WWII Mountain Memories:
Home Front to the Frontline
Testimonies of WWII Veterans and Civilians from Western North Carolina

Mrs. Colton graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in December 1942. From there she joined the Army Signal Corps as a translator because of her foreign language background. She had come very close to joining the WAVES but decided that she really liked Washington, DC and wanted to work there. Coincidentally she was recruited by a Lieutenant Fox who had graduated from Asheville School.

She was sent to Washington, DC in late 1942 and stayed there until Sept. 1943. While in Washington she lived in a dormitory in Arlington Farms and worked at Arlington Hall. Arlington Hall was a Signal Corps language training center. Sixty years later Mrs. Colton’s own daughter trained in a foreign language in the same building in Arlington Hall in which she had trained in 1943. Mrs. Colton worked in the Spanish Dept. translating decoded documents from Spain. Spain was neutral during the war but had good relations with the Axis Powers and useful intelligence could be gleaned by breaking her codes and reading the messages. Mrs. Colton’s work was sensitive and she was considered a “spy” by the Signal Corps who gave her a codename, X-23, with which to sign her reports.

 During her time there Mrs. Colton did not translate any “hot reports” about troop movements but did recall one important message that referred to the meeting at Yalta between Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin. Madrid was one of the only ways for all of the Axis powers to communicate so it was important to read the messages going to and form there. Many dealt with Axis shipping in South America and the many diplomatic outposts maintained there by the Axis.

 One day while she was decoding documents using a device that incorporated a cipher, obtained through espionage means, to translate four digit numbers into words the device “stopped working”. Mrs. Colton realized that the Spanish had changed the cipher and the decoding device wouldn’t work without a new one. She put in a request for a new cipher and a short time later received a photograph on her desk. The photo was of a very hairy man’s hand (Mrs. Colton assumed this was an employee of the Spanish Embassy) holding the cipher so that an accomplice could take a photo of it. His watch read 3am!   It was a very exciting glimpse into the world of espionage!

In September 1943 Mrs. Colton married Henry Colton. She left Washington, DC to move to Florida where he was completing training as a naval aviator. In the spring of 1944 he left for England. Mrs. Colton recalls that it was “the worst day of my life. I couldn’t even look at him.” While Mr. Colton was overseas Mrs. Colton moved back to Chapel Hill to live with her mother.

 She described life in Chapel Hill at that time; “Everything was rationed- shoes, butter, sugar. I had a lot of friends there so we’d get together but our letters were censored and parts were cut out…We knew the attack was coming from England to the coast of Europe. It was pretty nerve-wracking.” To occupy her time during this trying period Mrs. Colton played bridge, watched movies and visited her in-laws in Nashville, Tennessee. She recalls getting a telegram from her husband explaining that his brother, an Army Air Force pilot, had been shot down and killed over Germany. Later she worried about Mr. Colton being transferred to the Pacific for the invasion of Japan but fortunately that never occurred.

 Mrs. Colton also had a brother who flew with the Army Air Force in the Aleutian Islands where the weather was as much a risk as the Japanese. He was told that if his plane went down in the freezing water he would have about a minute to live. Her brother in law, Mr. Colton’s younger brother, served in Europe and was slightly wounded. When they wrote letters Mr. Colton was very careful not to romanticize the war. He was believed that it was dangerous for people to have that kind of notion.

 In September 1944, Mr. Colton returned home. Mrs. Colton met him in Raleigh with her mother and aunt. They had brought a wonderful meal and were surprised when Mr. Colton arrived with armfuls of C and K rations that the troops eat in the field. He had crossed the Atlantic on the ocean liner Queen Mary, then in use as a troop transport. They had been issued the rations in case the ship was torpedoed! Fortunately he also brought back other presents from Europe; a cashmere sweater from Scotland, a leather purse and bonnet among others.

 Mrs. Colton’s experience in the war and even before led her to believe that we should seek other means of resolving our disputes. She remembered back to the 7^th Grade when she watched All Quiet on the Western Front and thought it was “the worst thing that could happen to anyone.” Her experiences in World War Two only reinforced the belief that we should teach peace and negotiating skills in School. She also believes that the UN has a role to play in keeping the peace and in fact served as a delegate to the UN Commission on the Status of Women and attended a UNESCO meeting in Paris.
 

Most exciting of all, was one day I came —nothing translated................ the working words had a 4 digit number so they would put them all into this numerical thing like a long line across a telegram....and to that they would add a cipher which meant they didn't have to change the code they just would change the cipher. But nothing worked. I realized someone had changed the cipher.. so I sent a note signed X 23 that I needed the new cipher. I came back to my desk and there was a photo of a man's hand— very hairy—probably someone who worked in the Spanish Embassy—his watch showed 3AM —his accomplice was photographing him holding the new cipher.

(9:00) Reid: What was the social scene?

Marie: It was great cause it was teeming with service men. There were more women than men. Some women had their own apartments. I had an Aunt and Uncle there so I could go to their apartment. I knew officers. I would go out but I was already committed to Henry but I wasn't pining away.

(10:00) Reid: So you were married in September '43 and then what happened?

Marie: Henry was finishing up his training in Florida... .then he was sent out of Norfolk in spring of '44 to England and he came back in September '44. I lived with my mother in Chapel Hill while he was gone.

(11:30) Reid: Describe what it was like living in Chapel Hill while he was gone.

Marie: Everything was rationed - shoes, butter, sugar. I had a lot of friends there so we'd get together but our letters were censored and parts were cut out................ We knew the attack was coming from England to the coast of Europe. It was pretty nerve-wracking.

(13:15) Reid: How did you occupy your time?

Marie: Bridge, movies, visited his parents in Nashville. Some of the women were working at the university. I quit when I got married cause I couldn't stay in Washington and still follow him to Florida. He sent a telegram from England that his brother, a pilot in the Air Force, had been shot down in Germany.

Reid: How long was Mr. Colton in the service?

Marie: 1945 — and he was poised to go to the invasion of Japan but then, fortunately, didn't have to go.

(16:30) Reid: Other stand out memories?

Marie: My brother was an Army pilot in the Aleutian island. We knew it had risks-mostly cold water. They were told if they went down they'd last about a minute. His younger brother was in Europe -went in at age 18. He was in one of those big battles He was wounded slightly. It was hard on his family— they had 3 sons in the service in constant danger. Yes, there was a lot of anxiety but we kept going, families visited each other. We were babies just after WW I.   Henry didn't want to romanticize the war-it was dangerous. Some of his crew and his squadron Were killed. We wrote letters. There I was in the bosom of my family. The worst day of my life was when I saw him go off to war. I couldn't even look at him.

Reid: Describe that for me.

Marie: I don't want to - I'll cry.

Reid: It was just that draining.

Marie: We were staying with some friends in Norfolk. The man was his flight surgeon. They invited us to stay with them and they gave us their bedroom.

(20:20) Reid: Describe when he came back.

Marie: I remember dressing up-putting on perfume and heading to Raleigh and this was going to be just great. My mother and aunt were waiting and had a wonderful meal. The funny thing was that he had all these C rations and K rations. They cam back on the Queen Mary and got rations in case the Queen Mary was torpedoes. He brought back lots of presents - cashmere sweaters from Scotland - that was fun. I'll show you a little leather purse and a bonnet. Then we started our family.

(22:00) Reid: What lesson would you like to share with folks from your experience of the war?

Marie: I started my serious education in the 7^th grad. I was determined to work On peace. When I saw "All's Quiet on the Western Front" I was hysterical- this was the worst thing that could happen to anyone. At the time I was studying Latin and I loved it so I decided to major in languages. Lesson—I don't know the answer to war or no war and each generation has to fight a war. Luckily, my son didn't have to go to Vietnam- that was not a war that people felt good about................... We're going to have to find different ways to deal with war.

(26:00) Reid: Any ideas as to what those methods might be?

Marie: I believe in the UN. I was a delegate to the Commission on the Status of Women and I went to UNESCO in Paris—but they need funding and support. We should teach peace and negotiating skills in the schools.................

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