Photo courtesy of Robert Weber Robert Weber shows the results of his latest fishing trip at Fort Kamehameha on the Hawaiian island of Oahu in February 1943. He boasts an octopus, snagged with the homemade spear in the ground beside him, and a Samoan crab and mullet, which, he says, you just grab. That's bilge oil on his legs. Weber was at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked the United States' Pacific fleet on Dec. 7, 1941, and ushered the nation into World War II.
- Copyright 2003 The Herald-Dispat
Mark Webb/The Herald-Dispatch Veteran Louie Torlone shows off a bolt-action Japanese rifle on Dec. 4, 2008, at his home in Huntington. When Pearl Harbor was struck, Louie was a junior at Logan High School. One month after he graduated high school, he joined the Marine Corps. He was 21 when he fought at Iwo Jima.
File photo/The Herald-Dispatch A group of local veterans got the opportunity to make the trip to Washington, D.C., to visit the World War II Memorial in November 2004. Standing, from left, William Bailes, Jess Jenkins, Don Gillette and Albert Baker. Sitting, from left, Phillips Ash, Ed Yeager and Ernest Levisay.
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File photo/The Herald-Dispatch World War II veterans Ralph Ward, right, and Ken Dishman salute the U.S. flag in November 2001 during a veterans program at Davis Elementary School. The program had veterans talking about their experiences in the military and answering questions from the students.
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Lori Wolfe/The Herald-Dispatch Fumika Tomita Ward, of South Point, Ohio, holds a copy of the resolution passed by the U.S. House of Representatives that allowed her and her son to enter the United States in 1950. Hers is only one of 900 resolutions passed by Congress for Japanese women who married American servicemen following World War II.
- Lori Wolfe
Dorie Miller was serving aboard the USS West Virginia when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. Miller, a cook, went to his battle station only to discover it had been torpedoed, so he was assigned to carry injured sailors to safety. He also manned a .50-caliber Browning anti-aircraft machine gun, which he had not been trained to operate, until he ran out of ammunition and was ordered to abandon ship. (U.S. Navy/File)
- GNS
File photo/The Herald-Dispatch In May 2004, Congressional Medal of Honor recipient Woody Williams of Ona shows some of his military awards, clockwise from top, the Medal of Honor, a Purple Heart and an Iwo Jima service medal, while holding a flag dedicated to the memory of his brother William Jerald Williams, who served in Europe during World War II and died shortly thereafter. Williams received the Medal of Honor for his actions while serving in the Marines in Iwo Jima.
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File photo/The Herald-Dispatch Barboursville resident Ted Kirk looks at a photograph in December 1999 that was taken of him when he was 16 years old stationed at Malakole Camp, Hawaii, in November 1941. Kirk had only been in the 251st Coast Artillery Anti Aircraft since August 1941 when he witnessed the Arizona burning at Pearl Harbor from his firing spot on top of a Marine barrack across the bay.
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File photo/The Herald-Dispatch Framed by a U.S. flag made from handprints of Davis Creek Elementary students, World War II veteran Gordon Hensley listens in November 2001 as other veterans share their experiences in the military during a program at Davis Creek Elementary School.
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Courtesy of Dr. Alan Wild Army Air Corps 2nd Lt. Johnny Dunbar walked out of France during World War II after his plane was shot down by Germans. He wrote a book about his experiences titled "Escape Through the Pyrenees." A Richwood, W.Va., native, he graduated from Marshall University's journalism school and worked as a reporter for the Huntington Advertiser before the war.
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Comedian and actor Bob Hope entertains a large crowd of American servicemen at the airstrip in Munda, New Georgia, in the Pacific in this Oct. 31, 1944, file photo, during World War II. (AP Photo/U.S. Signal Corps, File)
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File photo/The Herald-Dispatch "They told us if our chutes didn't open, we could take it down to the man in the truck and he would give us a new one; no one ever took him up on it," Eugene Cornett says lightheartedly as he reminisces about combat duty during World War II in June 2001.
- Copyright 1999 The Herald-Dispat
Chris Harris/The Herald-Dispatch In December 2007, Pearl Harbor survivor and Huntington resident Bob Weber describes his first combat experience Dec. 7, 1941, in the attack on Pearl Harbor. Weber served in the Army Coast Artillery harbor defense on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Weber's post was 60 feet from the edge of Hickam Field, an American air base, and 1,000 feet from the Pearl Harbor channel.
- Chris Harris
The World War II Memorial, foreground, and the Lincoln Memorial, background are seen from the Washington Monument on April 29, 2004. The national monument honors the 16 million U.S. men and women who served during World War II. (AP Photo/Lauren Burke)
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Milt Cohen rings the bell from the armored cruiser USS West Virginia during a Pearl Harbor commemoration ceremony Dec. 7, 2003, in Morgantown. Cohen served on the battleship USS West Virginia during World War II. (AP Photo/The Dominion Post, Bob Gay)
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Chris Harris/The Herald-Dispatch A replica of the ships in the actual battle group that was in port during the attack on Pearl Harbor is displayed at a ceremony remembering the 66th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 2007, at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena.
- Chris Harris
File photo/The Herald-Dispatch "I did anything I could to help people out," said John E. Landers in December 2002 about the attack on Pearl Harbor. Landers had been in the Navy less than a year when he survived the attack.
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File photo/The Herald-Dispatch In May 2001, T.R. Wickline said he wasn't a hero during the attack on Pearl Harbor, where he was station upon the battleship U.S.S. Maryland, he was just doing the job he was trained to do. Wickline, of Huntington, holds a photograph of the U.S.S. Maryland.
- Copyright 1999 The Herald-Dispat
Lori Wolfe/The Herald-Dispatch World War II POW Bob Bellomy of Wayne watches in November 2002 as veterans are presented with commemorative patches for their services to their country during a Veterans Day ceremony in Wayne.
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Lori Wolfe/The Herald-Dispatch World War II veteran Martin Mansperger of Barboursville rests on his cane in December 2001 during the Pearl Harbor remembrance ceremony sponsored by the Huntington Marine Corps. League.
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File photo/The Herald-Dispatch Herbert Colker of Huntington has kept in touch with George Neel of France since Neel provided him with shelter during a major World War II battle. They are pictured here in September 1997.
- Copyright 1997 The Herald-Dispat
Lori Wolfe/The Herald-Dispatch World War II veteran and member of the American Legion Post 47, Jack Forte holds his hand over his heart in November 2002 during the Pledge of Allegiance at a Veterans Day ceremony in Huntington.
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File photo/The Herald-Dispatch Justin Clark of Den 4, Cub Scout Pack 36, places an American Flag on the grave of World War II Navy veteran Jackie L. Adkins at Rome Cemetery in Proctorville, Ohio, on May 24, 1998. The Cub Scouts were putting out the flags as part of an effort to attain the Presidential Summit Award, a community service honor. To receive the award they must do 12 hours of community service a year through the year 2000. Decorating the graves was their first project for 1998 and approximately 10 scouts took part, as well as parents and volunteers from the local VFW Post.
- Copyright 1998 The Herald-Dispat
Chris Harris/The Herald-Dispatch Congressional Medal of Honor recipient Herschel "Woody" Williams gives our nation's flag a proper hand salute while Caleb Donahoe sings the National Anthem during the 66th Anniversary Remember Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 2007, at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena.
- Chris Harris
Mark Webb/The Herald-Dispatch Ken Hechler speaks during the Pearl Harbor Day ceremony Sunday, Dec. 7, 2008, at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena to mark the 67th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Hechler was a World War II combat historian.
Photo courtesy of Raymond Christian Raymond Christian served as an electrician in the Navy from 1943 to 1947. He was stationed in the Pacific during World War II. He was on three different ships during the war, including the U.S.S. Furse DD 882 gunship.
Photo courtesy of Bill Ellis J. C. Sovine was one of the best known educators in the history of Putnam County. He and his beloved wife, Elizabeth Moore Sovine, were county leaders of many years. He served as the principal at Hurricane High School, one year at Winfield before entering World War II where he served as a U. S. Army Captain. He was a principal at George Washington Middle School. He was probably best known for his years of service as superintendent of Putnam County Schools.
File photo/The Herald-Dispatch American Legion Post 47 commander Detroit Lewis, right, and fellow post member Jack Forte salute the American flag during the playing of the national anthem during the Pearl Harbor memorial ceremony at Harris Riverfront Park in December 2000.
- Copyright 1999 The Herald-Dispat
Lori Wolfe/The Herald-Dispatch Pearl Harbor survivors T.R. Wickline and Wetzel Sanders listen in December 2002 as speakers from the Marine Corps League Detachment 340 speak in remembrance of attack on Pearl Harbor during a Pearl Harbor Ceremony at the Huntington Civic Arena.
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File photo/The Herald-Dispatch John E. Landers holds a commemorative medal in December 2002 for the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor given to survivors of the attack. Landers was serving his first year in the Navy when he was stationed at Pearl Harbor and survived the attack.
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Lori Wolfe/The Herald-Dispatch In February 2006, Keith and Patricia Harrison of Huntington display a letter that Keith had written to Patricia while aboard an aircraft carrier in the South Pacific in 1946. The two had written 1,600 letters to each other during World War II.
- Lori Wolfe
File photo/The Herald-Dispatch Clockwise from left, Walt Pugsley of Randolph, N.J., Bill Bizzell of Cleveland, Miss., John Dumont of Peterstown, W.Va., David Smith of Proctorville, Ohio, and Jack Amphlett of Naples, Fla., served together during World War II. The five former B24 bomber flight crew members held a reunion in October 2005 at Smith's Proctorville home.
- Matt Hempel
Col. Benjamin O. Davis Jr., left, listens to a March 1945 pilots briefing in Italy. Davis, son of the military's first black general, played a significant role in helping integrate the armed forces. He led the legendary Tuskegee Airmen during World War II and was the first black to become an Air Force general. (Library of Congress/File)
- GNS
Mae Daniel holds a 1937 photo of her late husband Elmer, who passed away May 20, 2000, on the family farm near Barboursville. Elmer Daniel was one of seven brothers who actively served the Navy in World War II. (AP Photo/Bob Bird)
- Copyright 1999 The Herald-Dispat
Lori Wolfe/The Herald-Dispatch Miki Crawford, right, and her mother, Fumika Tomita Ward, pose for a photo on Nov. 26, 2007, at Ward's South Point home. Ward is one of thousands of Japanese war brides who married U.S. soldiers and became citizens of the United States following World War II.
- Lori Wolfe
Lori Wolfe/The Herald-Dispatch Irene Pelfrey, widow of Curtis E. Pelfrey, receives a sign replica during a bridge dedication ceremony Aug. 24, 2006, in Melissa. Pelfrey served as a radio operator with the U.S. Army Air Corps' Air Transport Command in World War II. He completed 78 missions over the "Hump," a desolate, dangerous north-south spur of the Himalayas in the China-Burma-India Theater characterized by dense jungles, uncivilized natives and violent weather.
- Lori Wolfe
File photo/The Herald-Dispatch Fred S. Wood of Chesapeake, Ohio, survived four months of heavy combat in Italy in 1944. Wood was awarded two Purple Hearts and Bronze Star for meritorious achievement in ground combat during World War II. He is shown here in November 1999.
- Copyright 1999 The Herald-Dispat
Lori Wolfe/The Herald-Dispatch Letty Quate of Ceredo holds a photo in March 2003 of she and her Wave Quarter as they marched in the funeral procession of Franklin Roosevelt in Washington, D.C., in April 1945. Quate, a World War II veteran, served in the U.S. Navy from 1942 until 1947.
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File photo/The Herald-Dispatch World War II veteran John Cremeans discusses his war experiences during a recording session March 25, 2005, at Huntington's American Legion Post 16. Cremeans made the recording for the American Folklife Center of the Library of Congress as part of the Veterans History Project to record and save the memories of World War II veterans.
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File photo/The Herald-Dispatch In May 2001, Ted Kirk, holding an earlier portrait of himself, of Barboursville said he was in the U.S. Army less than six months when he experienced firsthand the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
- Copyright 1999 The Herald-Dispat
File photo/The Herald-Dispatch Shown here in December 2002, John E. Landers had been in the Navy less than a year when he survived the attack at Pearl Harbor. "Hell yes, I was scared. It was just unbelievable," Landers said. Landers was off duty when the attack occurred and "did anything I could do to help people out."
- Copyright 2001 The Herald-Dispat