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Jesse Gibbs, 2003 [detail]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army Air Forces/Corps
  • Unit of Service: 302nd Fighter Control Squadron; Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron, 7th Fighter Command
  • Location of Service: Fort Thomas, Kentucky; Keesler Field, Mississippi; Bradley Field, Connecticut; Kipapa Field, Stanley Field, Wheeler Field and Hickam Field, Oahu; Iwo Jima; Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands); Pacific Theater
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/5973

View full service history

"Somebody whispered to me, 'You know what you're holding in your hand? A land \\nmine.' But of course it was unarmed." (Video Interview, Part 2, 9:18.0)

In a remarkable monologue lasting nearly 20 minutes, Air Corpsman Jesse Gibbs recounts what he saw during the intense fighting on Iwo Jima. His job was to bring ashore motorized transportation and he admits that the only time he ever fired a weapon was during a celebration that attended a false report that Germany had surrendered to the Allies. But Gibbs witnessed plenty of horrors, including the suicidal charge of a lone Japanese soldier carrying a hand grenade and the ghastly remains of another enemy combatant-a sight that made him wonder if the world had gone completely mad.

Interview / Recording

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Interview / Recording

Interview / Recording

About this Item

Title

  • Jesse Gibbs Collection

Names

  • WRCB-TV Channel 3
  • Bowen, Sarah
  • Mavredes, Tony
  • Gibbs, Jesse

Home State

  • Tennessee

Headings

  • -  Gibbs, Jesse
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army Air Forces/Corps.

Form

  • Betacam SP

Extent

  • 3 items

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army Air Forces/Corps
    • Unit of Service: 302nd Fighter Control Squadron; Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron, 7th Fighter Command
    • Location of Service: Fort Thomas, Kentucky; Keesler Field, Mississippi; Bradley Field, Connecticut; Kipapa Field, Stanley Field, Wheeler Field and Hickam Field, Oahu; Iwo Jima; Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands); Pacific Theater
    • Highest Rank: Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 1943-1946
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Video: Betacam SP [3 items] -- Oral history interview (collected 2003-03-11)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/5973

Cite as

  • Jesse Gibbs Collection (AFC/2001/001/5973), 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:

Wrcb-Tv Channel 3, Sarah Bowen, Tony Mavredes, and Jesse Gibbs. Jesse Gibbs Collection. 1943. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.05973/.

APA citation style:

Wrcb-Tv Channel 3, Bowen, S., Mavredes, T. & Gibbs, J. (1943) Jesse Gibbs Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.05973/.

MLA citation style:

Wrcb-Tv Channel 3, et al. Jesse Gibbs Collection. 1943. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.05973/>.