Oral History Interview with Marvin L. Muse, May 1, 2001

Oral History Interview with Marvin L. Muse, May 1, 2001

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Description

Transcript of an oral interview with Marvin Muse. Mr Muse signed up for the Navy at 17 years old (he was born May 20, 1927), took boot camp in San Diego, California followed by machinist mate school at Camp Farragut. After home leave, he was assigned to the USS Columbia (CL-56) which was in San Pedro, California, being repaired from damage it received in the Philippines; this was 1945. After a stop at Pearl Harbor, the Columbia sailed to Borneo in the Dutch East Indies. They bombarded Balikpapan, softening up the beaches, for the invasion. The Columbia was part of … continued below

Physical Description

29 p.

Interviewers

Publisher

National Museum of the Pacific War
Place of Publication: Fredericksburg, Texas

Audiences

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Provided By

National Museum of the Pacific War/Admiral Nimitz Foundation

Established in 1967, the Museum honors the 8 million Americans who served in WWII in the Pacific Theater by sharing their stories with the world. Located in Fredericksburg in the restored Nimitz "Steamboat" Hotel, the Museum partners with the Texas Historical Commission to preserve the historical resources of the era.

Description

Transcript of an oral interview with Marvin Muse. Mr Muse signed up for the Navy at 17 years old (he was born May 20, 1927), took boot camp in San Diego, California followed by machinist mate school at Camp Farragut. After home leave, he was assigned to the USS Columbia (CL-56) which was in San Pedro, California, being repaired from damage it received in the Philippines; this was 1945. After a stop at Pearl Harbor, the Columbia sailed to Borneo in the Dutch East Indies. They bombarded Balikpapan, softening up the beaches, for the invasion. The Columbia was part of a Cruiser Division. They left Borneo and were headed for Okinawa when the Columbia ran into a tethered mine field. The mines didn't go off but the mine cables got tangled up in the starboard screws. After repairs at Guam, the Columbia continued on to Okinawa but the island had been declared secure by then. The Cruiser Division made sorties up into the South China Sea, the Yellow Sea and the Sea of Japan where they engaged the Japanese who were trying to get troops and munitions out of China, Korea and Manchuria. Muse states it was just a turkey shoot there. The Columbia was anchored off Okinawa when they heard about the atomic bombs dropped on Japan. After the official Japanese surrender, the Columbia was sent to several of the bypassed Japanese held islands (Truk was the largest) to accept their surrender but she returned to the States for Christmas. The Columbia sailed to Philadelphia Naval Yard where Muse was assigned to the 16th Deactivation Fleet. He was separated out of the Navy at the Naval Air Station in St Louis, Missouri in August 1946. Muse couldn't find a job after he got out so he went to the Navy but they didn't offer him much so he went to the Army Recruiter which had a little better deal for him. He served in Korea and Vietnam and retired after 24 years.

Physical Description

29 p.

Subjects

Keywords

Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms

Library of Congress Subject Headings

World War, 1939-1945

University of North Texas Libraries Browse Structure

Language

English

Item Type

Text

Identifier

Unique identifying numbers for this text in the Portal or other systems.

Accession or Local Control No: OH00082
Archival Resource Key: ark:/67531/metapth1603443

Relationships

Oral History Interview with Marvin L. Muse, May 1, 2001 - ark:/67531/metapth1607411

Collections

This text is part of the following collections of related materials.

National Museum of the Pacific War Oral History Collection

This oral history collection depicts an instrumental era in American history. In these transcripts of interviews with World War II veterans are personal experiences with the war, from the Doolittle Raid and D-Day to the Battle for Bataan.

National Museum of the Pacific War Digital Archive

The Digital Archive presents digitized collections from the Center for Pacific War Studies collections at the National Museum of the Pacific War. Collections and material are continuously being added and represent only a small portion of the archives' physical holdings.

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