Oral History Interview with Alex Trentoff

Oral History Interview with Alex Trentoff

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Description

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Alex Trentoff. Trentoff was born to Russian parents who immigrated to Yap during the Russian Civil War. He recalls his childhood in Chamorro Bay as peaceful and easy. His family tended livestock and the island had a rich agricultural foundation. He worked as a domestic servant for a Japanese military officer who may have been an American spy. He remembers hearing the officer speak English with his parents during evening visits. Trentoff followed instructions to lay certain-colored pieces of laundry in specific formations in the field by the … continued below

Physical Description

64 p.

Creation Information

Trentoff, Alex Creation Date: Unknown.

Context

This text is part of the collection entitled: National Museum of the Pacific War Oral History Collection and was provided by the National Museum of the Pacific War/Admiral Nimitz Foundation to The Portal to Texas History, a digital repository hosted by the UNT Libraries. More information about this text can be viewed below.

Interviewee

Trentoff, Alex

Interviewers

Publisher

National Museum of the Pacific War
Place of Publication: Fredericksburg, Texas

Audiences

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Provided By

National Museum of the Pacific War/Admiral Nimitz Foundation

Established in 1967, the Museum honors the 8 million Americans who served in WWII in the Pacific Theater by sharing their stories with the world. Located in Fredericksburg in the restored Nimitz "Steamboat" Hotel, the Museum partners with the Texas Historical Commission to preserve the historical resources of the era.

Description

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Alex Trentoff. Trentoff was born to Russian parents who immigrated to Yap during the Russian Civil War. He recalls his childhood in Chamorro Bay as peaceful and easy. His family tended livestock and the island had a rich agricultural foundation. He worked as a domestic servant for a Japanese military officer who may have been an American spy. He remembers hearing the officer speak English with his parents during evening visits. Trentoff followed instructions to lay certain-colored pieces of laundry in specific formations in the field by the officer’s house. He would often see the officer climb a mountain wearing all white so that he would be plainly visible to American planes. The officer’s home was never bombed or came under machine gun fire, despite the rest of the valley being decimated. He also went past the reef and left handwritten messages in a bottle daily. When the war ended, the officer disappeared with American troops and was never seen again. Trentoff trained with the American Navy at Yap, and although he enjoyed the work a great deal, the salaries paid to Chamorros were too low. The cost of living rose with the establishment of the Trust Territory, but Trentoff was still eventually able to retire after working for many years in the construction industry.

Physical Description

64 p.

Subjects

Keywords

Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms

Library of Congress Subject Headings

World War, 1939-1945

University of North Texas Libraries Browse Structure

Language

English

Item Type

Text

Identifier

Unique identifying numbers for this text in the Portal or other systems.

Accession or Local Control No: OH00591
Archival Resource Key: ark:/67531/metapth1604062

Relationships

Oral History Interview with Alex Trentoff - ark:/67531/metapth1607874

Collections

This text is part of the following collections of related materials.

National Museum of the Pacific War Oral History Collection

This oral history collection depicts an instrumental era in American history. In these transcripts of interviews with World War II veterans are personal experiences with the war, from the Doolittle Raid and D-Day to the Battle for Bataan.

National Museum of the Pacific War Digital Archive

The Digital Archive presents digitized collections from the Center for Pacific War Studies collections at the National Museum of the Pacific War. Collections and material are continuously being added and represent only a small portion of the archives' physical holdings.

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