Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans
4:30 | Bill Sperry recalls the last big dogfight in the skies above Guadalcanal. The sky was filled with enemy planes and a lot of them were shot down. This interrupted his daily routine of running the carpentry shop and improving the living arrangements.
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He had grown up in his father's construction business, so when the sergeant challenged the new Marines to build decks for their tents, Bill Sperry knocked it out in just one hour. That sealed his fate. From then on, he was the carpenter.
Once Henderson Field on Guadalcanal was secure, the 1st Marine Air Wing, which included Pappy Boyington and the Black Sheep, moved to the island and began to operate there. Bill Sperry was in charge of construction and carpentry, which was difficult since they were bombed almost daily. He vividly recalls a night time air raid that came at an awkward moment.
Mosquitoes were a constant problem on Guadalcanal, not to mention the constant bombing and shelling, recalls Bill Sperry. After a heavy bombardment, he returned to his cot to find his mosquito netting full of mosquitoes. When he found out why, he felt really lucky.
From his post at the Marine air field on Guadalcanal, Bill Sperry rushed down to the dock to visit with his brother, whose ship was tied up and unloading. He went aboard ship and was pleased with the good food but less than pleased when the air raid came.
He caught a piece of shrapnel in his eye shortly before coming home from Guadalcanal. Bill Sperry says, "So I got a scar on my eyeball, America's still free." Before he was free from the service, though, he had to crate up some war clubs collected in the islands, then, once home, his final contribution to America's defense came in the form of foot lockers.
