Honoring our veterans who served in WWll 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
WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE WHEN YOUR SHIP IS TORPEDOED 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
Beanpot 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
Then and Now: Julian C. Goldstein 9-23-12 Julian enlisted in Hartford, CT and went to boot camp at Sampson, NY. He was assigned to CA-69 and like hundreds of others, he reported to the Naval Receiving Station at the Fargo Building in Boston, waiting for his ship to be finished. He is a plankowner – reporting for
When Cultures Collide . . . 9-15-12 I live in California, which has a huge connection to Pacific cultures (I grew up in Massachusetts). In the two decades after WWll, my exposure to “other cultures” was primarily European immigrants who were wading into the Great American Melting Pot. The boys who joined the Navy after Pearl
WAR MOMS 9-1-12 Our friend Laurie Wasilewski (daughter of CA-69 plankowner Frank Wasilewski) sent me this terrific clipping from the old Morning Record of Wallingford, CT. As I read it, I was struck by the fact that her grandmother had four sons serving simultaneously in the War. Like the millions of other
This week in 1945 8-12-12 On August 9, 1945, the Boston broke away from the Task Force and formed up with other cruisers, battleships and destroyers into a bombardment group. The ships lined up outside the northern Honshu industrial city of Kamaishi (area of the recent tsunami) and pounded it with volleys of 8″
HIROSHIMA Aug 6, 2012 The box of photos that Dirk Oster sent me (see previous post) taken by his father, Bernard Oster contained 17 pictures of the leveling of Hiroshima (and Nagasaki) (Aug 6 and 9, 1945). I have been studying the pictures and trying to sort out which flattened city
April 1944 Deck log I just finished uploading a PDF of the April 1944 Deck log from the USS Boston. For all the Decklogs, check out the Info tab on the main page of this blog. The Decklog is an interesting place to find out small tidbits of the ships history. Here is a
Bernard Paul Oster, S1c 07-22-12 Bernard was aboard on Commissioning Day and was a plankowner. Bernard’s son, Dirk, got in touch with me a while back and told me his dad was the ship’s photographer. Everywhere the Captain went, he took Bernie along with him. Dirk told me he had a stack
Searching for your father's service records One of the most popular searches on this website is a blog post I wrote three years ago about finding my father’s records. I’ve updated that blog post to include current data and links, and I’ve created a menu item under ‘crew records’ to help you find
I've created a group Facebook page Facebook.com/ussboston ca-69 is a new faccebook group, please join! 🙂 Bill
History Role of the USS Boston in World War II It’s easy to overlook the basics when writing a blog, and I thought I’d take a few posts in the coming months and try to outline what the BOSTON’s role was in the war. Many of us are here because we knew a sailor; but that doesn’
New Boston Book!!! Order Steve’s New Book! The Book is called ‘Baked Beans – Life aboard the USS Boston CA-69’ This is Volume 1 of 3 Size: 8 x 11 124 pages 97.5% original, first hand, primary source material, including: photos of the boston from the National archives; interviews with 4 crew
Attention! New Look to the Sailor Records I’ve cleaned up the viewing of searches and the display of sailor records. It’s now looking more professional and less typish (I know it’s not a word!). Just a reminder to get me those sailor photos for the records page. If the picture isn’t there and
web site New Website layout With all the the people like me whose reading glasses are getting fatter and fatter each year, I thought I’d use an easier to read website layout. Enjoy, Bill
JULY 4, 1944 July 4, 2012 We celebrated the 4th of July with quite a bang with the Japs paying for all expenses. Three or four cruiser divisions including ComCruDiv 10 in the Boston left the task group to bombard Iwo Jima. We blew the hell out of them with our five inch.
WHAT DID THE BOSTON DO IN WWII? 6-16-12 CA-69 arrived in Pearl Harbor in early December 1943. She was a brand-new ship with a brand-new crew. While she was in Pearl, lots of other brand-new ships slipped into the Pacific Naval Base harbor. By the time CA-69 left Pearl Harbor in late January, almost 100 other warships
Memorial Day - A reflection I’m always struck by the fact that the US as a country has come to use this day as one of the only times we say thank you to our veterans. I’m remembering when we sought out support at the VA hospital for my father’s alzhiemer’s
Then and Now - Norman Bayley, Lt. Col., USMC 5-12-12 Commanding Officer, Marine Detachment, USS Boston (CA-69) Norm came to the Boston in an unconventional way. He was one of the heroic survivors of the Battle for Guadalcanal. If the horrors of that struggle weren’t enough, he contracted malaria that was so severe they prepared his body to
John Hazard Carson and the arrival of officers John Hazard Carson was the first commanding Officer of the USS Boston and the first officer to be added to the database. He the USS Boston Commanding officer from April 5, 1943 to June 5 1944. Commander Hazard was in charge from commissioning to full engagement in the Pacfic. He
Then and Now - Bob Knight, RT3, CA-69 3-19-12 Bob is a plankowner, reporting to the ship on Commissioning Day (6-30-43) He was a Radio Technician in CR Division He left the ship on 1-19-46 Bob is an active member of the Boston Shipmates, and serves on the Reunion Committee. I had the pleasure of spending an afternoon
More about Me 4-10-12 During the last couple of weeks, I’ve had the incredible good fortune to spend time with two men who served on the Boston during the War. (The visits were on opposite sides of the country.) The first visit was with Bob Knight, a plankowner who served in Radio
Then and Now - John Farkas, FC3, CA-69 3-31-12 John is a plankowner – he reported to Boston on Commissioning Day (6-30-43) Left the Boston on 2-10-46 I am happy to report that John is active and well and lives in New Jersey.
NEW BOOK ABOUT THE BOSTON 3-17-12 To those of us who are both blessed and cursed with Irish ancestry, Happy St. Patrick’s Day. I am working on the new Boston book in earnest now – the one I’ve been talking about doing ever since my first book, A Bird’s Eye View was finished.
