93RD SEABEES’ HISTORY
edited slightly from: PACIFIC DUTY: A Book of Record and
Review of the Activities and
Achievements of the 93rd Naval Construction Battalion, C.E. Pappas, ed,.
Lester C. Nielson Company,
Huntington Park, CA, Publisher, 1946
UNIT IS FORMED
Organization of the Ninety-Third Naval Construction Battalion was started on
7 May 1943, at which time the
officer personnel was assembled. A few days later the enlisted personnel had
been assembled and the 93rd
Battalion was born.It was at Camp Peary, near Williamsburg, historical city
of Virginia, that the organizing took
place. Most men had arrived at Camp Peary during the latter part of March,
although many had been there
earlier.
TRAINING BEGINS
The period between arrival at Camp Peary and 7 May was one of primary or
boot training. This period was, in
sum and substance, one in which a civilian is transformed into a serviceman.
It was one of physical
examinations, issuance of gear or clothing, inoculations against diseases,
rigid physical conditioning and learning
the use and care of various firearms. A few men attended specialized schools
dealing with many trades.
Upon completion of primary training everyone was granted a customary sixty
hour leave of absence. Most men
whose homes were far away spent their leaves in nearby Richmond, while
others journeyed north to witness
the wonders of Washington, D. C. and going as far as New York City. Possibly
due to the great influx of
servicemen, those who stayed in Richmond were greatly disappointed with the
manner in which they were
received by the civilian population. One distasteful experience was to find
that the uniform ap-parently evoked
higher sales prices for commodities. Then too, in Norfolk, it was not very
pleasant to find signs reading "No
Dogs or Sailors Allowed."
LEAVE FOR ADVANCED TRAINING BASE
On 17 May the organization was completed and the Battalion boarded two
trains bound for Camp Endicott,
Rhode Island, arriving there the following day. Camp Endicott was situated
near Greenwich, Providence and
the great Naval Air Base at Quonset Point. This camp was an advanced
training base.
Training now became more direct and much more specialized. Men attended
different schools of warfare such
as camouflage, machine gun, anti-aircraft, military strategy and methods of
deployment. Tradesmen learned to
apply their skills to equipment designed by Army and Navy engineers, such as
trucks, jeeps and tractors.
Physical training became intensified, especially in daily running the
commando-type obstacle course), the
difficult use of bayonets in close quarter fighting, and hand-to-hand or
judo combat training.
The entire Battalion moved en masse to Sun Valley, an encampment six miles
from Camp Endicott, for one
week. There, under Marine Corps supervision, everyone fired on the rifle
range. At the end of the week
qualification trials were held and the battalion record was found to be
high. Men assigned to special weapons
such as machine guns and mortars remained at Sun Valley one week longer than
the rest. During this period,
men assigned to anti-aircraft batteries were firing their 20mm weapons at
nearby Price's Neck, an island off the
Rhode Island coast, near Newport News.
BATTALION OFFICIALLY COMMISSIONED
It was raining Saturday morning, 22 May, when the 93rd was officially placed
into commission as a unit of the
United States Navy, but in spite of the rain, the ceremony was very
impressive, especially during presentation
of the American and Battalion colors.
Camp Endicott, situated on the coast and being a port of embarkation, always
presented the speculation that
the 93rd would ship overseas from there. This was not to be the case,
however, as it was later proven.
Occasionally units would return from their overseas tour of duty and it was
interesting to hear the tales those
men would relate.
Liberties were spent at nearby Greenwich, Providence, and Boston. The change
found in the civilian population
was amazing. In place of the depressing and cold attitude of the people of
Williamsburg and Richmond, here
was warmth, cheer, friendliness and everyone was welcomed with an open
heart. Some ventured to
Connecticut, Vermont and New York, and as in Providence, results found were
the same. 26 June was a
happy day for most of the battalion for it marked the start of a ten day
leave of absence for all men whose
homes were in the central or eastern section of the country. The remainder
were to receive their leaves at a
later date.
CALIFORNIA BOUND
6 July everyone returned to camp and three days later the battalion boarded
three different Pullman trains for a
trip to Camp Parks, California. The first and second trains followed the
same route in crossing New York
State, International Bridge, across Canada into Michigan, Indiana and
Chicago, Illinois. At Chicago the two
trains parted, having met each other at several points on the way. The first
train passed through Omaha,
Cheyenne, Ogden, across Great Salt Lake via the direct route to California.
The second train traveled through
Kansas City, the nation's breadbasket. Pueblo, Royal Gorge, Salt Lake City,
Bonneville Salt Flats and into
California via picturesque Feather River Canyon. The third train followed a
different route, passing through
Buffalo, Cleveland, Indianapolis, St. Louis and Kansas City. From Kansas
City this train traveled the same
route as the second.
A drum and bugle corps had been formed at Camp Endicott and being on the
third train, the corps played at
various stops en route. Arriving at Indianapolis on a Sunday morning, church
services were held on the street
outside the station. The entire trip was a memorable one, especially so when
meeting Army troop trains made
up of chair cars with field kitchens set up in baggage cars.
LIFE AT CAMP PARKS
Camp Parks was found to be a virtual paradise. The camp was clean and
offered many individual facilities such
as Ship's Store which sold beer and ice cream. Its proximity to Oakland and
San Francisco was an added
asset, for these two cities lay approximately forty miles away and liberties
were plentiful.
In California, as in Rhode Island, the civilians were good to servicemen.
Canteens, dances, shows, and the
natural sights of these two cities were a constant attraction. Treasure
Island, the Golden Gate and Oakland Bay
Bridges, Alcatraz, the wharves and other points were a great source of
pleasure. At this time the California
State Mining Association undertook sponsorship of the battalion as tribute
to the officer in charge, Commander
Harold F. Lynn, who was formerly a member.
More training followed at Camp Parks, consisting mostly of long hikes
carrying full field equipment, battle
skirmishes, and the firing once again of various weapons, not to mention an
often visited obstacle course.
Bulldozer and heavy equipment operators had another opportunity to operate
on public works programs.
On one occasion half of Headquarters Company and Companies C and D made a
twenty-four mile march
inland to Mount Diablo, remaining overnight and returning the following
evening. It is said that one can see
more land and water from Mount Diablo than any other point in the world.
This, however, was not much of an
attraction, for blistered feet and appetites jaded from eating condensed
rations dispelled all thoughts of
pleasure.
ON TO CAMP ROUSSEAU
One month was spent at Camp Parks, the next in line being Camp Rousseau at
Port Hueneme, California, sixty
miles north of Los Angeles. Because of overcrowded conditions at Camp
Rousseau, the battalion had been
routed temporarily to Camp Parks which ordinarily was a recuperation center
for returning troops. Port
Hueneme was a port of embarkation from which the 93rd was to depart for
overseas service.
Camp Rousseau was a bit different from the rest of the camps, due to its
housing facilities. There were no
wooden barracks there, but Quonset or Nissen huts, each accommodating ten
men comfortably.
It was divided into two sections, one being the camp itself, the other being
known as "Splinter City", so-called
because of its wooden barracks. Incoming battalions such as the 93rd would
first be stationed at Camp
Rousseau, continuing the previous training program. Upon moving into the
"Splinter City" location each
battalion would receive its allotment of construction equipment for use
over-seas, such as tractors, bulldozers,
cranes, power shovels, trucks and jeeps, carpentry and plumbing equipment.
This procedure was followed by
the 93rd.
ACORN 15 CEREMONY
8 September was a day that shall not be forgotten. It marked the date of
Italy's unconditional surrender to the
Allies. On that date the 93rd was attached to a new unit, Acorn 15, in an
impressive ceremony. Seabee
battalions were at that time being shipped overseas together with newly
formed Acorn units in the belief that as
a combined organization the efficiency of both would be increased. The
Seabees were to build a strip and the
Acorn units were to operate it. And so it was that the 93rd and Acorn 15
joined forces.
On the following day a portion of the battalion participated in its first
parade, in nearby Ventura. The occasion
marked the opening of the Third National War Bond Drive. Thirty men from
each company, together with the
drum and bugle corps, marched in the hour long parade along with other
representative units of Seabees,
Army, Navy, and Marines.
A GREAT CHANGE
At this point the battalion underwent a great change.
Gone were the days of military training. Everyone had received enough
training and knew thoroughly the part
he should play in the event of any enemy action. Each construction
department took over its own tools and
equipment. At Point Mugu, a few miles south of camp, dump trucks, shovels
and tractors, (to mention only a
few) were placed into operation. This was a breaking-in period during which
men and equipment worked
together with other departments in practicing amphibious landings by loading
and unloading LSDs under
specified time limits.
In Hollywood, the Hollywood Guild Canteen was in operation, being maintained
by the film colony. Finding it
necessary to provide more sleeping quarters for transient servicemen, they
asked the 93rd to help. In answer,
crews of carpenters, plumbers and electricians were dispatched. Those who
worked there had the time of their
lives and were royally entertained. Work was completed early in October and
a large plaque was presented to
the Canteen by Commander Lynn, in behalf of the battalion. In turn, the 93rd
became the Canteen's own
battalion. A similar project was in progress at the same time, improving
facilities at the Naval Aid Auxiliary’s
Shore Station which consisted of two houses on Wilshire Boulevard and was
similar in purpose to the
Hollywood Guild Canteen. Many hearts were heavy when these two projects were
completed, for it meant
termination of many pleasant associations, a direct contrast to anything
encountered in Virginia.
WE SAIL FROM PORT HUENEME
The USAT Perida sailed from Port Hueneme on 14 October 1943, and the 93rd
was aboard, bound for the
tropics. The Battalion's construction equipment, together with a few men,
followed on a freighter, the Sea Bass,
which departed a few days later. Hearts were heavy that afternoon as the
friendly shores of California faded
away in the distance. Some wives who had followed their husbands to
California stood on nearby beaches,
taking pictures, waving handkerchiefs or just crying.
The first three days found many cases of sea-sickness, prompted by huge,
rolling swells, characteristic of the
Pacific Ocean. Thereafter all was peaceful and quiet. No bad weather was
encountered during the crossing,
excepting small rain squalls. Aboard ship everyone relaxed. Favorite
pastimes were reading, playing cards or
shooting dice. Protestant and Catholic church services were held daily above
deck, drawing good attendance.
EQUATOR CROSSED
Land was first sighted on 22 October. Early in the morning Christmas Island
was sighted in the distance. That
day marked the crossing of the equator, at one hundred fifty-four degrees
longitude. The usual festivities and
horseplay were evident as everyone observed the traditions accompanying the
crossing. Seventy men were
found to be "Shellbacks;" they had crossed before. These seventy
conducted the ceremony, initiating the
"Pollywogs" who were dressed in shorts and socks. Each pollywog
stood trial before the court of King
Neptune, having been subpoenaed on hypothetical charges of
"mistreatment rendered creatures of the King's
realm." The court invariably adjudged the pollywog guilty of something
or other, and he was subjected to some
form of punishment. Several old fashioned stocks had been built, similar to
those used by the Puritans and
Quakers in colonial America. This type imprisoned a man by pinioning his
neck and wrists between two
grooved wooden bars, giving the Royal Barber an excellent opportunity to
experiment with his scissors and
clippers. Some specimens of "expert tonsorial art" evoked many
hearty laughs. While the subject was thus
imprisoned he was roundly whacked on the posterior accompanied by cold water
dousings on his perspiring
back, and storage batteries provided an occasional charge of animated
electricity on the already be-deviled
posterior, just to liven things up a bit. Next in line was the baptismal
chair mounted on a pivot and placed on
the edge of a large, water-filled tank. Now it was the Royal Doctor's turn
to punish the seated pollywog, which
he readily did, administering a dose of "medicine".
If a man had survived sea sickness, this concoction provided a comparable
substitute, being composed of a
variety of hot sauces used in food preparation diluted with salt water and
flavored with a small but effective
laxative content. The medicine was no sooner downed than the chair was
suddenly tilted backwards, plunging
the poor pollywog into a tank full of cold water. Royal Bears armed with an
assortment of paddles, that felt like
clubs, lined a path through which the pollywog had to run, upon climbing out
of the tank. Bruised survivors of
these ordeals, sporting the very latest in hair styles, were
proclaimed to be shellbacks, entitled to all privileges of the sea. War had
taken a holiday while men complied
with the oldest tradition of the sea.
EXPLOSION IN NOUMEA HARBOR
Skirting the southern fringe of the Samoan Islands, land was next sighted on
passing the Tonga Islands, when
the Isle of Eau came into view in the distance. The International Date Line,
at one hundred eighty degrees
longitude, was crossed the night of 28 October. Everyone went to sleep
Thursday night, awakening Saturday
morning, 30 October. Early Monday morning, I November, New Caledonia's
myriad of mountain peaks
appeared on the horizon. At 11:30 anchor was dropped in the harbor of Noumea,
capital of Free French New
Caledonia. At 14:10 of that same day everyone was brought to his feet by a
tremendous explosion at the
western portion of the harbor where ammunition and explosives were being
unloaded from ships. The original
blast was followed by hundreds of smaller ones, lasting four hours. Bright
red tongues of flame leaped over a
large part of the docks, sending huge billowing clouds of smoke upward into
the sky. Three endangered
freighters pulled away to safety under their own power. A fourth was towed
by a tug which braved the hail of
flying debris and flames to effect the rescue. The toll in injured and
killed was high.
SEA BASS ARRIVES
A few days later the Sea Bass arrived and on 6 November the two ships,
together with another freighter
formed a convoy under protection of two destroyer escorts. This time the
course was northward. Guadalcanal
was sighted on 10 November, after having passed the New Hebrides Islands,
Rennell, and San Christoval. A
few hours were spent lying off shore. Nearby Henderson Field was catapulting
a constant stream of American
planes into the sky, bound on missions of destruction. The beaches were
littered with hundreds of landing craft,
some large, some small, some in use, some wrecked, and here and there was
the wreckage of enemy shipping.
The beaches themselves were lined with rows of coconut palms blending into
dense jungle undergrowth, not in
serene beauty always associated with palms, but in an awesome, shell-torn
manner. It was a panoramic scene
which vividly portrayed the gruesome spirit of war, a scene which could be
representative of Guadalcanal
alone. Later that evening the 93rd had reached its destination, Banika
Island, of the Russell group,
approximately sixty miles west and north of Guadalcanal.
WE REACH BANIKA ISLAND
After camp had been set up a few projects were engaged by the 93rd. Roads
were built, other camp facilities
were enhanced, warehouses and storage areas were constructed and existing
dock facilities were improved.
Then followed the first major overseas assignment, construction of Medical
Operating Base 10. Banika was to
become a major supply and recuperation base. The Christmas holidays, though
lonely ones, were spent
peacefully. Shortly after the holidays the enemy put in his first
appearance. One night early in January the air
raid warning systems started their ominous wailings. A few minutes later the
sky was filled with bursting flak.
Anti-aircraft fire was so effective that no bombs were dropped on Banika,
but fell harmlessly on a nearby
island in the bay.
12 February, 1944, one fourth of the battalion, known as the first wave or
advance echelon, boarded an LST,
invasion bound. The destination was Green Island, a small but important
coral atoll midway between
Bougainville and the enemy's mighty bastion of Rabaul, at the western end of
the Solomons chain. The
remaining portion of the battalion was to follow in later waves.
A convoy was formed together with other LSTs and destroyers off Banika and
proceeded past the remaining
Solomon Islands. While circling off Vella Lavella the afternoon of 13
February, more landing ships and
destroyers arrived, forming a larger, well protected convoy.
OUR LST 220 ATTACKED BY AIR
At dawn of 15 February, after having passed enemy occupied Bougainville and
Buka, the convoy was in sight
of Green Island. While New Zealand infantry was making the assault landing,
several enemy planes appeared
to attack the convoy. The destroyers formed a protective ring around the
landing ships and very few planes
penetrated to make attempts against the LSTs. Two penetrations reached the
LST 220, carrying the 93rd,
whose anti-aircraft guns were manned largely by men of the battalion. One
Jap flew low over the bow,
evidently disabled yet with his guns spewing hot lead. In turn he received a
good reception from 220 and finally
glided on past to crash into the ocean. Another came down out of the low
sun, in a screaming power dive. The
LSTs of this convoy were flying a barrage balloon each, held at three
thousand feet by a strong steel cable. In
order to miss the cable, the Jap dive bomber veered to the right, dropping
two bombs at the time. As the plane
pulled out of the dive and started to climb, the rear gunner strafed the
length of the ship. However, the barrage
balloon "Miss Missouri" had done a good job at spoiling the aim of
both bombs and bullets. Three enemy
planes were seen to crash, two in flames, but there were others. Later
dispatches placed the count at eleven
enemy planes destroyed. At one point in the engagement twenty-six American
destroyers were counted off the
port side alone.
WE LAND AT GREEN ISLAND
At 09:15 on 15 February, the 93rd landed on Green Island. New Zealand
infantry could be seen going by, in
one wave after another, clearing dense jungle of the enemy who were later to
put up a mildly organized
resistance at the southern end of the island.
Upon landing, bulldozers crashed headlong into the jungle which started no
more than three or four feet from
the water's edge. Equipment pouring out of the huge mouth of LST 220
followed the bulldozers inland and
occupied areas almost as soon as they were cleared. There being no fresh
water supply on Green Island, the
first piece of equipment placed into operation was a huge still which
purified ocean water. In less than four
hours this still was producing enough water to satisfy everyone's needs.
The first two nights were spent almost entirely in fox-holes, due to air
raids and weak bombings which did no
damage. Thereafter the skies were free of the enemy.
The first few days were spent in building shelters and longer roads going
south to a new campsite. In many
instances dozer operators were fired upon by snipers concealed in tree tops.
Some Japs penetrated New
Zealand lines to the 93rd camp's perimeter, only to be found and killed.
THE 22nd CONSTRUCTION REGIMENT
The Green Island campaign included the 33rd, 37th and 93rd Seabee
Battalions, plus a portion of the 15th, all
of which formed the 22nd Construction Regiment of Seabees. 19 February found
bulldozers moving into an
abandoned coconut plantation which had become a second growth jungle. This
area was to be converted into
two airstrips and on that day it began changing in appearance as trees were
felled and small patches of
clearings were linked together.
The following day, 20 February, the greater portion of the 93rd Battalion
arrived at Green Island, having
encountered no opposition en route. That same day marked the end of
organized enemy resistance. New
Zealanders brought Valentine tanks into action annihilating the remaining
Japs who had concentrated near what
formerly had been a Catholic Mission. A few days later the remainder of the
93rd arrived.
FIRST PLANE LANDS ON AIRSTRIP
On 3 March a disabled Corsair, piloted by Marine Lieut. J. G. Killdeer,
landed on Green Island, being the first
plane to do so. The former coconut plantation had been converted into a
fighter strip in sixteen days and nights
of ceaseless work. Crews worked around the clock, under powerful
flood-lights at night, and engines stopped
running only long enough to be greased and lubricated. Three days later
several squadrons of Navy and Marine
fighters and medium bombers arrived. Green Island was the furthest Allied
outpost in the Pacific theater of war.
To the rear, in the Solomons, some twenty thousand Japs were trapped, with
no means of escape. Two days
later, on 8 March, the enemy attempted a futile and costly uprising on
Bougainville which was repulsed by
Marines.
By 29 March a new strip was ready for use. It was a bomber strip, running
parallel to the fighter strip. The first
plane to land on the bomber strip was a Liberator bomber. It had been
seriously damaged in a raid over Truk
and the pilot radioed in to say he was attempting a crash landing. The crew
had refused to bail out, preferring
to ride their plane to earth. The plane made a perfect approach, but as the
wheels touched ground a flat tire
deflected the plane off the strip, causing it to nose over and disintegrate.
All occupants were killed, some
mangled beyond recognition. War had exacted its ugly toll and Green Island's
new bomber strip had been
inaugurated in blood.
15 April saw a decline in activity. Emirau and the Admiralty Islands further
ahead were in American hands, and
action shifted forward. Green Island was no longer an out-post, having
served its primary purpose. Long range
bombers flying from Green Island had bombed Truk and the Caroline Islands by
day and by night. Medium
bombers and fighters had rendered nearby Rabaul and Kavieng useless and had
cut off enemy shipping. From
that date on only a small number of planes remained for patrol flights and
occasional raids on Rabaul and
Kavieng. The 15th Battalion departed and the 22nd Regiment continued its
activities along other lines.
Camps, roads, fuel and ammunition dumps, warehouses, communication lines,
hospitals and mess halls were
either built or improved. Dock and camp facilities were constructed for
several squadrons of PT boats which
were forever attacking enemy shipping and shore installations on
Bougainville, Buka. New Britain and New
Ireland.
SERVICES CONDUCTED
Five men reported for work as usual on the morning of 10 June. Some were
members of a dynamite crew.
Others were working on or with nearby equipment. None was ever seen in camp
again, for a premature
dynamite explosion snuffed out their lives, injuring others. Funeral
services were held the following day at Green
Island's populous cemetery, nearly every man of the 93rd in attendance.
Pallbearers dressed in whites placed
the flag-draped coffins in open graves dug out of the coral. With bare heads
bowed, the overflow crowd paid
their last respects to five mates, friends and brother-in-arms, while
Protestant Chaplain W. L. Ball, Jr. of the
93rd and Catholic Chaplain C. W. Buckley of the Marines conducted joint
services. Three volleys fired into the
air by the guard of honor created a disturbance in the trees as birds left
their perches to fly away, trailed by the
resonance of Taps.
Things were moving swiftly now. On 18 June Saipan was invaded, followed on
22 July by the invasion of
Guam. The New Zealanders had left Green Island to return home and
re-organize for later campaigns. The
American Army had arrived to occupy Green Island. On 10 September the
Australian Government formally
took control of its Solomon Islands mandate, of which Green Island was a
part. The only visible effect this had
on the 93rd was that traffic on the roads was now on the European pattern,
vehicles driving on the left side of
the road.
TIME FOR RECREATION
Battalion activities now centered on recreation, the 22nd Construction
Regiment having moved elsewhere. A
few small projects were in progress, but not of great importance. Several
tournaments were held in many fields
of sport, notably baseball, softball, basketball, volleyball, horseshoes,
ping pong and others. Competition was
keen between various crews, platoons and companies. The 93rd baseball team
had engage-ments with other
service groups, establishing a very good record and ranking among the best.
Entertainment groups on tour of bases in the Pacific made personal
appearances on Green Island. Lieut.
Commander Eddie Peabody, John Carter and the Tune Toppers arrived on 12 May.
Bob Hope, Frances
Langford, Jerry Colonna, Patty Thomas, Tony Romano and Barney Dean arrived
August 1. Fifteen days later
Jack Benny, Carole Landis, Larry Adler, Martha Tilton and June Bruner put on
a show. A combined
Army-USO unit featuring Clark Dennis arrived on October 14.
WE SHOVE OFF AGAIN: CAPE JOHNSON AND MIDDLEMAS
Early in October the 93rd Battalion was readying for another move. By 25
October all equipment had been
loaded on a freighter outside the bay, the USS Middlemas. Fifteen men
boarded the Middlemas and the rest of
the 93rd boarded a Navy transport ship, the Cape Johnson. By nightfall both
ships were under way,
accompanied by another freighter and a destroyer escort.
On 31 October, New Guinea's towering peaks were seen in the distance and
Humboldt Bay appeared as the
ship rounded a promontory. Stops had been made at Emirau and Manus of the
Admiralty Islands. The
Middlemas remained there until Sunday, 5 November. The Cape Johnson did not
depart until 9 November. In
the meantime, men on both ships had an opportunity to go ashore at the fleet
landing. This was Hollandia,
where evidence yet remained to depict the stubborn enemy resistance our
troops had encountered in occupy-
ing that portion of New Guinea.
It was not until the Cape Johnson was well away from Hollandia and Humboldt
Bay that the destination was
announced. Scuttlebutt, or rumors had been correct. The 93rd Battalion was
headed toward the frontier once
again. This time it was the Philippine Islands. Nearly three weeks had
elapsed since the first beachheads had
been established on Leyte and Samar. Now the Cape Johnson was one of sixteen
transports and seven
destroyers that formed the original convoy which was increased off Pelelieu
the morning of 12 November. That
evening the enemy made his first appearance in the form of a reconnaissance
plane. As in the invasion landing
on Green Island, men of the 93rd supplemented ship's gunners on the
anti-aircraft guns.
ENEMY PLANE SIGHTED
Several alerts resulted from enemy planes being in the vicinity, but
adequate American air cover kept them at a
safe
distance. 13 November found the enlarged convoy well past the Palau Islands
and within range of enemy
land-based planes flying from the Philippines. General Quarters was sounded
at 0845 in the morning and
continued until evening. During alerts, all men except those assigned to
anti-aircraft guns were kept below
decks. At such times Commander L. C. Farley, the ship's captain, would turn
narrator, colorfully describing
activity above deck. At 0845, "An enemy plane has been sighted and it
has undoubtedly sighted us. That is all."
At 1000, "This is not a drill. There are enemy planes in the perimeter
of this vicinity." At 1030, "They are
hanging around the perimeter, doing nothing as yet."
Things quieted down enough during mid-day that everyone had an opportunity
to go above decks for a while.
At 1540, "They are hanging around the perimeter. A destroyer fifteen
miles astern has opened fire." At 1630,
"Still nothing doing. There are three groups of enemy planes circling
about, twenty-five to thirty miles away." At
1632 Captain announced that "they seem to have retired." But at
1700, the ship shuddered from a violent
concussion. "You men below might be interested to know that we've shot
down one plane. He dropped one
torpedo which missed and he was shot down. There were no survivors on the
plane." Captain Farley's witty
remarks eased the strain everyone was under, being enclosed in a ship's
hold, while up above all hell was
breaking loose. At 1800 the Captain added, "Friendly planes are here.
Army P-38's."
"FIRING ON THE OUTSKIRTS"
Later that night at 2235, Commander Farley announced that "There is
firing on the outskirts. It is difficult to
see, but they are out there. We can't see a thing, which is okay, for they
can't see us either."
Reveille the following morning, 14 November, was at 0400. It was raining
heavily as the Cape Johnson was
making its way into Leyte Gulf. General Quarters sounded at 0603 followed, a
few minutes later, by another
explanation "Firing on the outskirts, not much else." A later
announcement was made at 0751, as the ship was
being anchored in San Pedro harbor, at the extreme northern end of Leyte
Gulf. "Two Jap planes have been
shot down; one by a P-38, the other by Army shore based (Leyte)
anti-aircraft."
At 0800 all men went over the side into barges. As each barge was filled to
capacity it would circle the ship.
When all barges were filled it was expected to strike off for shore. This
was not to be the case. Around and
around they went, around and around, until at noon an order was issued
bringing the barges back to the side of
the ship and everyone clambered aboard. While the two ships were at
Hollandia, Lieutenant Hubert Schmidt
had been transferred to the Middlemas. He was to have arrived earlier, as he
did, and he was entrusted with
selection of a campsite. When the Middlemas arrived in Leyte Gulf,
Lieutenant Schmidt was not allowed to
leave the ship, orders from the ship's captain. And so it was that when the
Cape Johnson arrived and the 93rd
prepared to land, there was no place to go. That night was again spent
aboard the Cape Johnson. By next
morning, 15 November, arrangements had been made and the battalion landed,
but on Samar, not Leyte, as
had been expected.
WE LAND ON SAMAR
The campsite was in a coconut plantation which fringed a beach. Nearby was a
small village, San Antonio. It
consisted merely of a cluster of thatch huts and a few frame buildings one
of which was a schoolhouse. Across
narrow San Pedro channel, the modern city of Tacloban, Leyte could be
plainly seen. Just below Tacloban
was a landing strip and a very busy one.
For the first two weeks ashore the 93rd did nothing other than to service
its equipment, build some access
roads, set up a permanent camp, repair a native church which had been
damaged and conduct surveys for a
coming assignment. The local terrain was found to be too unstable for any
permanent construction, consisting
mostly of swampland and rice paddies. This led authorities to abandon the
area. On November 30, sixty men
of the 93rd boarded small landing craft and traveled southward to the very
tip of Samar, arriving at a fair sized
town of Guiuan. Here they found coral deposits that could be used in
construction and the terrain presented
better possibilities. The battalion had to move again but this was only a
short trip, so it moved in sections, via
small landing craft.
LIFE AT SAN ANTONIO
The period spent at San Antonio was one that no one should ever forget. Air
raids were common. At first they
came at all hours of the day. Later they started a schedule, every morning
and every night. Then they stopped
their morning attacks. All this time the enemy was concentrating on the
Tacloban airstrip, Tacloban itself, or
more often they were after the enormous shipping in the harbor. On such
occasions Leyte-based anti-aircraft
units were firing in the general direction of Samar . . . and the 93rd. As a
result, the battalion was practically
living in bomb shelters, dodging both friendly and enemy shrapnel. Not being
very successful in high altitude
bombing attempts, the enemy resorted to mass suicidal attacks. It was not
uncommon for the enemy to come in
low over the 93rd camp and attempt crash dives on ships in the harbor.
On two instances "Conditional Black" was announced. This warning
meant that enemy paratroops were being
expected. Extra guards were posted and everyone was armed to the teeth. The
enemy did land some
paratroops, and in a Seabee camp at that, but on Leyte, in the 61st Seabee
Battalion camp. These Seabees
posted ten parachutes on their score board. Ten Japs had gone their limit.
ANOTHER ALERT SOUNDS
Action had been heavy on 26 November. At 1100 another alert was sounded and
everyone sought shelter.
One man reached a foxhole but never lived to tell about it. A projectile had
his name written on it. That was all.
The 93rd had lost another man. Burial was at Tacloban's Cemetery. A man from
another Seabee unit had been
killed at the same time. Both men were buried together, with brief and
simple services being conducted by
Chaplain Ball.
At the new Guiuan location only one thought prevailed and that was to
construct an airstrip as early as possible.
Only on one occasion did the enemy put in an appearance and that was on
Christmas morning when a Dutch
freighter was torpedoed. Although one hold was damaged, the ship did not
sink but the explosion killed several
Seabees aboard. The plane was shot down. All passenger troops were removed
and spent Christmas night in
the Guiuan cathedral. Enemy air raids were supplanted by extremely bad
weather. It rained almost constantly,
averaging .66 inches per day for the month of December. The strip was
constructed over a swamp,
necessitating the use of enormous quantities of fill. It had previously been
stated that construction of an airstrip
in this location was virtually impossible. The 61st and 93rd Battalions
broke ground on 6 December, working
together. On 18 December a Fairchild L-3 Cub successfully made the first
landing. On 28 December four
cargo transport planes landed, bearing cargo. On New Year's Day fighters and
medium bombers arrived en
masse. The Guiuan strip was in operation.
CONCLUSION
Today is Saturday, 14 April, 1945. To men of the 93rd, it means completion
of an eighteen month tour of
overseas' duty. When we'll return home is knowledge not in our possession.
"Our strip" is a good one. Its
planes have supported and made possible other drives elsewhere in the
Philippines from Luzon to Mindanao.
Since we completed our work on the strip we have done other jobs too
numerous to mention, all of which go
into construction of a base. We have had time to provide ourselves with
fairly comfortable quarters and our
camp is without question the best on the island.
Our mess hall has fed as many as nine thousand men in a day, not only our
own, but transient flying personnel
and ground forces as well. On the strip our mobile galley has served
sandwiches and ice water to any and all
transients. We are pretty well known throughout the Philippines.
Three days ago, 11 April, Donald E. Shackelford and Pete Seward were in the
vicinity of another unit's
blasting operations. Warned of an impending blast, the two men crouched
beneath a truck body, but a flying
lump of coral found them. Seward lost two fingers, but Shackelford was not
so fortunate. Two blood
transfusions failed to save his life. Burial was at the Tacloban Cemetery,
Chaplain Ball officiating.
Yesterday we were stunned by the appalling news that our Commander-in-Chief
had passed away. The news
which started at the breakfast table as a rumor and was later confirmed,
brought forth no dispirited nor
oratorical comment. Everyone appeared to be swallowing a little harder and a
little more often, and very few
words were spoken. Otherwise, there was work to be done and it was done.
CONTEST HELD
Architects of the battalion submitted designs in a contest held recently
when it was decided to build a chapel.
The winner received a cash award and had the pleasure of seeing his drawings
spring to life. The chapel has
been built on the beach, facing east. It is a permanent structure, made of
native wood in heavy beams and with
a concrete floor. Its interior is illuminated with indirect lighting. A
mural adorns the wall behind the altar. It was
painted by our battalion artist Charles Dinlocker, and depicts the physical
struggle undergone by Americans
and Filipinos alike in the liberation of the Philippines. The hardships are
tied together through religious worship,
with American troops and Filipino civilians kneeling side-by-side before a
panorama of the Virgin Mother and
Child. Long after the 93rd has departed the chapel shall be standing, a gift
to the Filipinos in their pursuit for
freedom of worship. (It lasted until the mid-1980s when Typhoon Agnes swept
it out to sea.)
Thirty-two men have not been here at camp with us for some time now. They
were temporarily detached and
sent to a lumber camp location nearby. There they have combined with men of
other units in producing
quantities of virgin lumber. Their living conditions have been poor, for
they have not had the facilities that are
available to us here. We expect them to rejoin us soon. One of them has gone
Jap-hunting, for there are small
pockets of resistance still holding out in the vicinity. He was successful,
too, according to verified reports.
QUESTION ON ALL MINDS
The prevalent question of the day is "WHEN ARE WE GOING HOME?" One
person's guess is as good as
another's, and estimates range from late in May to September. In Europe the
war appears to be in its final
stages and Germany's surrender is expected to come at any time. Here in the
Pacific theater, Okinawa of the
Ryukyu Islands has been invaded successfully. Our forces are now fighting
the enemy only three hundred
twenty five miles from the Japanese homeland. Twice in eighteen months the
93rd Battalion was active in the
furthest American outposts of each period, once at Green Island and once in
the Philippines. The action has
now once again shifted far forward. We cannot foresee what lies ahead nor
when we'll return to our homes.
Time alone will tell. In the meantime the 93rd Battalion will continue to be
busily engaged in a project that
eventually shall play an important part in the ultimate defeat of the enemy.
ARTHUR MIDDLETON AND OTHER ROUTES HOME
Since the above paragraph was written much has happened. First, VE day and
then VJ day and the war's end.
Our question has been answered to everyone's satisfaction. We were sent
home, a large contingent departing 3
October on the Coast Guard troop ship Arthur Middleton and arriving in
Portland on the 21st. They spent the
night at Swan Island and a draft left the next day by train for Camp
Shelton, Virginia. They arrived on the east
coast on the 27th and were discharged the 30th.
The men of the 93rd hoped to take up their lives where they left off. Most
had left families - even grandchildren
- and careers to serve their country. But six months of training and two
years overseas had taken a heavier toll
than the war; many marriages had already been terminated while the men were
still overseas, and doubtless
more failed to survive their return. These are the casualties for which no
medal is awarded, no monument
enscribed.
FMD
|