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Collection Veterans History Project Collection

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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Navy
  • Unit of Service: USS Sims (DD 409)
  • Location of Service: Atlantic; English Channel; European Theater; Iwo Jima; Japan; Pacific Theater
  • Highest Rank: Steward Third Class

View full service history

"When you [went] to the South Pacific at that time, you knew you would not be back until it was over." (Video interview, 9:25)

Steward Third Class Charles E. Warford got his greetings from Uncle Sam in September of 1943, and was assigned to the Navy. As a Steward Third Class, his primary role was as a mess attendant, the standard role for most African Americans throughout the war, but he also served as the loader on a 40mm gun. During his time in the Pacific, his ship, the USS Sims, took part in the Battle of Okinawa and weathered multiple kamikaze attacks. Between battle fatigue and casualties, by the end of the war, many of his fellow crewmembers were strangers to him.

About this Item

Title

  • Charles E. Warford Collection

Names

  • KACV-TV
  • Lutz, Cullen
  • Warford, Charles E.

State of Birth

  • TX

Home State

  • TX

Headings

  • -  Warford, Charles E.
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Navy.

Form

  • DVD

Extent

  • 1 item

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • Black or African American

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Navy
    • Unit of Service: USS Sims (DD 409)
    • Location of Service: Atlantic; English Channel; European Theater; Iwo Jima; Japan; Pacific Theater
    • Highest Rank: Steward Third Class
    • Dates of Service: 1943-1945
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: Veteran

Materials

  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 10/03/2007)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/64373

Cite as

  • Charles E. Warford Collection (AFC/2001/001/64373), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Kacv-Tv, Cullen Lutz, and Charles E Warford. Charles E. Warford Collection. 1943. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.64373/.

APA citation style:

Kacv-Tv, Lutz, C. & Warford, C. E. (1943) Charles E. Warford Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.64373/.

MLA citation style:

Kacv-Tv, Cullen Lutz, and Charles E Warford. Charles E. Warford Collection. 1943. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.64373/>.