Download or read book The Silent Service in World War II written by Edward Monroe-Jones and published by Casemate. This book was released on 2012-12-07 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the naval battle of Guadalcanal to rescuing George Bush Sr. in the Pacific, here are the stories of US submariners in WWII. The Silent Service in World War II tells the story of America’s intrepid submarine warriors in the words of the men who served and fought in the Pacific against Japan. When Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941, the enemy had already deployed naval forces, but the United States was soon able to match them. By 1943, new Gato-class submarines were making a difference, carrying the war not just to the Japanese Imperial Navy, but to the vital merchant fleet that transported essential resources to the island country. Starting with the American victory at Guadalcanal, US submarine forces began to constrict the Japanese sea lanes. Operating independently and in wolfpacks, they attacked convoys operating beyond the range of American airpower, making daring forays even into Japanese home waters. Taking on Japanese warships, as well as rescuing downed airmen—including the grateful first President Bush—US submarines made an enormous contribution to our war against Japan. Aside from enemy action, the sea itself could be an extremely hostile environment—as many of these stories attest. From early war patrols in obsolescent, unreliable S-boats to modern fleet submarines roving the Pacific, the forty-six stories in this anthology offer a full understanding of life as a US Navy submariner in combat.

Download or read book Dive World War II Stories of Sailors Submarines in the Pacific Scholastic Focus written by Deborah Hopkinson and published by Scholastic Inc.. This book was released on 2016-09-27 with total page 415 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sibert Honor author Deborah Hopkinson paints a vivid portrait of the deadly battles that raged in the Pacific during WWII and the remarkable courage of the US submarine sailors who fought them. Dive! World War II Stories of Sailors & Submarines in the Pacific tells the incredible story of America's little known "war within a war" -- US submarine warfare during World War II. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the US entered World War II in December 1941 with only 44 Naval submarines -- many of them dating from the 1920s. With the Pacific battleship fleet decimated after Pearl Harbor, it was up to the feisty and heroic sailors aboard the US submarines to stop the Japanese invasion across the Pacific. Including breakouts highlighting submarine life and unsung African-American and female war heroes, award-winning author Deborah Hopkinson uses first-person accounts, archival materials, official Naval documents, and photographs to bring the voices and exploits of these brave service members to life.

Download or read book Black Submariners in the United States Navy 1940 1975 written by Glenn A. Knoblock and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2011-04-18 with total page 495 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For as long as an American naval force has existed, black sailors have served it with bravery, distinction, and little or no recognition. They have since earned praise for service in the American Revolution, the War of 1812, and the Civil War, and more recently, they were integral to the development of the U.S. Submarine Service. Their roles limited by segregation, black submariners nonetheless were a key element of the "Silent Service" throughout World War II. With desegregation came expanded opportunities, and black submariners witnessed the birth and evolution of the nuclear-powered submarine, and some of the tensest moments of the Cold War. These men paved the way for those who followed--their contributions deserve recognition, and their stories deserve to be told. This exploration of the role of African American submariners chronicles their service from World War II through the Cold War era. An historical overview of black sailors and the evolution of the Steward's Branch, to which black sailors were eventually restricted, precede descriptions of becoming a steward and a submariner, and of life as a submariner during World War II. An account of black submariners in post-war service during desegregation, the development of the nuclear submarine, and throughout the Cold War follows. Oral histories of more than fifty black submariners who served in World War II and post-war form the heart of the book. Photographs of the men profiled, including wartime photographs, complement the text. Appendices outline the naval steward rating system, list all black submarine stewards serving in World War II, top stewards by number of war patrols, and those lost or killed during wartime service. Rear Admiral Melvin G. Williams, Jr., submarine fleet commander and son of one of the men profiled, provides a foreword.

Download or read book Standing Watch written by Jonathan Li-Chung Leung and published by University Alabama Press. This book was released on 2019-04-30 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first book to capture and preserve the inside story of the exclusive brotherhood that manned the front lines of the Cold War Featuring interviews from seventeen veteran submariners, Standing Watch: American Submarine Veterans Remember the Cold War Era offers the perspective of the submariners themselves—lending them a voice and paying homage to their service. Jonathan Li-Chung Leung provides an original glimpse into a world of unique challenges and characters, a life isolated and submerged, and a duty defined by the juxtaposition of monotonous routine and unparalleled excitement. These personal accounts of life below the surface offer readers a front-row seat to close encounters with Soviet submarines and the naval blockade during the Cuban Missile Crisis, as well as an intimate understanding of daily life onboard the vessels, the culture of military discipline, and the religious-like fervor exercised in honoring traditions big and small. By applying first-hand perspectives to a larger thematic overview, this book uses authentic narratives to deliver a lively and colorful picture of the Silent Service. Set against the backdrop of sobering geo-political disputes and their own role as the nation’s defenders against a seemingly ambiguous super-enemy, these veterans focus on their responsibilities and reflect on careers built on the simple axioms of pride and service. This invigorating and unalloyed account is an unprecedented addition to the existing literature on naval and military history.

Download or read book Nothing Friendly in the Vicinity written by Claude C. Conner and published by Savas Publishing. This book was released on 2013-09-25 with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As chronicled in Silent Victory, Clay Blair's monumental history of United States submarine operations in World War II, the submarine war against Japan was a relatively little known war-within-a-war. It was waged by an initially small but expanding force of boats that eventually made more than 1,400 war patrols and sank almost 1,400 Japanese merchant ships and naval vessels. Many American submarines carved out enviable records, including USS Guardfish, the subject of Claude Conner's remarkable memoir of service aboard a US fleet boat as an enlisted man. Conner, who served as a Radar Technician, weaves a compelling tale of his service during several war patrols in the Pacific Theater against the Japanese. His firsthand account spans the spectrum in detail and emotion, describing everything from humorous personal incidents to the boat's bone crushing battle against the sea; the thrill of sending an enemy ship, to the bottom of the deathly terror of being trapped in a flooding conning tower. A significant portion of Conner's reminiscence describes the friendly-fire sinking of USS Extractor, which came about when Guardfish's skipper mistook the ship for a Japanese submarine. Along with the tragic sinking, Conner offers important information about Extractor and her crew, several detailed firsthand recollections of survivors, and an engrossing account of the Court of Inquiry that followed and for which Conner testified as a witness. Nothing Friendly in the Vicinity is a fresh and compelling account of an enlisted man's experiences during the hellish submarine war against Japan, and recognized today as a classic of the genre.

Download or read book Wolf written by Jordan Vause and published by Naval Institute Press. This book was released on 2017-02-15 with total page 237 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cultivated by the Allied press during the war and fostered by movies and novels ever since, the image of a U-boat skipper held by most Americans is the personification of evil: the wolf who stalks innocents. Quite the opposite image is shared by U-boat veterans and others sympathetic to their work: the knight who endures unrivaled danger and fights nobly. Yet another popular image depicts the submarine operator as a beleaguered sailor swept along by events beyond his control. This book examines the lives of many U-Bootwaffe officers, including the famous and the not-so-well known, to see if a pattern emerges. Drawing on a wealth of primary documents and, when possible, interviews or correspondence with the U-boat commanders themselves, Jordan Vause follows individual officers from their youths and early naval training through their wartime experiences and into the often bitter peace that followed. His close examination of their lives reveals that many were extremely different from the pictures typically drawn of them and as varied in their thoughts and actions as other fighting men on both sides of the war. Particularly valuable is the author's use of new information in his portrayal of Karl Doenitz and other prominent commanders to correct and enhance pictures presented in earlier books. His use of personal correspondence and unpublished manuscripts loaned to him in Germany adds special significance to this study and its appeal to all those interested in World War II, submarines, and the U-Bootwaffe.

Download or read book Find Em Chase Em Sink Em written by Mike Ostlund and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2011-11-08 with total page 541 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Now in paperback, revised and updated, the stirring and authoritative account of one of World War II's most highly decorated submarines Find ’Em, Chase ’Em, Sink ’Em is the first book to recount the tragic and mysterious loss of the World War II submarine USS Gudgeon. In April 1944, the highly decorated submarine USS Gudgeon slipped beneath the waves in one of the most treacherous patrol areas in the most dangerous military service during World War II. Neither the Gudgeon nor the crew was ever seen again. Author Mike Ostlund’s “Uncle Bill,” the operator of a farm implements business, was aboard that ship as a lieutenant junior grade. Through extensive research of patrol reports in U.S. and Japanese naval archives, interviews with veterans who had served aboard the Gudgeon before its final patrol, and the personal effects of the lost men’s relatives, Ostlund has assembled the most accurate account yet of this remarkably successful submarine’s exploits, of the men aboard from steward to captain, and of what we now know about her demise. Find ’Em, Chase ’Em, Sink ’Em details the memories and life lessons of the young men who went to sea aboard Gudgeon before its last patrol knowing hardly anything, and came home having seen too much.

Download or read book The War Below written by James Scott and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2013-05-14 with total page 437 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The riveting story of the submarine force that helped win World War II by ravaging Japan's merchant fleet and destroying its economy. A dramatic account of extraordinary heroism, ingenuity, and perseverance--and the vital role American submarines played in winning the Pacific war.

Download or read book The Depths of Courage written by Flint Whitlock and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2008-11-04 with total page 452 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Chosen by WWII History magazine as one of the Best Books of the Year. In the dark days after Pearl Harbor, the small, illequipped arm of the Navy known as Submarine Force would stand between the shattered U.S. Pacific Fleet and the might of the Japanese Navy. Unfortunately, the spirit and courage of the Submarine Force is being forgotten as the veterans of that force pass into history. To preserve their heroic tales of war beneath the sea, critically acclaimed author and military historian Flint Whitlock, in collaboration with decorated World War II submarine veteran Ron Smith, set out on a journey of more than two years to interview submariners and to record their accounts before the memories of their endeavors are lost forever. These are their stories.

Download or read book The USS Swordfish written by George J. Billy and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2019-10-23 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Among the more than 260 American submarines that patrolled the Pacific during World War II, the USS Swordfish in 1941 was the first to sink a Japanese armed merchant ship, marking the beginning of the submarine's colorful history. A series of seven commanders led Swordfish's 13 war patrols. Each skipper had a distinct leadership style. Some were successful in sinking enemy ships; others returned to port empty-handed. Yet all patrols risked dangerously close encounters with the enemy and the unforgiving nature of the open sea. Drawing on archival sources and interviews with veteran sailors, this first full-length history of the Swordfish provides detailed accounts of each patrol and covers the mysterious disappearance of the legendary submarine on its final mission.

Download or read book A Tale of Two Subs written by Jonathan J. McCullough and published by Grand Central Publishing. This book was released on 2008-05-13 with total page 197 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discover the shocking and fascinating true story of one of the most dramatic naval events in World War II history. On November 19, 1943, the submarine USS Sculpin, under attack by the Japanese, slid below the waves for the last time in what would become one of the most remarkable stories in U.S. Naval history. Not only did several crewmembers survive the sinking - an extremely rare event in World War II submarine warfare - but several were aboard a Japanese aircraft carrier enroute to a POW camp when it was in turn torpedoed and sunk by the Sculpin's sister ship, the USS Sailfish. At the end of World War II, several unlikely survivors would tell a tale of endurance against these amazing reversals of fortune. For one officer in particular, who knew that being captured could have meant losing the war for the allies, his struggle was not in surviving, but in sealing his own fate in a heartbreaking act of heroism which culminated in the nation's highest tribute, the Medal of Honor. Sculpin Lt. Commander John Phillip Cromwell was one of the few who knew that American Naval Intelligence had succeeded in cracking Japan's top-secret codes. Cromwell also knew that if the Japanese confirmed this by torturing him, it would force Naval Intelligence to change their encryption, which would potentially change the course of the war. This is Cromwell's story as well. The incredible interconnection of the Sculpin and the Sailfish has been thoroughly researched by Jonathan McCullough. Through access to the few living survivors, scores of oral histories, never-before translated Japanese war documents, and interviews with Navy veterans, McCullough delivers a gripping and, intimate account for the reader.

Download or read book Silent Victory written by Clay Blair and published by US Naval Institute Press. This book was released on 2001 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With the content of an authoritative reference and the excitement of a thriller, this history of the U.S. submarine war is one of the most informative and entertaining books written on the Pacific campaign. The author, a respected journalist and World War II submariner himself, is credited with providing a complete and unbiased account of what happened. When published in 1975, it was the first such account to detail controversial aspects of the American campaign, from the torpedo scandal to discrepancies between claimed and confirmed sinkings. To get to the truth, Clay Blair interviewed scores of skippers, staff officers, and code breakers, and combed thousands of documents and personal papers. In addition, he thoroughly researched the development of the submarine and torpedo from pre-war to post-war times. As a result, he takes the reader into the submarine war at all levels--the highest strategy sessions in Washington, the terrifying moments in subs at the bottom of the ocean waiting out exploding depth charges, the zany efforts of a crew coaxing a chicken to lay an egg. He also exposes the reader to the jealous infighting of admirals vying for power and the problems between cautious older skippers and daring young commanders. Supplementing the text are nearly forty maps showing submarine activity in the context of every important naval engagement in the Pacific, more than thirty pages of photographs, multiple appendixes (including a calendar of submarine war patrols), and an index of over 2,000 entries. This is a work of great scholarship and scope that makes a timeless contribution to the history of World War II.

Download or read book Operation Rising Sun written by David W. Jourdan and published by U of Nebraska Press. This book was released on 2020-06-01 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1944 Allied codebreakers learned the Imperial Japanese Navy had dispatched the cargo submarine I-52 to occupied France with tons of military supplies and payment--in gold--for German assistance. I-52 undertook the mission as part of the Yanagi missions, a military program meant to alleviate Japan's desperate need for military material and technical knowledge. After tracking I-52 from Asia to the Atlantic, the Allies destroyed the vessel in a battle that ended the Yanagi missions and left I-52 an unlikely treasure ship on the seafloor. David W. Jourdan adds to the history of I-52 with a spellbinding account of his efforts to find the sunken submarine. One of the first joint American-Russian research expeditions, the search for the wreck combined a team effort, exhaustive detective work, and a dramatic battle with the sea. The effort paid off when the group found I-52's nearly intact hull three miles down. The expedition also earned an unexpected historical dividend when it uncovered one-of-a-kind recordings of American Avenger torpedo bomber attacks on an enemy submarine. Part war tale and part seagoing adventure, Operation Rising Sun tells the story of the two very different missions to find submarine I-52.

Download or read book Air Force Combat Units of World War II written by Maurer Maurer and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 1961 with total page 520 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Corvettes Canada written by Mac Johnston and published by John Wiley and Sons. This book was released on 2008-08-25 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Canadian escort group C 2 was comprised of the RCN destroyers Gatineau and Chaudiere, the frigate St. Catharines, the Corvettes Chilliwack and Fennel, and the RN destroyer Icarus. these six and the RN corvette Kenilworth castle combined to sing U-744 in the North Atlantic in a prolonged drama on March 5 and 6, 1944. At 32 hours, this the second-longest successful hunt of the war. Chilliwack able seaman Ralph Chartrand recalls the action: When the sub started to surface, everything that could shoot went into action and we fired all we could. While the crew of U-744 was jumping out of the conning tower, St. Catharines was closing in, but our captain outmanoeuvred Chilliwack in front to make sure that this was our sub. He gave the order "Prepare to ram," but soon the sub was empty, so we didn't ram. We lowered a lifeboat with a boarding party and they proceeded to U-744. While the lifeboat was tied to the sub, some members boarded the sub. then a big wave hit our lifeboat and flipped the crew into the water with the German Sailors. We took 17 prisoners on board. It was almost a major coup. Three lifeboats reached the Type VII C boat. German code books and the cypher machine were seized, but all three seaboats capsized in the rough sea and only one book was saved. All the Canadians were picked up. So, too, were 40 Germans. Icarus then dispatched the unsalable U-744 with a torpedo. Eleven Germans died, including the captain. Praise for Corvettes Canada. "It was the ubiquitous corvette, built in Canada, manned by volunteers and often as not based in a Canadian or Newfoundland port, that carried the burden of our Atlantic war...and few wartime sailors escaped at least some time aboard them. "For the most part, their experiences have gone unrecorded--especially those of the lower deck--and time will soon erase what the enemy and the sea itself could not. Fortunately, Mac Johnston has salvaged the experiences of 250 of these fast-departing corvette veterans, and has drawn their story together into a superb collective memoir of the Atlantic war. "Johnston has woven these memories...and the history of the wartime RCN into a tight fabric, one that is both entertaining and extremely valuable. If you have never read anything on the Canadian navy's part in the Battle of the Atlantic, start with this one; if you've read everything that's already available, you will find this one a gem." --Marc Milner, University of New Brunswick "I like your presentation. It's right from the horse's mouth so to speak. It is so authentic, I say it is a classic. It's as true a story as can be told. Corvette men who read your book, contributors or not, will marvel at your format and will live again the tortures of the Atlantic, the friendship of shipmates, the action stations alarm bell and the roar of depth changes... "Your book proves that these Corvette men were tough to stand the day-to-day tensions, rough seas, dangers and the boredom that was part of their sea life. You have done a wonderful story." -- Leo McVarish, HMCS Alberni, Winnipeg, Man.

Download or read book Valor and Courage written by Benjamin J. Hruska and published by University of Alabama Press. This book was released on 2021-07-06 with total page 287 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recounts the stories of the USS Block Island CVE 21 and CVE 106 and their crews, many of whom served on both ships in the Atlantic and Pacific theatres

Download or read book Wahoo written by Richard O'Kane and published by Presidio Press. This book was released on 2009-11-11 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The career of the USS Wahoo in sinking Japanese ships in the farthest reaches of the Empire is legendary in submarine circles. Christened three months after Pearl Harbor, Wahoo was commanded by the astonishing Dudley W. “Mush” Morton, whose originality and daring new techniques led to results unprecedented in naval history; among them, successful “down the throat” barrage against an attacking Japanese destroyer, voracious surface-running gun attacks, and the sinking of a four-ship convoy in one day. Wahoo took the war to Japan’s front porch, and Morton became known as the Navy’s most aggressive and successful sea raider. Now, in a new quality paperback edition, her full story is told by the person most qualified to tell it—her executive officer Richard O’Kane, who went on to become the leading submarine captain of the Second World War. Praise for Wahoo “The accounts of the patrols are spine-tingling, both in triumph and tragedy. It is a tale of great courage, brilliant leadership, and daring innovation in a new type of submarine warfare fought largely on the surface in waters closely controlled by the enemy. Well-written, a gripping story for anybody with a love of the sea or adventure in submarine combat.”—Naval War College Review “This is an exceptional story of American men who rose to the occasion time and again under dangerous circumstance.” —Abilene Reporter News “A first-hand—and first-rate—narrative, told by the former executive officer of this legendary WWII submarine, which gives readers an intimate feel for life aboard the ‘boats’ that helped beat the odds in the battles of the Pacific and put Japan on the defensive.”—Sea Power “Like Clear the Bridge!, [Richard] O’Kane’s bestselling account of the Tang’s 33 confirmed sinkings, [Wahoo] is a rousing, authentic war adventure that could well become a classic of its type, crack[ling] with the tensions, boredom, and occasional exhilaration of submarine life under the Pacific, O’Kane is a superb storyteller, and his credentials are impeccable.”—Springfield Sunday Republic