The Merchant Marine Were the Unsung Heroes of World War II

Smithsonian ^ | May 27, 2016 | William Giroux

[artichokegrower]

These daring seamen kept the Allied troops armed and fed while at the mercy of German U-boats

[artichokegrower]

Big bravo zulu

[Repeal The 17th]

My dad...
Liberty Ships
1942 - 1945
Atlantic and Pacific

[barmag25]

Unsung Heros

[Rusty0604]

Thanks for posting. My dad was a merchant marine in the Pacific and spent time in the Philippines and China. He went through some scary stuff, he told me, but the worst was getting caught in a big storm and everyone on the boat was saying their final prayers.

[Michael.SF.]

I recently read a book about the siege of Malta and the critical efforts of the Merchant Marines who helped to save that island. Unsung heroes indeed!

[Pelham]

[T-Bird45]

Big bravo Zulu

Amateurs study strategy or tactics; professionals study logistics. Beans, bullets, repair parts, and fuel move military forces forward and the lack of same stops them in their tracks.

[BiggerTigger]

Saluting my passed uncle.

[fishtank]

My son just got accepted to the USMMA Class of 2020!!!

[Phlap]

My uncle was KIA with the MM. His memorial is here.

[fella]

During WWII we had the largest merchant marine in the world. Today thanks to our politicians who have legislated it and regulated it we have one of the smallest.

[sima_yi]

My dad.
Liberty Ship.
Lafcadio Hearn
Oil tanker.
RIP, Dad.

[Rockingham]

An uncle was a radio operator on merchant ships on the North Atlantic run in WW II, and my dad graduated from Kings Point just after WW II.

[dainbramaged]

Back in the 50's they were scrapping Liberty Ships by the dozens - my Dad (WWII Navy) was a naval architect and the shipyard he worked at in Seattle had several to dismantle. Employees were allowed to take any furniture they wanted, so he got the purser's desk and chest of drawers, plus the 1st Mate's bunk. He sold the bunk but I now have the other two items.
I've searched the web for anything similar with no success.

[tinamina]

My father was one. He was short so none of the services would accept him but this “new” one did. He served on quite a few ships throughout the war. FDR was supposed to make them Veterans but it never happened until 1987, the year he died. No GI Bill, etc. Made him so angry. His brothers and all his friends were able to buy houses with the GI bill, but not him.
I was able to sail around San Francisco Bay on the USS Jeremiah O’Brien, which is one of the few Liberty Ships left and is docked as a tourist attraction at Fisherman’s Wharf there, about 15 years ago. Very nostalgic for me.

[Spok]

I dated a girl whose dad was a merchant marine. He was still angry about being denied admission to a USO show.

[artichokegrower]

O’Hara, Edwin Joseph Edwin Joseph O’Hara Born: November 27, 1923 Hometown: Lindsay, CA Class: 1943 Service: Merchant Marine Position / Rank: Engine Cadet Date / Place of death: September 27, 1942 / South Atlantic, 28-08 S, 11-59 W Date / Place of burial: September 27, 1942 / Lost at Sea South Atlantic, 28-08 S, 11-59 W Age: 18 After sailing across the Pacific with war cargo, the Stephen Hopkins called at Durban and Cape Town, South Africa before sailing across the South Atlantic, bound for Paramaribo, Suriname. On September 27, 1942 the visibility was reduced due to fog and haze. Despite having five lookouts no one aboard the Stephen Hopkins sighted either the German Raider Stier (known as Raider J) or its supply ship Tannenfels until 1235 GCT when they appeared out of the mist. Ordered to stop by the Stier, the Stephen Hopkins’ master, Captain Paul Buck, refused and turned the ship away from the Germans to bring his heaviest weapon to bear, a single 4″ gun. The Stier was armed with six 150mm guns, one 75mm gun, a twin 37mm anti-aircraft gun and four 20mm anti-aircraft guns with modern fire control and trained naval gunners. The ship also had two float planes and two torpedo tubes. The Tannenfels was only armed with anti-aircraft machine guns. Against this armament the Stephen Hopkins had one 4″ gun, two 37mm and several .50 and .30 caliber anti-aircraft machine guns manned by a small detachment of Naval Armed Guard and the ship’s crew. At 1238 the Stier began firing on the Stephen Hopkins at close range. Shrapnel and machine gun bullets rained down on the Stephen Hopkins’ crew wounding or killing several men, including the Armed Guard Commander, Lieutenant (j.g.) Kenneth M. Willett, USNR. Despite his wounds, Willett got the guns manned and began returning fire at a range of about 1,000 yards. Willett steadfastly continued to direct fire from the Stephen Hopkins on the two German vessels while the ship’s Captain, Paul Buck, maneuvered to keep the ship’s stern pointed at the German ships. In their exposed post the Naval Armed Guard crew was decimated by shells and machine gun bullets, leaving only the wounded Willett to keep the 4″ gun firing at the Stier’s waterline, inflicting heavy damage. When the ammunition magazine for the 4″ gun magazine exploded, Willett was out of action. However, Cadet Edwin J. O’Hara who was nearby rushed forward to take his place firing the five shells left in the ready service locker. O’Hara fired the five remaining shells on the Tannenfels, before being mortally wounded by enemy fire. http://kingspointww2.org/ohara-edwin-joseph/

[Rockingham]

Jealous of the better pay scales and supposed lack of military discipline, the US Navy reflexively scorned proper recognition of the heroics of the Merchant Marine.

[Rockpile]

Last number I saw was that the US flagged merchant fleet was down to 74 ocean going ships.

May be less now.