| Title |
Robert Earl Compton, West Jordan, Utah: an interview by Becky B. Lloyd, July 7, 2004: Saving the Legacy tape no. 679 |
| Alternative Title |
Robert Earl Compton, Saving the legacy: an oral history of Utah's World War II veterans, ACCN 2070, American West Center, University of Utah |
| Creator |
Compton, Robert Earl, 1925-2007 |
| Contributor |
Lloyd, Becky B.; University of Utah. American West Center |
| Publisher |
Digitized by J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah |
| Date |
2004-07-06 |
| 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 |
Algeria; Italy; Philippines; Japan |
| Subject |
Compton, Robert Earl, 1925-2007--Interviews; Veterans--United States--Biography; World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American; World War, 1939-1945--Naval operations, American; World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Europe, Southern--Personal narratives, American; World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Pacific Area--Personal narratives, American |
| Keywords |
Oran; Naples; Pompeii |
| Description |
Transcript (42 pages) of an interview by Becky B. Lloyd with Robert Earl Compton on July 6, 2004. From tape number 679 in the "Saving the Legacy" Oral History Project |
| Collection Number and Name |
Accn2070, Saving the Legacy oral history project, 2001-2010 |
| Abstract |
Compton (b. 1925) quite high school to join the Navy in 1942 at age 17. He was assigned to duty near Norfolk, Virginia, where he learned to operate LSVPs. He served aboard the USS Oberon and the Samuel Chase in Africa and the Pacific, driving landing craft loaded with men and supplies to beach landings. After the war he delivered supplies to Japanese harbors. Interviewed by Becky Lloyd. 42 pages. |
| Type |
Text |
| Genre |
oral histories (literary works) |
| Format |
application/pdf |
| Extent |
42 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/s60g5n6s |
| Topic |
Personal narratives--American; Veterans; World War (1939-1945); Military operations, Naval--American |
| Setname |
uum_slohp |
| ID |
1032332 |
| Reference URL |
https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s60g5n6s |
| Title |
Page 37 |
| Format |
application/pdf |
| Setname |
uum_slohp |
| ID |
1032326 |
| OCR Text |
Show ROB RT RL OMPTO J 7 2004 g od friend . I aid Are you the only one on it?' H aid th r r an th r upl of firemen and a eaman. I never ee them. They go down to that ca[i ' and at and I don't pay any attention to them. They re drunk half the time. o this guy cam ab ard ship one day all slouched over. I identified them and found out that he and the rest wer all under me. So we had a little chat and lecture session up on deck about getting paid for what I was doing. "It was your butt." I notified them that all leaves were cancelled. I've had that done to me and I'd had some pretty good teachers. I said, 'The Navy can't make you do a damned thing but we can make you wish the hell you had have done it." I never did forget that (laughs). I think I told them that. They were just young kids, seventeen years old like I was when I first went in. But they were slouchy and drunk. They didn't even look like US Sailors. So I was doing the job they were paying me to, I guess. So anyway, to make a long story short, this ship was supposed to be out of the boat works all finished and fixed up and ready to go. We got outside of the San Francisco Bridge and lost one engine. We cleared another half mile and lost a second engine, the third one and fourth one and we were dead in the water off of San Francisco, rolling around in those big waves out there. I put the second-class signalman to work. He got on the light and signaled another LST. They were supposed to be rendezvousing and meeting us out there. They were looking for us. So we told them we were dead in the water. We were going to be needing a tow. Finally, after about six hours of fighting, we finally got about a one inch tow cable hook onto the back of that LST and onto us. Then we broke one of the splices in the cable and we had to do it again. Of course, we were wet, tired, cold, hungry, and miserable. Nobody knew what they were doing and none of them had ever been to sea before. They were seasick. Anyway, we ate 37 |
| Reference URL |
https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s60g5n6s/1032326 |
