Veterans Interview: Chuck Olmstead with Lt. Cmdr. David Ross
Chuck Olmstead interviews Patriot’s Landing resident David Ross, a retired lieutenant commander in the navy. He joined in the spring of 1943.
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*The following is the output of transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors.
This special answers for elders podcast honoring military veterans is sponsored by carriage. For more information about carriage, the website is sear EA gecom. My name is Chuck Holmstead and we’re at Patriots landing in Dupont Washington for answers for elders and with me today is David Ross. He’s retired Navy as a lieutenant commander and David, I want to welcome you to answers for elders. Thank you. Job Well, I love to hear some of the stories of of our veterans. And you were in the navy. What? What Year did you join the navy? There’s inn this spring of one thousand nine hundred forty three, right in the middle of World War II. Yes, so let’s let’s walk back a little bit. So had you? Had you gotten out of high school yet? Where you just graduated? What’s No, I graduated from high school in a class of forty one and Yakama. I see. What was life like in Yakama in the in the early days, in the late S, early S. well, it was starting to prosper then they were doing well. So the Depression was twenty nine, and so did they feel the effects of the depression as much in Yakama. That was more agricultural. So was it as tough in the early s? Yes, it certainly was. Hmm, I know the my fellow students. I can see that they were suffering. Uh Huh. What did your what did your family do for a living there in Yakama? My father was a building contractor. He built whole storage warehouses and fairly good sign of buildings. Yeah, so, and you graduated from High School from Yakma? Yes, nineteen forty one. Yeah, so what was that like in nineteen forty one? You would have graduated in the spring of forty one, probably. Yes, it was a June. In June and then December, seventh nineteen forty one. A Pearl Harbor. What was that day like for you? Well, it was a Sunday morning. I wasn’t attaining the University of Washington. Actually I was sleeping in that Sunday morning and I turned the radio on and heard the the Bob about the bombing and Pearl Harbor. By older oldest brother was there at that time. He was in heart and Pearl Harbor at the pace. Yes, he came through that. Okay, yes, yes, he came back and went into submarines and then they spent the Pacific and the submarine service and they Pacific area. MMM MMM, so you are U dubbed at the time. So you were there for another year, year and a half before you join the navy. Yes, tell me about that experience of joining the navy. Well, I wasn’t really anxious at the time, but I guess I was fortunate because when I went, when I reported in, I was asked if I wanted to go to navy, army or Marines, and I told him Navy because brother was in that. MMM. So what was your first assignment? Out of the out of boot camp, all of boat Campos to go to denvil aviation, was cheenus Maine School, and Norman Oklahoma, and then after that I went to gunnery school and Perceello Oklahoma, and after that I went to aircraft instrument school in Chicago and from there I was sent to Latha, Kansas, and enable our transport service. So you spent most of World War Two in the states. Yes, I did. I did well. You kept US safe. I guess you could say that. Yeah, I did have a submarine cruise, but it was on like Michigan. Interesting. So, and I’ve talked to a few folks. I mean I don’t think young people recognize or understand even even though the war was in the Pacific and over in Europe. Yet there was a lot of security. There were a lot of security because concerns along the coasts and along the waterways of concerns of submarines coming in or you know. Yes, yeah, they were a lot of worry about that. HMM. And I think there were incident in Oregon or there was some shells were allowed a showre but I wasn’t close to that. The Day of our triumsport service where I was and was there. The Navy had an airline that worked from Oakland, California to Patuck River, Maryland, and the where I was stationed in Alatha was the midpoint, the overhaul and the repair facility for the airline. Interesting. So you were basically an aircraft mechanic. Yes, hmmm, during the war. Yeah, what kind of planes? Well, we call them are Ford’s, the army columns, see forty seven. The subdia is called the DCTHREEC threes, and those were huge workhorses back in those days. Yes, they were. Yeah, in fact that maybe after were recording here. I’ll show you a picture of a a DC three, hundred refurbish DC three I was in a while back. That’s beautiful, beautiful plane. Really interesting. Well, yes, they were. However, along that line, I saw one several years after the war. That was what I could tell. The bureau number on it was still on it and it was being used as a tractor and the Antarctic. That taking the wings off and there we that skis on the set of wheels. Interesting. Well, I remember as a kid the the DC three. It was ozark airlines back in the Midwest and they were flying DC threes into our airport back in the late s and so you know, they those plane state in use for a long, long time and many, many years. Yeah, so what else did you do in the navy? Where else did you serve? Well, following what the end of the war came and I was released. I immediately joined the ready reserve and then I reported in and seattlets and point, the naval arter station there, and I belong to it, patro all squadron there. Tell us about sandpoint, because most people don’t. I mean they know it was a naval station, but they don’t really don’t know what that was all about back then. Well, I swa. It was nameles their Uh Huh, and did a lot of training there and I really I was there for nineteen years and a ready, ready resort. Interesting. So was there? I’m sure there was an airstrip then along there. Yes, you know. And so what were they landing there? What will kind of planes? Was a PBYS, the flying boat, and then we had trainer planet sn B’s and jrb’s, MMM and PV Towo’s, similar to what the lady that was lost in the old show, a miliere by the are heart. Yeah, like a merchant watching bed for so it is. How many years at standpoint then? I was up for nineteen years and while I was there, and then I went back to the University of Washington and I qualified for a commission and a lot of was commissioned in one thousand nine hundred and forty eight. I see forty eight. So you were you were served for several years as a commissioned officer. Yes, in the navy. Yeah, it. So how long did sandpoint then stay as an active naval base? Well, it’s still active. Of A lie. When I retired in one thousand nine hundred and sixty six. But then they started moving them reserve components to whidby island. And but then I was clear out of the picture of that because I was leaving living in eastern Washington at that time, so I didn’t keep up with what was going on a sound point. MMM MMM. So you were as a reservist then? So that was what once one weekend a month, that type of a thing. Yes, when we came a month and then we did two weeks trading during the summer usually, and then I took some extra maintenance. AFTS are class of in California. HMM. So what did you do during your your weekdays then? Were you as far as you know, as an occupation? Yeah, occupation, I was a banker. Interesting. Yeah, how many years as a banker? Thirty eight. Do Your Rader Bank and mostly beginning it was a national bankup commerce that or what it became, changing the name to rain are MMM. And then I there were various acquisitions and mergers and I retired from Security Pacific of a lot Sa Angeles. I remember that bank well. When you do? Yeah, my brother worked for Security Pacific in Los Angeles and and when we first moved here in one thousand nine hundred and ninety. There are. It was swell, see, first bank, which was Security Pacific. Right, it wasn’t that a sea first? Well, I was after after I had to retire. Uh Huh. Actually, I’m a bank of America. Retire now. Yes, I was inherited by them. Yeah, yeah, be of a so well, interesting. So what would you say was probably an experience out of the Navy that was the most memorable for you? Do you have one in particular? Oh, no, Evin’s no more going with. Well, I sort of enjoyed the submarine crews on Lake Michigan, I guess. So there was a new boat. It was a hard head and it had been launched. It Mount to walk wisconsint, MMM, and my brother was one of the diving officer. I think he wasn’t, and so he had ranged so I could go on and that cruise. Uh Huh. So go for a couple days, just on a trial runner, just one day, just one day. It’s just out, out and back. Huh. If well, you’re not going to go super deep in Lake Michigan? No, I well, I don’t know how deep we went, but mousn’t too dramatic. Yeah, I don’t think I would do well in submarines. Well, do you have no sensation because you can’t see no windows? You can’t see what’s going on outside? I don’t know. Yeah, yeah, I guess. I think you have to kind of a special personality for that. So what brought you here to Patriots landing? How long have you been here? At? Three years? At three years, little over three or yeah, what made you decide on this place? Well, quite frankly, it was a par Sabity to Maddigan and the exchange and the commissary. MMM, MMM, that was important. Yeah, yeah, well, I’ve, you know, had to have interviewed lots of veterans here at at Patriots landing and I appreciate the the heritage that is here and the respect that they have for veterans and it’s good place. So well, I’ve been speaking with David Ross. He’s retired Navy rank Lieutenant Commander from the Navy and serve twenty three years with the navy. And David, I want to thank you for joining me today on chest roads. Thank you to tell it this has been a special honoring veterans, presentation of answers for elders, brought to you by carriage. For more information about carriage, the website is cur agecom
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Originally published December 08, 2018