1945 BROCHURE TELLS MISSY S STORY

Transcription

1 Volume 9, Issue 4 September 2006 Special Points of Interest We think you ll enjoy Earl Slattum s submission of the history of the USS Mississippi found on the first three pages. Welcome Mat on page three has two new names to add to the roster. Welcome Aboard!! President Jake Jacobs column is on page four. He hopes to see many of you at the reunion. If you haven t signed up for the reunion yet, get your registration in right away. Come to Nashville for a great time, see old friends and make new ones. See you October 5-8 at the Embassy Suites Hotel BROCHURE TELLS MISSY S STORY Cover of 1945 brochure from the USS Mississippi. We want to thank Earl Slattum for sending in this brochure. Earl served on the Mississippi from November 1945 to September 1948 and served as an ET 2. This brochure will be used as a series to be continued in the next several issues of the Pirate. WAR HISTORY OF THE U.S.S MISSISSIPPI Introduction Pre-War Years The MISSISSIPPI was ordered and her keel laid in 1914 at Newport News, Virginia. She was commissioned on December 18, As originally built, she displaced 32,000 tons, and had a top speed of 21 knots. In addition, she mounted twelve 14 guns, fourteen 5 broadside guns, and had an anti-aircraft battery consisting of four 3 guns. Commissioned less than a year before the armistice, she was assigned to the (Continued on page 2)

2 VOLUME 9, ISSUE 4 THE PIRATE PAGE 2 (Continued from page 1) Atlantic Fleet and saw little real action in World War I. In 1919, the MIS- SISSIPPI, along with other major ships and destroyers, was shifted to the Pacific Fleet, the fore-runner of today s powerful force. During the years of peace that followed, the MISSISSIPPI distinguished herself by winning the Iron Man, symbol of the fleet athletic championship, for six consecutive years. She was known as the Iron Man Ship because of her athletic prowess and high morale, and was coveted duty assignment for both officers and men. Also during this period gunnery installations were continually improved. However, after nearly 14 years of freedom from major gunnery accidents in the Fleet, the worst turret fire of all occurred in the MISSIS- SIPPI while firing off San Pedro, California on June 12, Due to low pressure on the gas ejector system of Turrett II, a flareback occurred resulting in a fire which took the lives of 3 officers and 44 men; 9 others being injured. In 1933, the ship was modernized. The armament was improved by the removal of the 3 AA battery. A new 5 /25 caliber battery and its associated modern fire control system was installed. Also a new main battery fire control system was installed. All major engineering installations were renewed except for some minor auxiliaries, and there were many alterations in the hull design. Modern mast structures were furnished, considerably improving the ship s appearance. Shortly after completion of the modernization on August 31, 1933, the MISSISSIPPI was assigned to, and operated with the Pacific Fleet until early in the year of In May of 1941, the MISSISSIPPI was ordered to the East Coast and reported to the Atlantic Fleet for duty. From June to December of that year, she operated with the Atlantic Fleet, guarding commerce on so-called neutrality patrol duties in the area between the East Coast and Iceland, and acting as a covering force for convoys and lines of communications. During this period, scouting and searching operations were conducted in the North Atlantic in the vicinity of Iceland, including a search for the Nazi battleships SHORNHORST and TIRPITZ, then suspected of violating United State neutrality. Combat History The morning of December 7th found the MISSISSIPPI in Hvalfjordur, Iceland. She and her sisterships of Division THREE remained among the very few undamaged battleships then in the U.S. Navy. In January, 1942, she was again transferred to the Pacific Fleet. After transitting the canal she anchored in San Francisco Harbor on January 22, Her first assignment with the Pacific Fleet was to escort a convoy to within five hundred miles of Pearl Harbor and to return immediately to San Francisco. During the period from January to July, the MISSIS- SIPPI operated out of West Coast Ports, escorting convoys and guarding Pacific Coast from what was then believed to be imminent amphibious attacks. From August to November of 1942, she stood by an uncommitted reserve in the Central Pacific, operating in Hawaiian Waters, supporting light forces and carriers who had borne the brunt of Japanese aggression since the beginning of the war. On November 30th, the ship was underway for Nandi Waters, Fiji Islands, reaching her destination on December 18th. There she acted as the rear guard for the Solomons forces in the great battles of Guadalcanal and Santa Cruz. During January and February of 1943, the MISSISSIPPI continued to operate in the South Pacific Theater, at one time forming part of a task force which escorted the damaged cruiser PENSACOLA to the vicinity of Samoa. In the later part of February of that year she returned once more to Pearl Harbor, escorting the damaged cruiser MIN- NEAPOLIS, and arriving the third of March. She stayed in Pearl Harbor for a brief time, undergoing much needed repairs. From there she proceeded to the North Pacific Area, arriving at Kuluk Bay, Adak on the 17th of May, Throughout the months of June, July and August the MISSISSIPPI operated in Aleutian waters participating in the regaining of Atta and Kiska Islands from the Japanese. On the twenty-second of July, she engaged in the bombardment of Kiska, and on the twenty-sixth took part in a night action against unidentified radar targets. She left the Aleutian area the latter part of August and arrived in San Francisco on September the sixth. The remainder of September and the first part of October, 1943 was spent undergoing drydocking and repairs. Then after training in San Pedro San Diego area, she got underway for Pearl Harbor on the twentieth of October. The early part of November was spent operating in Hawaiian Waters, but on November 10, 1943, the MISSIS- SIPPPI was on her way to take part in the Gilbert Islands Campaign. It was on the twentieth of November, while bombarding Makin Island that a flareback in Turrett II resulted in the loss of 42 men. During this same period another ship of the same task force, the escort carrier LISCOMB BAY, was torpedoed while on station 1,000 yards from the MISSIS- SIPPI, and sunk within twenty-one minutes. December of 1943 and January of 1944 were spent in Hawaiian Waters in training and preparation for another amphibious operation. On January 22, the MISSISSIPPI was underway once more, this time for the Marshalls. The 31st of January and the 1st of February were spent in the bombardment of Kwajalein and other atolls in that area. It was here that the MISSIS- SIPPI moved in to a range of less than 1800 yards from the beach, (Continued on page 3)

3 VOLUME 9, ISSUE 4 (Continued from page 2) and at this point-blank range, demolished the Japanese defenses so completely that opposition to our landing forces was negligible. From Kwajalein she moved on to Majuro, and it was from this base that she bombarded Taroa on 20 February and Wotje the following day. With Kwajalein secured, she proceeded to Efate in the New Hebrides. After a short period of combat inactivity the MISSISSIPPI bombarded Kavieng, New Ireland on March 20, 1944 as a diversionary operation in support of Emirau landings. Badly in need of regunning, the ship returned to the States, arriving in Bremerton Navy Yard on April 25th. Throughout the month of June, the MISSISSIPPI underwent repairs and regunning. After training in San Pedro Bay area and Pearl Harbor during July, she steamed to Purvis Bay, Florida Islands, in the Bismarck Archipelago, anchoring there on the 24th of August, On September 6th she headed for the Palau Islands Operation. At Peleliu the MISSIS- SIPPI s assignment was to knock out the guns on the now famous Bloody Nose Ridge. This was done after three days and nights of hammering the ridge at point-blank range, and then covering the landing with call fire from 12 to 19 September. After the Palau Operation, she returned to Manus and began preparations for the invasion of the Philippines, departing on October 12. The MISSISSIPPI entered Leyte Gulf on October 18th, and during the following two days bombarded Northern beaches in preparation for the actual landings on the twentieth. On the twenty-fifth, she was the flagship of the battle line when Admiral Oldendorf s Seventh Fleet Task Force annihilated the Southern Japanese force in the Battle of Surigao Strait. In the twenty-nine days that she operated in Leyte Gulf area, she underwent thirty-eight aerial attacks and one major sea engagement, but came out unscathed. The MISSISSIPPI left Leyte Gulf November 16, for Manus, and spent THE PIRATE the remainder of the month of November and first part of December training in that area. After a brief period at Kossol Passage, as reserve for the Mindoro Operation, she returned to San Pedro Bay, Leyte, P.I. on the twenty-eighth of December. January the second, 1945, found the MISSISSIPPI underway for Lingayen, Luzon where she arrived on the sixth. It was during this passage that the Task Forces involved were subjected to almost continuous air attacks which resulted in the loss of the escort carrier OMMANWY BAY, and considerable damage to many other major combatant units. The bombardments of San Fabian and San Fernando followed, and it was here that she received her first hit by the enemy. On D-Day, January 9, 1945, a Kamikaze came in low over the water out of the sun, hitting the port side of the foremast structure and crashing on the boat deck. Considerable damage to the ship s structure and gun installations resulted, and 27 fatalities were suffered. She continued to carry out all assignments until March, when she returned to Pearl Harbor for repairs, arriving there the third. The latter part of March and April was utilized for training and on the 18th of April the MIS- SISSIPPI departed for Okinawa via Eniwetok. From arrival until 18 June, the MISSISSIPPI remained in the Okinawa area, carrying out bombardment and call fore assignments as required. As the Army advanced on the Japanese stronghold of Shuri Castle, it was the MISSIS- SIPPI who was assigned the task of destroying this obstacle. It was on this target, firing three gun salvos, that 56 direct hits were made out of 69 salvos, demolishing this strong point and allowing the Army to continue its advance practically unopposed. June the fifth, the MIS- SISSIPPI received her second wound stripe of the war. Another Kamikaze broke through to hit aft, on the starboard side of the quarterdeck, killing one officer and Jimmy Helms ( ) 6230 Rock Island Rd Charlotte, NC Fred Laube 53 Baker Dr Asheville, NC PAGE 3 wounding several others. Arriving back in Leyte on the 21st of June, the MISSISSIPPI entered a floating drydock where combat repairs were completed. During July and the early part of August, 1945, she continued training in the Leyte Gulf San Pedro Bay area. Moving north to Okinawa on the twenty-first of August, the MISSSIS- SIPPI became part of the task force which entered Sagami Wan, Honshu Japan, on August twenty-seventh. During the remainder of the month of August the ship assisted in supporting the actual landings of the Allied Occupation Forces on Japan in this area. On September 1st, the MIS- SISSIPPI moored in Tokyo Bay, and was present during the signing of the surrender Terms on the second. Next: Battleship MISSISSIPPI Credited with Destruction of Shuri Castle WELCOME MAT The USS MISSISSIPPI Association cordially welcomes the following shipmates who have been located since the last newsletter. We hope to see you at the next reunion, and we hope you will take an active part in the association. WE NEED TO HEAR FROM YOU! Again we need more stories from you for the newsletter. Please let us hear from you!

4 VOLUME 9, ISSUE 4 THE PIRATE PAGE 4 PRESIDENT S MESSAGE Ann and I drove down to Imperial Beach, just south of San Diego last Monday and spent a great day with Sandy and Roger Moscone. Wish we lived closer, so that we d spend more time with them. He d like to come to the reunion, but he can t make it due to doctor visits, etc. This brings up a point, if there are shipmates out there, why not give the reunion a shot. As I keep saying, you never know who you may run into from the time on the Missy. We ve got a great place to stay at, and the itinerary is good. At the reunion we always make an appeal for funds to keep the Pirate going, so that for those who won t be there, remember the Pirate and help support its distribution by donating to the ML&RS at the address that s in the Pirate. Looking forward to seeing you all at the reunion. If you re driving or flying, have a good and safe trip. See you in Nashville!!! If you who remember Roger from the Missy, why not drop him a line or call him and say hello. I m sure he d appreciate that. Irwin Jake Jacobs Financial Statement Balance remaining after 06/06 $ Funds collected since 06/06 $ Funds available for 09/06 $ Funds expended for 09/06 $ Balance remaining for 12/06 $ Send contributions to ML&RS, Inc. at our address to the right. TAPS The Pirate has learned of the following shipmates deaths since the last newsletter. The entire crew sends our deepest sympathy to the widow, family and friends of the deceased. Ernest Rockroth ( ) Died November 20, 2005 Norman Saleski Date of death not reported USS MISSISSIPPI 2006 REUNION OCTOBER 5-8 NASHVILLE, TN EMBASSY SUITES HOTEL Published By: Military Locator & Reunion Service, Inc PO Drawer Hickory, NC (voice) (fax) DINAMLRS@CHARTERINTERNET.COM KARENMLRS@CHARTERINTERNET.COM (web site) Our Reunions Work So You Don t Have To ATTENTION REUNION ATTENDEES The Association is asking all 2006 reunion attendees to bring an item of $5.00 to $10.00 value for a raffle to be held during the reunion. The money raised will go to the Association to help fund the newsletter. STATEMENT OF PUBLICATION The PIRATE is the official publication of the USS MISSISSIPPI Association. From now on it will be published quarterly in March, June, September, and December, subject to receiving sufficient funding. The Newsletter is funded by voluntary contributions from the membership. All members are encouraged to support the voice of the MISSISSIPPI. A financial statement appears in each issue of the newsletter. The newsletter is intended to be a vehicle for the members to express opinions, make suggestions and especially share experiences. Unless otherwise stated, the views and opinions printed in the newsletter are those of the article s writer, and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Association leadership or the Editor of the Newsletter. All letters and stories submitted will be considered for publication, except unsigned letters will not be published. Letters requesting the writer s name be withheld will be honored, but published on a space available basis. Signed letters with no restrictions will be given priority. Letters demeaning to another shipmate will not be printed; letters espousing a political position will not be printed. Military Locator & Reunion Service, Inc. is not responsible for the accuracy of articles submitted for publication. It would be a monumental task to check each story. Therefore, we rely on the submitter to research each article. The editor reserves the right to edit letters to conform to grammar, and/or space limitations. You are encouraged to actively participate in the newsletter family by submitting your stories and suggestions.

5 VOLUME 9, ISSUE 4 THE PIRATE PAGE 5 IMPORTANT INFORMATION The information contained in this letter is very important! Please read it very carefully and respond as necessary! You must respond as indicated in this message to continue receiving information about your reunion through the US Postal mail! Big changes are going on here at ML&RS, Inc! They re not going to happen overnight, but the process has begun. As you are certainly aware, rising costs for hotel rooms, meal prices and fuel for autos and tour buses makes for a more expensive reunion! We are doing everything we can to keep our costs to a minimum. However, prices continue to rise, including postage (which has gone up again the first of this year). In an effort to offer you and your fellow attendees the lowest possible cost, we are going to make some changes to the way things have been done in the past. We hope you will work with us to implement these changes as smoothly as possible! Due to the multitude of requests we have received over the last few years, we are going to now upgrade our web site to include a variety of information pertaining to your reunion. There will be a small web site within our company s web site for each of the reunion groups we work with. The main page for each group will contain basic information about the upcoming reunion, as well as links to several other pages, including but not limited to lists of those who have signed up, the actual registration packet as a web page, a link to the profiles that were previously printed in the Sentimental Journal, newsletters, and after the reunion a link that can be used to order copies of the memory books that will now be included as part of the reunion package. Also, we will not duplicate anything your group already has on their web page. We will do our best to keep personal information secure. Addresses and phone numbers will not be published. addresses will only be published with permission. Beginning with the 2006 reunions, we will be discontinuing our memorabilia sales, including the Sentimental Journal. There are so many web sites out there now where hats, t-shirts, etc can be ordered, and the turn-around time is just a matter of days. When we first started this business, this was not the case. We began offering these items as a service to the reunion groups who didn t know where else to order items. Due to the increased availability of memorabilia, our sales have declined over the last few years, and it is no longer cost effective for us to continue offering these items. Also, there are a lot of groups who prefer to sell the items themselves as a fund raiser for the association. We certainly do not wish to compete with your association sales! In place of the Sentimental Journal, we will begin including a 2006 Memory Book as the memorabilia item given away at the reunion. This will replace the note cards, clocks, pens, etc that have been given in the past. However, they will not be given at the reunion, they will be sent to each attendee (who signs up for one of the Option Packages or orders one as part of their Individual Option) following the reunion. The 2006 Memory Book will contain photos from the reunion and then and now photos that have been submitted prior to the reunion each year. The very popular profiles will now be accessible from the web site. Now that the group s web site is up and running we will discontinue the majority of the paper mailings we sent out. Newsletters, Surveys, Introductory Letters and Questionnaires, and the Registration Material will all be available on the web site. Your group s web site is Be sure to visit the site frequently and take advantage of the information that will be/is available there. If your profile is not listed in the Crew Profiles, then be sure to submit yours via questionnaire.htm. We do realize that there are still some people who do not have or do not want internet access. Because of this, we will continue paper mailings to those who let us know they want their info via the postal mail. You must return the coupon at the end of this letter if you wish to continue receiving paper copies of the various materials we send out newsletters, registration packets, surveys, etc. If you do not mail in this coupon, we are assuming you have internet access and can obtain all the necessary reunion information off your group s web site. At some point in the near future, we plan to add on-line registration capabilities to each group s we site. That probably won t happen this year, but I do foresee it happening soon. That is another feature we got a lot of requests for. As we strive to provide you and your reunion group with the best possible value for your reunion dollar, it is sometimes necessary to change the way some things are done. Our ultimate goal is to offer each and every reunion attendee a great reunion at a reasonable price. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions, comments or suggestions! Respectfully, Dina Coffey Office Manager M L&RS, Inc Return this coupon if you want to receive all future mailings from us on paper via US Postal Mail: Reunion Group: (ship or unit name) Your name: Your mailing address: Your phone number: _ Return this coupon to: ML&RS, INC PO DRAWER HICKORY, NC 28603