Oral History Project
The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum launched the Oral History Project in May 2013, with the goal of collecting the stories of those who served on board the historic aircraft carrier Intrepid from 1943 to 1974. The Museum also collects oral histories from people associated with the submarine Growler, the space shuttle orbiter Enterprise and the supersonic airliner Concorde.
The Intrepid Museum’s oral histories are a core component of the Museum’s collections and will be used to help educate generations of visitors. These interviews vividly depict triumphs, tragedies and even occasional comedies. They infuse passion and humanity into the technology on display at the Museum.
For more information about the Oral History Project, including research requests, please contact oralhistoryproject@intrepidmuseum.org. Reproductions of any materials in this database must be approved in advance.
The Intrepid Museum Oral History Project is generously supported by James L. Nederlander.
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Excerpts from the oral history collection
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Joseph Barry
Intrepid radioman, 1943–1946
Joseph Barry describes getting caught listening to music on the job.
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Bernard St. John
Intrepid aviator, squadron VT-18, 1944
Ben St. John describes torpedoing a Japanese minelayer, earning him the Distinguished Flying Cross.
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Raymond Stone
Intrepid radarman, 1943–1945
Ray Stone talks about the first time he saw USS Intrepid.
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Peter Weiland
Intrepid aviator, squadron VAW-12, 1958–1959
Pete Weiland remembers getting caught in a dangerous inverted spin.
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Larry Blackburn
Intrepid senior medical officer, 1965–1967
Larry Blackburn recalls a man overboard call that turned tragic.
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Robert Owens
Growler commanding officer,
1960–1963
Robert Owens describes the procedures for launching a Regulus I nuclear missile from Growler.
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Cornelius Brown
Growler engineman, 1958–1960
Cornelius Brown remembers a swim call being disrupted by sharks.
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Leslie Scott
Concorde pilot, 1994–2002
Leslie Scott describes flying back and forth across the Atlantic Ocean in a workday.
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Charles Bolden
NASA Administrator, 2009–2017
Charles Bolden remembers the person who inspired him to join the Space Shuttle Program.
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