Interview with Conulus Scott, March 18, 2015

Partial Transcript: So Mr. Scott, where were you born?

Segment Synopsis: Scott describes growing up in Madison County, Georgia in the 1920s. He talks about attending school until 8th grade and working on his family's farm. He discusses being drafted into the military in 1942. He describes serving over three years in the Medical Corps where he took care of the wounded and the dead. He also highlights the danger of German submarines, recalling collecting bodies after submarine attacks and being attacked on his journey to Europe.

Keywords: France; Germany; Scotland; United States Sugar Corporation; World War Two (WWII); agriculture; education

Partial Transcript: In your group, was it just all Black?

Segment Synopsis: Scott describes being in an all-Black unit of the Medical Corps and talks about training at a segregated Fort Meade. He discusses the long boat journey to Europe, mentioning how the ship was integrated but individual companies were segregated. Scott explains how the hospital staff were also segregated, mentioning how he took care of both Black and white patients. He also talks about guarding German troops during the Nuremberg trials.

Keywords: medical care; prisoners of war; racial discrimination; racial tensions; war

Partial Transcript: There was a D-Day--you remember that's when jumped over in France from England.

Segment Synopsis: Scott describes alternating between guard duty and hospital work during World War II. He discusses guarding German prisoners and caring for the wounded after the Normandy landings. Scott talks about the first wave of D-Day causalities, describing sending wounded sailors and some of the bodies back to the United States. He also talks about air raids and living in tents.

Keywords: airplanes; bombs; death; fox holes; medical care; prisoners of war

Partial Transcript: How did you feel after you discovered that the war was over?

Segment Synopsis: Scott describes his excitement when the war was over. He talks about traveling back to Georgia. He discusses farming, attending school on the G.I. Bill, working at a sugar mill in Florida, and becoming a plumber. Scott describes working as a plumber until he was 94.

Keywords: Pacific War; World War II (WWII); employment; peace; retirement; veteran

Partial Transcript: When you were a farmer, before you left for the war, what crops did you farm?

Segment Synopsis: Scott talks about farming cotton, corn, wheat, and oats before and after the war with his family. He describes seasonally working in a sugar mill in Florida and becoming an operator. He mentions how the mill hired both Black and white employees but was still segregated. He talks about attending school for farming on the G.I. Bill, and he mentions getting veteran's assistance.

Keywords: Aid And Attendance Benefits; Clewiston, Florida; Royston. Georgia; United States Department of Veterans Affairs; United States Sugar Corporation; agriculture; employment; wages

Partial Transcript: Well I've got a couple more sort of smaller questions.

Segment Synopsis: Scott describes the food he ate in the army. He talks about the difficulty of caring for the dead. Scott discusses talking with German prisoners and attempting to learn German. He also describes learning about the end of WWII in France, recalling the excited reactions of French citizens.

Keywords: English; causalities; communication; language; prisoners of war

Partial Transcript: Well those are all of my questions today.

Segment Synopsis: Scott describes hearing about concentration camps but never visiting one. He talks about being stationed in Nuremberg for the trials. Scott discusses the trial and death of Hermann Göring. He also describes the weather in Europe.

Keywords: England; Holocaust; Russia; nurses; prisoners of war; suicide