Butterfield’s experiences in WWII won’t soon be forgotten
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By JAMES CAMPBELL, SR.
Friday, July 20, 2007 3:00 PM CDT
Special to the Herald
I remember the small flags displayed in neighborhood windows, with blue stars representing the number of a mother’s children who were serving in the military, while a gold star represented a mother’s loss. Mrs. Butterfield had three blue stars in her window.
General Sherman said, “War is Hell,” which explains why many of America’s returning World War II warriors were tight-lipped about the hell they had experienced. It wasn’t until Vietnam that we were forced to recognize and treat post-traumatic stress disorders.
I witnessed some of my relatives and neighbors as they struggled with alcoholism, malaria, flashbacks and other maladies associated with their combat on both land and sea.
In 2007, it is estimated that there are only 2.9 million World War II veterans still living, and of those, as many as 1,000 are dying each day. That doesn’t give us much time to hear their stories.
The following story is based in part on what my brother-in- law, Russell H. “Russ” Butterfield told me about WW II.
After graduating from Chippewa Senior High School in May of 1941, Russ enlisted to serve a six month term in a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp in Menomonie.
Russ finished his enlistment on Dec. 1, 1941. Suffice it to say that the military discipline in the CCC camp, including close order drills served him well a few weeks later in boot camp training as an infantryman in the United States Army.
Most everyone who was living on Dec. 7, 1941, remembers the Japanese sneak attack against Americans at Pearl Harbor as the day of infamy that led to WW II.
Admiral Yamamoto Commander of the Japanese Imperial Navy was in command of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He received some of his formal education at the U.S. Naval War College and Harvard University (1919-21).
Yamamoto recognized America’s industrial potential when he said “If I am told to fight… I shall run wild for the first six months… but I have utterly no confidence for the second or third year.”
When he was defeated at Guadalcanal and at Midway he fully realized that the attack on Pearl Harbor had “awakened a sleeping giant.”
Russ’s older brother Hugh wanted to join the Navy, but their mother insisted that Hugh join the Army, so he could look after Russ. On Dec. 11, 1941, Russ and his brother Hugh joined the Army. Later, their older brother Ted would also join the Army.
After receiving their military training, Hugh and Russ found themselves on the island of New Guinea, where they would spend the next 39 months, witnessing man’s inhumanity to man, during savage battles against the Japanese. Their brother Ted also fought against the Japanese in the Pacific, but on a different island.
The Japanese occupation of New Guinea was limited to areas infested with rattlesnakes and other venomous creatures, as well as alligators. Many of the native New Guineans had fled deep into the jungles. Their machetes made them respected warriors and only at the risk of their lives would Japanese or American soldiers venture into their territory. Tropical rainfall and malaria bearing mosquitoes became a part of life.
The soldiers lived on three cans of “C” rations per day and were given quinine tablets to fight off the ravages of malaria. Russ said that they would sometimes lob grenades into the water and gather in the fish. He didn’t know what type of fish they were harvesting, but sometimes the natives would tell them which fish were best to eat. In any event, a steady diet of “C” rations, made any fish taste good.
One time in preparing to defend their position against an oncoming Japanese attack, it was decided that the high crotch of a tree presented a strategic location to mount Russ’s .30 caliber Browning machine gun, which was normally mounted on a tri-pod close to the ground. The men piled empty shell boxes to form a platform for Russ and a buddy armed with an M-1 rifle to stand on while firing on the attacking Japanese soldiers.
Hugh and another buddy stabilized the firing platform by pressing their bodies against the empty boxes. During the attack Russ heard his brother and the other soldier, hollering out cuss words. It was only after the battle that Russ learned that the ejected, red-hot shell casings, were landing on the men’s shoulder and neck areas.
Russ told of a time when during a Japanese assault on their position, as many as 100 Japanese Zeros were strafing a beach area, pinning down and killing his buddies. The commander radioed for air support. Shortly after, as the Zeros had completed another pass and were climbing back into the sky, the men heard a Brrrt-brrt and watched as a flaming, smoking Japanese Zero plunged to the ground.
Maj. Bong and his squadron of four P38s had positioned themselves, so that as the Japanese pilots climbed with the sun in their eyes, they were greeted by .50 caliber machine gun fire. The men watched the air battle from the ground. Every time the men heard the Brrrt-brrt of the P38s machine guns, another Zero fell from the sky.
In a matter of minutes, more than a dozen Zeros had come crashing to the ground in balls of fire. The remaining Zeros fled from the battle. After clearing the sky of the enemy, Maj. Bong and the men in his squadron flew over the area, tipping their wings in salute to the men below.
It was only fitting that Russ’s children were able to take him to see the Maj. Bong WW II Museum during the past year.
Russ, like many of America’s World War II veterans, had earned medals and other recognitions that were never awarded. It was through the actions of his children that Russ was awarded the medals that he had earned, including the Bronze Star. Hugh was also awarded the Bronze Star, which he never bothered to claim.
As we remember July 4th as America’s Day of Independence, we should take a few minutes to pray for and acknowledge the many sacrifices that all of the brave men and women of our United States military forces have made and are continuing to make to keep us a free and independent nation
Today, Russ’s mind and hearing are sound, but his sight and physical abilities are greatly reduced to the point that after more than 60 years of marriage, Russ and his wife Marj are no longer able to live out their lives together.
It is a lonely time for both of them as Marj continues to live in their apartment, while Russ is living at the Miller Alternative Care of Thorp, 104 Soderberg Dr., Room 12, Thorp, Wisconsin, 54771. I’m sure that cards and letters would go a long way towards brightening up Russ’s day.
James M. Campbell Sr. is a lifelong resident of Chippewa Falls. Reach him at jhcambel@cvol.net.
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