HomeMy WebLinkAboutPles Turner, Brazos Valley Heroesd
nbers of ° - I'bc circaicst
Itry during World War u
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For some, a job in the Army meant a paycheck or a better- finally got new equipment and practiced as gun crews, all
-', paying job than what was available In the civilian sector. the while watching out for Japanese Zeros that visited us
Such was the plight of Pies Turner of Bryan. regularly.
"I was bom on January 4, 1923, in Brazos County and
attended Silver Hill School, a one -room schoolhouse, until
I went to high school. I attended Kemp High and graduated
in 1939 at the age of 16; we only went through the 11th
grade then.
"After I graduated, I would work wherever and whenever
I could. When I turned 17, 1 finally got a job washing dishes
at the Norm Main Gate. I worked seven days a week and
brought home the sum of four dollars per week. After I
turned 18, 1 finally convinced my parents to let me enlist
in the Army.
"I was inducted on March 26, 1941, at R. Sam Houston
in San Antonio and then was sent to Camp Wallace near
Galveston to be part of the 54th Coastal Artillery. All of the
enlisted personnel were black and all our officers were
white. I was sent back to the kitchen but became the orderly
for the kitchen and the dining room. There I was, an 18 -year-
old PFC, telling guys in their late 20s what to do. I didn't like
that and asked to be transferred to the guns. I was making
a lot of money as a PFC, getting $36 per month, but was
demoted to private at $30 per month when I went to the gun
crew. But I soon got my PFC rank back.
"We were sent to Camp Davis at Wilmington, N.C., where
we practiced firing. I was the elevation setter on a 155 -man
gun crew. On Sunday, December 7, 1941, we were sitting
around the barracks playing cards and dominoes when
one of the guys came in telling us about Pearl Harbor. We
gathered around the radio and listened. The next day we
were all assembled and heard President Roosevelt's speech,
declaring war on Japan and Germany.
"We were sent to California soon thereafter and our
battery was stationed right under the Golden Gate Bridge in
San Francisco. After another trip back to North Carolina for
more training, we were sent to Forth Ord, California, and then
shipped out on October 26,1942, aboard the USS Coolidge.
A blimp led us out of the harbor and turned back a few miles
out to sea. From there on, we were unescorted until we
reached Esposito Island in the New Hebrides.
"When we got there, our skipper entered the harbor
without a pilot and we he a mine. Our ship sank with all our
equipment on board. We all got off, with just the clothes we
had on our backs. All of our trucks and guns were lost. We
"We went to the Solomon Islands for the invasion of
Bougainville. Although we had been trained as coastal
artillery, our guns were always pointed inland toward the
Japanese positions. Also, the Japanese artillery seemed to
try to shell our position more than other artillery batteries.
One of our duties on Bougainville was to fire a round every
20 minutes all night each night. The theory was that it
would keep the Japanese awake and worried and leave
them unable to do anything during the day. It worked the
same way on us. We were so fired being up all night and we
were unable to sleep in the heat during the day. I'm glad the
Japanese gave out first.
"Despite the conditions and the action, we only lost
one man, and it was an accident. His name was Oscar
Underwood. He was killed when a tree that one of our guys
was dozing fell on him. I was the first to reach him and I don't
think he had a bone in his body that wasn't broken. On the
way over he had said he knew he wouldn't be coming back.
He was right."
Turner and his battery also served on New Guinea and
were in the Philippines when the war ended.
"I was sent home back to San Antonio and was discharged
on October 26, 1945. 1 had been inducted on the 26th,
shipped overseas on the 26th and I was discharged on the
26th. The 26th was a big day in my life back then."
After Turned returned to Bryan, he worked at various
jobs until he started painting. In 1955, he became the first
black letter carrier for the postal service. He remained as an
employee at the postal service until his retirement in 1983.
In 1976 he became a member of the Bryan City Council and
served 13 years between 1976 and 1997, serving twice as
mayor pro tem.
"My time in the service was a positive in my life. I don't
think I would be where I am today without my service
experience."
If you know of a World War 11 veteran whose story needs to
be told, contact Bill Youngkin at (979) 260 -7030. If you would
like to add someone's name to the Brazos Valley Veterans
Memorial, names must be submitted by August 15, 2006, in
order m be engraved on the memorial by this year's Veterans
Day observance.
The Eagle
Here when you need u,
Veterans of the Valley, hosted by
WTAW's Tom Turbiville, can be seen Fridays at
8:30 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays at 6:30 p.m.
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