Author: steve

Dec 3, 2012

The Boston spent the first week of December 1944 still anchored at Manus Island in the Admiralties (south of the Equator).   They had spent the last four days of November in drydock in Seeadler Harbor.   Among other things, the guys went “over the sides” and scraped barnacles off the bottom of the ship before it was repainted.

Manus Island was populated with indigenous peoples.   I have mentioned recently that ship’s photographer Bernard Oster’s son Dirk sent me a stack of pictures taken by his dad   –   most of which live on in the CA-69 Cruise Book and in the collection of official Navy photos in the National Archives (Washington, DC).   I also posted a picture from Manus recently entitled “When Cultures Collide,”   showing Capt. Hermann with some of the natives.   I am happy to post this picture of the Captain inspecting the “local militia” during his visit to Manus . . .

In my humble opinion, those are the coolest Army uniforms I’ve ever seen . . .

Thanks, Dirk!

 

Nov 17, 2012

1943:   The Boston was underway, heading to the Pacific.   She was commissioned on June 30, 1943   –   the day the crew finally reported to duty after waiting months for her to be finished.   They spent the next 5 ½ months doing test runs and shakedown cruises, casting off from Boston for the last time on Nov. 17.

The Boston transited the Panama Canal and headed up the west coast towards San Francisco, having their first Thanksgiving off the coast of California.            

from Frank Studenski’s diary:                                                                                                                                                  

November 27, 1943

Today is Thanksgiving Day, (Holiday routine) we are having Turkey, Ham and all the trimmings.   We will arrive at Frisco tomorrow.

1944:     In mid-November, the Boston headed for boiler repairs in drydock in the South Pacific Admiralty Islands (Manus Island and Seeadler Harbor). They had been through: the Marshall Islands Campaign,   the Hollandia Invasion Campaign, the Marianas Campaign, the First Battle of the Philippine Seas, several Raids and Bombardment Missions, the first half of the Philippines Campaigns, The Battle off Formosa which turned into the Crippled Cruisers Adventure, and the 2^nd Battle of the Philippine Seas; all since the last time they observed Thanksgiving on the ship.                                                                                                                                                        

from George Pitts’ diary:

Nov 23

Thanksgiving Day   –   very quiet, but plenty to eat.

from Frank Studenski:

November 22 — December 8, 1944

We spent 18 days here (Manus Island) for minor repairs and a new paint job.   We will be leaving tomorrow.

. . . seems   like Thanksgiving had lost some of it’s glow for the guys after what they’d been through during the previous year . . .

 1945:   The Boston spent Thanksgiving Day off the shores of Honshu, demilitarizing the beaten Japanese Empire.   At this point, Occupation Duty was almost over. In a matter of months, CA-69 would makes it’s last trip home to San Francisco, then went on to Bremerton, Washington into mothballs.

Happy Thanksgiving.

steve

 

Nov 6, 2012

Okay, so I’m a little early.   However, what a great day to start thinking about our veterans (of all branches, in all conflicts and wars)   –   election day!   Our rights as Americans have been saved, protected and/or reaffirmed by the blood, guts and bravery of American men and women who served in an endless array of jobs – big and small   –   all contributing to the protection and honor of our country.

At this website, we have a kind of built-in prejudice towards the Navy.   Prejudice might be too strong a word.   Maybe “affinity” is a better choice.   Okay, we have this affinity for sailors who served aboard the USS Boston during the great Pacific War.   A daughter of an original crewmember of CA-69 and friend of this website, Laurie Wasilewski, found this terrific newspaper clipping that her dad, Frank had tucked away in his “stuff.”   Thanks, Laurie, for sharing it with all of us.

Honoring our veterans . . .   hats off to all who have served this great nation.   We are grateful and forever in your debt.

steve

10-17-12

It just so happens that I’ve spent the last month or so working (on Vol 2), concentrating on the events of October, 1944, in the Philippine Sea north of Luzon and a little east of Formosa (Taiwan for you young’uns).   To summarize very briefly, the Boston and her task group came under blistering acounterattack by Japanese planes off the coast of Formosa on Oct 13, and sister-ship Canberra took a torpedo under the waterline a little past the middle of the ship.   Besides the dozens of men who were killed below decks, the cruiser was crippled and needed to be scuttled (or towed).   Over the next several days, her replacement ship, the Houston, was also torpedoed (twice) in two separate attacks.

Six very long weeks later, the Boston was in drydock in Manus (near New Guinea) for several days.   The next ship into drydock was the badly damaged Canberra, which had been towed to Ulthi, and then towed to Manus.

The mess you see is the hole below the waterline made by the torpedo.   At the bottom of the picture is the crumpled keel atop blocks.   Water runs out on the left. The center of the picture shows the outer skin of the ship gone, innards exposed.

She was patched up in Ulithi, and sailed under her own power back to Boston. It took nine months in the same shipyard (Fore River in Quincy MA that she and the Boston were built) to complete her overhaul.

 

10-7-12

I am preparing to add this copy of the Beanpot, compliments of Bob Knight, into Vol 2 of new Boston book, “Baked Beans”.     When I first saw a copy of the Beanpot, which came to me compliments of the family of Augustus Harris, I was amazed.   Each week, the print shop aboard the Boston cranked out a new newsletter – a truly remarkable “group effort” that included “local news”, drawings and cartoons submitted by the guys, sports news (scores and items that were sometimes weeks and months old), submitted articles and many forms of humor.   My inner 20-year old can’t help chuckling over some of the jokes.   In fact, one of them in this issue really cracked me up.   I’ll transcribe it here (from GAGS for GOBS):

HONORABLE EXIT

Three old maids were sitting on a veranda knitting.   Suddenly, a fluttery hen, being chased by a big red rooster, ran across the busy street and was killed by a passing car. “Ah,” sighed one of the ancient vintages, “how wonderful!   She chose death instead.”

steve