"We saw a mess…" (Video interview, 10:28)

Jim Ralph Beigh

Jim Beigh [detail from video] War: World War, 1939-1945 Branch: Navy Unit: USS Memphis-IV; USS Wright, Seaplane Tender (AV)-1; USS Breckenridge; USS Estes, Amphibious Force Flagship (AGC)-12; Air Squadron 12 Service Location: Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Pensacola, Florida (photography school); Maine; San Francisco; Philippines Rank: Chief Aerial Photographer Place of Birth: Potter Valley, CA

On December 7th, Jim Beigh was aboard the USS Wright, steaming back to Pearl Harbor after delivering cargo and Marines to Wake Island. In the days that followed, he would confront not only the carnage of the attack, but a huge new set of responsibilities: after his entire division was transferred to Ford Island, he was left aboard ship to train a crew to man the anti-aircraft guns. Later on in the war, he was sent to photography school to learn how to shoot cameras instead of guns, eventually becoming a Chief Aerial Photographer.