Adm. David W. Bagley-- Part 6: Service During WW II

On April 4, 1942, Rear Admiral Bagley relieved Rear Admiral Claude C. Bloch as Commandant, 14th Naval District (headquartered at Pearl Harbor) and  Commander Hawaiian Sea Frontier.  He served in that capacity until January 1943.  On February 1,  he assumed command of the Western Sea Frontier  (Sea Defense of the West Coast of the United States), and on March 30, 1943, had the duty of Commandant 11th Naval District (Great Lakes Training Facility in Illinois).

He held the 11th Naval District position until January 1944 and continued to head the Western Sea Frontier until the following fall.

Promoted to  vice admiral to date from February 1, 1944, he was relieved of that duty on November 17, 1944.  Eleven days later, he returned to Oahu and resumed duty as Commandant 14th Naval District and served in that position until July 25, 1945.

On August 20, he reported for duty in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations and served on the International Defense Board, the United States-Mexican Defense  Commission and the Permanent Joint Board of Defense.

Quite a Busy Time for the Admiral.  --Cooter

Admiral David W. Bagley-- Part 5: Commander Battleship Division 2, Based in Pearl Harbor

In May 1935,orders were sent to Bagley in Newport, Rhode Island, to attend the Naval War College.  Upon completing his senior course, he remained there as a staff member.  Next came duty as Commander, Destroyer Squadron 20, Destroyers, Scouting Fleet.  

From July 1937 to May 1938, he served as Commander, Minecraft, Battle Force.  While in that position, he was promoted to flag rank, to date from April 1, 1938.  In May of that year, now Rear Admiral David W. Bagley, began a 32-month tour of duty as Commandant, Mare Island Navy Yard on the West Coast.

At the beginning of 1941, he broke his flag on the USS Tennessee (BB-43), as Commander, Battleship Division 2.  And they were based at a little-known to many Americans, island base  out in the Pacific Ocean called Pearl Harbor.

--Cooter

A World War II Marine Comes Home, A Fitting Veterans Day Story-- Part 1

From the November 10, 2020, East Bay Times by Peter Hagarty.  San Mateo, California.

A U.S. Marine  has come to his final resting place decades after gunfire cut him down as he was defending this nation thousands of miles  from home.

Howard Miller died during the grueling Island Hopping Campaign across the Pacific as Americans moved closer and closer to striking distance against Japan. Back then, his brothers in arms lowered the 22-year-old  private first class into  an unmarked grave on Betio, a little-known island that is part of the Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands.

His remains were flown into San Francisco where active-duty Marines in full dress blues moved the casket and it was then transported  to San Mateo for burial.

USS Oregon (BB-3)-- Part 5: Served in World War II

In 1941, as war with Japan looked likely, the Oregon was redesignated  IX-22 in February and after Pearl Harbor, it was decided that the best thing for the ship would be to be broken up for scrap.  She was struck from the Naval Registry on 2 November 1942 and was sold to ship  breakers on 7 December.  

In March 1943, she was towed to Kalama, Washington to be broken up, but after the work was begun, the Navy  decided that the Oregon could be of use in the planned invasion of  Guam scheduled for mid-1944, either as a storage hulk or a breakwater.

The breakers were ordered to stop after clearing the superstructure and internal equipment was removed.  The Oregon was then loaded with ammunition and towed to Guam as part of the invasion fleet.

After capture of that island, the Oregon remained through the end of the war in 1945 and for several more years after that.  On the night of 14-15 November 1948, the ship broke free of her moorings during a typhoon and drifted away.  After an extensive search, aircraft located the ship some 580 miles southeast of Guam.

It was then towed back to Guam and remained there until 1956 and she was sold for scrap and broken up in Japan.

Several parts of the ship remain in Portland.  Her foremast was placed at Tom McCall Waterfront Park and her ship's wheel is at the Oregon Historical Society.  Both of her funnels also remain but are not on public display.

--Cooter

USS Oregon (BB-3)-- Part 2: Completed a 16,000 Cruise from Pacific to Atlantic in 66 Days (Pre-Panama Canal)

Two of the Indiana-class battleships were built on the U.S. East Coast and the Oregon on the West Coast.  The Oregon was commissioned on 15 July 1896 and joined the U.S. Pacific Fleet.

On 15 February 1898, the USS Maine blew up in Havana Harbor, Cuba, during rising tensions between Spain and the U.S..  The Oregon was in dry dock at the time and was refloated the next day and placed under the command of Captain Charles Edgar Clark and ordered to steam the U.S. East Coast to join the North Atlantic Fleet and arrived after a 16,000 mile journey in just 66 days.  

While passing through the Cape Horn the ship encountered a horrific storm  (these three battleships had very low freeboards and did not do well in rough seas).  This was before the Panama Canal was built and became a major reason for its construction.

The Oregon arrived in Key West on 26 May and joined the North Atlantic Squadron under the command of Rear Admiral William T. Sampson.  The Spanish fleet had been located and blockaded in the harbor of Santo de Cuba, Cuba.  The Spanish squadron was under the command of Rear Admiral Pasqual Cervera y Topete and consisted of  the armored cruisers Infanta Maria Teresa, Cristobol Colon, Vizcaya and Almirante Oquendo and destroyers Pluton and Furor.

--Cooter

Doolittle Raiders 77th Anniversary Today

This raid had a huge positive impact on the morale of the American people as World War II was going badly the first six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor.  It showed the nation had the means to strike back and would use it.  For the Japanese, it was just the opposite, they were sure that the United States could not reach them.  They found out the hard way that wasn't true.

In honor of the 77th anniversary, I am writing about the Raid in  all of my blogs.  I also have my U.S. flags flying outside.

Today they are having a funeral service for Richard E. Cole, the last surviving Doolittle Raider who died this past April 9.  This is in Texas and he will later be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

The 41st President, George H.K. Bush: Shot Down Over Chichijima

Since President Bush's burial will take place today in College Station, Texas, where his presidential and vice presidential libraries are located (as well as his vice president during his term, Dan Quayle).

From Wikipedia.

GEORGE HERBERT WALKER BUSH

While he was president, he was called just George Bush, but after his son was elected, he was referred to as George H.W. Bush, Bush 41, or George Bush Sr..

I am writing about his World War II service in most of my blogs today.

George Bush piloted one of his torpedo squadron's Grumman TBM Avengers when they attacked Japanese installations on Chichijima on September 2, 1944.  His crew included  Radioman 2nd Class John Delaney and Lt. (jg) William White.  His aircraft was hit by flak during the attack, but Bush successfully released bombs and had several hits.

With his engines ablaze, he flew several miles from the island where he and one of the other crewmen bailed out.  The other one's parachute did not open.

U.S. Coast Guard Sinks Tsunami Ghost Ship in 2012

From April 6, 2012, International Business Times "Tsunami Ghost Ship: U.S. Coast Guard Sinks Japanese vessel Adrift Since Last Year."

The 164-foot long ship had been adrift in the Pacific Ocean since the tsunami hit Japan back in March 2011. It was sunk in the Gulf of Alaska to keep it from being a hazard to other ships as it had entered major sea lanes.

The main mass of floating debris from the tsunami is not expected to reach North America until March 2014.
A New "Flying Ditchman?" --DaCoot

Hunt for Emelia Earhart's Plane Back On

Renewed attempt to begin in 2014 and will center on the Pacific island of Nikumarora, even though there have already been several expeditions there.

Amelia Earhart, her navigator Fred Noonan and the plane disappeared in 1937. They were last seen a Lae, New Guinea. It is thought that they did not die in a crash or drown.

The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery plans a 30-day, $3 million expedition to the island where they think the plane crash landed off the reef and then slipped down a plunging cliff into deep water.

That would really be something if they find the plane.

Perhaps a Piece of "Found" History. --Cooter

Another Attempt to Solve the Amelia Earhart Mystery-- Part 2

Evidence that this island was the final place for the intrepid pair is "circumstantial,: but "strong." The new search lasts for ten days in July and will use advanced underwater robotic submarines and mapping equipment. Some see this as "the last great American mystery of the 20th century."

Earhart and Noonan disappeared July 2, 1937, while flying from New Guinea to Howland Island as part of their attempt to become the first female pilot to circumnavigate the earth.

Some people are convinced they crashed into the ocean and some even go so far as to say the Japanese had something to do with it (as relations between the two countries were rapidly diminishing.

The group believes that Noonan and Earhart managed to land on a reef by the small island of Nikumararo, then known as Gardner Island, and survived for a short time. High tides probably washed the plane off the reef into deeper waters which is where the search will primarily be directed.

Hoping for Success. --Cooter

Another Attempt to Solve the Amelia Earhart Mystery-- Part 1

From the March 21st Goldsboro (NC) News Argus "New clue gives hope at solving 75-year-old Amelia Earhart mystery," AP.

People have been wondering and searching for 75 years about what happened to American aviator Amelia Earhart somewhere in the South Pacific all those years ago. But now, a new search based on new information will be carried out and would it be something if they found the remains of her plane or even her.

An existing photograph from the first search just months after her Lockheed Electra plane disappeared has had enhanced analysis and experts think they may have spotted a landing gear on the island of Nikumarora in what is now the country of Kiribati.

Historians, scientists and salvagers from The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery will be back at the island in July hoping to find wreckage and remains of Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan.

More to Come. --Cooter