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John Boylan at time of interview

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 357th Harbor Craft Company
  • Location of Service: Normandy, Omaha Beach, Southern France; Fort Dix, New Jersey; Norfolk, Virginia; San Francisco, California
  • Highest Rank: Warrant Officer 1
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/4053

View full service history

"It was a horrible sight." (Video interview, 26:58)

Like many of his high school classmates, John Boylan entered the Army just as soon as he turned 18, in 1942. Poor eyesight initially limited him to kitchen patrol, but his diligence led to a commission as a warrant officer, and he was sent overseas to serve as a tugboat captain with the 357th Harbor Craft Company. Patrolling the harbor outside of Cherbourg, France, he witnessed the sinking of the SS Leopoldville--a troop ship carrying replacements for the Battle of the Bulge--after it was torpedoed by the Germans on December 24, 1944. Boylan's tugboat helped with the rescue attempt, pulling soldiers out of the frigid water. Despite their valiant efforts, over 700 soldiers died in the Christmas Eve tragedy.

Interview / Recording

About this Item

Title

  • John V. Boylan Collection

Names

  • National Guard Militia Museum of New Jersey (Center for US War Veterans Oral Histories)
  • Fowler, Carol R.
  • Boylan, John V.

Home State

  • New Jersey

Headings

  • -  Boylan, John V.
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Form

  • VHS

Extent

  • 1 item

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 357th Harbor Craft Company
    • Location of Service: Normandy, Omaha Beach, Southern France; Fort Dix, New Jersey; Norfolk, Virginia; San Francisco, California
    • Highest Rank: Warrant Officer 1
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1945
    • Military Status: veteran
    • Service History Note: The veteran assisted in the Christmas Eve 1944 rescue of the Leopoldville which was torpedoed and sunk off Cherbourg, France. It was the second worst troop transport disaster of the war.

Materials

  • Video: VHS [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2002-02-13)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/4053

Cite as

  • John V. Boylan Collection (AFC/2001/001/4053), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

National Guard Militia Museum Of New Jersey, Carol R Fowler, and John V Boylan. John V. Boylan Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.04053/.

APA citation style:

National Guard Militia Museum Of New Jersey, Fowler, C. R. & Boylan, J. V. (1942) John V. Boylan Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.04053/.

MLA citation style:

National Guard Militia Museum Of New Jersey, Carol R Fowler, and John V Boylan. John V. Boylan Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.04053/>.