Oral History Interview with Archie Wilkerson, January 28, 1977 Page: 3
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Wilkerson
3Marcello:
Wilkerson:
Marcello:
Wilkerson:
Marcello:
Wilkerson:Where did you take your boot camp?
San Diego.
How long did boot camp last at that time? Now you men-
tioned that you went in in March of 1941. I would assume
that they had cut back on boot camp, that is, in terms
of the number of weeks.
To the best of my recollection, it was seven weeks. We
had three weeks of what we called the "South Unit," and
then I think there was four weeks in the "North Unit."
At the time that you were going through boot camp, did
you notice any sense of urgency in your training? In
other words, did they seem to be trying to get you out
of boot camp as quickly as possible and on to the fleet?
Yes. As I look back over it now, I think they knew.some-
thing was wrong. As a matter of fact, my company commander
made a remark. If we dropped our rifle, he made some of
them stand with them over their head for an hour. He told
us he wasn't going to do that. He was going to make us
pay for them. He said, "You're going to take care of it
and learn to use it because," he says, "one of these days,
you're going to be shooting a 'slant-eye' with it." He
had twenty-something years in then, and he'd done a lot
of time in the Asiatic Fleet. And I believe that most
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Marcello, Ronald E. & Wilkerson, Archie, 1924-. Oral History Interview with Archie Wilkerson, January 28, 1977, book, January 28, 1977; Denton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc1857652/m1/5/?rotate=90: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Oral History Program.