Uncovering Untold World War II Stories: How I Re-Traced my Grandfather's WWII Journey

See the guy in the photo below? The one smiling with his mouth wide open and likely making some hilarious noise? That's my grandfather, M.B. Hamby. And I absolutely adored him. 

Aren't my grandparents cute?!

And look at me- I'm just kicked back in my beautiful grandmother's arms, with a big grin plastered on my angelic little baby face. Obviously, I thought Grandpa Hamby was hysterical! 

My sweet little baby self had no clue at the time that the man making crazy noises and faces at me was a total badass! Yep, that cute little old man with the gray and the age spots, who wore tape over his glasses and a giant hearing aid in his left ear, was an absolute badass back in the day. 

He might not be thrilled with my "colorful" word choice used to describe him. But what else do you call a person who voluntarily enlists (especially during a war), straps into the back seat of a dive bomber, and loves every minute spent hurdling toward the Earth at 255 mph? 

As I said, only the words "total badass" came to mind. 

Uncovering M.B.'s Journey in World War II

I never intended to write a book about my grandfather's service in World War II. In fact, this book would likely not have come to fruition had my sister not volunteered me to help her scan our grandfather's war photos. 

She just showed up one weekend with big tubs full of photos and declared we were getting started. There were black and white, sepia, and even a few colored ones. Some were action shots of planes, while others were model-like poses most likely taken to send to girls. We had SO much fun reading the photo captions our grandfather had written. They were interesting and entertaining, each contributing to a greater story. And I found myself desperately wanting to uncover the entire story.

While I knew the photos were a big part of my grandpa's journey, his labeling system left us with more questions than answers. Most of the photos were labeled similarly to the one below. Here he labeled the location and year along with the caption "rest."

A few- not many- were labeled with an actual date. This was so incredibly helpful! It is dated 9/5/1942 and captioned "Me, at left, helping lift a lead bar. Los Angeles."

Of course, a good share of the photos was not labeled at all. I knew I had to get these pictures organized in a meaningful way. But the question was- how? 

Vintage Photo Clues

As I poured through the photos, I noticed many of them had a number printed on the back. Looking back at the photo above, you'll notice a "13" printed on it. That number was added by the developer. 

Back then, developers would add a batch number to the photos they processed. This helped them ensure that all photos in a batch were identifiable and delivered to the correct client. And, as it turns out, the numbering system is incredibly helpful for family researchers!

After I discovered the batch numbers, I could organize all of them- even those not labeled- according to number. When I ran across a photo with a date, location, AND batch number, I could assume all photos in the batch were taken around the same time and in or near the same place.

I also discovered each batch had a slightly different paper texture, size, and color. As I ran across photos without a batch number, I could group them by paper likeness. Typically at least one photo in the batch had a date or caption that helped me further identify when and where the photo was taken. 

Before I knew it, I had countless photos organized into neat little piles, categorized by month and location. Look at all those beautiful piles! 

 

The Scan-a-Thon

Once I was certain I had all of the photos grouped into the correct month, year, and location, I began the process of scanning them. 

As I dove into this portion of the project, I became thankful that I had scanned the photos after I organized them. Scanning by batch and digitally filing by month, location, and year was quick and easy. 

You'll notice I have my caffeine out in the photo below. While the scanning was "quick and easy", it was also a lengthy process. Hence why I refer to it as "The Scan-a-Thon"!

I spent approximately one entire weekend scanning and filing the photos. 

This weekend-long scan-a-thon made me incredibly thankful to have invested in a good scanner! I used this scanner and highly, highly recommend it! It can scan in batches and then save the batch to the correct file. It also automatically adjusts the scanner settings to optimize each photo. For example, if a sepia, black and white, and color photo are in the same batch, it adjusts its settings to each photo's unique needs. This was a huge time saver!  

Once the photos were scanned and filed, I took the time to save them with helpful names to allow for future retrieval. I was SO GLAD I had spent hours naming these photos, as doing so allowed me to search for and find them quickly when I began writing the book. I used a naming system that included each photo's date, general topic, location, and description. For example, one may be named:  June_1942_BootCamp_Liberty_SanDiego_RoadTriptoLA

A Story Shapes Up

Organizing my grandfather's WWII photos was a crucial step in uncovering his journey. However, they only offered a small part of the story. Without his letters, flight log, journals, Squadron Book, and personnel records, I could never have pieced his story together in its entirety. 

While not everyone can track down the personal items our family had kept, anyone can request personnel records. 

A Veteran's personnel records offer invaluable information surrounding a soldier's enlistment, training, movement, service, and more. In fact, when I received my grandfather's personnel record, I could finally recreate his footsteps through the war. 

While there are likely many ways to obtain a Veteran's personnel file, I used a group called World War II Research to assist me. 

Contracting With World War II Research

I happened upon World War II Research at the Monument Builders of North American Industry Show. Yep, I found them at a headstone convention! And the moment I spotted their booth I knew I had to visit with them. 

While the World War II Research team was at the headstone convention to discuss their large-scale World War II memorial services, I found them incredibly enthusiastic and helpful regarding my personal book project. I spent a while at their booth learning about the several research services they offer and ultimately contracted them to assist me. 

I highly recommend World War II Research to anyone interested in researching a family member's World War II service. (I am not a paid advertiser for them- I just really and truly value the information and service they provided to me.) 

 Writing the Book

When I began to compile and write the book, I kept my kids, nieces, and nephews in mind. I wanted to write something that was meaningful for them, as well as helpful in learning about World War II. Afterall, as time fades, the war is covered less and less in school. 

When my grandfather wrote to his mother, he included information about the war in an interesting and easy-to-understand way. I loved how he explained things to her and knew it would resonate with those who are interested in learning about World War II but not necessarily interested in becoming a "World War II expert."

Because his first-hand account through the letters to his mother is so special, I re-typed each of them to include in the book. I also re-typed and included his journal entries and excerpts from his Squadron Book.

Between all of the supporting documents (flight log, Squadron Book, personnel file), letters, journal entries, and photos, I was able to re-trace his footsteps through World War II with narration explaining what was going on at each pivotal time.

The Questions

One of the questions I am most frequently asked is how long it took to compile and write A Marine by Monday. The answer is that it took no fewer than a bazillion hours. 

Yes, a bazillion. Or so it seemed, anyway. In all actuality, it took a year to compile and write. 

Another frequent question I am asked is how I found time to do it. As a full-time business owner, mom, and wife, I don't have much "free time." So, I had to create it. Day after day I got up early in the morning and stayed up late at night. I utilized free weekends, times when the kids and spouse were gone, and any other spare moment I could catch. I also involved my family in the process by sharing what I was learning along the way.

While it took a bazillion hours and all of my spare time, I absolutely loved every moment spent working on A Marine by Monday. Because my grandpa died when I was four, I have only a few memories of him. However, through my research and writing, I began to feel like I was truly getting to know him again.

I cried when I finally finished writing the very last word in the book. Not because it was over or because I was relieved to be done. But because I had enjoyed getting to know him so much, I hated to see the story end.

Thank you for joining me on this journey! Keep an eye on the blog and be sure to subscribe to the newsletter, as I will be sharing interesting historical information, additional first-hand accounts, and so much more!