John Heilman
John Heilman, 2007
- Branch of Service: United States Marine Corp
- Enlisted 1942
Listen to the following sections by scrolling forward to the timecode.
:12 - Enlisted into the Marines at the age of 21 in 1942
:49 - Journey after enlistment.
7:08 - Came down with malaria and was sent to the San Diego hospital.
7:41 - Incident in Gaudalcanal
12:34 - Time in the Marshall Islands
15:53 - Dropping of the atomic bomb on Japan
18:09 - Memories of the war
18:36 - Explanation of why he enlisted for the war.
The interview was recorded at an SDPB event in Miller, SD.
Images Provided by John Heilman
American soldiers prepare a mass grave for Japanese casualties on the Marshall Islands. (PDF)
GIs remove Japanese bodies after a battle on the Marshall Islands. (PDF)
The Marshall Islands. "How would you like to crawl through that?" Says John Heilman who had the experience. (PDF)
American soldiers were laid to rest on the Marshall Islands. (PDF)
For more information about SDPB's educational resources
and services contact Steven Rokusek at
EdServices@sdpb.org or at (605) 222-3422
