Adm. David Bagley-- Part 7: A Long Career and Namesakes

He was releived of all duties on March 12, 1946, and placed on the retired list with the rank of admiral on April 7, 1947 after 42 years of continuous service.  Admiral Bagley died at  the Naval Hospital, San Diego, California, on May 24, 1960.

Admiral Bagley is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

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The first three vessels named USS Bagley:  Torpedo Boat  No. 24, DD-185 and DD--386 were named for  Ensign Worth Bailey (the only naval officer killed in action in the Spanish-American War).  The fourth, DE-1069, was named for both  Worth Bagley and his brother, Admiral David W. Bagley.

Bagley Amphitheater at Barbers Point, Hawaii, was completed 1 April 1945 with seating capacity for 7,200.  

--Cooter

101-Year-Old USS Oklahoma Survivor Returns for 80th "Let 'Em Puff the Cigarettes'

I will be writing about Pearl Harbor in seven of my eight blogs today.  This story began in my Saw the Elephant: Civil War blog and my Running the Blockade: Civil War Navy blog.

After the attack, David Russell, 101, and two others went to Ford Island in search for a bathroom.  While there,  they found a dispensary and  enlisted quarters that had been turned into  a triage center and a place  of refuge for hundreds of wounded.  They found  horribly burned sailors lining the walls. Many would die in the hours an d days ahead.

"Most of them wanted a cigarette, and I didn't smoke at the time, but, I got a pack of cigarettes and some matches.  I lit their cigarettes for them," said Russell.  "You feel for these guys, but I couldn't do anything.  Just light a cigarette for 'em and let 'em puff the cigarettes."

Russell still thinks about how lucky he was.  He ponders why he decided to go topside on the Oklahoma, knowing that most of the men who remained behind likely were unable to get out after the hatch was closed.

In the first two days after the attack, a civilian crew from the shipyard rescued 32 men trapped  inside the ship by cutting holes in its upturned hull.  But the rest perished.  Most of those who died in the Oklahoma were buried anonymously in Honolulu graves and listed as unknowns because their remains were too degraded  to be identified by the time they were removed from the ship between 1942 and 1943.

--GreGen

Newfound Tech Finds Vietnam War Navigator-- Part 4: Amazing Technology

Still, investigators pursued potential leads about the wreckage of the two B-52s for decades.

In February of last year. scientists from Project Recover helped the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) continue the search for the B-52s where previous ones had failed.  The target of their survey vessel's two week expedition was the seafloor area measuring about eight square miles.

In the past, such expeditions would have relied on divers or "fairly rudimentary" sonar.  But this time they were using three 6-foot-long robots with the ability to scan up to 229 feet on either side and produce high-resolution imagery of the seafloor.

The wreckage of one of the B-52s came into view.  Then the team saw human remains on the seabed.  Before recovering them, the crew obtained permission from military officials in Vietnam and the United States by satellite phone.

About 24 hours later, the remains were brought to the surface.  A lab in Hawaii eventually identified them as belonging to Major Paul A. Avolese.

The remains of two other men who were on the same B-52 have yet to be found.  A full excavation to cover them would typically be the next step in such a case, and the DPAA would make that decision.

In September, the Pentagon said a ceremonial pin would be placed next to his name at the Courts of the Missing, in the National Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu to indicate that he had been found.

U.S. Warships: USS Bowfin (SS-287)-- Part 2

Picture of the museum ship USS Bowfin taken on the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.  The Bowfin was not there at the time, but was launched exactly one year after the attack, December 7, 1942.

The crew of the Virginia-class fast attack submarine USS Hawaii (SSN-776) man the rails aboard World War II museum ship USS Bowfin (SS-287) to shoot a spirit spot for FOX Sports to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

FOX Sports is returning to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam to telecast four college basketball games live on December 6 and December 7.

Participants include the University of Hawai'i, University of California, Princeton University and Seton Hall University.

--Cooter

Daughters (DAR) Going Strong on North Shore-- Part 1: A Whole Lot of History

From the June 30, 2016, Chicago Tribune by Mark Lawton.

When the North Shore (of Chicago) chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution was incorporated in 1893, Grover Cleveland was about to be inaugurated as president for his second term, the kingdom of Hawaii was overthrown in a coup d'etat and the first Ferris wheel was built for the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.

On April 20, 1893, a dozen women organized the North Shore chapter of the DAR in Highland Park, the second chapter in the state (after one was established in Chicago) and the 130th in the nation.  The national organization had started only a few years earlier on October 11, 1890.

The DAR has a three part mission.  First, it is active and preserving historic homes and marking graves of American revolution veterans.  It also undertakes patriotic activities like supporting U.S. military and veterans.  They also provide educational outreach opportunities.

My mother was a very active member in her Goldsboro, N.C., DAR chapter.

--CootDAR

Yesterday Was Flag Day-- Part 6: 50-Star Flag Is The Longest Official One

Eventually, after more and more states entered the Union, the stars on the flag got to 48 and stayed that way for about 47 years, the longest time it had stayed at a certain number up to that time.

On July 4, 1960 the U.S. flag hit 50 stars after Hawaii and Alaska were added.  Today we have had the 50-star flag for 57 years.  This it makes it the longest official flag to date.

The colors of the flag also have meaning.  The red stands for hardiness.  The white stands for purity and innocence, while the blue stands for vigilance, perseverance and justice.

--DaCoot

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Tomorrow Is Flag Day-- Part 2: 13 Stripes and 13 Stars

The flag went from having 13 stars, representing the 13 colonies  to the 50 stars for the states we have today.  Most of the states are located between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, but today it also stretches across the Pacific to Hawaii and northward to Alaska.

Hawaii is the 50th and last state to join the Union.  It was a state when Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941.  back then, the U.S. flag had 48 stars as Alaska was also not a state.

The Flag Resolution passed by the Second Continental Congress on June 4, 1777, said:  "Resolved, that the flag of the 13 United States be 13 stripes alternate red and white; that the Union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation."

Legend has it that Betsy Ross, a Philadelphia seamstress, designed and sewed the first flag.  Some sources say she was a friend of the Washington family.

--RedWhiteBlueDaCoot

Boat With "Moby Dick" Connection Located

From the Feb. 13, 2011 Gather.com News "Moby Dick" Revisited After Sunken Ship Discovery in Hawaii."

The ship named Two brothers was found 600 miles northwest of Hawaii.  Of course, you may be asking what this has to do with the famous book?  Herman Melville's book was inspired by George Pollard, Jr., and his whaling vessel, the Essex, which was rammed and sunk by a sperm whale in 1820.  The survivors were adrift at sea for two months with the survivors finally resorting to cannibalism.

In 1823, Pollard got the Two Brothers which then hit a reef off Hawaii and sank.  This time Pollard and the crew were rescued the next day.

Melville finished the book in 1851, using another crew member's account.  After that, Melville met Pollard who was nothing like the crazed Captain Ahab of the book.

Divers have recovered the anchor, pots for melting whale blubber, whaling lances, harpoon tips and some rigging.  The Two Brothers rests off French Frigate Shoals.

Always Interested In Any Shipwrecks That Are Found.  --DaCoot

World War I-Era Bombs Found a Bellows Field in Honolulu

From the Jan. 12th Honolulu Star Advertiser.

Three WW I-era bombs were found at Bellows Field. These were designed to be hand-dropped from airplanes. These were part of unexploded ordnance dug up at the golf range at the air base.

One of the 25-pound Cooper bombs had its fuse intact and was exploded, the other two posed no threat.

Bellows field was established in 1917 and got its present name in 1933.

A Bit of the Past. --Cooter

"Hawaii Five-O" Apologizes to Pearl Harbor Vets

This story was all over the news. World War II and Pearl Harbor veterans were upset that the crew of the TV series "Hawaii Five-0" continued filming while a ceremony was being held at the National Cemetery of the Pacific (Punch Bowl).

The series has apologized, "Any rudeness by our staff can only be attributed to haste to finish our work, not a lack of respect for men and women who have served and sacrificed for their country, and for that, too, we sincerely apologize to any that we offended."

The scene being filmed Dec. 7th had star Alex O'Loughlin visiting his fictional father's grave at the site. So, when you see it, you'll know a little background to the scene.

Someone Sure Used Some Poor Judgement. --Cooter

USCGC Taney (WHEC-37)

From Wikipedia.

Back on December 5th, I wrote about Charles Sellentin who was aboard the USCGS Taney at Pearl Harbor. I'd never heard of it so looked it up.

The Taney has the honor to be the last ship floating that was at Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941. However, it was not at Pearl itself, but in nearby Honolulu Harbor. It is also one of the few ships to participate in both the European and Pacific Theaters. In addition, it served during the Vietnam War.

The ship was named after Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court Roger B. Taney.

The Taney was launched at the Philadelphia Navy Yard in 1936. It was 327 feet long, had a 41 foot beam and in 1941, had 16 officers, 5 warrant officers and 200 enlisted.

On December 7th, it was at Pier 7 in Honolulu Harbor and was only able to fire at stray aircraft.

The vessel was decommissioned in 1986 and today serves as museum ship.

The Coast Guard. --Cooter