Papers and photographs, 1942-1998.

ArchivalResource

Geishirt, Kenneth W., 1921-. Papers and photographs, 1942-1998.

Papers and photographs, 1942-1998.

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/299602059

Assorted materials relating to the service of Kenneth W. Geishirt, a Watertown, Wisconsin native who served during World War II as a mechanic and gunner with the 42nd Bombardment Squadron, 11th Bomb Group (H) in the Pacific Theater (Pearl Harbor, Hawaii). Manuscripts include copies of service records, a temporary pass for Hickam Field, a certificate for promotion to private first class, a list of medals and awards he was authorized to wear, and documentation of Geishirt being awarded the Air Medal. Also included is a copy of a list of B-17 bombers lost up to 1943, apparently from the 11th Bomb Group. Of particular interest is a copy of a mission log from the 26th Squadron that includes an account of an American bomber being rammed by a Japanese fighter, after the fighter took fire from American gunners. This could be connected to an account provided by Geishert during an oral history interview at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum (OH 109) which he mentions witnessing a similar collision. Photographs include Geishirt being awarded a medal by a commanding officer, two portraits with fellow crew members, images of Geishirt posing at various bases in the Pacific, and a reunion photograph taken at March Field, California in 1993. Of particular interest is a photograph of a propaganda pamphlet that was dropped on Mili Island to encourage Japanese troops to surrender. A video of the 1998 reunion ceremony and a narrated documentary presented by the 11th Bombardment Group (H) Assocaiation are also included.

Papers : 0.1 linear ft. (1 folder) and.Photographs : (2 folders) and.Paper prints : (1 folder)Videorecordings: 2 videocassettes (140 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in.

Wisconsin Veterans Museum Research Center