Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans

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Robert Farmer

WWII | 18th Tank Battalion, 8th Armored Division

For the next 14 days, Farmer would have to undergo terrible conditions out at sea before finally arriving in England to fight in the war. After he got to England, the Battle of the Bulge started and he was positioned as gunner in a tank of 5 men including himself. However, the worst was yet to come. (This interview made possible with the support of DR. ANN CATTS.) (7:09)
After the frostbite from his legs was treated, Farmer was transferred to Holland for a little while and then back to Germany for more work inside a tank. During this time, he was transferred from the 8th to the 9th Army. He distinctly remembers the German citizens firing bazookas at his tank while it was rolling through the streets, the vast number of German surrendering, and what it was like to carefully cross the Rhine and Rur rivers. (This interview made possible with the support of DR. ANN CATTS.) (6:39)
Despite having made it across the Rur and Rhine rivers in Europe, Farmer and his battalion experienced a lot of trouble doing so. The Germans spared no ammunition when it came to blowing up as many bridges as they could. Afterwards, Farmer was asked to move up to Headquarters Platoon from his current tank position. He also recalls how the Air Corps would bomb enemy tanks so their tanks could proceed safely from point A to point B. (This interview made possible with the support of DR. ANN CATTS.) (5:19)
There were plenty of times that Robert Farmer and his battalion came face to face with other tanks, but none quite like this. If the Tiger Tank they encountered had fired at them, he would have died right then and there. At the end of the war, he was up in the Harz Mountains with his team and they got to live in a farmhouse and sleep in a bed for the first time in months. Afterwards, he was called into Czechoslovakia for guard duty since he did not have enough points to come home yet, but was recognized for his hard work in the war and went to the French Riviera for R&R. (This interview made possible with the support of DR. ANN CATTS.) (6:19)
After his time in rest and recuperation in the French Riviera, Farmer had to go back to Czechoslovakia for more guard duty since he still did not have enough points to return home. During this time, he transferred to the 4th Armored Division and then to the 102nd Infantry Division, where he was tasked to guard a POW camp, which was one of the last things he had to do before he could return home. (This interview made possible with the support of DR. ANN CATTS.) (3:05)
Robert Fischle

WWII | 390th Anti-Aircraft Automatic Weapons Battalion

Robert Fischle talks about the first time he experienced "Screaming Mimis" while taking cover from German artillery fire. (2:12)
While making his way through France in the winter of 1944, Robert Fischle describes an eerie sight by the roadside. (1:08)
Robert Fischle recalls his company taking German artillery fire near the Battle of the Bulge. (4:04)
While working with German translators during the liberation of the concentration camp at Dachau, Robert Fischle recollects one German officer's opinion on why American soldiers won World War II. (:44)
Shortly after the end of World War II, Robert Fischle and a fellow soldier decide to investigate a large vacant warehouse in Germany, and make a surprising discovery. (1:09)