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Collection Veterans History Project Collection

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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • Service History Note: The veteran was a Naval Chaplain.
  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Navy
  • Unit of Service: USS Thurston; USS Currituck (AV 7)
  • Location of Service: Corpus Christi, Texas; Philippines; European Theater; Korea; Japan; New Guinea
  • Highest Rank: Lieutenant Commander

View full service history

"In the thick of the storm, the Captain called down to me from his cabin and said, 'Chaplain, if you have ever prayed in your life, do so now.'" (Memoir, page 15)

In James Crawley's memoir, which he also reads on camera for his "interview," he talks about enlisting in 1942 to fulfill his Boy Scout's oath of serving God (he was already a minister) and his country. His seagoing adventures as a chaplain consisted of a series of voyages that transported troops to the European or the Pacific Theater, then returned home with either prisoners or war or injured Americans. On any voyage, he made himself available to all soldiers, no matter what their nationality. Though Crawley was rarely on land to experience combat, he had several close calls amid stormy seas and once with a slightly off-target torpedo.

More Resources

View 16 images in sequence.
[ Memoirs of Rev. James W. Crawley, USN (1942-1945) ]

About this Item

Title

  • James Woodrow Crawley Collection

Names

  • self-interview
  • Crawley, James Woodrow
  • Crawley, James

State of Birth

  • NC

Home State

  • SC

Headings

  • -  Crawley, James Woodrow
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Navy.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • White

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Service History Note: The veteran was a Naval Chaplain.
    • Branch of Service: Navy
    • Unit of Service: USS Thurston; USS Currituck (AV 7)
    • Location of Service: Corpus Christi, Texas; Philippines; European Theater; Korea; Japan; New Guinea
    • Highest Rank: Lieutenant Commander
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1945
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: Veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Memoirs [1 item] -- (collected 5/3/2005)
  • Photograph: Copy photographic print [9 items] -- Photograph (collected unknown)
  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 04/26/2005)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/27779

Cite as

  • James Woodrow Crawley Collection (AFC/2001/001/27779), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

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:

Self-Interview, James Woodrow Crawley, and James Crawley. James Woodrow Crawley Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.27779/.

APA citation style:

Self-Interview, Crawley, J. W. & Crawley, J. (1942) James Woodrow Crawley Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.27779/.

MLA citation style:

Self-Interview, James Woodrow Crawley, and James Crawley. James Woodrow Crawley Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.27779/>.