Inside PBS Blog

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I'm a big fan of StoryShare and the Veterans History Project! I wish The War and related resources had been available a year ago. All four of my grandparents left Germany during the Second World War, and I've always been curious about their stories. They didn't like to dwell on those difficult times, but I think a project such as this one would have encouraged them to open up and share their unique perspectives on the war. Unfortunately, my only surviving grandparent passed away last year. I hope that other folks will take advantage of these tools to capture these incredibly valuable stories before they're lost!

I agree. I lost all three of my remaining grandparents about two years ago. My grandfather graduated from the US Naval Acadamy in June on 1946, but he was on an accelerated program because he entered the academy fully expecting to be shipped off to War upon graduation (he later served in the Korean War). I would have loved to have the chance to ask him about what it was like to live through that time.

This is a story that will make you chuckle for a little bit. My fiance's
grandmother told me this story while on vacation in Iowa. In the mid-1930's grandma Castner and her younger brother Fritz were visiting family in Nazi Germany. My fiance's great-grand parents had taken the two kids to a cafe to eat breakfast. During their meal a group of German officers entered the cafe. Nearly all of the customers stood up and shouted, "Hiel Hitler" . Grandma Castner and little brother Fritz observed this and asked their parents, Why are they doing that? Grandma Castner and Fritz were just small children at that time. "They are soluting their leader", the parents informed the small children. When the officers began to walk towards Grandma Castner and Fritz they both stood up and shouted, "Hiel Roosevelt". The officers looked bewildered as they stoped in their tracks and looked at the small children. I could just imagine the embarrassment/fear the parents must have felt. The officers smiled at the children and soluted them back. They thought it was humorous as well. However my fiance's great-grandparents rapidly exited the cafe.

My grandfather was a war vet. He passed away a year ago. I admired the man all my life. He was nothing like the way war vets are portrayed in the media. He was a kind and gentle man who told us stories about the time he served. He never spoke of killing anyone only funny stories about his buddies and experiences. Something you never see on war documentary videos, someone telling the funnier day to day stuff of being a soldier.

Angel Ramirez
Wapato, Washington

Truly riveting. I never had the opportunity to meet either set of grandparents but this gives me a sense of what they went through. Thank you so much and I look forward to seeing the series continue.

The real heros.
My dad, John W. Nessler joined the Illionois 1st Cavalry in 1914 with his younger brother Earle. It was a State militia they couldn't join the same troop because they only had one horse a milk wagon horse the could borrow from the Weiland Milk Company. Illinois furnaced the harness, uniform, and weapons but you had to bring your own horse. They were activated by the Federal Gov the 1st time to chase Poncho back to Mexico and were sent to brownsvill Texas. Dad had continuas service in the Gaurd from that time until February 13 1945 with the rank of Lt Col. I was born in 1928 and my 1st memory of his service was mother telling me "Dad has to go to the armoury tonight. maybe 1932 later I found out he went two nights a week during those days he was a capt. of A Bat 122 Field Artillery Regiment 58 Brigade Illinois 33rd Division and they drilled at the Armoury on Chicago Ave and the Lake. One night was drill night for the Battery and the second nights was officers classes he insructed on some classes and was a student on others. In 1937 he took a leave from his job as Electrical Forman of a Contracting Electrical shop to go to the Officers Artillery Course in Fort Sill Oklahoma for 3 months. He never missed a two week training of the guard during each summer. In the 1930's that was alternating between Camp Mc Coy Wisconsin one yearr and the next was Campt Grant Illinois. They fired the French 75 drawn by horses but the course dad took at Ft Sill was about mechanised artillery being pulled by trucks. In 1940 the Federal Gov was activating the Guard for a one year active service to train the new draftee's just in case we went to war again they had already served in the War to end all Wars as Seargents in the Artillery Earle was wounded but dad came back with no physical damage. They were both made Lt. after that war and took up where they left off with the weekly drills. Then as I said in the spring of 1941 the 122 FA 33rd Div. was sent to Tullahoma Tenn. Camp Forest for a year of training. John was now a Major in Regimental Staff as the S-3 , plans and training officer, of the regiment. I would like to point out up until this point there was no pension for the Natioal Guard, no medical benifits, no collage benifits, the only thing officers got was an allowance for their uniforms but it dodn't cover the cleaning of the uniform only a yearly allowance.
World war Two came in December 1941 and the Regiment was abolished and dad and the rest of the regimental staff were sent to various administrative jobs in the Army Dad was sent to the Air Corp and eventually to England where he was the Executive Officer of a support maintenence group that kept the C-47's flying for the paratroopers for D Day. He was discharged in Feb 1945 and sent back to Chicago where he went back to his job as an electrician with the Chicago Park District. In the early 1950's Cogress woke up and said Hey! we forgot the National Guard and gave them a pension. All those years of service and training so they could help train the draftee's for the war. Now that was a whole lot of men accross this nation who served with no promise of reward other than the satisfaction of knowing they knew how to organise, operate, an army we all said we didn't need. Earle had to leave the Guard in the 30's because of his traveling in his job in his civilian endevors but he signed up in the inactive reserve and was called to active duty during WW-2 and ended up a Lt Col when he retired. He was part of the occupation troops in Japan and was a Major in the MP's Millions of un heard of heros training and preparing for war when they were being called Strike breakers. What a laugh dad was a member of local 134 IBEW a blue collar hard working man who took the time to train himself and others for war. Did he love war? no but he knew man kind had always reverted back to this and he felt oblicated to his country to be prepared.