Prisoners of War: Stolen Freedom. Mr. Ingram was a Chief Boatswain's Mate in the U.S. Navy during World War II.
Photograph of Chief Ingram is included on this record.]]>
Bill Ingram joined the U.S. Navy in June 1941 on his seventeenth birthday. At the time of the Pearl Harbor attack he was on a transport ship in the Pacific steaming toward a rendezvous with the USS Houston, a heavy cruiser sailing in the seas west of the Philippines.
The Houston was sunk on February 28, 1942 in the Battle of Sunda Strait, and Ingram was eventually taken captive by the Japanese.  After being interrogated and moved several times, Ingram spent the rest of the war as a POW working on the Burma Railroad and was forced to build the “Bridge on the River Kwai.” The brutal working conditions resulted in tens of thousands of deaths among the prisoners.
To read more about the experiences of Mr. Ingram and his fellow POWs, there are historical books about the building of the Burma Railroad by the Japanese who used Allied POWs for the hard labor. There is a novel about the famous bridge by Pierre Boulle that was turned into a motion picture starring Sir Alec Guinness.

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Veterans Council of St. Johns County]]> Veterans Council of St. Johns County]]> Prisoners of War: Stolen Freedom]]>
Their stories are less about atrocity than they are about the survival of the human spirit and the camaraderie that helped each man survive years of incarceration. Each story is followed by spectacular recounts of their days of release. Produced by Michael Rothfeld & Bill Dudley and the Veterans Council of St. Johns County, directed by Eric Flagg.]]> Michael Rothfeld (Producer)
Bill Dudley (Producer)
Veterans Council of St. Johns County (Producer)]]>
Veterans Council of St. Johns County

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Veterans Council of St. Johns County]]>
Record in this database linking to photographs is provided here:
William "Bill" Ingram
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Grave also discusses his life after the war and that he has shared his story in many interviews with school and church groups. He expresses his gratitude for his life and that his faith helped him through his most difficult times.]]> Flagler College's Oral History Collection]]> Voluntary Hostages of the S.S.]]> German P.O.W. Camps]]> kowens@flagler.edu with information on the nature and extent of your request. If on-site access is needed, you will need to seek guest privileges for the Proctor Library from the Director of Library Services, Brian Nesselrode at bness@flagler.edu.]]> PHYSICAL DOCUMENT: Hardcover book, 7.5x5 inches; 315 pages, 12 plates]]>