AUSTIN, Texas— Today, Texas Land Commissioner and Veterans Land Board (VLB) Chairwoman Dawn Buckingham, M.D., is proud to introduce the next installment of the series highlighting the VLB's Voices of Veterans oral history program. This week, we highlight the service of Quartermaster Clyde O. Combs, who served in the U.S. Navy.
Combs was born in Louisville, Kentucky, on September 15, 1924. His father worked for the railroad as a brakeman and tragically lost his arm on the job. Combs said that afterward, his father became a “bootlegger,” smuggling spirits from Canada, and moved the family to Indianapolis, where Combs went to high school.
Combs said the Great Depression was a “horrible… horrible” experience for his family and that the announcement that Pearl Harbor had been bombed was “a day that will go down in my memory log for sure [...] 10 o’clock in the morning, on a Sunday morning, and I remember that vividly.”
He joined the Navy in March 1943 and went to boot camp at Naval Station Great Lakes. During training, he was asked to use his artistic skills to make a large mural of a ship’s wheel for the boot camp. He often wrote to his mother, apologizing if he missed a week, and shared all of his experiences learning the ropes of the Navy.
After boot camp, Combs crossed the Atlantic aboard the SS Santiago tanker and arrived in Glasgow, Scotland, in May 1944. On June 4, 1944, just two days before D-Day, Combs arrived in Portland, England. On June 7, he reached the shores of France to support D-Day, where his boat, the PT-515, protected the west flank. He discussed losing a boat where all the men aboard were killed and said, “It could have been me, just as easy.” He also remembered seeing the famous World War II gliders being towed into battle filled with troops.
He recalled, “The sky was full of bombers, and each one was towing a glider. So, whenever they got inland, they would cut ‘em loose and they would circle down, no engine, just lookin’ for a place to land.” He could also still recall every letter of the flag signaling code he used as a Quartermaster in the Navy.
His ship was stationed at Utah Beach and worked to thwart interference. It was hit in the bow while in enemy territory, but was able to escape the area. He was also in close proximity to the historic Battleship Texas during the fight. Even though he was involved in one of the most revered days in American military history, Combs gave a genial chuckle when asked how he felt about going to war and said that it “was just a bad day at the office.”
Combs left the service in November 1945 and began working for General Motors. He also returned to school and helped design some of the first machinery to bury oil pipelines in ocean depths for refineries. He was married to his beloved wife for 58 years, and after her passing, he became an ADA-certified inspector, inspecting businesses and then drawing designs to help those that did not pass inspection come into compliance.
When asked what advice he would give to young people considering joining the military, Combs said, “The military is a good adventure, an exposure to the ‘rules of the road.’ It gives you a lot of experiences you wouldn’t have otherwise […] I have no regrets. I’ve lived a wonderful, wonderful, fruitful life.”
To listen to Quartermaster Clyde O. Combs tell his story, click the button below:
Quartermaster Clyde O. Combs's Story
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Veterans can email VoicesofVeterans@glo.texas.gov to tell their stories. Please note that the Veteran must be a resident of Texas at the time of their interview.
Voices of Veterans is a state agency's first Veteran oral history program. It records the stories of Texas Veterans through their time in service and after returning home from combat.
The VLB records interviews with Veterans over the phone or in person. Their interviews are then permanently archived in the Office of Veterans Records at the GLO, where they join the historical documents of other Texas heroes such as Sam Houston, Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie, and William Barret Travis.
Veterans' interviews are also available to researchers, historians, genealogists, and the public. These precious records inspire future generations and remind us of our Veterans' sacrifices.
To listen to the over 500 archived stories of Veterans documented through the GLO's Voices of Veterans oral history program, click the button below:
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Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, M.D., brings a lifetime of experience to the Texas General Land Office (GLO). In 2016, she became the first Republican elected to the Texas State Senate from Travis County and the first woman to represent Texas Senate District 24. She made history again in 2022, winning a statewide election to become our state’s first female Land Commissioner.