Carson Eugene Smith
| "When we came back to the United States with German prisoners, this one captain...said, 'It's nice that you were nice to us because when we win the war and you come over here, we'll be nice to you' ". |
Name: Carson Eugene Smith Date of Birth: 1/24/20 Branch of Service: Army attached to Navy Dates of Service: June 1942 to January 1946 Location of Military Service: Atlantic, North Africa, Mediterranean, Pacific, Korea, China |
Mr. Smith was drafted into the United States Army in 1942. He went to Radio School at Camp Crowder, Missouri. He was assigned to the US Signal Corps and attached to the Navy on the U.S.S. Biscayne as a T/4 (Sergeant Technician). This ship had both Army and Navy personnel on board. He went to Sicily for 2 weeks and then the ship carried Italian and German prisoners back to the United States. After Sicily, Mr. Smith went to Southern France on a mock invasion to draw some of the enemy away from Normandy. He then went back to the states for R and R and from there, he went through the Panama Canal to the Pacific. He was involved in the invasion of Iwo Jima, Saipan Islands, Okinawa, and the Philippines. He received the Good Conduct Award, Purple Heart, and a Commendation award for Service in Amphibious Assault in the Pacific. |
The following pictures are drawings that Mr. Smith made during his time in the service. They are his impressions of the places and people he saw. |
 Southern France |
 Algiers |
 Sleeping conditions aboard the ship |
 Rock of Gibraltar The white panels along the side are for collecting drinking water from rainfall. |
 Natives and Europeans in North Africa |
 Iwo Jima Mr. Smith was there as the flag was planted, leading to the famous image depicting the flag raising. |
