Pacific Area--Personal narratives, American; Midway, Battle of, 1942--Personal narratives, American |
| Keywords |
Jimmy Doolittle; Doolittle's raid; USS Hornet (Ship); Panama Canal; USS Montpelier; War crimes trials |
| Description |
Transcript (72 pages) of an interview by Becky B. Lloyd with Robert D. Shaffer on April 29, 2002. From tape numbers 448 and 449 in the "Saving the Legacy" Oral History Project |
| Collection Number and Name |
Accn2070, Saving the Legacy oral history project, 2001-2010 |
| Abstract |
Shaffer (b. 1917) recalls growing up in Vandalia, Illinois, and discusses the Depression. He participated in ROTC at the University of Illinois and was commissioned in the Marine Corps in 1940. He served aboard the USS Hornet at the time of Pearl Harbor, recalls Doolittle's raid over Tokyo, and the battle of Midway. He also served aboard the Montpelier and saw action in the Solomon Islands. After a period on Guam, he was assigned to occupation duty on Chichi Jima in the Bonin Islands, where he served as the senior member of the board of investigation for war crimes. He also served in Korea as naval gunfire officer for the 1st Marine Division. He retired in 1961 at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Interviewed by Becky Lloyd. 72 pages. |
| Type |
Text |
| Genre |
oral histories (literary works) |
| Format |
application/pdf |
| Extent |
72 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/s64t8mfb |
| Topic |
Personal narratives--American; Veterans; World War (1939-1945); Military operations, Naval--American; Midway, Battle of (1942) |
| Setname |
uum_slohp |
| ID |
1030365 |
| Reference URL |
https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s64t8mfb |
| Title |
Page 29 |
| Format |
application/pdf |
| Setname |
uum_slohp |
| ID |
1030320 |
| OCR Text |
Show ROBERT D. HAFFER PRIL 29 2002 ROB: So I'm back in the States, and I developed a ca e of c llulit in my face and I ended up in the Naval hospital in Philadelphia. And the doctors had to cut it out of my cheek. But then I joined the USS Montpelier in Philadelphia, and I was the commanding officer of the Marine detachment. I had forty Marines and one Second Lieutenant. It turns out the Second Lieutenant was older than I was, a fellow by the name of Floyd Ladd, Floyd VanDusen Ladd, to be correct. But we took the Montpelier out into Chesapeake Bay for a shakedown and then we left going down the East Coast and passing Cape Hatteras. I had the midnight to four watch, and we were standing conditionthree watches, you know that's one and four? BEC: Right. ROB: You do. Okay. Anyhow, the ship rolled about twelve to fifteen degrees. It was the only time I was ever seasick. I got up and vomited in the toilet and went up on watch. Then we went down and went through the Panama Canal, and headed out into the Pacific, and the first spot we went to was N oumea, New Caledonia. And then we went up to Efate, the place where we'd sent the Marine aviators. But then, while we were in Efate, the battleship South Dakota came in, and Captain Merrill, who was later to be promoted admiral, came aboard as the commanding officer of our task force, Task Force 39, which was formed out of the Cleveland, Columbia, Montpelier and Denver. I was going to show you a schematic of the Montpelier, Becky. BEC: Shall I follow you? ROB: Well, I'll bring it over so you can see it here. But this was called the Cleveland Class of light cruisers. BEC: Boy, this, itself, is old. 29 |
| Reference URL |
https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s64t8mfb/1030320 |
