Robert A. O'Brien
Era: World War II
Military Branch: Army
Robert Alden O''Brien of Hibbing entered active duty in the Army on April 14, 1943. He was assigned to the 113th Engineer Combat Battalion at Camp Shelby, Miss. for training. He was later transferred to the Officer Candidate School at Fort Belvoir, Va. He was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant and an engineer equipment repair officer with the 1885th Engineer Aviation Battalion, serving in the continental U.S. and Guam.
His unit built airfields used by B-29s thet bombed Japan and other targets, and from which B-24s bombed Iwo Jima. He also had similar duty on Okinawa. He received the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Service Medal with two bronze battle stars, American Campaign Service Medal and World War II Victory Medal. He was discharged on May 28, 1946.
