Interview of Elaine Carlton on her service in the U.S. Army during WWII


Elaine Carlton:	…member of Evergreen Chapter 63, Tacoma, Washington. 

	My name, July 1944, was Olive Milborne, living in Belfast, Northern Ireland, with my family, who had gone from Hagerstown, Maryland, to open a business building pipe organs.  Received a quest for me to join our army as it was my patriotic duty and to report for my physical at an army hospital in a county outside Belfast. There were two of us taking our physicals.  We were both very excited and apprehensive.  But we both passed with no trouble.  It was such a treat to see so much food in the mess hall.  All was delicious to us.  Some of the food we hadn’t seen for years as food was very short in supply and variety.

	August 1944, we got our orders to report to Lichfield, England, where we had three weeks basic training.  The officers decided that 30 of us there for training had seen and experienced war for so long that we didn’t need the regular training.  So we had to pass the rifle range, which we all did.  We never did receive the medal for it. Then each of us were interviewed by reporters and correspondents for local newspapers in all the states of the U.S.A.  September 1944, we packed our duffel bags and blanket rolls, dressed in fatigues and helmets.  I must have been a comical sight.  I had to have safety pins everywhere on the fatigues as they were all so big for me.  I only weighed 98 pounds.  Had to wear a helmet liner and helmet, which was too large.  At least the field jacket fitted quite well, so hid the safety pins.  The girls had a lot of fun helping me to get on my feet after I got the pack – backpack and blanket roll on my back.

	We were taken to Southampton.  There we boarded a ship that sailed as soon as it got dark.  We had to keep quiet – couldn’t smoke, or sho-, show lights.  They had discovered a German sub was in the vicin-, vicinity.  Next day, late afternoon, we arrived in Omaha Beach, France.  We put on our backpacks with help from my friends again, went over the side of the ship where the rope ladders were.  It was quite scary and thrilling going over the side of the ship on a rope ladder.  Halfway down, we had to jump into the army landing boat.  I was so top-heavy, if the guys hadn’t caught me I would have been in the water.  But we had a great laugh after they found out I was okay.  They told me later, when they saw me coming down, they thought it was just bags.  They couldn’t see me.  Anyway, we made it to the beach.  It was a wet landing. There was still remnants and ravages of war.  We climbed up a hill.  Some of us were put into canvas tents, two to each.  The other girls loaded onto trucks.  Found out later they were taken to Paris.  We spent two nights and one day.  Weather was pretty good but it had rained so much it was so muddy, about up to our knees.

Second day, we were put on trucks.  End of trip we find ourselves in Cherbourg, France.  We were put into war-damaged houses.  Some of our servicemen had tried to repair them to be livable.  Four of us were in a big house with half the roof gone.  When it rained, we had some unwelcome showers.  But we did have a little heat most of the time.  They had fixed heaters in our rooms.  

I was fortunate to be assigned to the chaplain’s office.  Worked as Chaplain’s Assistant.  Having been a professional musician, and also schooled in secretarial work all came in handy.  Also had to play as hostess for any of the chaplains that had to entertain visiting VIPs.  This lasted until I came home in November ’46, to Fort Dix, New Jersey.

Our stay in Cherbourg was quite exciting at times, as there were German snipers.  If we had to go out after dark, we had to have a GI to be with us with a carbine.  Most of us had one, but not many of us wanted to carry it.  I always had one in the Jeep when I had to drive, which wasn’t too often as I always generally had a GI driver assigned to us.  

Headquarters had given the chaplain’s office building, which we found out later had once been a Madame Boudoir.  The furnishings had been beautiful.  But of course, by the time I had got there, it had all been stripped.  The chaplains had left a few things like beautiful, heavy velvet drapes.  The colors were just gorgeous.  Reds, lilac, gold, and blue.  It was lovely seeing a little glamour and brightness in amongst all the destruction.  Being with Chaplain I sometimes went with him to give Protestant service.  I would – I worked for Protestant, Catholic, and a rabbi.  

In the field only a few miles from the front line, had it in any kind of weather, was fun trying to keep music on our little portable organ when it was raining and windy.  Generally some of the guys fixed some kind of a shelter for me.  I was always treated like a VIP.  We would stay around for a few hours.  The boys loved to just sit and talk, just to have someone to talk to.  As they said, just having an [American 06:37] girl around lifted their spirits.  Then they always wanted me to sing some favorite songs, which I really enjoyed.  

Even though we could hear all the gunfire and tank blasts, we were lucky we were never any – never had any close calls.  I’d had it worse when I used to be in London and Belfast, Northern Ireland, when I had a – had a bomb dropped just a block away.  That was scary.  That was before we came into the war, when I was a civilian.

While in Cherbourg, some of us girls had been invited to share a meal with a submarine crew.  Was sometime around Christmas.  Still don’t know why they didn’t laugh at us, for we were a sight.  We had to wear field uniforms plus helmet with liner and – and boots, which we called Li’l Abners.  When we arrived at the port, all of them were on the submarine.  What a cheer went up.  There were about 10 of us.  After riding in the truck we were really glad to [inaudible 07:44].  The men came and helped us on board, then down into the sub.  That was the strangest feeling.  It first felt like we couldn’t get any breath. After a while and a drink, we had – we had got used to it.  What a meal the cook had fixed in such tight quarters!  It was amazing.  What a great time we had.  As usual they just seemed to like hearing us talk.  And listening to them.  When we had, when we had to live – leave, they made us promise to come back.  Of course we never did.  There was still a war to fight.

After such a wonderful afternoon, we were in for quite a shock.  On our way back to our quarters, we heard a terrible explosion.  We saw a big ball of fire out on the water.  Our driver thought we better try to see if we were needed on the beach.  By the time we got there we found bodies coming out of the water, looking awful.  Some with arms off.  Faces smashed and some more horrible looking.  Sometime we got there – same time we got there, some medical staff were there too so we helped as much as we could.

Hours later the doctors told us to go, as we had done as much as we could.  And that we had been there long enough.  None of us had had any medical training.  None of us felt anything until a couple days later when we realized what had happened.  It was quite a feeling.  Had one of the doctors came and thanked us and said how great we had been in such emergency.  And he asked if any of us would like to go home and train as a nurse.  But none of us took him up on it as far as I know.  Found out that it had been one of our hospital ships that was sitting in the harbor, getting ready to take the wounded back home.  A German sub got in and torpedoed it.  Never did find out if there was any saved.  I don’t know how some of the ones we treated and helped survived.  Heard later that the sub we had been on had taken off right after we left.  I guess, looking for the German sub.

	Our church services were held in a building that had about half a roof.  When it rained, sometimes there would be water up to our ankles.  We were lucky.  Had a little stage so the choir and organist had cover and dry feet.  Had some funny things happen.  

One day, to go the headquarters building, I was run-, never walked, always running.  Always getting in trouble with my First Sergeant.  Was coming out of an office, was running around the corner when I ran smack dab into a solid wall, I thought.  But the wall fell down on the top of me.  When the wall got up I found it was a one-star general.  Oh, what a feeling that was.  Believe me, I thought I’d had it.  He looked so stern for a second, then all of a sudden he was laughing.  Thank goodness he wasn’t hurt.  All he said was that I’d better slow down in the future.  Couple days later, who should walk into our office, but the general.  Of course he had to tell the chaplains what I had done.  Believe me, I took a lot of ribbing about that.

Father [Folay 11:21] had been invited into the home of a French family.  He invited our driver and myself to go with him. I spoke a little French so it was a very interesting visit.  They had fixed a very interesting meal from – they had, which wasn’t much, but was very enjoyable.  But the thing they were most excited about, they had wine and champagne, which they had hid from the Germans.  We had the pleasure of sharing it with them.  It was the first champagne I’d ever had.  I don’t remember going back to quarters, so you can tell I enjoyed it.

We visited the family at least once a week when we could take time off.  That is why I loved my job as the chaplains generally took me with them when they were invited out.  And I acted as hostess when they entertained, was very interesting work. One day we were told there was a very important VIP coming to the office, a Dr. [Pauling 12:30].  He showed up in the evening.  There were a few of us just sitting around singing.  By that time, we had been lucky to have an organist from Vassar College assigned to our office.  He had been listening – Dr. [Pauling 12:45] had been listening for quite a while before we realized who he was.  He talked to each of us, said he would get in touch with all our families, which he did.  We never could tell our folks where we were.  So finally they got to know.  We also had quite a write-up in our local papers in the states.

Few months later we were all loaded into trucks with our belongings.  Next place was Deauville, France.  WACs had a hotel in Trouville, just about a [four to five 13:19] mile march.  Deauville, where headquarters was set up, used to be a casino right on the beach.  We couldn’t walk up on the beaches, as they still had booby traps.  Every day one or two would go off by some animal, sometimes a person.  Quite a few killed.  Trouville beaches had been cleared, so we had a nice beach to relax on.  It was a fishing port so there was always a smell of fish.  Was a very beautiful spot.  Didn’t see too much war damage there. We used to use bikes to get around the countryside.  Was real pretty.  We were there during the summer months.  They made it a retreat for our boys, who would spend about two weeks, then go back to the front.  That time my job was to help them get word to their folks at home and again, listen to them.  Had quite a busy time.

From there we were trucked to Brussels, Belgium.  Our services were held in the [inaudible 14:21] Chapel, which was beautiful.  Had a wonderful pipe organ to play.  There, chaplains and I were invited to quite a few of the civilian homes.  Then my job was to go to Saint-Lô, France, to look for graves of our boys killed in Europe, for families who wrote us requesting photos.  By that time, we were allowed to [inaudible 14:43] have cameras.  Saint-Lô was quite a place, was all rubble but folks were living in there.  Little children so skinny with big stomachs and mostly bones.  So we all tried to help them as much as possible. With all that, we would go to the field where some of our boys were laid to rest.  There would be a bunch of flowers on each marker.  Believe me, I shed a few tears.  It was quite impressive to think that all their property they could do such a thing.  By this time we had got quite a few more office personnel including two civilians.  

So I got a chance to travel to lots of interesting places, mostly with the chaplains.  Also went with them to Paris on business many times.  We’d spend at least three days each time we went.  Three of us went on leave to Belfast, Northern Ireland: the girl that started with me from Belfast and one that became to be like a big sister.  I still keep in touch with them both. On our way back, we had got a lift on a bomber that was going to England.  I had to sit in the bomb bay for while.  Then they told me to sit out with the pilot.  They put earphones on me and I would be having quite a conversation with the ground crew when all of a sudden he said there was a message coming in.  I thought he had been hit up or something.  Couldn’t make sense for a while.  Then he yelled, “The war’s over!”  Then I started yelling.  The crew thought I had lost my sense.  

Finally I gave them the news.  Then I gave the phones over to the pilot.  After we had all calmed down, by then we were all about ready to land.  But then we were told we couldn’t land, as every airport was closed.  Took the pilot about an hour to convince an airport that we had to land.  We were running out of fuel.  We made it fine.  Everybody was going crazy so we joined in the celebration.  We finally got ourselves to Paris, but I cannot remember it all.  I remember celebrating in Paris.  We had folks trying to get buttons off our uniforms.  We were saved by a French policeman. 

We got back to our outfit.  We had been AWOL for four days, but they excused us for they had known what had happened.  Brussels was a very interesting place for it had not suffered the ravages of war quite as much.  Lots of beautiful places still standing, and it was a country of flowers.  Was wonderful to see the flower carts on mostly all street corners.  So much color really cheered a person up.  Also our living quarters were so much better.

Then came the time when lots of our personnel were able to go home on points.  Had some very happy, yet sad partings.  From Brussels we were loaded again on those awful trucks and taken to Frankfurt, Germany.  There we joined General Eisenhower’s headquarters.  What a greeting we got!  What a surprise we had when we were shown our living quarters in an apartment building.  Three to an apartment.  Had a bedroom each with a real bed and chest of drawers for our clothes.  It turned out we even had a Polish girl displaced person to do all our cleaning.  Even cleaned our uniforms and shoes.  Believe me, it was quite a shock. Headquarters was very secure.  It had to have special parsons – special passes to go out of the boundary.  Our chaplain’s office was just outside for a while, until we finally got a room on the [Favian 18:34] Building, which had been taken over for the European headquarters.

	The women who had got there before us (most of them had just arrived from the States) had really fixed things up for us, even to having started making a lovely club for us to relax in.  We finally got it where we had dances, we had ping pong tables and billiards, plus places to read or listen to music.  By the time I left to come home, it was a very busy place.  We could even entertain friends there.  General Eisenhower, who’d come and join us to talk and listen to us.  He was like a father figure to a lot of us girls.  He really tried to help.  I got to know him quite well, as the chaplains, who were very involved with them, as he was very keen to have the men interested in their religious beliefs.

	September 1946, there was talk about some of us having to go home, as they decided we had been there long enough.  November 1, 1946, about 20 of us were taken to Bremerhaven where we boarded a ship that was home for us for 15 days.  Was a war brides transport.  So the powers to be each let us carry our orders so we were able to do what we wanted.  Most of us really enjoyed the voyage, as the weather was beautiful.  It was almost like a cruise, except for all the young war brides.  Some had children.

	Arrived New York, November 15, 1946.  Of course the brides got quite a welcome; bands, etc.  But we had down – go down a gangplank, another part of the ship.  Loaded onto trucks, taken to Fort Dix, New Jersey.

	1947 saw me in Camp Kilmer.  Got married May 1st, ’48, and was discharged July 1948.


/ks