Jean had five uncles in the service, all from her mother’s side of the family. Her uncles George, Ross and Jim were in the navy, and her Uncle Ralph was in the marines. Her Uncle Tom, related by marriage, was drafted into the army. Jean remembers that furloughs were much-anticipated events, as they did not occur often. She does not, however, recollect any stories about her uncles’ experiences since they did not talk about it much when they returned. She does remember being afraid that her father and Uncle Pete might be drafted. Jean comments that even though they both had young children, they knew of other young fathers who had been drafted. Four of her uncles returned from the war, of which her Uncle Tom was the only one who was injured. His legs were severely burned. Her Uncle Ralph was killed aboard the USS Franklin on March 19, 1945.
The loss of her Uncle Ralph was a most traumatic experience for Jean. She remembers when he came home on furlough in the winter and that he volunteered for the mission on which he was killed. Ralph was on the Franklin, an aircraft carrier off the coast of Japan, when it was attacked by Japanese planes. According to Jean, her grandmother, mother and aunts received a letter stating that Ralph was officially declared missing in action approximately six weeks after the Franklin was bombed, but they did not tell the children right away. Jean says that her grandmother, mother and aunts did not believe it at first because there was nothing to prove that he might have been killed. When the family was informed later that Ralph was assumed dead, Jean remembers “crying and crying.” She also recalls that later a fellow marine who served with Ralph visited the family and gave them some of Ralph’s personal items. She says this confirmed for the family that Ralph had indeed been killed. The marine’s stories of the times he spent with Ralph comforted them. Interestingly, years later, Jean’s Uncle Jim, who was serving in the navy at the time, said that he had actually witnessed the attack on the Franklin from the ship on which he was stationed nearby. Jim did not know his brother Ralph was aboard the Franklin, but he claimed to have remembered watching Japanese planes circling the aircraft carrier. The story goes that many aboard his ship wanted to shoot down the planes, but those in command were afraid to break radio silence and expose their own position.
Soldiers were respected by the civilian population. As a child, Jean remembers counting the stars on service banners and flags in the windows of other people’s houses, her grandmother having four. Servicemen could ride public transportation and go to the movies for free. Dave remembers that when servicemen would get on the bus, the driver would put his hand over the fare box. And as Jean comments, servicemen were always in uniform when they were out in public. “If you saw a uniform, you looked up to that. [A serviceman was] very revered, regardless if he was in the war or stateside,” Dave recalls.
Streetcars were long popular in Pittsburgh, but with the introduction of gasoline rationing, they were even more so. Here a crowd is standing on a snow-covered streetcar “island” on Grant Street in front of the William Penn Hotel, waiting to board a Shannon line car. Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.
Dave and Jean also have memories of the hardships that rationing imposed on people. Items they remember being rationed were sugar, butter, gasoline, rubber, silk, coffee, tea, meat, lard and shoes. The gasoline rationing did not have much of an impact on Dave’s family, however, because they did not own a car at that time. Jean remembers the use of oleomargarine with much displeasure. Since butter was so limited, many people turned to using oleo. In the 1940s, most states had laws against selling pre-colored oleo, so companies sold the white oleo with some form of coloring that could be added. Describing her experience, Jean says, “They’d put a little package of red stuff in there and you had to squeeze it into this…I don’t know what.” She says her sister Lois, who was only three or four years old, remembers the task of kneading the package to evenly distribute the coloring.
Certain toys, like bicycles, could not be purchased. Both the metal and rubber used to make bicycles were needed for the war effort. Shoes were so limited and of such poor quality that both Dave and Jean remember having to put cardboard in the bottoms of their shoes because they were so full of holes. Nylon stockings were so scarce that some women resorted to applying what Jean and Dave called “leg painting.” To supplement their food supply, both Dave’s and Jean’s families had what many people referred to as victory gardens, but Dave says they referred to theirs as a “survival garden.” Both families had always had gardens, but the food limitations made having a garden seem even more important. Despite all the limitations, Jean also claims, “No one complained.” Nearly everyone was in the same situation and believed that their sacrifices would hasten the end of the war.
As children, air raid and blackout drills primarily incited fear. Both Dave and Jean remember being told in no uncertain terms what they were to do during one of these drills. According to Dave, each family received a pamphlet explaining air raid and blackout procedures. This information was also posted in the newspapers, and warnings of when to expect the drills were announced on the radio. Jean explains that air raid drills occurred during the day and that children playing outside were expected to run home as fast as they could upon hearing the whistles. Inside the house, they would have to sit patiently until the local air raid warden, Francis Hissam, went by in his car and checked each house and then sounded the all clear. Francis Hissam was the local constable who was mainly in charge, but Dave notes that there were “civilian” air raid wardens as well. During blackouts, all lights were to be turned off, and again the children waited patiently until the all clear sounded. While these drills felt like an eternity for the children, Jean says they probably only lasted a half hour. Neighbors could probably remember the consequence for not following the drill procedures, but Dave imagines some sort of fine was imposed because “they were very strict about it.” Apparently Francis Hissam’s reputation preceded him and left quite an impression on the young children. Both remember their parents threatening them at various times, “You’d better be good or I’ll get Hissam after you!” The fear that Dave and Jean as children associated with the air raid and blackout drills most likely came from their fear of getting in trouble with a “mean” police officer, but they were also afraid that they actually could be attacked.
Pedestrians on Diamond Street (now Forbes Avenue) near Market Square are hustled into an air raid shelter during a daytime drill, November 29, 1942. Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.
For entertainment during the war, Dave and Jean mostly played outside with their friends or listened to radio programs. On rare occasions, they went to the movies. Before the film would begin, a five- to ten-minute newsreel was shown about recent events. Dave says these “brought you that much closer to the war. Just like TV today, you felt like you were there.” He also remembers that many of the movies he saw were about the war, like Back to Bataan. He notes that some even used real war footage, such as the film To the Shores of Iwo Jima. Jean says her brother Bob went to the movies more often because he was older. He claims they used to have an intermission during the movie to collect money to buy war bonds. While Dave does not remember this, oddly enough, he remembers movie theaters giving away dishes on certain days to entice people to attend.
The end of the war brought a brief period of excitement and celebration. Dave and Jean only remember seeing pictures in the newspapers of the mushroom-shaped explosions produced by the atomic bombs that led to the end of the war. They do remember the exhilaration that followed. Dave sums up most people’s feelings, stating, “Everybody was just thrilled because there would be no more killing, no more wars. Loved ones are all going to be coming home. Of course you could buy anything you wanted then: butter, shoes, tires, gasoline. Your greatest fears are over. You’re worrying and fear is done with.” People took to the streets in celebration. Dave recalls hopping into his sister Mary’s car to ride out to the American Bridge Company in Ambridge where her husband worked. One gas station attendant was so distracted by the hoopla that he overfilled th
e tank, causing gasoline to spill everywhere. As they passed, Dave yelled to him. “Hey, how about some free gas? You’re running it all over the place.” Jean also remembers the happiness and excitement but notes it was relatively short-lived. “We all got back to normal,” she states.
For a child living during this time, the war brought fear, limitations and cooperative spirit. The war was at the center of daily life. It affected every aspect of it, including children’s thoughts and actions. Jean primarily remembers fear. Her fears ranged from the very probable—that her uncles overseas would be injured or killed—to the improbable—that the United States would be attacked—to those only a child would have—that she would be caught by the air raid warden, Francis Hissam.
Kaufmann’s clock is draped in paper ribbon as joyous revelers crowd Fifth Avenue. This Post-Gazette photograph was taken at 7:02 p.m. on August 14, 1945, V-J Day. Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.
Dave remembers the fear as well, but he also remembers how the war affected his desires and aspirations. He and two other neighborhood boys formed a small club. Their motto was “A nickel a week and we will buy a jeep.” With all of the reverence for soldiers and focus on the war, he says that during this time he had dreams of becoming a pilot. Dave did not become a pilot, nor did the boys buy a jeep, although Dave thinks the boy assigned to be the treasurer did buy a BB gun. The limitations imposed by rationing also affected them, but as Jean notes, as children, they probably had an easier time adjusting to the entire situation. They were born during the Great Depression, so scarcity was not a new concept. Jean feels that the biggest impact of the war was that it drew people together. The situation inspired people to help one another in ways that are practically unheard of today. As Dave and Jean reflect on their memories of the war, they admit that while it was happening, they did not comprehend the magnitude of the situation. Jean states, “Being as young as we were, kids adjust. And that’s just what you do. You know, this is life. It just doesn’t stir you like the older people, except, as we grew older, it became more real to us—as we grew older, more serious.”
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Anderson, Jean “DeDe” Barnard. Interview by Danae Brentzel, July 3, 2003, Pittsburgh, PA.
Antanovich, Alex, Jr. Interview by David Scott Breveridge, June 26, 2005, Pittsburgh, PA.
Bates, Charles. Interview by Stephanie J. Fetsko, June 5, 2007, Pittsburgh, PA.
Bernstein, Sidney. Interview by Rocco Ross, June 30, 2007, Pittsburgh, PA.
Book, Raymond T. Interview by Stephanie J. Fetsko, June 6, 2007, Pittsburgh, PA.
Campbell, Edward and Rose. Interviewed by Justin Hoffman, July 14, 2005, Pittsburgh, PA.
Gruber, Bill. Interviewed by Sandy Doyle, June 5, 2007, Pittsburgh, PA.
Haberman, John and Sally. Interview by Heather Newell, May 24, 2003, Pittsburgh, PA.
Krebs, Helen McGrogan. Interviewed by Helen Krebs, June 12, 2002, Pittsburgh, PA.
Martin, Richard Charles. Interview by Jo Ellen Aleshire, June 1, 2007, Pittsburgh, PA.
Mulholland, Nora. Interview by Marian Mulholland, June 10, 2007, Pittsburgh, PA.
Price, David and Jean. Interview by Jennifer Welsh, June 27, 2008, Pittsburgh, PA.
Seifert, Frederick T. Interview by Karan Kranz, June 6, 2003, Pittsburgh, PA.
ABOUT THE EDITOR
A native of Pittsburgh’s Shadyside neighborhood, Joseph F. Rishel is a descendant of Pennsylvania Dutch pioneers who came to America in 1738 and settled in western Pennsylvania after the War of 1812. He earned his PhD in history from the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Rishel is a professor of history at Duquesne University, where he has taught for twenty-six years. He has written Founding Families of Pittsburgh: The Evolution of a Regional Elite, 1760–1910 and “The Spirit That Gives Life”: A History of Duquesne University, 1878–1996 and has edited American Cities and Towns: Historical Perspectives. He now lives in Whitehall Borough in the South Hills of Pittsburgh with his wife, Helen. They are the parents of Jonathan, Emily, Marjorie and Elizabeth Rishel.
Visit us at
www.historypress.net
Pittsburgh Remembers World War II Page 13