GASTON COUNTY, N.C. — Two Gaston County men say they were drafted as teenagers in World War II, as the U.S. made plans to invade Japan.
But that invasion never happened.
On this Veterans Day, they spoke with Channel 9’s Ken Lemon, reflecting on the final days of the war.
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James Crawford, 98, sat at the front of a Cramerton Church as the honor guard marched by on the 11th day of the 11th month at 11:11 a.m.
“Make you feel proud,” Crawford said.
Crawford was working in a Gaston County mill at 18 years old. Robert Moss was working at a gas station. The U.S. Army drafted both men with another job in mind.
“They done told us, we are going to invade Japan,” Moss said.
The men were at two different military bases preparing for one of the most dangerous jobs for any soldier.
“I didn’t really realize what I was getting into,” Crawford said.
Both men say they and their fellow soldiers were barely out of high school and ready to go, despite the reality of war.
“You know you are going to get killed probably anyhow,” Moss said.
As Crawford and Moss trained for the ground invasion, the top-secret Manhattan Project was complete. The U.S. dropped two atom bombs on Japan, killing scores of civilians and forever changing warfare.
“Nobody ever heard tell of [an] atomic bomb then,” Moss said.
Word of an end to the war came on what should have been Moss’ last night on guard duty before deployment.
“If I had been in it, I probably wouldn’t be here today,” Moss said.
Moss is turning 100 later this month.
The town of McAdenville has declared that day Robert Moss Day, honoring one of the few living veterans of the war to changed the lives of every person who will wear a uniform.
“There ain’t many left. They all gone. I’m lucky to be here,” Moss said.
Crawford says when he wears his hat, other veterans and people show their appreciation.
“When you are in a restaurant eating, somebody will come over and pick up your tab,” Crawford said.
They remember those lost in battle and those ready to fight, and the aging who pass peacefully after service.
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Moss was deployed to Italy to help guard German prisoners of war.
He said he sees tourism videos of the beautiful towns that he remembers as piles of debris. Then he thinks war is painful, but not always permanent.
According to the National World War Two Museum, there are roughly 30,000 veterans still alive. More than 16 million people fought in the war.
About 1,300 World War II veterans are still living in the Carolinas.