Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans
4:09 | As a student in the ROTC program at GA tech, Austin Brown explains how the war intervened with his studies. Since the war broke out, Austin Brown did not undergo the regular path to becoming an officer in the ROTC program.
Stationed in New Guinea, 2LT Austin Brown met a national guard unit which was from his hometown of Calhoun, GA. He also talks about sneaking in ice for his men, the threat of Malaria, and the multiple reassignments of his unit.
In a convoy full of cooks, medical units, quartermasters, and other troops, 2LT Austin Brown was following the infantry heading towards Davao. Along the way, the Japanese had been blowing up bridges to impede their progress. Around 11 o'clock in the evening, they came to a small stream where the bridge had been blown out. As soon as the construction engineers finished repairing the bridge, the Japanese opened fired.
During his time stationed in Japan, 2LT Brown and his friends had the urge to go to Hiroshima. To their amazement, they saw how one small bomb could do so much damage.
