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Description
Oral History interview of Leonard Bartos. Interview conducted by Fisher, Ashley; Motta, Daniel at Mr. Bartos' Residence.
Log
0:15 childhood, family, religion; 1:00 hearing Pearl Harbor broadcast with friends; 1:45 going to marine recruiting office/put in reserves; 3:10 called to report for duty in July 1942; 3:50 leaving Michigan/swearing in/trip to San Diego/boot camp; 5:00 training in New Zealand; 5:35 troop transport to Tarawa in November 1943; 8:00 arriving at pier/witnessing wounded; 8:30 getting dark on beach/description of Japanese fire; 11:30 getting light/sees bodies; 12:00 beginning of second day of battle/Higgins boat problems; 13:20 getting onto beach/description of bodies; 14:55 Japanese sniper; 15:50 nature of Japanese attacks; 17:24 leaving island/raising of US and UK flags/condition of uniform; 18:33 arriving in Hawaii/unloading wounded/conditions in Hawaii; 20:14 training in Hawaii; 21:40 travel to Siapan May 1944/arrival/shelling of beach; 23:25 enter jungle on Siapan/getting organized/night-time shelling by Japanese; 26:11 description of moon, sunrise/sunsets in South Pacific; 27:30 setting up command post/encountering beheaded Australian soldiers; 30:00 Japanese attack/grenade incident; 31:00 moving to Tinian/finding Japanese money; 32:30 Banzai charge/artillery defense; 34:00 landing on Tinian/further Japanese attacks on position; 35:55 back to Siapan/training for Okinawa; 37:30 Siapan anecdote about chicken/dysentery/visit to field hospital; 41:09 Dengue fever in Tinian; 42:00 interaction with B-29 crews/beer raids; 44:45 arriving in Okinawa/Japanese Zero attacks; 45:40 patrol in Okinawa when Japanese shelling starts/discovery of dead woman; 48:00 hearing news of Japanese surrender/arrival in Nagasaki/bomb damage; 50:10 returning to U.S./arriving in San Diego/Camp Pendleton/Paris island; 52:40 experience back in the U.S./civilian jobs; 53:45 signing up with Army/Occupational Berlin/description of duties; 54:45 Service in Korea/refugees/request for transfer; 57:10 bayonet charge/attack by Chinese and counter-attack; 1:00:00 new position/second attack/Chinese shelling; 1:04:55 running into Chinese soldiers/getting wounded; 1:08:00 Working for Ford Motors/later life
Date of Birth
1924-09-28
Place of Birth
Dearborn Township (Mich.)
Gender
Male
Race
White - Non Hispanic
Home State
Michigan
War or Conflict
World War II; Cold War Era; Korean Conflict
Status
Veteran
Begin/End date of Service - 1st
1942-07-07
Type
Video; MovingImage
1946-07-06
Begin/End date of Service - 2nd
1947-01-14
1948-11-17
Begin/End date of Service - 3rd
1950-10-17
1951-11-17
Entrance into Service
Enlisted
Branch of Service
U.S. Marines
U.S. Army
Unit of Service
C-1-10, 2nd Marine Division, 1st Battalion; C troop - 16th constabulary ;George (G) Company 187th Airborn regimental combat team
Highest Rank
Corporal; Cpl; Sergeant; SGT
Prisoner of War
No
Service Related Injury
Yes
Battles
Battle of Tarawa; Battle of Saipan; Battle of Tinian; Battle of Okinawa; Occupation Japan; Communist Chinese Aggression Campaign; 1st U.N. Counter Offensive Campaign; Communist China Spring Campaign
Medals
Japan Occupation Medal; World War II Victory Medal; Army of Occupation of Germany Medal; Army Good Conduct Medal; Purple Heart; Bronze Star Medal; Korean Presidential Unit Citation; Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
Achievements
First troop in Nagasaki; Attended Counter Intelligence Corps school in the alps in Bavaria; Was in charge of security at Spandau Prison where eleven top Nazi's were confined.
Note
Almost died from dysentery and dengue fever.
City of Birth
Dearborn Township
Country of Birth
United States
Interviewer
Fisher, Ashley; Motta, Daniel
Interview Date
11-17-2011
Location of Interview
Mr. Bartos' Residence
Subjects
Bartos, Leonard J.; World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal narratives; Cold War -- Personal Narratives; Korean War, 1950-1953 -- Personal Narratives; Korean Conflict -- Personal narratives; United States. Army; United States. Marines
Collection Description
Contains logs, audio and video recordings of interviews with Central Florida's veterans as part of a history class project for the students at the University of Central Florida (UCF). The UCF Community Veterans History Project(CVHP) started in fall 2010. It collects, preserves, and makes accessible to the public the experiences of Central Florida's veterans so that future generations will better understand the realities of conflict. It is a collaborative endeavor supported by multiple departments and offices at UCF. The veterans' histories are archived and made digitally available through the UCF library and selected materials are contributed to the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress.
Contributor Affiliation / Organization
RICHES; University of Central Florida
Contributors
Fisher, Ashley; Motta, Daniel
Length of Interview
76 Minutes
Publisher
Department of History, University of Central Florida
Type
video
Rights
All rights are held by the respective holding institution. This material is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. For permission to reproduce and/or for copyright information contact Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida Libraries, (407) 823-2576. http://library.ucf.edu/about/departments/special-collections-university-archives/
Repository
University of Central Florida Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives
Contributing Project
UCF Community Veterans History Project
Document Type
Interview
Recommended Citation
Central Florida, RICHES of, "Bartos, Leonard James interview" (2011). Veterans Oral Histories. 69.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/veteransoralhistories/69