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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Marine Corps
  • Unit of Service: USS Northampton
  • Location of Service: Pacific; Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands)
  • Highest Rank: Corporal

View full service history

"It's a strange feeling to see the first enemy plane, really." (Audio interview, 24:44)

Ernest Phillips served in the Marine Corps for five years during WWII. A corporal stationed on the USS Northampton, he witnessed many major events, including the attack on Pearl Harbor and many of the naval battles associated with the Guadalcanal campaign. In his interview he vividly describes the night the Northampton was sunk by Japanese torpedoes at the Battle of Tassafaronga, and how he was thrown overboard and forced to swim to shore.

Ernest M. Phillips Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript: XML

About this Item

Title

  • Ernest M. Phillips Collection

Names

  • Phillips, Ernest M.
  • Legacies: Stories from the Second World War
  • David German
  • Swope, Thomas
  • National Court Reporters Association (NCRA)

State of Birth

  • AR

Home State

  • OH

Headings

  • -  Phillips, Ernest M.
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Marine Corps.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Marine Corps
    • Unit of Service: USS Northampton
    • Location of Service: Pacific; Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands)
    • Highest Rank: Corporal
    • Dates of Service: 1940-1945
    • Military Status: Veteran

Materials

  • Audio: CD [2 items] -- Reference copy (collected 01/01/2005)
  • Audio: Audio Cassette [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 01/28/2003)
  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of audio recording (collected 10/11/2005)
  • Computer File: Floppy Disk [1 item] -- Electronic file of manuscript (collected 10/11/2005)
  • Audio: Audio Cassette [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 09/16/2005)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/4404

Cite as

  • Ernest M. Phillips Collection (AFC/2001/001/4404), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • online text

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:

Phillips, Ernest M, Legacies: Stories From The Second World War, David German, Thomas Swope, and National Court Reporters Association. Ernest M. Phillips Collection. 1940. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.04404/.

APA citation style:

Phillips, E. M., Legacies: Stories From The Second World War, David German, Swope, T. & National Court Reporters Association. (1940) Ernest M. Phillips Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.04404/.

MLA citation style:

Phillips, Ernest M, et al. Ernest M. Phillips Collection. 1940. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.04404/>.