<Begin Segment 5>
TI: Do you have any memories of Pearl Harbor day, December 7, 1941?
LP: Well, I was in Daly City on December 7th, that day when it happened, it came over the radio, visiting one of my sweeties. That's it. I was at her house.
TI: And so you heard it on the radio?
LP: It came over the radio.
TI: And do you recall any thoughts, what you thought this meant?
LP: Yeah. I was concerned about my age, I was gonna fit right in to whatever was going to happen, and I wasn't very happy about it.
TI: Oh, that you would have to end up in the military or the army.
LP: I knew it was coming because I wasn't very old, but I knew the war with Japan and Germany wasn't going to be over in a year or five minutes, it was going to go on for a while and I was right at that ripe age. I wasn't very happy about that because I didn't want to go to war.
TI: And so when you went to work that next day or next week, was there much talk about the war and what happened?
LP: No talk at all in the shipyard. I don't know why not, but there wasn't. All we did was build those liberty ships, and we built a lot of 'em.
TI: And so how long did you do that?
LP: What?
TI: In the shipyard, because eventually you went into the military service.
LP: I got drafted when I was there. I wouldn't enlist.
TI: And so when did they draft you, do you remember how quickly?
LP: I went to San Francisco for a physical and they took a look at you, and they do the same thing like when you go into a doctor's office. They weigh you and take your temperature and you're in. You're in the military after that.
TI: So a low bar in terms of how much health... so do you know when you joined the military? What year?
LP: I didn't join it, they drafted me.
TI: Or drafted.
LP: I guess '42. '42, I think.
TI: And then tell me a little bit, so after you're drafted and you go through the physical, then what happened?
LP: We went to Monterey to the Presidio, we were down there for a couple weeks, then we got shipped to Auburn, California, guard duty on the bridges and tunnels up there. From there we got transferred to Summit, and we pulled guard duty on all the bridges and tunnels on that mountain, on Highway 80.
TI: And when you're guarding, what were you guarding for?
LP: Somebody coming up there and blowing the bridge up.
TI: So you just stood watch over these...
LP: Eight hours a day, round the clock with a shotgun.
TI: And was there ever any...
LP: Nothing happened while we were there. They blew up one of the bridges after we left, because they had civilian guards up there.
TI: Oh, really?
LP: Up around 'Cisco or up in that area. The reason I know is because the Johnsons owned Kingville Lodge and we used to see 'em a lot. It was right next to, we were at Soda Springs Hotel, that's where we were stationed. Can you imagine being in the army and living in a hotel?
TI: Yeah, that sounds pretty good.
LP: Not bad, huh?
TI: It's beautiful country, right?
LP: Yeah. Well, anyway, we got to know the Johnsons real well. And so when Marge and I used to, when I got out of the service, and Marge and I used to go up to Reno, we'd always stop and visit with them. They had a couple of daughters that were my age, and they were the ones who were telling me about this blowing that bridge up.
TI: And so who blew up the bridge?
LP: Well, I don't know. She didn't know. It was right above their lodge, so that's why they knew it. It was right up the hill from them.
<End Segment 5> - Copyright © 2012 Densho. All Rights Reserved.