Page 2

Green
ILL 16
LL

For Cornelius Ryan
Book about D-Day

THOUSANDS OF MEN, ON LAND AND SEA AND IN THE AIR, PARTICIPATED IN THE
INVASION OF NORMANDY BETWEEN MIDNIGHT JUNE 5, 1944 AND MIDNIGHT JUNE
6, 1944. IF YOU WERE ONE OF THEM, PLEASE ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS.

What is your full name?
Wendell L. Hoppler

What was your unit and division?
USS LST [crossed out]%1%[end crossed out] 515

Where did you arrive in Normandy, and at what time?
Utah Beach Our load was taken off about 4pm on June 6 but I believe
we were to be unloaded much earlier.

What was your rank on June 6, 1944?
Quartermaster 3rd class

What was your age on June 6, 1944?
18

Were you married at that time?
no
What is your wife's name ?
Mary Helen
Did you have any children at that time ?
no

What do you do now?
Agency Instructor for New York Life insurance Company

When did you know that you were going to be part of the invasion?
I picked up mu LST while it was still on the ways at Seneca, Illinois
shipyard. [crossed out]XX[end crossed out] To the best of my knowledge there were only three men
in our community that picked up an LST in this area and rode it all the
way to France on D Day. When I opened the charts in Seneca before (See over)

What was the trip like during the crossing of the Channel? Do you remember,
for example, any conversations you had or how you passed the time?
Choppy weather, very overcast.

What were the rumors on board the boat, ship or plane in which you made
the crossing? (Some people remember scuttlebut to the effect that the
Germans had poured gasoline on the water and planned to set it afire when
the troops came in).
My greatest fear was in the rumors of the Anti Tank, and Anti ship
mines planted on the beach.