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Monday, January 30, 2012

DYNAMITE CRUISER!

AN ERUPTION SUBDUED
---THE STRANGE SAGA OF THE---
                                  VESUVIUS

The night had been hot; another steamy night in the tropics.  Stealthily, the small yacht-like vessel crept toward the approaches of Santiago Harbor.  On the bridge of the vessel, silence reigned.  The vessel slinked past the other ships that was blockading the town's harbor.  Yep it was June 15, 1898 the U.S. forces had landed in Cuba.

This is about an unusual vessel....that had some unusual guns....which is extremely interesting....so if you'd care to give this one a read....just click on the below link.


Friday, January 27, 2012

SS CYRUS ADLER [MINE DAMAGE]

Unfortunately I was unable to locate a picture of this particular Liberty ship, but actually the interesting info about this vessel happens to be 'whom it was named after' and that ships were still being damaged 'after the war ended'.

So....if you are "into" Liberty ship history you soon realize most (but not all)  were named after 'individuals'....so I like to say, "the reader is getting two stories in one setting".

Hope you enjoy the article


Wednesday, January 25, 2012

LOSS OF THE..... 0-5

The U.S. Sub had orders to escort three other submariners through the Panama Canal from Cristobal to the deep water on the Pacific side.

Well the crew was booted out of there racks to get the job done.  They got there coffee had a nibble of breakfast.....paging through the 'Star & Herald' before they 'turned-to'.

By 6:25 am this very morning these men and there sub was a dead ship in six fathoms of water.
Here is the link to read there story


Monday, January 23, 2012

SS CORNELIUS VANDERBILT [A DAMAGED LIBERTY]

Now folks here is a Liberty ship that really lived up the greatness of whom she was actually named after.

Mr. Cornelius Vanderbilt....built his wealth on long term investments of simple river ferries, steamboats, ocean steam boats and finally railroads....and he started all this at 16 yrs old....yes sir he went into business at that early age....and actually made money!!!!

The Liberty ship he was named after was helping the WW II effort by early 1944....yes she was damaged in Okinawa...but stayed afloat.....was sold to another country....and hung in there for the long haul until being scrapped in November of 1967.

She served with honor


                                                                cshortridge73@gmail.com

Saturday, January 21, 2012

HM SAMSIP [EX-SS EDWIN A. ROBINSON]


The Edwin A. Robinson was 'renamed' prior to being delivered to her operator...reason being she was 'one' of those 'Liberty's' that was designated to be part of the "Lend Lease" program of WW II.

Well from what I could gather of her history once she was in the hands of her 'over the pond' operator....renamed 'SAMSIP'....she proved her worth.

History is short and sweet....but she held her head high as she performed her duties....until she met her fate.



Monday, January 16, 2012

FORLORN SENTINELS OF THE SEA


While not exactly Pulitzer Prize material, the poem convincingly summarizes the monotony and discomfort experienced by those who served aboard a type of ship that has departed the American seascape for over a quarter of a century and has been gone from European waters for about 15-yrs. A nautical purist might contend that the lightship is not really a “ship” since it doesn't really sail but it is permanently anchored in one location, except for the infrequent brief journeys to and from shipyards for annual maintenance and repair or re-positioning when powerful storms rip anchors from their hold on the seabed. As such, so the argument goes, they are more in the nature of floating, moored offshore light houses. Yet there is no denying that they were an essential part of the maritime scene - one that has been long neglected and is intimately bound up with the story of the high seas voyagers that they safeguarded.


cshortridge73@gmail.com

SS EDWARD H. CROCKETT [LIBERTY SHIP]

This is the story of a Liberty ship......her merger life span of helping where she could....talking part in six Convoys.  She had guts...and she gave it her all....just like the gentleman that she was named after...Mr. Edward H. Crockett.

I have provided a brief bio of Mr. Crockett...as well as providing some insight on the dangers of being and escort vessel for these North Atlantic Convoys that the  Crockett was involved in.

So....if you have an interest in these 'Liberty's'...this one is fairly typical of what you'll see come to view on this blog of mine.....to do the histories on these "Ugly Ducklings" is a passion of mine....hope it is a good read as well as being informative.


Hope you enjoy


Saturday, January 14, 2012

SS EMILE BERLINER [LIBERTY SHIP]


The SS Emile Berliner...a Liberty Ship freighter named after an inventor that had invented about as many things as the Liberty Ship had changed names after the war years.

So we got here somewhat of history inside another history article.  I couldn't find a whole heck of a lot out about the different convoys that this Liberty ship was involved in but still I think its important to get these 'ship histories' published so all can view.

If anyone has 'additional data'....and wishes to share on the 'Berliner'...it would be gratefully appreciated.

Hope you enjoy the short ship history....and in the process learn a tad of history.

Friday, January 13, 2012

THE "HIGGINS BOAT"


Going in, the first wave of assault troops usually liked to look over the side of the LCVP landing craft to see what was happening on the beach. By the time the fourth or fifth waves went in the troops were hunkered as low as they could get because they’d seen the first boat loads of wounded returning,” recalls former landing craft coxswain Earl W. Norwood, 83, about the Normandy invasion.

The day after the historic landings, Norwood and his two-man crew volunteered for the grim job of cruising along the beach to pull floating bodies out of the water. After three-days of this gruesome task, 18-yr-old Norwood and his crew grew so distressed by the horrors they had witnessed that they asked a senior non-com if they could stop. The petty officer reminded them that ever dead GI they recovered was one more family who would know the fate of a loved one.



SS THOMAS POLLOCK



---------------------------------
Yes ole NYU...New York University....and you say what in the world does this have to do with ships....well back in 1941 there was a Liberty ship named after the head of the English Department.  A dear friend of mine obtained a picture of Mr. Pollock for this article...but at the present time I unable to obtain anything further about his life history.

The gentleman's name is Thomas Pollock...so if anyone has info on this fellow I'd sure like to talk to you.

In the meantime...you can get to the ship history by clicking the name below


Thursday, January 12, 2012

SS CRIPPLE CREEK AND U-752


The "SS Cripple Creek" was Captained by Master: Herman N. Olsen....and she was on a long journey from New York to a port in the Persian Gulf....with a stop in Trinidad.

Well she met up with U-752 and things didn't turn out the way that everyone wanted.....and the Master...Herman N. Olsen...he not only lost this ship he was not so lucky on the next one he captained. 

Monday, January 9, 2012

THE BOMB


To start off with this article was sent to me by a good computer friend of mine....his name Mr. William Layton.   Bills father was involved in a round about way in the process of making the "A-Bomb".

Well Bill has several photos of his father actually involved in this process and he has "text" to add to it all in explaining how all this came about.  Now I'm not about to set here and provide you with all the "juicy" parts of the short article.....but Bill ask if I'd post it on my 'blog'...and was happy to do so....because it is excellent.

So...if you wish to give it a go...just click on the link below

MY DAD AND THE BOMB

If you'd care to get in contact with Mr. Layton ...please e-mail me and I'll put you in touch

cshortridge73@comcast.net

SS CRANFORD SUNK IN THREE MINUTES


Yep the SS Cranford was just wandering along, minding her own business....her cargo holes filled with a heavy load attempting to go slow to conserve fuel...and oh my yes, she was spotted by U-155....and things got ugly real fast.

If you'd care to give this tad of history a go....just click on the below link


Hope you enjoy the short article.

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

CIRCLES OF FIRE


Well I'm sure y'all have heard of, or read about the well thought-out plan of the American blockade of Cuba in April of 1898....and this blockade was like tossing acid into and already boiling pot of the relationship between the Spanish and Americans.  This all came about by the loss of the 'Maine' in February of this same year....
I could got into a lot of detail here....but I'll let the article do that....we guessed that the first big encounter of this whole mess would come about in the vicinity of San Juan, Puerto Rico....and we also thought that this important base of supplies should and could be taken before the enemy could make use of it...

Well that was excellent thinking....but it didn't turn out way...

If you wish to give this a read....and see pics of the line up of the big heavy hitters that took part in this..
just click on the below link


Hope you enjoy the article.

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

EMPRESS AUGUSTA BAY


When it come to the Solomon Islands...we knew that the Japanese would throw everything they had to keep us out of this area......and they were willing to pour all the Naval forces they could muster to prevent us to invade a beach called "EMPRESS AUGUSTA BAY."

Yes better known I suppose as "The Invasion of Bougainville".  We knew going in to this invasion this was one hell of a coast to set our sites on as far as an invasion of the island....swampy...not much depth...and the list goes on and on....but it was the best of what was offered.

So...we sent the troops in...yes the Navy brought the land fighters to the area...but there job was not done by just dropping off the troops and "getting the hell out of Dodge"...no...no...no.

The "Big Wigs" of the Navy knew that the Japs was going to send in their heavy equipment to come between the invasion and the beach head....well the U.S. Navy had other ideas.....  Actually it was a night battle of the Naval heavyweights....which in the end marked the end of the Solomons campaign and the beginning of the Japanese rout from the Central Pacific.

If you'd care to give this a read....just click on the link below:

BATTLE OF EMPRESS AUGUSTA BAY

Hope you find the article interesting

cshortridge73@gmail.com



Sunday, January 1, 2012

SS COLUMBIAN MERCHANT FREIGHTER


In researching 'Ship History' or 'Ship Sinkings'..it is not unusual to run across a vessel that was attack an experience weird situations...but sometimes the weird part is just 'who' attack her.  This is the case of the SS Columbian...a Merchant freighter en route from New York to Basra, Iraq.

As I dig through page after page..and volumes of WW II ship attacks...I find some info...oh yes, what I run across seems to be ok an believable...but is it??...nothing to back it up...just one statement and that is it!! and this is the case with the SS Columbian.

They say...[and I don't even know who 'they' are] that the above Italian Sub: Archimede was involved in the attack on the SS Columbian....hmmmmm...I wonder???

If anyone has additional info...I'd sure love to give it a once over.

Here is the details of "what I do know for sure"


A short and interesting mystery