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Detail from a photo of Robinson standing at his battle station on the USS Bibb, Atlantic [1943]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Coast Guard
  • Unit of Service: USCGC Bibb (WPG 31)
  • Location of Service: New York; Sandy Hook, Connecticut; New London, Connecticut; Bizerte, Tunisia; Palermo, Italy; Atlantic Ocean; Okinawa Island (Ryukyu Islands); Pacific Theater; European Theater
  • Highest Rank: Pharmacist's Mate Second Class
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/60621

View full service history

"What am I doing talking to this Hitler clone—in Yiddish!" (Video Interview, 32:08)

Irwin "Rocky" Robinson was a shipping clerk when he enlisted in the Coast Guard, sweet-talked into that branch by a clever recruiter who saw him standing in a long line to join the Navy. Robinson became a Pharmacist's Mate aboard the lead ship in a convoy, with the only doctor for miles and miles around. Their patients ranged from a buddy with an inflamed appendix to a German prisoner whom Robinson, a New York Jew, was able to communicate with in Yiddish. He saw action in North Africa, where he attended services in a historic temple during the High Holy Days; Sicily; and in the Pacific, where they dodged kamikaze planes. In his spare time, Robinson did a little boxing, which is how he earned his nickname.

Interview / Recording

More Resources

[ Official memo announcing combat awards to the U.S.S. Bibb crew [12/30/1945] ]
[ Selection from memoir relating to Robinson's war experiences ]
[ Poem by Robinson, "Sea Duty" [4/1944] ]
[ Newsclipping: "Passover aboard a Coast Guard Combat Cutter in the Pacific" ]
[ Article: "Bibb splashed a Jap plane at Okinawa" ]

Show more resources (1)

[ Article: "How three amateurs and one professional saved John Dragonetti's life!" ]

About this Item

Title

  • Irwin Robinson Collection

Names

  • VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Sepulveda Ambulatory Care Center & Nursing Home, Sepulveda, California
  • James, Becky
  • Davis, Vance
  • Robinson, Irwin

Home State

  • California

Headings

  • -  Robinson, Irwin
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Coast Guard.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • Other

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Coast Guard
    • Unit of Service: USCGC Bibb (WPG 31)
    • Location of Service: New York; Sandy Hook, Connecticut; New London, Connecticut; Bizerte, Tunisia; Palermo, Italy; Atlantic Ocean; Okinawa Island (Ryukyu Islands); Pacific Theater; European Theater
    • Highest Rank: Pharmacist's Mate Second Class
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1946
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2005-02-23; 2005-03-17)
  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Electronic file of photograph (collected 2005-05-26)
  • Photograph: Digital print [18 items] -- Photograph (collected 1942-1945)
  • Manuscript: Clippings [3 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1945)
  • Manuscript: Creative works [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 1944-04)
  • Manuscript: Memoirs [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected unknown)
  • Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 1945-12-30)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/60621

Cite as

  • Irwin Robinson Collection (AFC/2001/001/60621), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

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:

Va Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Sepulveda Ambulatory Care Center & Nursing Home, Sepulveda, California, Becky James, Vance Davis, and Irwin Robinson. Irwin Robinson Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.60621/.

APA citation style:

Va Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, S. A. C. C. &. N. H., James, B., Davis, V. & Robinson, I. (1942) Irwin Robinson Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.60621/.

MLA citation style:

Va Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Sepulveda Ambulatory Care Center & Nursing Home, Sepulveda, California, et al. Irwin Robinson Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.60621/>.