Robert Buchanan

 

War: World War II

 

Branch of Service:  Army

 

Rank: Private

 

Date of Service: March 28 1946- Dec 1946

 

Theater of  Operations: Asiatic-Pacific  (Japan)

 

Pages authored  by fifth grade Yancey County Schools Fifth Grade Students

Special thanks to:

 French Broad Electric’s Bright Ideas Grant

Yancey County Schools Foundation Grant

2007—2008

My grandmother’s father, Robert Buchanan, was drafted into the military when he was 19 years old.  At the time, he was living with his grandparents and caring for them on Double Island Road in Yancey County. 

 

           He did not choose the branch of service he was placed in, and he never really did tell my grandmother about his early days in the military, except for how hard boot camp was.  It was also hard for him, because he had to be away from his grandparents.

 

           Robert enjoyed the rifle range part of his training, because he liked to hunt when he was home.  Robert never talked about his instructor.  He got through his time in service because he had a strong will, was a very hard worker, and was always able to complete anything he started. 

 

           He served with the military police as a policeman in the Asiatic Pacific Theater of Operations, Yokohama, Japan.  It was not a difficult assignment, because it was not in a war zone at that time.  He also did not talk about his duties in the military police. 

 

           The day his service ended he got a hardship discharge, so he could go home to continue caring for his grandparents.  He was at Camp Beale, California on December 6, 1946 when his service ended. 

 

           Afterwards, he went to work in a feldspar mine and later worked for Deneen Mica Company as a truck driver.  Then on September 28, 1959, he sadly passed away.  Being so far from home during the war and seeing different cultures made him appreciate the freedom we have in the United States.