Quad Citians in their own words. How they shaped history, and history shaped them. Hosted by Gary Burlingame, produced by Jim Peterson and Dave Garner for WVIK, in association with the Richardson-Sloane Special Collections Center of the Davenport Public Library, the Jewish Federation of the Quad Cities, and the Indiana Historical Society. Support for some Quad City Oral Histories programs comes from the Illinois Humanities Council, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Illinois General Assembly.

Do you value Quad City Oral Histories on WVIK? Show your support and make a pledge online.

Program 1 - THE PACIFIC IN WORLD WAR II
Four first hand accounts take us from the attack on Pearl Harbor to the Japanese surrender. The stories focus much more on a personal level, rather than on the strategy and tactics of nations.Though none of the men ever met during the war, their stories intersect in unexpected ways. Dick Tucker and Wayne Newport both served under the same commanding officer on different ships. Wayne Newport also saw action off of Iwo Jima, where B-24 navigator Harry Peterson flew most of his missions and where army medic Willis Bishop rescued troops while the battle raged. –

Program 2 - THE HOMEFRONT IN WORLD WAR II
The Second World War dominated the lives of nearly every American, the young and the old. Everyone was involved.  Some helped in the production of war materiel, others worked first and then went on to serve, some comforted the wounded at home and comforted those abroad with their letters, and all made sacrifices in their daily lives to make sure that those serving had what they needed.  In the process, profound, lasting changes happened not just on the battlefield, but also here at home. This program includes interviews with Howard Goettsch, Mildred Sonnenburg, Jean Combs, Elizabeth Finkenhoefer, Mary Ellen Chamberlin, Ralph H. Heninger, and Howard and Orieda Anderson. –

Program 3 - EUROPE 1942-1944
The Second World War began for the United States at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. The next day, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States. But unlike the war in the Pacific, the United States’ involvement in Europe was limited early on, and then rapidly escalated by mid 1944. In the third of WVIK's ongoing series of programs featuring Quad Citians' stories in their own words, we'll hear five stories from that time period. Dick Hennenman's journey takes us from his home here in the Midwest to his new home in the armed forces; Joan McAdams shares how she found love with an East Moline G.I. in war ravaged England. Melvin Muhs tells of his work which helped pave the way for nearly every major American action in the European theater. Iris Hetzler explains how her compassion led her to care for the sick and wounded overseas. And Fred Dulaney talks honestly about emotions on the front lines. –

Program 4 - EUROPE: FALL 1944 TO SPRING 1945
By September, 1944, France had been liberated and the Allies were pressing toward the German border. But the Second World War was far from over. The German forces not only were putting up stiff resistance, but were planning massive counter-attacks which would make this the most intense period of fighting on the Western Front. This program presents the oral histories of seven Quad City area residents involved in the events of this crucial time. Pershing Johnson from Calamus, Iowa, was the radio operator for the commander of the 16th Field Artillery, part of the 9th Armored Division. Life-long Galesburg resident Gordon Walberg was a corporal in the 82nd Airborne. George Leonard was trained as a radio operator assigned to state-side duty, but he volunteered for as a paratrooper over the objection of his commanding officer. Dale Heuer was in the 193rd Glider Infantry Regiment of the 17th Airborne. Billy Ray Davidson enlisted in the army shortly after D-Day, and by the beginning of 1945 he was on his way to Europe. Les Johnson initially wanted to be a pilot, but instead he trained as a radio operator and joined the crew of a B-24 Liberator attached to the 8th Air Force. Lorena Seline trained to be a nurse, then joined the Army Nurse Corp in 1943, working as an Air Evacuation nurse. –

Program 5 – LIBERATORS AND SURVIVORS
Esther Avruch was 10 years old when the Germans invaded Poland in September of 1939. Her parents and most of her siblings perished at Treblinka. The late Esther Katz of Rock Island was a survivor of Auschwitz and Bergen Belsen concentration camps. Esther was a charter member of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, and her family name and history are enshrined in the Holocaust Memorial in Israel. John Danay of Rock Island was a tank commander with the 3rd Armored Division when they liberated the concentration camps around Nordhausen. Fred Dulaney of Davenport, was with the 1st Infantry which followed the 3rd into the Nordhausen area, spending more time dealing with survivors of the concentration camps and burying the dead. Billy Ray Davidson of Bettendorf served in the 50th armored division helping to liberate a camp near Leipzig, Germany. Gordon Walberg of Galesburg was serving in the 82nd Airborne when he and his jeep driver were the first Allied troops to discover Wobbelin Concentration Camp. They broke down the gates and secured food from the nearby town for the survivors. Roy Kouski of Port Byron also was with the 82nd Airborne at Wobbelin, helping to round up the scattered survivors and burying the dead. Manny Soodhalter of Davenport was a Chief Warrant officer with the Fifth Corps, and witnessed Buchenwald one day after its liberation. –

Program 6 - RETURN TO THE PHILIPPINES
Eight hours after the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese launched their invasion of the Philippines. In a short time, the Japanese over-ran the islands, forcing General MacArthur to retreat to Australia - prompting him to make his famous statement “I shall return." On program six of WVIK's Quad City Oral Histories series, we'll hear from three area veterans who served in the Philippines; one who was there on the first day of the war and two others who would take part in the struggle to make good on MacArthur’s promise. Robert Lapham organized Filipinos into guerilla units to resist the Japanese occupation. Charles Milnes spent a year in New Guinea before joining MacArthur's staff in his return to the Philippines. And Dale Elliott fought in many intense battles in the Solomon Islands, Manila and Northern Luzon. –

Program 7 - THE WAR AT SEA
Sunday, February 11th - 2:00-3:00 pm
"The War At Sea" is the seventh program in WVIK's ongoing series presenting Quad Citians in their own words, this time featuring men whose war-time service was mostly spent aboard ship. Davenport resident Robert Rubley was a quartermaster on board a versatile minesweeper. East Moline native Raldo Fonteyne served on a destroyer escort, protecting other ships from submarines and kamikaze planes. Charles Van Ooteghem of Rock Island had a unique position that allowed him to witness the dramatic take-offs and landings on an Independence class aircraft carrier. And former Quad Citian Ed Harrell tells the harrowing story of surviving the sinking of the USS Indianapolis in the waning days of the war -- Of the more than 800 men who abandoned ship, only 317 survived. In their own ways, these men changed history, and history changed them. Hear their first-hand stories on "Quad City Oral Histories: The War At Sea." Hosted by Gary Burlingame, produced by Jim Peterson, and edited by Dave Garner –

Program 8 - WOMEN IN THE RANKS
Nearly 400-thousand women served in the armed forces of the United States during the Second World War, and found themselves breaking new ground throughout the military. When the Marines opened their ranks to women in February 1943, Jeanne Sullivan Stopulos wanted to be one of the first to join. She was assigned to Marine Headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, then transferred to an ordnance depot in San Francisco. Evelyn Strupp Pealstrom was a radio operator assigned to a naval base in North Carolina.  Florence Norton Bates was an Aerographer assigned to the Naval Communications Annex in Washington, D.C..  Jean Lay Sauls was an operator of the Navy’s “Link Trainer”, a mechanical flight simulator, teaching pilots instrument flying. And Geraldine “Jerry” Hardman Jordan was one of only a thousand female pilots during World War II, serving in the Women Airforce Service Pilots, or WASP –

Music in Program 8: Aaron Copland: Our Town – Grovers Corners (Series Theme); Joan Trimble: Suite for Strings – Air; Katherine Gladney Wells: Minor Reflection; Clara Wieck-Schumann: Prelude & Fugue No. 2, Op. 16; Cecile Chaminade: Trio No. 1 in g – Andante; Amy Beach: Dreaming.

Quad City Oral Histories is the property of WVIK Augustana College, and any unauthorized duplication or distribution of this program, or any portion of it, either in audio or transcript form, is prohibited.

[top]