Forth to the mighty conflict: Alabama and World War II

503 Pages·1995·2.62 MB·English

by  Allen Cronenberg

Forth to the Mighty Conflict : Alabama and
title:
World War II
author: Cronenberg, Allen.
publisher: University of Alabama Press
isbn10 | asin: 0817307370
print isbn13: 9780817307370
ebook isbn13: 9780585215341
language: English
World War, 1939-1945--Alabama,
subject
Alabama--History--1819-1950.
publication date: 1995
lcc: D769.85.A2C76 1995eb
ddc: 940.53/761
World War, 1939-1945--Alabama,
subject:
Alabama--History--1819-1950.
Page i
Forth to the Mighty Conflict
Page ii
(ADDSCO Collection, University of South Alabama Archives)
Page iii
Forth to the Mighty Conflict
Alabama and World II
Allen Cronenberg
The University of Alabama Press
Tuscaloosa & London
Page iv
Copyright © 1995
The University of Alabama Press
Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35487-0380
All rights reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
designed by zig zeigler
The paper on which this book is printed meets the minimum
requirements of American National Standard for Information Science-
Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1984
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Cronenberg, Allen, 1940-
Forth to the mighty conflict: Alabama and
World War II / Allen Cronenberg.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8173-0737-0
1. World War, 19391945Alabama. 2. AlabamaHistory18191950. I. Title.
D769.85.A2C76 1994
940.53'761dc20 94-7603
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data Available
Page v
I dedicate this book to my mother,
Virginia Cobb Cronenberg,
who understands the importance of remembering
the wartime experience of the men and women
of her generation,
and to the memory of my father,
A. Thomson Cronenberg (190379).
Page vii
Contents
Preface ix
One 1
The Eve of War
Two 8
The United States Goes to War
Three 19
Alabama Goes to War
Four 36
Alabama's Military Camps
Five 47
Producing for Victory
Six 60
Governing Alabama
Seven 73
The War and Society
Eight 94
Prisoners of War
Nine 109
Liberating Europe
Ten 125
Alabama and the War at Sea
Eleven 137
Capturing the Pacific
Twelve 161
The End of the War
Appendix 167
Alabama's War Heroes
Notes 175
Bibliography 201
Index 213
Page ix
Preface
This book is about the profound effects of World War II on Alabama
and the contributions the people of the state made to Allied victory
over the Axis powers. Initially, it was conceived as an extended essay
to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of Alabama's role in World
War II. It was to be written for the Auburn University Center for the
Arts and Humanities, which, under the energetic leadership of Leah
Rawls Atkins and with a grant from the Alabama Humanities
Foundation, launched a year-long public history program entitled
"World War II: A Time Remembered." My appointment as scholar in
residence at the humanities center in 199192 enabled me to complete
the research for this manuscript and to begin writing. As the project
matured, however, it became clear that the subject of Alabama's role
in World War II deserved more than a brief essay.
Although World War II was a watershed event, especially for the
American South and West, few regional or state histories of the war's
impact exist. This study seeks to fill partially that void. Although
monuments to the pastlike the patriotic granite tablets and columns
standing sentry on the lawns of virtually every county seat in the
United Statesare important, this book seeks to transcend the mere
memorialization of World War II.
The title of this book, Forth to the Mighty Conflict, comes from the
second verse of a zealous Protestant hymn, "Stand Up, Stand Up, for
Jesus." To my mind, World War II assumed something of the character
of a crusade. Filled with righteousness, nearly all Americans felt
obligated to do their share to vanquish the foes. The nation's sense of
purpose and solidarity justified the war's burdens and sacrifices. The
mighty conflict did not end in 1945. It is not ended yet. Victory over
tyranny and inhumanity abroad hastened the onset of equally
momentous moral struggles for equality at home.
This book about Alabama and World War II came about almost
accidentally. By birth, I am a North Carolinian who even after more
than a quarter century of living in Alabama still retains a strong sense
of identity with his home state. Moreover, most of my professional
life has centered on European and global history. But a 1984
Independence Day