The USS Boston in World War II

Two years later

12-7-19 Crewmember Diary Entries   (excerpts) December 6, 1943 . . . On entering Pearl Harbor we passed through torpedo nets that are opened and closed by tugs . . . On our way in signs of the attack could still be seen. The Battleship Oklahoma was afloat but at a 45 degree angle and still pumping

Thinking about War and how we "see the enemy"

11-23-19 I started recently contemplating “Wars” and how we think about them.   What reference points do we use when we think about World War Two (the Second Act of WWI), Korea, Vietnam and the War on Terror?   In WWII, we think of our foes primarily in two ways.   Our enemies

11-11-11

Honoring all who serve

Update

11/3/19 Over the last year or so, several factors that influence this web/blogsite have occurred / changed.   As you probably know, we were hacked   –   the attacks came in through our email links, causing many headaches for Bill, as he worked diligently to build new protections.   As a result,

carrier planes

10-5-19 A recap of Boston’s station in the task force(s):     Task Force 58 (and 38) was organized into a flotilla of warships.   There were destroyers, cruisers, battleships and aircraft carriers   –   typically around 100 ships.   In order for a large Task Force to carry out it’s objectives, it

Just the facts, ma'am.

9/28/19 Everyone who knows anything about WWII knows about Japanese Internment Camps.   Everyone reading this post, I’m sure, has an opinion about this chapter in our history: some think it was the right thing to do (under the circumstance), others think it was the entirely wrong thing

Fu-Go. Surprise.

9-7-19 Podcasts.    I have mixed feelings about them.   There’s a million of ’em out there, and I never really feel that I have time (patience?) to listen to podcasts.   Over time, however, a few of them have slipped into my little orbit, and every time one does, I think/

Army vs. Navy vs. Nation

8-24-19 On this day in 1945, hundreds of Task Force ships were milling around the general area of Tokyo harbor, hoping they would be among the ships present at the Signing of Documents of Surrender, scheduled to place place upon the deck of the battleship USS Missouri (a johnny-come-lately, along

AUGUST 1944

8-10-19 When the Boston left Pearl Harbor on January 19, 1944, she joined with hundreds of warships as a unit of newly-created Task Force 58.   She was part of the aggressive push against Japanese “defensive ring of islands”, which ultimately led to the Surrender of Japan (8-15-45).   First target: the

AUGUST

8-4-19 A busy month in 1945.   While the task force moved up the coast of Honshu (8-4 through 8-9) so the heavy ships could bombard the industrial city of Kamaishi, a couple of bombs went off that changed the world.   Little Boy (8-6) and Fat Man (8-9) were unleashed on

SECURITY THINGS, ETC.

Brother Bill and sister-in-law Lisa have been working diligently to mitigate recent attacks on the website.   What a pain in the ass!   Looks like I can now satisfy the log-in security requirements to be able to post to this site (and www.taskforce58.org) At the moment, I don’t

Replacement of the Aviation Unit

I was surprised when I was working on newly found records of the USS Boston Aviation unit, that when the Boston was pulled from duty in the Pacific after months of fighting, the Aviation unit was removed lock, stock and barrel when the ship arrived in San Francisco on the

Lt. Grutzmacher, R.I.P.

Memorial Day, 2019 The Boston was a very lucky ship.   No man was lost on the receiving end of enemy fire while she was in the Pacific.   There were several deaths in the line of duty, however.   One such death befell pilot Lt. E.E. Grutzmacher. I remember the time

May 1945

5-12-19 OKINAWA, May 1945.   Two mothers’ sons.

Five bucks short of 100

4-20-19 About nine years ago I was blessed with a gift of serendipity.   A young man emailed me after finding and buying “A Bird’s Eye View” for his grandfather’s birthday.   Mike told me that his grandfather was the “ship’s tenor” and he was alive and well and

San Pedro

3-30-19 The Boston returned to San Pedro (CA) for repairs and upgrades in March 1945.   San Pedro, as referred to by the men, was a town and harbor adjacent to the growing Los Angeles Harbor and adjacent Terminal Island – the center point of the Los Angeles and Long Beach Harbor

There was a Time . . .

3-23-19 . . . when Americans pulled together and headed in the same general direction.   Let us not forget the contributions that women workers made to the war effort.   Pictures by Fenno Jacobs: steve

Goin' Home (for awhile)

3-16-19 Signalman George Pitts: HOMEWARD BOUND March 7, 1945:   The Boston got underway today with her Homeward Bound pennant flying 800 ft. in the air.   Six inches per man is what the pennant is supposed to represent.   While leaving Ulithi, all the carriers, cruisers, batts. and destroyers bid us a

Trade Embargoes Pushed Japan to the Brink

2-9-19 Some years ago, I was in a trade show in Dallas.   It was my first time in that city. My hotel room windows looked down across boulevards and an overpass and gave me a direct view of the Book Depository and the grassy knoll(s).   Naturally I walked there,

The 20's and 30's -- Presidents

2-15-19 (Almost President’s Day.) We take a peek at our Presidents between WWI and WWII. Why? Beacuse the tapestry of history is woven with many threads. 1916    Democrat Woodrow Wilson was narrowly elected to a second term.  He campaigned on keeping US out of the War, but by 1917

Japan enters WWI

2-9-19 Japan had allied itself with Great Britain in 1902 (to counteract the Russian push into Manchuria). In the early days of WWI, Japan resisted pleas from England for naval help in the Pacific and South China Seas. They offered to help if England agreed that Japan could take possession

Mad Dash for Conquest

2-2-19 I am tremendously over-simplifying all this: Commodore Perry arm-twisted Japan into signing it’s first-ever treaty (trade agreement) with any country in 1854.   The rest of the 19th century was a mad-dash of western expansion into the East.   Everyone wanted a piece of China, Japan, Korea and anyplace else

Japan Meets the U.S. Navy - Round 1

1-27-19 On July 8, 1853, a group of four American warships under the command of Commodore Matthew Perry (brother of the War of 1812 hero Oliver H. Perry), steamed into Edo (Tokyo) Harbor.   Perry had a letter signed by President Millard Fillmore demanding that Japan open up channels of trade

Japan attacks Pearl Harbor - Why?

1-19-19 As I have said before, history is a l-o-n-g,   s-l-o-w   b-u-r-n.   I’m quite certain that when news broke out on that Sunday morning in December, most Americans were shocked and stunned.   The news was presented as “a sneak attack,” an “unprovoked act” and the like.   Well, that is

South China Sea

1-12-19 After the devastating Typhoon Cobra shredded the Task Force in late December, the ships hunkered down in Ulithi.   On December 30, the ships left Ulithi to dust up Formosa again.   Their immediate path led them to enter the South China Sea north of the Philippines.   The remains of the