James T. Dahlberg
Era: World War II
Military Branch: Army
James T. Dahlberg of Duluth, Minnesota, was inducted into the Army in
James T. Dahlberg of Duluth, Minnesota, was inducted into the Army in November of 1944. He served at the rank of technician 5th grade in the infantry with the 11th Airborne Division in the Philippines.
Of his experiences, he relates the following story: During convoy to Philippines, "we were rammed and disabled by one of our own ships in the convoy during a blackout. The rest of the convoy left us with one small destroyer for protection. All the troops on board were made to stand on one side of the ship so the damaged part on the opposite side could be temporarily repaired.
We then rejoined the convoy....Arriving in Manila we found that the Army didn't know anything about 25 of us who were not supposed to have been shipped overseas because we were too young. We were divided into two groups, half of us going into the First Cavalry, the other half into the 11th Airborne. I ended up in the 11th Airborne.
From Manila we went to Okinawa where I met my brother Paul, who was in the Air Force. There was quite a contrast in our living conditions. I was sleeping on the ground in a pup tent with ditches to try to keep out the water; Paul had a tent with a floor. I had K-rations. Paul and his Air Force buddies had regular cooked meals.
The peace treaty was signed while we were in Okinawa and we were among the first troops to land in Yokohama. It was eerie. Though it was a big city the streets were completely deserted.
Some of our troops got into some poisoned saki and a number died....I entrained to Sendai where I took my jump training. From Sendai I was posted to Sopporo on Hokaido, Japan's northernmost island.
With only a Japanese interpreter for company, traveling by jeep and train to seaports, my job was to see that all the Rising Sun flags were taken down and the Rising Sun symbol removed from all the boats. (My brothers all made it through safely, too)."
His awards include the:
Good Conduct Medal,
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Service Medal,
Army of Occupation Medal (Japan), Philippine Liberation Medal,
World War II Victory Medal.
"After two years of service, most of it in the Pacific and Japan, I was discharged in November of 1946 from Fort Sheridan, Ill."
Source: Hometown Heroes: The Saint Louis County World War II Project, page 64.
