Diary Of A WWII Officer: Journey From Clemson ROTC To Tokyo Occupation - Softcover

Burton, LTC William J

9781976301063: Diary Of A WWII Officer: Journey From Clemson ROTC To Tokyo Occupation

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1976301068 ISBN 13: 9781976301063

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2017

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This is the story of a southern boy who graduated from Clemson with an Electrical Engineering Degree and a ROTC commission. He was not anxious to leave his new job at Duke Power but felt being drafted would be worse than accepting his 2nd Lieutenant Commission. The book follows his postings from South Carolina, Louisiana, California, New Guinea, the Philippines, and finally to Tokyo, Japan. His life turns on the luck of the draw and being in the right place at the right time. He wanted to be in the Signal Corp, but got assigned to Ordnance. He wanted to go to the European Theater but got shipped to the South Pacific. He wanted to be Captain of an Ordnance Company but was selected to be an Intelligence Officer whose duty was to assemble status reports and present them to senior staff. These proved so valuable that he was assigned to be on the advance echelon of Eighth Army occupation force. Thus, he ended up flying in with the first troops to land in Tokyo. There he prepared for the arrival of General MacArthur and later witnessed the dignitaries and senior officers staging for transportation to the USS Missouri for the surrender of Japan. And there is humor in his personal stories. From letting the Train Engineer use his army 45 to shoot jack-rabbits, to the time he was strafed by a Jap Zero while using the outdoor john, and to hear him tell of carrying a footlocker full of cash for the occupation, all bring smiles to the reader. His detailed descriptions of the people he met and places he visited give a wonderful picture into the life of an Army Officer during war.

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