Joe Baringer World War II Interview

Joe Baringer World War II Interview

World War, 1939-1945 -- United States.

United States -- History, Military.

United States. Army. Airborne Division, 101st -- History.

World War, 1939-1945 -- Veterans -- Interviews.

Lawrence (Kan.) -- History.

Lawrence (Kan.) -- Oral history.

World War, 1930-1945 -- Campaigns -- France -- Normandy.

World War, 1939-1945 -- Campaigns -- Belgium -- Bastogne.

Joseph "Joe" Baringer served in the Army (101st Airborne Division) from 1941 to 1945. Interviewed by Pattie Johnston on October 1, 2007, Baringer talks about his experiences during the Second World War. Baringer was born on February 21, 1918, in New Paris, Indiana. Baringer attended the University of Indiana in Wilmington and graduated with a business degree in 1940. He was drafted into the Army on April 9, 1941. Between 1941 and 1943, Baringer spent time at Camp Shelby in Hattiesburg, MS and Fort Bragg, CA. In 1943, Baringer deployed to Liverpool, England. While waiting to enter France, Baringer played the trumpet for his company's dance band. On June 7, 1944, the second day of the D-Day invasion, Baringer entered Normandy by glider. He talked about what it was like to be on the glider with eight other soldiers, and their trek from the Mourmelon-le-Grand quarters to Bastogne. Upon being rescued by General Patton during the Battle of the Bulge, Baringer was sent to Lake Geneva. He was there when the Germans surrendered and was instructed to march with the German prisoners. He talked about their interactions and discussed visiting Adolf Hitler's hideout, in which he and his fellow soldiers took some souvenirs, including salt and pepper shakers. Throughout his service, Baringer rose to the rank of Sergeant and received the Purple Heart. He was discharged at Fort Wayne, IN in September 1945. Baringer then worked at Standard Oil (Amoco) and spent the rest of his career there, retiring in 1978. He passed away on July 17, 2012, in Lawrence, Kansas.

Baringer, Joe

Kansas Veterans of World War II Oral History Project / Lawrence Remembers: The World War II Years Project

Lawrence Public Library (Lawrence, Kan.)

2007-10-1

Johnston, Pattie

Kansas State Historical Society

The original copy of this video is available through the Lawrence Public Library. The Watkins Museum of History and the Kansas State Historical Society also have interviews associated with this project, which was funded through a grant program passed by the Kansas State Legislature in 2005. Researchers are responsible for obtaining any necessary permissions for uses other than educational or scholarly research. Contact the Watkins Museum of History for additional information: https://www.watkinsmuseum.org/

To access the video recording of this oral history, go to: https://archive.org/details/baringer-interview

Obituary: https://www.tributes.com/obituary/show/Joseph-Joe-Baringer-94143521

The Watkins Museum of History also holds items related to this collection.

Transcripts for this project are available through the Kansas Memory Digital Collection: https://www.kansasmemory.org/item/211936

Other resources for interviews with World War II veterans are available through the Library of Congress' Veterans History Project: https://www.loc.gov/vets/vets-home.htm

MP4

eng

Oral History

Baringer Interview

Europe

1918 - 2007

VHS

0:44:27

317 kbit/s (audio)

10316 kbit/s (video)

Johnston, Pattie

Baringer, Joe

Lawrence (Kan.)