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Winfield Baldwin

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Like all his friends who graduated high school in 1943, Winfield Baldwin was eager to get into the war. He grew up around the water so, naturally, he joined the Navy, where he became a signalman. On the USS Mellette, a troop transport, he was part of the beach battalion, men who landed with the troops and managed the activity on the beach. (5:41)

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The dawn was beautiful that first day at Iwo Jima, recalls Winfield Baldwin, who was lucky he was not scheduled for the first wave. He was a signalman in the Navy's beach battalion and his turn would come soon. In the meantime, he had a front row seat from the signal bridge of the chaos and misery on shore. (6:06)

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The second day at Iwo Jima, Navy signalman Winfield Baldwin readied himself to go ashore. His job was to land with Marines and do the ship to shore communications. When he got there, he saw a surreal landscape of wrecked machinery, vehicles and weapons. Then there were the casualties. (7:48)

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Winfield Baldwin was glad to be relieved on the Iwo Jima beach and with a few dozen others on a landing craft, he headed out to return to his ship. Unable to board because of Japanese attack, they struggled to keep up with the ships heading further out to sea. After a queasy night, they woke to a startling sight. (4:35)

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Navy signalman Winfield Baldwin describes his duties and experience as a member of the beach party on Iwo Jima. He had a generator and a signal light for communicating with the boats and ships. Somehow he missed seeing the famous flag. (3:08)

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Navy signalman Winfield Baldwin would sleep on the signal bridge when he could. He was a little worried below the water line. During the run up to the invasion of Okinawa, he became a "shellback" during the equator crossing ceremony. At Okinawa, the threat from kamikazes was great and the shrapnel from the anti-aircraft fire fell like rain. (6:26)

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After the surrender, Winfield Baldwin became one of the first Navy personnel to set foot on Japanese soil as part of a landing party securing a Japanese naval base. He also went ashore at Nagasaki and saw the effects of the atomic bomb. (4:40)

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After the surrender and signing ceremony, Winfield Baldwin's ship went to Manila where, for the first time since he went to sea, he had shore leave with real bars. Somehow this shore party had difficulty returning to the ship. Back home, he decided against a career in the Navy, opting to take advantage of the GI Bill. (4:55)

Charles Harris

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Charles Harris was very much interested in aviation, so he volunteered for the Army Air Corps during the patriotic wave that swept the country after Pearl Harbor. He never got to be a pilot because he suffered a freak accident during physical training in sub-zero weather. He endured, however, determined to contribute to the war effort. (4:34)

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Hampered by an accident suffered in training, Charles Harris still found a role to play as an instructor on the Norden bombsight. Eventually, he grew tired of the classroom and asked to be put on the line, training crews departing for the Pacific theater. (4:35)