My Father’s Navy Service – Part 3 – Log of Dates

The below are taken from both from a little 2”x3” book that my father carried with him and also extracts from letters he sent home.  Those with the dashes at the beginning of the line are from the letters

1944

July 21 – Sworn into the U.S.N. at New Haven, Conn.

July 22 – Arrived at Boot Camp at Sampson, N.Y.

July 26 – Took classification tests

Oct 7 – Graduated from Sampson as S 2/C (Seaman Second Class)

Oct 25 – Transferred to basic engineering school at Gulfport, MS as F 2/C

Dec 23 – Transferred to diesel school at San Diego, Calif.

1945

Feb 3 – Graduated from Class (A) Diesel School at San Diego, Calif.

Feb 7-15 – 5 days leave, 2 day travel time, Transferred to TADCEH, Shoemaker, Calif.

--- Mar 18 – will be shipping out on 20^th, rumored New Hebrides

Mar 20 – Left Shoemaker in draft #3551 for Treasure Is.

Mar 23 – Left San Francisco for New Hebrides

Apr 4 – Arrived Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides

--- Apr 14 – sleeping in tents, waiting to be shipped out, mentioned the trip and crossing the date line

Apr 18 –Transferred to Temp Ships Co at N.A.D. Espiritu Santo

June 1 – Transferred back to R/S Espiritu Santo

--- June 6 – had spent 6 weeks at an ammunition depot, now back at receiving station, could say he was on Espiritu Santo (no censoring)

June 18 – Assigned to the USS APC-101 and boarded it at Pier #3, Espiritu

--- July 1 – described ship as an oversized rowboat.  If you could ride on a combination merry-go-round, roller coaster, whip and a few other rides tossed in, you’d know how it feels to ride this ship

Aug 1 – Raised to F 1/C (Fireman 1^st Class)

Aug 15 – V-J Day

Sep 1 – Raised to MoMM 3/C (Motor Mechanic 3^rd Class)

--- Oct 21 – mentioned being in Pago Pago, went to British Samoa, Wallis Is, and Ellice Is.

--- Nov 26 – going to Cook Is., Society Islands

--- Dec 13 – Penrhyn Is., going to Pearl Harbor on Jan 14 to head home, should be there about Mar 1

1946 

--- Feb 6 – in Palmyra waiting for a ship to accompany them to Pearl, arrived there Feb 12

--- Mar 10 – in San Francisco

--- Mar 20 – in Bremerton, WA

--- home on leave day before Easter (this is when he proposed to my mom)

--- May 22 – in Brooklyn Navy Yard