People Who Have Seen The Events of World War 2?

Question

What I mean is someone who had experienced World War 2 personally. Not specifically a soldier during the war but it can be just a normal person. Could you please tell me your personal experience?

For example,
How was life during the war?
How did you cope up with it?
What were you doing during the war?
Etc. etc.

I’m doing this for a school project. Thank you very much in advance :)

Answer 1

I was born in Feb.1942, 2 months after Pearl Harbor; but I can remember some things about the war, on the home front from a child's perspective.

Ration books! Shortages! By 1944, Mama was pregnant with my sister. Daddy needed to buy a refrigerator to keep milk in for the baby. There were no refrigerators being manufactured; all manufacturing was geared toward the war effort. Daddy had to get a certificate from a doctor, stating that a refrigerator was a necessity, before he was allowed to purchase a used one.

We walked, or rode a city bus, or took the train whenever we wanted to go anywhere, because gasoline was rationed, and what few gallons of gasoline we were allowed each month had to be used for Daddy to go back & forth to work.

All the men were in uniform. I remember waiting to catch the train at crowded Union Station in Houston; and EVERY man there had on a uniform.

Daddy was a guard at the San Jacinto Ordnance Depot in Houston. He was "frozen" on that job for the duration of the war. I don't know how I knew what he did there as a guard or what "Ordnance" was, but I just did! He wore a uniform with a Sam Brown belt. I was really impressed with the Sam Brown belt.

Daddy had a short-wave radio, and I remember listening to news correspondents broadcasting from Europe. One night, Daddy picked up a live broadcast by Hitler to the German people, and Daddy told me to come and listen to it. Of course, I couldn't understand a word Hitler was saying, but I can still remember the sound of his strident voice.

My 3 uncles were all in the Army overseas. One of them was part of the landing force on D-Day, and came ashore at Utah Beach.

On the day it was announced that Japan had surrendered, neighbors ran out of their houses, into the street, and were laughing and crying and embracing each other with relief that the war was finally over.

Answer 2

I was born at the very end of the war. The only thing I remember is that my mom took some films of where my dad played ball. On one of the films you can see the shadow of the planes going over the field during sping training and my dad said those were planes that had to do with the war. And I remember hearing about Burma on the TV. I was so young I really only knew the Burma Shave signs and wonder why everyone was talking about Burma Shave cream. Look up Dolittle and the guys that did that flight to Tokyo. The book was "Thirty Second over Tokyo. Those guys were real heroes and there wasn't enough gas to get back so they knew they were going to have a hard time getting back and would probably crash. Their story is one everyone should know. A few of them are still alive and they meet each year. There was a lovely email that went around about them. I have a friend that can remember rationing. And Netflix has some great movies about the Nazi chasers and how after the war they worked to track them down. And Netlfix has a series of films about Auschwitz and all that went on there. Also a film about a wonderful lady that was one of the twins and she is one of the little girls that you see when the allies got there and let the prisoners out. Dr. Mengele did terrible things to her and she fought to stay alive because if she died, her sister would be killed because of his terrible experiments. He wasnt even much of a doctor. The best thing in her book is about forgiveness. She tried to get people who had lost their family to forgive the Nazis which was hard for other to hear. But she explained that you forgive, not to say that what was done is now ok, but to free your soul so that you can move on.. that's a great quote and I wish I could remember her name. The Auschwitz series is so horrendous that it stopped me from sleeping for a couple of nights. It doesn't sugar coat anything and you can feel the horror or I could.

Answer 3

I remember Pearl Harbor. The men all stood around in the alley talking about what they were going to do. Volunteer, or work at home for the war effort. Most of those that went to fight didn't come home. Fathers and brothers of kids I went to school with died. Some families had to live in unheated garages and unheated porches with relatives. We had scrap drives, air raid drills, and "blackouts". Food, gasoline, tires, and even medical supplies, were "rationed". My father rode a bicycle to work at midnight, through a rough section of town. We had a two friends in the Manhattan Project. When they set off that first atomic bomb, they didn't know if it could be contained, or if the chain reaction would continue until the entire world had been consumed. They tried it anyway, That was pretty scary. We had a temporary teacher that was a Zionist. She was replaced by lunch time. It wasn't socially acceptable to be Jewish. Especially a militant Jew!! After the war, the GIs came home with money. They opened businesses, they didn't have the experience to run. Most went broke and wound up working in factories. Occupational diseases and accidents were the norm. Pollution was accepted during and after the war. War is evil. It is NEVER justified.

Answer 4

My Mom was 16 when Pearl Harbor was bombed, she is almost 91 now, I had 2 uncles who were overseas, one in Europe who fought in the Battle of the Bulge in Belgium in 1944, and the other was in the Pacific a fighter pilot who bombed Japanese troop transports. I heard allot of their war stories when I was younger but the both are gone now, but my Mom just the other night was talking about the rationing coupons during the war, and the heavy black curtains that they had to have on the windows. There was a blackout and they lived right on the bay south of New York City where German U-Boats patrolled at night.

Answer 5

I was going on 6 yrs old when WWII ended. I recall some things, but from a child's point of view, of course.



The most fearful things was the blackouts and air raid drills. When the sirens started, my dad would grab his helmet (he was a civil defense guy), and the streetlights went out. We had to turn out the lights in the house ourselves. This one time I was just too frightened, and my mom put a bedsheet over my bedroom window and turned on a light. Not good. We got a very terse warning from someone outside.



I used to play with sugar ration tokens. They were little, dark red , wooden discs about the size of a dime. There was a gas rationing sticker (not sure how it worked) on the windshield of our car.



I was too young to know anything but war news in the paper and on radio.



My dad and I gathered up metal and rubber stuff and took it to a gathering place. Kitchen waste grease, too.

Answer 6

You can probably find children from the war they would be under 90. Mom was a teen during the war graduated high school in 1944 then worked for Boeing building planes living with her aunt and uncle in Seattle, so look for people her age she would be 89 if still alive. Dad lived in Seattle and worked building ships, couldn't buy real tires so flats all the time. In some ways life was better during the war for those that weren't in the service, it meant finding good paying jobs was easier. My grandparents were able to leave the company town and move to the city after the war started the depression ended so they were able to buy a house instead of living in a company house.

Answer 7

it finished over 70 years ago someone would have to be 90 years old to have seen the last year or two my father spent 5 years fighting in it there is something I must impress on you war is the worst thing that can happen to a human both mentally and physically I have seen documentaries where some veterans were persuaded to talk breaking down and unable to continue one mentioned landing on a beach the man next to him was blown apart and the guy the other side had his head decapitated by a shell he couldn't continue with the interview understandably my dad never mentioned it at all I don't know anything he went through but and most of them wouldn't the trauma must be immense your worst nightmare time 10 there are many documentaries

this is where I learned about it we are safe because of them

Answer 8

I was a pre-teen or what is called a "tween" today during world war 2. I did the family grocery shopping, often walking to several stores to find meat, or other food that was in short supply. I would carry the family ration books, so that if I managed to find sugar, toilet paper, soap, Jello or other things, I could buy them if Grandma gave me enough money. Everyone either paid cash, or had an account with the grocer to be paid every payday. My household consisted of my Grandma (Grandpa died at that time), my Mother (my Dad died four years earlier), three unmarried Aunts, an Uncle who was in the Navy, and my two younger brothers. So I toted lots of shopping bags of groceries in my young life.

Answer 9

Good heavens, dear. One would have to be in their late 80s at the least to have experienced WWII. My mother was 21 when the war ended and she would be 91 now if she were still living. Your best bet, if you want first-hand anecdotes, would be to visit an elder care facility. Most of them would be happy to have the company and you would get better stories. Also (I forgot), there is a very good series called The War, which is a Ken Burns documentary about WWII. You can watch it on Netflix, Amazon, or any number of places.

Answer 10

All I can remember is that my dad and all of his brothers were in WW2, once of them died from a grenade hitting his jeep while driving it.

They say it was a nasty,messy war and would not wish it anyone. They had to eat their foods out of cans and could not cook anything over a fire or it would alert to the enemies. They would not go into details.

But your best bet is to go to a nursing home or senior citizen home and see if anyone is still around who are in their 90's to tell you all about it.

If my dad was alived now he would be in his late 90's, same as his brothers. Once thing is that I never gotten to meet my uncle who died.

Answer 11

I would suggest checking with various veterans organizations in your area. The older men & women who served in some capacity during WWII are willing to share information with younger people who are interested. I have met a few older women who were nurses during WWII who had very interesting experiences. I have also had conversations over the last 10 yrs with men who served overseas during WWII in Europe & the Pacific. These people are becoming fewer in number but some are still able & a part of their communities.

Answer 12

grew up in WW2 was Bombed in London for 5 years Dad rented a House and before we Moved in it was Bombed



another Bombed whilst we were in a shelter we Moved into the Flat in 1941 and Moved out in about 1958

Answer 13

Most people who "experience" WW-II are in their late 70's to 90.

Answer 14

A thought shared.

Answer 15

Read some books

Answer 16

You'll need a séance.