Barbara Whitaker

Two Memoirs of WWII Airmen

Posted on September 29, 2020 by barbarawhitaker

Through the COVID pandemic I’ve been reading – a lot. Two books I read were memoirs by WWII flyboys. I thoroughly enjoyed both. They were “From Farm to Flight to Faith” by Bernard O. DeVore and “A Measure of Life” by Herman L. Cranman.

Bernard O. DeVore served as the Flight Engineer on the Picadilly Special, a B-17 Flying Fortress. He flew out of Paddington, England, as part of the 325th Squadron, 92nd Bomb Group, 8th Air Force. For those who have read my previous posts, there were two WWII veterans in my hometown who were also part of the 92nd Bomb Group and flew out of Podington, Tom Brewer and Everett Holly.

Herman L. Cranman served as Bombardier on a Consolidated B-24. He flew with the 376th Bomb Group, part of the 47th Bomb Wing of the 15th Air Force, near San Pancrazio, Italy. After being established in Tunisia in 1943, the 15th Air Force moved into Italy as the Allies advanced from Sicily onto the Italian peninsula.

The two memoirs are very different yet have much in common. Both men wrote about their service later in life. While DeVore kept his story shorter yet consise, Cranman provides lots of details in a much longer book.

As I mentioned DeVore flew in a B-17 bomber while Cranman flew in a B-24. DeVore, as part of the 8th Air Force flew in the same airplane, the Picadilly Special, with the same crew for all his missions. The 15th Air Force, for which Cranman flew, rotated the men between whatever aircraft was available for each mission. Their crews were also not necessarily the same on each flight.

Another difference between the 8th Air Force and the 15th Air Force I learned about from Cranman’s memoir was the way they counted missions. The 8th Air Force originally required each airman to complete 25 missions. This requirement was increased to 30 missions in June 1944 and to 35 missions later. The 15th Air Force required 50 missions, but certain missions counted as two while others counted as only one.

Another important difference between the two stories was that DeVore completed his thirty missions and returned safely to the United States in early 1945. Cranman’s aircraft was shot down over Hungary on July 14, 1944, and he spent the remainder of the war as a Prisoner of War.

Both memoirs included the story of how they met and “courted” the love of their lives. These stories were my favorite parts. DeVore met his love when he and a buddy picked up two girls on the way to the beach near Tampa, Florida, while he was in training. They married before he went overseas. Cranman realized that a girl he’d known since childhood had stolen his heart before she moved away. All through the war and his incarceration he worried that she didn’t love him like he loved her. When he finally got home he discovered that his parents had arranged their engagement on his behalf. So they were married soon after the war.

Do you see why I love reading memoirs? Every one is different, yet so interesting. I highly recommend both these books.

My Novels

I Have A Release Date!!!

Posted on September 12, 2020 by barbarawhitaker

My new novel, A War Apart, will be released on November 11, 2020.

I will let everyone know when it is available for pre-order on Amazon, iTunes, and Nook. Print copies will also be available.

Anger at her cheating husband, spurs grieving war widow Rosemary Hopkins to spend an impromptu night with an overseas-bound soldier. Fearing her small hometown would discover her secret, she makes him promise to not write her. Yet, she can’t forget him.

Eager to talk to a pretty girl before shipping out to fight the Germans, Guy Nolan impulsively implies they’re married and buys her ticket. The encounter transforms into the most memorable night of his life when he falls for a woman he will never see again.

While Guy tries to stay alive in combat, Rosemary finds work in a secret defense plant and a possible future with another soldier. Will she choose security or passion? Can she survive another loss?

History, My Novels, Old Movies, Research, WWII

Our Mothers’ War by Emily Yellin

Posted on August 30, 2020 by barbarawhitaker

I am always interested in women’s experiences during World War II so I was excited when I found the book “Our Mothers’ War” by Emily Yellin. This book turned out to be the best and most comprehensive book I’ve read on all aspects of women’s participation in helping to win the Second World War.

Yellin covered all the roles we normally think about – from wives and mothers waiting at home to defense workers doing their bit to women in the military. She also included other roles we often forget – like politicians, spies, prostitutes and many more.

In my first novel, Kitty’s War, my heroine joined the Women’s Army Corps and served in England and France. My next novel, A War Apart, which will be available later this year, the heroine worked in a ship yard and then a secret defense plant. In my third novel, the heroine is an Army Nurse. As you can see, I have covered several roles women took on during the war. What others will I choose?

“Our Mother’s War” has given me some ideas for future characters. Examples might include women who worked for the Red Cross, which offered many opportunities. Women worked in canteens providing companionship and dancing partners as well as food and drink. Others volunteered in hospitals helping with the wounded. The Red Cross sent packages to American prisoners of war as well as to soldiers and refugees. Women put these packages together, much like the workers in food banks today. Red Cross workers could volunteer to go overseas where they set up clubs on American bases overseas. Others worked in “club mobiles” which were vehicles equipped to make coffee and donuts and to play American records to troops close to the battlefield.

Another possibility might be a young woman working on her family farm while most of the men were off in the military. In her book, Yellin points out that the United States had their own Women’s Land Army. We’ve heard of the English version, but I didn’t know about the American one until I read Yellin’s book. Women made a sizable dent in the labor shortage on the farm.

You’ve probably seen the movie “A League of their Own.” That’s another way women contributed to the war effort. When men’s baseball couldn’t field a team, women stepped up in parts of the country to provide that athletic entertainment. And speaking of entertainment, women did everything from movies to radio broadcasts to all-girl bands to entertaining the troops in USO shows.

Women were also used as spies both in the United States and abroad. Women were dropped behind enemy lines to help resistance forces. Many others served in the government in various capacities from Congresswomen to code breakers to linguists.

The more we look the more roles we find that women took on. In my writing I lean toward the ordinary women who did extraordinary things, yet remained out of the spotlight. Almost every woman in the country did something to help the war effort.

History, My Novels, WWII

A War Apart Cover Reveal

Posted on July 2, 2020 by barbarawhitaker

I am so excited to reveal the beautiful cover of my upcoming novel, A War Apart, which will be available later this year. Watch for an announcement.

Anger at her cheating husband spurs grieving war widow Rosemary Hopkins to spend an impromptu night with an overseas-bound soldier. Fearing her small hometown will discover her secret, she makes him promise to not write her. Yet she can’t forget him.

While Guy tries to stay alive in combat, Rosemary finds work in a secret defense plant and a possible future with another soldier. Will she choose security or passion? Can she survive another loss?

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B-17, My Novels, WWII

June is Audiobook Month

Posted on June 1, 2020 by barbarawhitaker

Do you listen to audiobooks? Have you always wanted to try an audiobook? It’s easy and fun.

I listen on my smartphone. Just download the Audible app. Then you can purchase an audiobook or get a free book by signing up for an Audible account. With the account you pay $14.95 per month and get an audiobook of your choice every month. If you don’t select a book each month then you will accumulate credits to be used later. You can cancel anytime. There are also other places to buy audiobooks online if Audible is not your choice.

To listen to one of my audiobooks, I plug ear buds into my phone and listen while doing other things like walking, working out, doing housework, driving, and many other activities. Or you could just sit back and listen.

Since June is Audiobook Month, try an audiobook this month. And, of course, my suggestion is that you listen to my novel, Kitty’s War. The narrator, Robin Siegerman, brings the characters to life in a way reading the book cannot. In this story of love during wartime, you will fly missions with the 8th Air Force over Europe, work with the WAC’s in England supporting the flyers, experience friendships and heart break as well as courage and endurance. America’s Greatest Generation sacrificed, fought and won the Second World War. Experience a little bit of that time by listening to Kitty’s War.

History, WWII

Can We Compare Coronavirus Pandemic to World War II?

Posted on April 23, 2020 by barbarawhitaker

Are we in a war with the Coronavirus? Some say we are and, although it’s not the same, I can see a few commonalities with World War II.

A lot of people may not know that at the beginning of WWII there were severe shortages of weapons. Draftees and Federalized National Guard troops had to train with wooden sticks as rifles and trucks as tanks. It took months for American industry to convert over to war production.

We were not prepared for war then and we were not prepared to combat this virus.

Today, we have shortages of personal protective equipment for our healthcare workers. We don’t have enough ventilators for critically ill patients. We don’t have enough tests. Some industries have converted from their normal production over to production of medical equipment and protective gear for the front line medical workers, like General Motors making ventilators, Carhartt and Hanes making gowns and masks. Many distillers have switched from making alcoholic beverages to antibacterial hand sanitizer. Others companies, like 3M and Kimberly Clark, are working around the clock to produce masks, but there will still be shortages until industry can catch up to the demand.

The people who have jumped in and are sewing cloth masks remind me of the people who rolled bandages and conducted scrap drives during World War II. People gathered up anything that could be reused for war materials, from paper to cooking oils to rubber to metal, because they wanted to help in some way, just like the seamstresses are today.

During World War II to ensure that enough raw materials went to industry for manufacturing war materials, strict rationing went into effect. Things like meat, butter, sugar, clothing, shoes, rubber, and much more were rationed. Production of consumer goods ground to a halt as industry shifted to making airplanes, guns, tanks and ships. Today some goods are becoming hard to get. These goods are not going to war production, rather we are either not manufacturing them because plants are shut down to keep from spreading the virus or we are not importing them due to the Coronavirus related shut downs overseas.

Hoarding and price gouging were also problems during World War II. Back then it wasn’t toilet paper. It was food. A thriving black market developed between people obtained goods illegally and those who had money and were willing to pay any price. If you were caught selling goods on the black market, you went to jail. In recent months, people trying to price gouge to make a profit selling hoarded items have found themselves in legal trouble as well.

During WWII people were separated from their loved ones but in a different way than what is happening now. Men and women serving in the military were sent far from home first for training and then into combat. Other Americans moved to places where they could work in defense manufacturing, leaving home and loved ones behind. People waited patiently for the mail to arrive bringing news from a far away loved one.

Finally, death is another similarity. Soldiers died far from home. If they were lucky, a friend was with them. Today Coronavirus victims die alone without family and friends at their side. Almost every household in America lost someone during World War II. The way this pandemic is going everyone in America probably knows someone with the virus. And before it is over, many of us will know someone who died from it. That is the saddest comparison of all.

Just like during World War II, we are all in this crisis together. Our weapons are social distancing and hand-washing. Meanwhile we wait for better, more effective weapons to treat and prevent this terrible disease that has invaded our country.

History, Research

Yellow Fever Epidemic 1878

Posted on March 31, 2020 by barbarawhitaker

Amid the Coronavirus pandemic I thought of the epidemics we experienced in the past, particularly a story about an epidemic in my hometown back in the 1800’s.

To see where I first heard this story I pulled out my copy of “A History of Houston County, Tennessee” by Iris Hopkins McClain. For those of you who have this book, the account begins on page 45. I will transcribe it here for those who don’t have this book.

“On July 18, 1878, the steamer John Porter left New Orleans and came up the Mississippi. The outcome of that trip had far-reaching effects in Houston County. This ship brought the dread disease yellow fever to Memphis and in turn to Houston County when some hospital cars from Memphis were side-tracked in Erin. This was a fearful illness and caused panic. The local editor was to remark that “some of our people have not acted as they should.”

The skin of yellow fever victims turned yellow, there was a great deal of hiccuping, and eventually a black vomit that had an unbearable stench. Victims usually died in a little while. Yellow fever played no favorites. Of every three persons stricken,two died and the third mysteriously recovered.

Some people fled Erin, but the plague followed them to the country. Business came to a standstill as “nobody felt like doing any business.” Arlington had been quarantined from Erin to prevent the spread of the disease to that place. Armed me were said to have stood on the outskirts of Arlington ready to shoot anyone from Erin who tried to pass through the “picket” line. The quarantine was not effective as Ed Schroibor, I. F. McMillan, Mike Kelly and Kelly’s young son became ill with the disease.

A local theory had been advanced that a limestone quarry was “sure protection” from yellow fever. The editor announced, almost with glee, that Fred Williamson, who had a lime kiln and quarry, had fallen to the disease and this disproved that theory.

The Howard Relief Train, under the direction of a Dr. Hunter, visited Erin early in October and left nurses and supplies to the stricken people.

The frosts came in mid-October and the plague soon ebbed away. By October 19 there had been seven people to die in the county of yellow fever including M. M. Stanfill, C. S. Humphreys, and Mrs. M. M. Stanfill. Mrs. G. W. Simpson was reportedly dying. Those on the convalescent list included Dick Rushing, Randal Hankins, and Walter Hagler. Those ill at the time of the first frost were Mrs. G. E. Rauscher, Ira Rauscher, Mrs. Klein, and M. F. Shelton.”

For a little background, it was not known that yellow fever was spread by mosquitoes until 1900. There were no antibiotics at that time and no effective treatment. If you contracted the disease, you either lived or died.

The Howard Relief Train was organized by the Howard Association of New Orleans to follow the Louisville & Nashville Railroad with doctors and nurses to aid the stricken communities. To read more see an article in the Clarksville Leaf Chronicle by Melissa Barker.

In reading this account I couldn’t help thinking of what we are going through today: the panic, the unknown, the attempts at quarantine, social distancing, fleeing the infected areas as some are doing now, closing of businesses. Today we hear some wild theories about cures or ways to protect yourself that strangely mimic the past. So over a hundred years later, we as humans react in similar ways to what they did back then.

We also reach out to help those in need. The local doctors and citizens of Erin attempted to help those people left in train cars on a siding to die. A doctor from Erin died of yellow fever, much like those health care workers of today who have contracted COVID-19 and some have died.

For more articles about the Yellow Fever epidemic in Tennessee read the following: The Yellow Fever Epidemic on the Tennessee State Library and Archives blog, Yellow Fever Epidemics in the Tennessee Encyclopedia, Yellow Fever in Tennessee in the Tennessee Magazine.

Family, Genealogy, Historical Sites

The Trip To Nowhere

Posted on February 28, 2020 by barbarawhitaker

Young men seek adventure especially when they are living in a small town, out of school and out of work. That’s true today and it was true in the past. The particular adventure story I’m going to tell you took place in 1937 (my estimate) and one of the young men was my father, Vernon R. Knight. He and his friends, J. V. Averitt, Charles E. Covington, and Hugh Dickson, set off to see the country in an old car that belonged to one of them.

My father never talked about this trip. The only way I knew about it was through a conversation with my aunt, his sister, after his death. We were going through some old pictures. We didn’t know where some of the pictures were taken so we asked her about them. She said, “Those must be from the ‘trip to nowhere.'”

Aunt Sissy went on to tell us about how my father and his friends took an old car and headed west. They drove as far as they could on the money they had, and then they stopped and found work. One place they worked was in the oil fields in Texas. When they had enough money, they started out again.

Somewhere along the road my father bought a camera. This old style camera, that expanded when you opened it up to expose the lens, was always in a drawer in the dining room along with an old photo album. As kids we would take out the camera and examine it with the natural curiosity of children. We would also take out the old photo album and flip through the pictures, amazed at what our parents looked like when they were young.

The first pictures in the album from the “trip to nowhere” were taken at Hoover Dam (known as Boulder Dam at the time). These helped me date the trip. Hoover Dam was completed in 1935. In 1936 the water in Lake Mead was high enough to begin electrical generation. It took some time for water to fill Lake Mead. In my Dad’s pictures, the lake is almost full so I am guessing it was a year or two after completion of the dam.

J. V. Averitt and Charles Covington at Hoover Dam

Hoover Dam Spillway from electric turbines

The next pictures find our young men in the Petrified Forest in Arizona. At that point they would have been along Route # 66. J. V. Averitt told his son, Phil, about how many times they had to patch the tires on the old car. Back then, tires had inner-tubes, that held the air, inside the outer tire. If the tube got a hole in it, they would take the inner-tube out, patch it, then put it back inside the outer tire before re-inflating it.

The next group of pictures are landscape shots. My father probably took them because the terrain was so different from what they were familiar with in Tennessee. These are pictures of the desert alongside the road, possibly in Arizona or New Mexico.

Only a couple of the pictures featured any of the young men. My Dad apparently didn’t want to take pictures of people. After the photos of the desert there are no more pictures from this trip. Did he run out of film? Maybe, but I don’t know.

The only other thing I remember seeing from the trip was a card my Dad sent to his mother to let her know he had made it to the Pacific Ocean. I’m not sure where the card ended up.

I treasure the pictures and this little bit of history about my father when he was an adventurous, young man.

B-17, History, WWII

Ye Olde Pub B-17

Posted on January 30, 2020 by barbarawhitaker

The B-17 Ye Olde Pub was in Jacksonville last weekend. We didn’t get to ride this time but we went over to Craig Field to have a look. Our six-year-old grandson went with us and he had a ball.

The plane is owned by the Liberty Foundation. Along with the B-17, they also brought a P-51 fighter. We didn’t get to see the P-51 up close because it taxied away and took off on a far runway. The P-51 had its tail painted red to honor the Tuskegee Airmen or “Red Tails.” You can see the P-51 in the background of my picture in front of the B-17.

My grandson and I toured inside the old bird while my husband waited outside. We climbed into the nose through a tight passageway. Once inside the nose you can stand up and look out through the Plexiglas surrounding the bombardier’s seat. The navigator also sat in the nose at a make-shift desk where he plotted the course. The hero in my novel, Kitty’s War, was the navigator on a B-17 similar to this one.

Back through the narrow passageway, on your knees or, like me, scooting on your behind, we climbed up into the area behind the pilots. In the picture you can see the numerous gauges and controls the pilots had to monitor. No wonder it took two to fly the bomber. The flight engineer stood behind the pilots and fired the top turret guns.

From there we walked across the narrow bridge through the bomb bay. My grandson loved this part. It was like walking the balance beam on his playground. I was busy taking pictures and pointing out the fake bombs. For the walk-through the bomb bay doors were open and we could see the pavement below. I’m not sure my grandson fully understood how the bombing worked.

In the rear of the B-17 we saw the radio room, the top of the ball turret and the positions of the two waist gunners. In this model the gunners were staggered so they wouldn’t bump into each other while firing at attacking fighters. The 50 caliber machine guns were mounted in place with the belts loaded with bullets. Very realistic.

Outside we walked around, inspecting the tail gun from the rear of the plane. We saw the ball turret hanging down from the belly of the plane. With it open we could see how small the space was for the gunner to sit. Definitely had to be a smaller airman.

The stop in Jacksonville was the first on the Liberty Foundation’s 2020 tour. Visit their website at https://www.libertyfoundation.org/schedule to see the schedule. If they are in your area you should definitely go see the vintage airplanes. If you can afford it, I highly recommend taking a ride. It is an unforgettable experience.

Family, WWII

New Year’s Eve 1941

Posted on December 31, 2019 by barbarawhitaker

What was it like on New Year’s Eve 1941? Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor just three weeks before, followed by attacks on the Philippines, Guam and many other places in the Pacific. Germany and Italy had declared war on us. Prospects for the new year looked bleak.

It wasn’t as though we weren’t aware of the wars raging in Asia and Europe but strong pacifist sentiment fueled the belief by many that the United States could stay out of these wars. Until December 7th, 1941. Then everything changed.

Vernon Knight with his mother, Bessie, and his nephew, Norman.

My father had just turned twenty-seven, was married but had no children. I imagine he was debating whether to enlist or wait until he was drafted. I doubt my parents did much celebrating that New Year’s Eve.

My father’s younger brother, was in the National Guard. He’d joined a Calvary Unit to make some extra money and ride horses on the weekends. The National Guard was nationalized in 1940 so by New Year’s Eve 1941 he was already in the Army and stationed in far from home.

My father-in-law, who would later fight his way across Europe, was still in high school in 1941. I imagine he and his family worried about whether the war would last long enough for him to have to serve. Of course, it did.

My mother’s sister and cousins lived in Sitka, Alaska, at the time. I remember reading a letter her cousin wrote in early 1942 which gave some insight into their thinking early in the war. She was concerned that they may not be able to travel home to Tennessee that year. She mentioned the possibility of an invasion by the Japanese but didn’t sound too worried.

No one knew what would come in 1942. So many lives would change and change rapidly. Although many celebrated the end of 1941 and the beginning of 1942, there must have been a lot of apprehension about the future. We know what came next. They were still in the precipice staring into the unknown.