The Merchant Marine

American Catholic ^ | September 4th, 2010

[GonzoII]

Something for the weekend. It seems appropriate for this Labor Day Weekend to recall some of the unsung heroes of World War II, the Merchant Marine. Along with their British colleagues in the Merchant Service, and the merchant fleets of the other allied nations, the Merchant Marine manned the merchant vessels that delivered supplies and troops through the war torn waters of the Atlantic and Pacific. Technically civilians, one out of 26 merchant mariners died in action during the war, giving them a higher fatality rate than any of the armed services. Members of the merchant marine were often jeered at as slackers and draft dodgers by civilians when they were back on shore who had no comprehension of the vital role they played. Incredibly, these gallant men were denied veteran status and any veteran benefits because they were civilians.

[GonzoII]

Merchant Marine Video

[SunkenCiv]

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	Gods Graves Glyphs	Thanks GonzoII. ...the Merchant Marine manned the merchant vessels that delivered supplies and troops through the war torn waters of the Atlantic and Pacific. Just adding to the catalog, not sending a general distribution. To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother, and Ernest_at_the_Beach
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[Jacquerie]

I don't have the exact quote, but what Churchill feared most was Nazi victory in the Battle of The Atlantic.

Had Doenitz had another year to build U-Boats, instead of starting off with only a dozen or so boats deployed at any one time, the outcome may have been different.

[Maine Mariner]

Two corrections to the article.

1. The Marine Corp had the highest % casualty rate, the US merchant service was 2nd.

2. Merchant mariners who served in WII on the oceans did receive veterans status in 1988.

After 1988, the American Legion opened its membership up to those mariners who had received veteran status.

It has been a few years since I checked but the VFW has refused to open its membership up to those mariners. The gun crews on the merchant ships were US Navy personnel and have always been eligible for VFW membership/

[GonzoII]

"2. Merchant mariners who served in WII on the oceans did receive veterans status in 1988."

That would have been established by the following then?

From the article:

This injustice was not corrected until 1988 when President Reagan signed the Merchant Marine Fairness Act.

[Maine Mariner]

I stand corrected. I did not sea the final sentence.
Hurrican Earl is hitting Maine now-so we have been watching the rain. Not bad so far but 2 years ago 14 inches in about 6 hours-of that 3 inches went into our basement.

Thanks for the post about the US Mercant Marine. An uncle by marriage was on the Murmask run-went to the lifeboats twice.

Great video.

[MadJack]

I’ve long thought the 1943 fim “Action in the North Atlantic” with Bogart, Raymond Massey, and Alana Hale is a great tribute to the Merchant Marine. Definitely worth watching.

[artichokegrower]

On September 27, 1942, the Liberty Ship, Stephen Hopkins, encountered the German auxiliary cruiser Stier and her escort, the blockade runner Tannenfels in the South Atlantic. The Stier was an armed commerce raider. The Tannenfels delivered supplies and took off prisoners from surface raiders operating in the South Atlantic. The Stephen Hopkins carried a crew of forty and a fifteen-man naval armed guard. She was under the command of Captain Paul Buck. Her main firepower was one 4-inch gun and dual 37-mm machine guns mounted on the bow. Refusing to strike his colors, but with German shells on their way, Captain Buck made his decision. He would fight rather than surrender. The Stier had met and sunk 19 other merchant vessels of various Allied nationalities. None of these ships put up any resistance. The American tanker Stanvac Calcutta put up a fight but was sunk with the loss of fourteen of her crew, including the captain, and two members of her armed guard. A gun battle between the Stephen Hopkins and the Steir and Tannenfels ensued reminiscent of the ship-to-ship battles of the War of 1812. The Stier was to follow the Stephen Hopkins to the bottom in the 2,200 fathom deep above which they had duelled. The Tannenfels, although damaged, made Bordeaux. Fifteen survivors of the Stephen Hopkins sailed a lifeboat 1000 miles from the site of the battle to a landing at the small Brazilian fishing village of Barra do Itabopana. There were many heroes of this battle; however, with the Navy gun crew dead or dying about him and the magazine afire below, Cadet Midshipman Edwin J. O'Hara continued firing the Hopkins' 4-inch shells until he ran out of shells. He was later killed by flying shrapnel. The cover painting hangs in O'Hara Hall at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Cadet O'Hara was 18 years of age. He had escaped the blazing engine room, had learned basic gunnery at the Merchant Marine Academy, and from his friend, Ensign Kenneth M. Willett, U.S.N.R., commander of the naval armed guard who was also fatally wounded in the gun battle. O'Hara single handedly manned the 4-inch gun, loading and firing the remaining five rounds scoring hits on the Stier and Tannenfels. The nation bestowed a whole cluster of posthumous awards on the ship and her heroic company. The Stephen Hopkins herself was awarded a Gallant Ship citation, and two later Liberty Ships were christened the Stephen Hopkins and the Paul Buck. A destroyer escort (DE­354) was named for Ensign Willett. For extraordinary heroism and conspicuous courage, Willett was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross. The Merchant Marine Distinguished Service Medals were posthumously bestowed on Captain Buck and Cadet Midshipman O'Hara.

[ansel12]

1. The Marine Corp had the highest % casualty rate, the US merchant service was 2nd.

I know this is true for the Marines and is probably true for the Merchant Marines, their numbers are a purified essence that leaves out much administration and support people, making their combat loss percentage artificially high, they only count a small slice of their entire operation. In the Army or Navy, everyone is counted, except the Navy whose ground troops (Marines) are pulled from the Navy total.

In the Army for instance, Dentists, and all of the vast administrative and support personnel are counted, not just the more combat oriented portions and Divisions.

For instance in the Pacific combat, the United States Army losses in the Pacific equalled, or even exceeded, the Navy, the Marines, and the Merchant Marines all combined but the intensity of that loss is concealed by the vast numbers of Army personnel back in the states for instance.