Delliff86 said:
My grandfather served in the navy during ww2.
He was on the attack transport USS Leedstown (APA-56), as far as I am aware he was on board during most of the major battles in the South Pacific.
I was curious if the government records show day to day things.
I have tried to file a records request but it came back with no answers after months of waiting.
He never really talked about the war, or maybe I was just too young to ask.
My dad was in the Pacific in WWII as a Marine. Daily Action Reports and After Action Reports have a good bit of detail in them, not sure if all branches have those, but suspect they do or the equivalent.
I got most of my information about his time in combat from those in his platoon or company. I subscribed to a publication put out by the Second Marine Division and it had member lists with their years of service and their unit (company/battalion/regiment). I wrote letters and received letters and spoke on the phone with several of them after my dad died. Whereas Daily Action Reports and After Action Reports will contain what went on with this company and that company, issues they encountered, etc., they typically are move unit oriented, broad overviews. At least the ones I have seen were. But as far as what an individual did or experienced, that best comes from those serving with the person you are interested in. I have around two dozen letters that are prized possessions to me. I wish now I had spent more time doing that, of course it is too late now since they would all be dead or right at 100 years old or more.
Hopefully not to bore you, but information can come from the strangest places. I had posted some pictures of guys in my dad's company on a Facebook group dealing with Tarawa's missing Marines. One guy said to me that one of the pictures was of his brother who was killed on the first day. We got to talking and eventually I brought him some sand back from the beach where his brother was killed. I mentioned to him that one of the guys who wrote me a letter had mentioned my dad singing a song about angels singing, that my dad would sing it in the morning as he cleaned his BAR (if not engaged with the Japanese). I mentioned it to this guy in the Facebook group and he sent me the name of the song and a YouTube video of it. Small world.
Most of that generation did not talk of the war, certainly few who saw combat. I knew many (relatives and friends of my parents) who served in the Pacific and in Europe. I think 8 bronze stars among them, and I knew nothing of them having been awarded bronze stars though I knew or worked with them for many years. I think if you "thanked them for their service" they would not have appreciated it.
You might check for Facebook groups or other groups relative to the USS Leedstown. It is amazing the amount of information out there that some have access to but the general public does not. I hope you are able to find some information about your grandfather.
