Bill Kelly

at sea

Happy Veteran's Day 2012

Here’s to all the brave Sailors and Marines who dedicated formative years and risk their lives to support their friends and country. We love and respect everyone of you and thank you for your brave service. Bill Kelly

Naval Records

New: See Original Document!

In my long slog to make sailor records available, I’ve decided to link the records to original sources. This has the effect of double-checking, and ensuring that I ‘get it right’. Since a few months after I started to enter data, I added the source of the original documents,

Naval Records

Database Update: Reached the end of the war

With my laser focus on just adding sailors on and off the boston, I have reached September 1945 when the war ended. Given the gaps on the records and the readable records this will take a while to completely clean up, but I have 2,363 records to date in

Naval Records

Database update: Remembering July 4th

Last night as I watched fireworks and heard lots of patriotic music and saw fireworks, I thought of my Dad and the many soldiers, sailors and air personnel who have participated in wars for our country. I wondered whether they had mixed reactions to seeing and hearing the BOOM of

Boston Crew Turnover

March 2011 Sorry for the slight delay in posts, my brother and I have been working on improving his living situation with hammers, nails, and drywall. 🙂  As I continue to enter sailors into the database, I noticed another trend, during march of 1944 another 100 or so sailors were sent

New Subscription Service

January 2, 2010 Both Steve and I have had a busy month of December, but we are hoping to get back to the blog very soon.  In the meantime I have added a new subscription service which allows you to enter your email address and get an email of all

From the records: Preparing for war

11/8/2010 As I’m working through the personnel records for the USS Boston in World War II; a unique history appears.  Stepping back from the individual transactions of promotion, transfer onto the boat, or transfer off the boat, disciplinary actions, hospital visits, etc.  A pattern begins to emerge.

crew member info

The fastest way to a promotion is through Hell

As I’m processing promotions for January 1944 (so far we have over 220 and I’m only half way through the month), I kept processing firemen promotions.  Many promotion for firemen came three at a time, one month after the other.  So I got curious, I had an image

Perq's of the Rear Admiral and his Posse

In November 1943, the USS Boston got it’s first flag visit, it briefly became the flag ship of Rear Admiral Leo H Theband.  Interesting, during this ‘visit’, 10 crew members of the USS Boston were transferred to the Admiral’s crew.  Specifically, a cook, 3 Stewarts and Stewart Mates,

How to clear your accounting before you sail

On the USS Boston during WWII, when a sailor was either Absent Over Leave (AOL) or Absent without leave (AWOL), his absence would be noted EVERY morning in the ship’s deck log.  For a ship that is working through it’s training exercises like the Boston was from June

Discipline from June to December 1943

I will create a later post explaining the actual statistics for 1943 discipline, but in the first TWO months, there were over 91 disciplinary actions taken against invidivual sailors; In the same period there were about 30 promotions.  One unlucky fellow was promoted while he was absent.  So we have

Commissioning Class June 30 1943 USS Boston

Of the 1,475 enlisted shipmates who were commissioned with the ship  (USS Boston CA-69) on June 30, 1943, I noticed an interesting split between experienced sailors and new raw recruits.  When I split the sailors into two groups, the Seamen 2nd Class and everyone else, an interesting picture emerges:

Notes from the Personnel File: June 30 1943 to August 6th 1943

Great news!  I entered the last enlisted sailor who was onboard on commissioning day (June 30th, 1943) and I am making my way through the rest of the Personnel file for the USS Boston (CA-69).  The Personnel file has the Good (promotions), the Bad (disciplinary actions) and the Ugly (injuries

My Sailor Database Project for the USS Boston in WWII

I’ve started an ambitious project to create a record of information about each sailor on the USS Boston during World War II. I Started with a list that my brother Steve gave me from Frank Studenski’s materials. What I found out was these records were taken as a

Naval Records

Getting your father's records (UPDATED)

A few of you have let Steve and I know that the there is a new policy from the Naval Personnel Records administration to charge $60 to copy your father’s records.  I think this charge is new and I want to let the readers of this blog know that

Announcing new Crew List

Based on my work at the National Archives, I’m excited to announce and have implemented a new crew list for the Sailors of the USS Boston.  If you click on the ‘Crew List’ in the navigation menu, you’ll see a current listing of the database of the Sailors

Naval Records

Life at the National Archives

I arrived today at the National Archives in College Park Maryland.  This is a world like no other.  If you’d like to visit here and look at some of these records for yourself, it’s a wonderful place.  It’s a wonderful place with it’s own rules, pace,

beanpot

Crew Lists

At the end of the month, I’m planning a trip to the National Archives outside of Washington D.C. to research more information about the USS BOSTON. The archives have the original deck logs, war diaries, photographs, etc. from the USS BOSTON. The preparation has been a little daunting

Naval Records

Getting the Naval Records of your Father

We’ve had a few requests from people who are trying to find their father’s naval records. I went through this process a few years ago and here is the process: http://www.archives.gov/veterans/evetrecs/index.html If you are the Spouse, Son or Daughter, you can

about us

Web Site Progress March 8th, 2010

I finished uploading a set of pictures I received from the national archives (the above picture is one of the entries). Please click on the left hand tab ‘Official Photos CA-69’. Most were shot in boston harbor after the first shakedown cruise. One was taken off the coast of California

about us

Web Site Update

We’ve added some new pictures into a link called ‘Official Photo’s of CA-69’. I purchased these photos from the National Archives and modified them to fit on the website. I’m trying to incorporate their national archive name as the link so anyone could order the picture from

Repairs

Manus and Drydock

I found these sets of pictures from the USS Boston Cruise book: Manus is an island in the Admiralty Island chain, just north of New Guinea.  There is an exceptional port called Seeadler Habor at it’s northeast corner.  It was here, after the japanese were defeated on the island,

Repairs

Drydock at Manus Island

Manus Island is a part of the Admiralty Islands off the coats of New Guinea.  In 1942, the Japanese established a military base on Manus island.  This base became a problem for the US, since it strategically interfered with shipping from the west coast of the US to Australia.  Operation

Training

WWII Naval Training Facility - Sampson NY

My Father, as well as many other recruits for the USS Boston, was trained at the Naval Training Center at Sampson New York, on the edge of Lake Geneva.  Other centers included the Naval Training Center in San Diego California, Great Lakes Illinois,  Bainbridge Maryland, and Farragut Idaho. Induction at

cruise book

Square That Hat!

The Personnel Section of the USS Boston cruise book has this unforgettable image of the naval photographer from the 1940’s -Bill