Angelo N. Colbourne

Angelo Colbourne was born in Atlantic City, New Jersey in July 1926 and grew up in Newark, New Jersey. On December 7, 1941, the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, he recalled walking home from church and not truly realizing what the attack meant. Colbourne described himself as a mischievous boy whose grades were not up to par, and who was often involved in sports. One of the main reasons he joined the military when he became age-eligible was to stay out of trouble. Initially, Colbourne wanted to join the Marines, but he was only 17 and was told he was too young. He was not too young to join the Navy, but a slight degree of color blindness limited his choice of assignment, and he was assigned to a Seabee (Construction Battalion) unit.

Colbourne, an African American young man, was inducted into the service at the Newark Armory on October 27, 1943. Initially, it was difficult for him to adjust to military life, because it was a totally new environment, but he got used to it after a while. Colbourne had grown up without experiencing any racial segregation, yet encountered it in the navy, where it was standard. He was sent to Oahu, Hawaii, after basic training, where African American soldiers and sailors were subjected to a 6 pm curfew.

When asked about his other experiences with segregation, Colbourne mentioned that, when he was in New York before being sent to boot camp, he met a White sailor who he became close friends with, but both were separated into racially segregated groups when they arrived in Virginia. He thought they might become roommates and train together, but Colbourne was placed in the “Colored” group and his friend in the White group. When asked if he had ever visited the South prior to his enlistment, he remarked that he had visited Richmond, Virginia, where African Americans had to ride in the back of a bus or train.

Despite segregation during his training, Colbourne stated that the experience elevated him. He said it taught him responsibility and how to be a real man. Colbourne was assigned to the 23rd Special Naval Construction Battalion (NCB Seabees) Platoon 4, Company C. His unit was the only African American Seabee battalion at the time, although others were later formed. His specialty was as a Browning Automatic Rifleman, to protect the construction workers while they were building in a combat zone. He described the BAR as a heavy, (24 pounds) and accurate weapon.

Colbourne was first stationed in Hawaii where his main job was being a rifleman; he also had day-to-day duties like unloading cargo. Out of his whole time in service, he only served on a ship once. Eventually, Colbourne was sent to Iwo Jima, which he recalled as a frightening experience. At night, he and his fellow sailors stayed in foxholes and barely slept, because they had to keep awake to make sure they were not being directly attacked. Even worse, there was no fresh water, so they had to rely on the rain at times. Not only were the conditions physically tough, but emotionally draining as well. Colbourne saw piles of corpses, both Japanese and American, awaiting burial. Oil was poured over the corpses when the stench became too strong.

Colbourne and his fellow sailors landed near the foot of Mount Suribachi. It was not until about six days later that the men on ship went ashore, as there was ongoing combat nearby. The piles of American corpses awaiting burial scared Colbourne, yet he remained calm, because he remembered that he was not at the frontline of the war like others were. He was confident that the war would end in an American victory. 

Colbourne remembered how the Japanese would often conduct banzai charges on Iwo Jima, which haunted his memories of the war even after he left service and went on to civilian life. He recalled a July 4 fireworks explosion which visibly startled him, and provided an excellent example of PTSD.