Oral History Interview with Robert L. Van Ausdall, September 26, 2005 Page: 1

                                
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Interview with Robert Van Ausdall
Interviewed by Ed Metzler
This is Ed Metzler. Today is the 26h of September 2005. I'm in San Antonio, Texas and I am
interviewing Robert Lorne (?) Van Ausdall, otherwise know as, "Van." This interview is being done
for the National Museum of the Pacific War and the Admiral Nimitz State historic site.
Van; let me start out by thanking you for taking the time today to share your experiences from World
War Two with us. I'll start by asking you to give us your full name, date of birth, place of birth and
a little bit about your family and parents.

Mr. Van Ausdall:
Mr. Metzler:
Mr. Van Ausdall:

Ok, Ed. I'm Robert L. Van Ausdall and I was born in 1920, April 22, 1920
in the rural area of Ohio. Our mailing address, then, was Camden, C-A-M-
D-E-N, Ohio. I was a farm boy and my dad was a renter farmer at that
time. However, we ended up owning a couple of farms there and I went all
the way through my grade school, and my high school, all in the same
building. All twelve years. I was very fortunate, in that, I never missed a
day of school in twelve years. Most farm boys were kept out of school
sometimes to help with their dad's farming. Dad never believed in that, so I
didn't have that problem. I graduated from high school near a place called
Eaton, (?) Ohio. That's our county seat.
Brothers and sisters?
I had two sisters only, one older, who died February of this year at the age
of eighty-nine. Incidentally, I am, of course, being born in 1920; I'm
eighty-five years old now. I have another sister who lives in San Mateo,
California. She does some professional photography and she was a
professional musician, xylophone player.
After going through high school in 1938, I went to college at Miami
University in Ohio. I didn't really know what I wanted to take, but I like
music a lot, so I majored in Music Ed.
After two years in college, I made up my mind that I wanted to see some of
the world; maybe get away from the farm a little bit. Having seen some
things that a Collier Magazine, such in that day, was somewhat like People
weekly. Lots of pictures and everything. There was an article about flying
cadet training and the West Point of the Air, at Randolph Field. Then they
showed pictures and, the barber and I........I'm a baldy now but, I had hair
then......(laughs). He and I were talking about it and I said, "Say. You
know, I'd like to do that." He said, "Why don't you go ahead and try it?
They're looking for people about your age." So, I applied for the Air Force