Oral History Interview with Daniel W. Jones, August 31, 2007

Oral History Interview with Daniel W. Jones, August 31, 2007

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Track One 1:30:01

Description

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Daniel Jones. Jones was at Harvard and at the end of his sophomore year in 1940, he joined the Navy under the V-7 program. After a cruise on the old battleship USS Wyoming to Guantanamo, Cuba he enterd midshipman's school in New York City. At the end of three months, he was commissioned an ensign and sent to the USS Wichita (flagship of Commander Cruiser Division 7) in January 1941. He was a communications officer and on the Admiral's staff when the message that Pearl Harbor was attacked … continued below

Physical Description

1 sound recording (1 hr., 30 min., 1 sec.)

Creation Information

Jones, Daniel W. August 31, 2007.

Context

This audio recording is part of the collection entitled: National Museum of the Pacific War Oral History Collection and was provided by the National Museum of the Pacific War/Admiral Nimitz Foundation to The Portal to Texas History, a digital repository hosted by the UNT Libraries. More information about this recording can be viewed below.

Interviewee

Jones, Daniel W.

Interviewers

Publisher

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

Audiences

Check out our Resources for Educators Site! We've identified this sound as a primary source within our collections. Researchers, educators, and students may find this recording useful in their work.

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

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Daniel Jones. Jones was at Harvard and at the end of his sophomore year in 1940, he joined the Navy under the V-7 program. After a cruise on the old battleship USS Wyoming to Guantanamo, Cuba he enterd midshipman's school in New York City. At the end of three months, he was commissioned an ensign and sent to the USS Wichita (flagship of Commander Cruiser Division 7) in January 1941. He was a communications officer and on the Admiral's staff when the message that Pearl Harbor was attacked came into the ship. The ship was operating with the British Fleet in the Atlantic prior to that. During the invasion of North Africa, Admiral Giffen and his staff were on board the battleship USS Massachusetts when they engaged the French battleship Jean Bart in the harbor at Casablanca. After sailing back to the states, the flag was shifted back to the USS Wichita and they sailed for the South Pacific, to Efate in the New Hebrides. Wichita's first operation out of Efate was toward Guadalcanal with the cruiser USS Chicago, with Chicago behind. They were attacked by Japanese bombers (Betty). Wichita was hit by a torpedo but it didn't detonate; Chicago was mortally wounded. Wichita tried to take Chicago under tow but Chicago had to abandon ship. After other operations in the Solomon Islands, the Wichita was sent up to the Aleutians where they were involved in the invasion of Kiska. The Wichita then went to Bremerton Navy Yard for refit; the admiral and his staff went to the USS Minneapolis which became the flagship of Division 6. When the Wichita came back, the flag was switched back. Jones participated in various operations in the Central Pacific and was with the Admiral's staff (Adm Giffen was replaced by C. Turner Joy) on board the USS San Francisco during the invasion of Okinawa. Jones was at the Naval War College when the war ended. He finished the course (Prep Staff) and then went back to Harvard and graduated in 1947. After he graduated from Harvard with a degree in history, Jones worked on the 'Victory at Sea' series. Jones worked for NBC in a unit called special projects. RAdm Samuel Eliot Morison got Jones interested in history; Jones knew him quite well.

Physical Description

1 sound recording (1 hr., 30 min., 1 sec.)

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

Sound

Identifier

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

Accession or Local Control No: OH02023
Archival Resource Key: ark:/67531/metapth1609058

Relationships

Oral History Interview with Daniel W. Jones, August 31, 2007, [transcript] ark:/67531/metapth1605248

Collections

This recording 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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