DOB/DOD: March 14, 1922 (Stamford, CT) – February 7, 1943; 20 years old MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried LOCAL ADDRESS: Glenbrook/Stamford SERVICE NUMBER: Z-029543
FAMILY: Born to Joseph [born in Denmark] (1902-1964) and Mary Panchson Hammershoy (1902-1973). Three sisters, Muriel C. Hammershoy Comeau Taylor Markus (1923-2008), Shirley J. Hammershoy Oncea (1928-2008), and Joan Hammershoy Ball (1932-2018).
From usmmaAlumni.com
CIRCUMSTANCES: Jay Hammershoy served as an Engine Cadet, S.S. Henry R. Mallory, U.S. Merchant Marines during World War II.
The S.S. Henry R. Mallory was torpedoed by German U-boat U-402 about 600 miles south-southwest of Iceland. One torpedo struck on the starboard side at the #3 hold and they sank within 30 minutes. The master, 48 crew members, 15 armed guards and 208 passengers were lost.
Jay was declared “Missing In Action” in this sinking during the war.
He was posthumously awarded the Mariner’s Medal and the Combat Bar with a Star.
German submarine U-402 also sank the S.S. Toward, a British Rescue Ship, approximately 3 hours earlier.
Fate of U-402
Sunk on October 13, 1943, in the North Atlantic north of the Azores, in position 48.56N, 29.41W, by a Fido homing torpedo from two Avenger aircraft (VC-9 USN/T-9 & T-12) of the American escort carrier USS Card. 50 dead (all hands lost).
Memorialized on his parents’ headstone in Saint John Cemetery, 25 Camp Avenue, Darien, Connecticut.
DOB/DOD: May 13, 1919 (Philadelphia, PA) – April 5, 1943; 23 years old MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried LOCAL ADDRESS: Groton SERVICE NUMBER: Z-153662
FAMILY: Born to Daniel F. (1881-) and Druscilla E. Crow Gorman (1885-1950) [both born in Canada]. Three brothers, Frank D. (1911-1989), William K. (1914-2000), and George E. (1925-2007). One sister, Muriel M. Gorman Pringle (1917-1998).
CIRCUMSTANCES: Although Eugene Gorman died on April 5, 1943, he wasn’t officially declared dead until April 6, 1944.
On March 27, 1943, Eugene Joseph Gorman, who had signed on as an Able Seaman, was on the American motor tanker MS Sunoil as it sailed out of New York with a 62-ship convoy, HX-321. Her cargo of 102,000 barrels of fuel oil was bound for Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Scotland.
Sometime before April 5th, having left Halifax, the tanker developed engine problems and was forced to fall back (straggle) from the convoy. On the 5th, German submarine U-563 spotted the zigzagging Sunoil and fired three torpedoes, one of which hit. The Armed Guards on board forced the U-boat to submerge, and a distress signal was heard by the British ship HMS Vidette, which came forward and averted another attack. Later that day, U-530 spied the tanker again and fired a spread of three torpedoes. One hit and the ship stopped. After being hit by two more torpedoes, the ship sank quickly. A destroyer in the vicinity searched for any sign of the ship without success before returning to the convoy.
There were 43 Merchant Mariners and 26 US Navy Armed Guards on board; none survived.
From The Day (New London, CT) on May 17, 1943
EUGENE GORMAN, GROTON MERCHANT MARINER, MISSING
Eugene Joseph Gorman of Groton is one of 55 New Englanders included in the eighth Merchant
Marine casualty list announced by the Navy Department. He is listed as missing. Mrs. Druscilla Gorman of 64 Branford Avenue, Groton, is listed as his next of kin. The list includes casualties—dead or missing—resulting from war action and reported to next of kin during the period from April 1 through April 30. Five other Connecticut men are on the list.
DOB/DOD: June 4, 1917 (Central Falls, RI)- January 8, 1942; 24 years old MARITAL STATUS: Married Thelma Street, on June 2, 1940, in Groton, CT CHILDREN: One son, Robert E., Jr. (1944-2002) LOCAL ADDRESS: 4044 Poquonock Road, Groton, CT SERVICE NUMBER: Unknown
FAMILY: Born to Joseph D. [born in Canada] (1856-1931) and Marie Anne Lamothe Gaboury (1877-1929). Six brothers, Basile T. (1897-1962), Arthur H. (1900-1978), Paul (1906-1914), Louis F. (1909-), Alfred D. (1911-2011), and Robert (1917-). Six sisters, Rose Gaboury Doyle (1902-1965), Marie Anne “Anna” Gaboury Desmarais (1904-1997), Marian (1904-1997), Bernadette (1910-1910), Florence (1913-), and Andree B.M. (1925-1926).
CIRCUMSTANCES: Ten crewmen died when the ancient ship General Richard Arnold, built in 1909, sprang a leak in a storm. The Arnold sank after successfully saving another Army mine-planter that had suffered engine trouble while heading to Portsmouth. Originally, eight crewmembers, mostly civilians, were reported lost. The next day, that number was increased to ten. Only the commander survived when he jumped into the water and was rescued. Witnesses later reported that the captain had bravely called to rescuers, “Never mind me. Save the others!” as he floundered in the icy waters.
Little known and rarely honored, Army ships mined key American harbors, including Portsmouth, New Hampshire, during wartime as part of an elaborate coastal defense network. Remnants of the WW2 era forts survive in New Castle, Rye, and Kittery. Visitors can still see them at Fort Stark and Fort Foster, from which mines were strung below the Piscataqua, ready to be triggered electronically. None were ever activated.
Mines were set off, not by contact with the enemy ship, but by wired systems set off by observers in the watchtowers. Although none of the mines were ever deployed, a number of the coastal defense observation towers still stand along the Seacoast. Small mine-planters, some predating the First World War, were used to lay the cables and junction boxes that would set off the mines. The junior mine-planter Gen. Richard Arnold was apparently named for a Civil War Union brigadier general (1828-1882)
Lester Stevens, now living in Rye, NH, was assigned to the ARNOLD on the day of the disaster, but told the local newspaper recently that he was kept back to perform KP duties. He learned hours later that his entire crew had perished in the rescue attempt in 20-foot waves. Their bodies were never recovered. [from seacoastnh.com]
From the Portsmouth (New Hampshire) Herald on January 8, 1942
Army Mine Planter Sinks in Storm off the Shoals Eight Crew Men Drowned Fort Constitution Boat is Lost While Assisting Sister Craft Commander is Only Man Saved in Ocean Mishap
Eight men drowned during a heavy storm early this morning, about 20 miles Southeast of the Isles of Shoals. (Note: Later amended to ten men lost.) Only one man of the crew of nine on the 98-foot Army mine-planter General Richard Arnold was saved when the 33-year-old ship suddenly sprang a leak and went to the bottom. Saved was William H. Chasteen of Waterford, Conn., commanding the Arnold, who jumped from the bridge as the ship went under and was picked up by another disabled mine-planter, the L-88.
Army officials at the Portsmouth Harbor Defenses said that names of the eight lost would not be given out until Master Chasteen arrived in New Castle on the L-88 to check the list and determine definitely who was on board, as the Arnold had two shifts of its crews. The crew of the Arnold lost their lives while attempting to rescue the nine-man crew of the L-88, which was disabled and had been drifting in the storm for more than six hours.
Coast Guard and Army planes and boats today searched the area, but only empty lifeboats and life-belts marked the spot where the Arnold had sunk. No bodies had been recovered after a nine-hour search. Meanwhile, the army mine-planter Absolom Baird, which had rushed to the scene and was assisting in towing the disabled L-88, assisted in the search and then started back to its dock at New Castle with the L-88 in tow.
Army officials said this morning the Baird was 30 miles out at 10 am and making slow headway against heavy seas. It was not expected in until late this afternoon. Story of the sinking, drownings, and the rescue in the bitter cold of the storm-tossed Atlantic revealed the heroism of the army afloat in an epic that would do credit to the Navy.
Has Engine Trouble
Shortly after noon yesterday, the L-88, which was coming up the coast, radioed that it had engine trouble and needed assistance. Its position was given about 14 miles southeast of White Island off Cape Ann, Gloucester. Army officials immediately sent out the General Arnold to assist it, and the navy tug Yaquima was ordered out. Just outside Portsmouth harbor, the ships began to buck heavy seas and take on water, which immediately iced up. So serious was the icing that the Yaquima was ordered back, but the little top-heavy Arnold continued on, and the mine-planter Absolom Baird was ordered out.
Meanwhile, army officials at the Portsmouth Harbor Defenses had gotten in touch with the air base at Manchester, and an army plane was sent in search, and a coast guard plane from Salem was ordered out. Toward dark, the army plane located the L-88 and dropped a flare directly astern of it. Using this for a bearing, the little Arnold ploughed on and reached the L-88, where lines were put aboard, and the two ships side by side started toward Portsmouth about 8:30 p.m. Little progress could be made because of the heavy seas.
The Baird, under the command of Major M.A. McLamb, reached the scene several hours later and took the two ships in tow.
Ice Formed Rapidly
It was bitter cold, and a sharp offshore wind drove waves and spray over the two Vessels where it froze at once. A snow squall filled the air with swirling flakes hardly discernible in the pitch dark. At 12:50 am, Master Chasteen reported that Arnold was taking water by the stern, and men were manning the pumps. But the water continued to rise, and 40 minutes later, it was over the pumps and fires. At 1:45, the Arnold suddenly plunged to the bottom. Only the quick action of the crew of the L-88 saved that ship from being dragged to the bottom by the Arnold. The Quartermaster’s civilian crews, which man these boats, risked their lives on icy wind and wave-swept decks to cut the lines.
Master Chasteen, high on the bridge of the Arnold, jumped clear just as the ship went under. Quick action by the skipper of the L-88, who kept his little ship dangerously close to the suction of the foundering Arnold, enabled his crew to rescue Chasteen. Coast Guard cutters and Navy ships were ordered to the scene, where empty lifeboats and life belts were the only surviving signs.
The L-88 was en route to Portsmouth when the engine trouble developed. When it was found that the little ship was drifting rapidly out to sea, the ensign was hoisted upside down in the conventional distress signal, and a distress message was sent to the Portsmouth Harbor defenses. The 179-ton Arnold had at first planned to tow the L-88, but at 8:30 pm, when the Arnold picked up the L-88, the weather was so rough that it tied up alongside and used its engines to keep the L-88 drifting until the Baird arrived about midnight and took both in tow.
DOB/DOD: May 7, 1895 (Duryea, PA) – February 21, 1942; 46 years old MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried LOCAL ADDRESS: Bristol PRIOR ENLISTMENT: U.S. Army, September 3, 1918 to October 31, 1918, with Headquarters Company, 35th Artillery Coast Artillery Corps. According to his WWI draft registration card, he was living in Orange, New Jersey, where he farmed. SERVICE NUMBER: Z-066220
FAMILY: Born to Thomas (1867-1927) and Elizabeth A. Flovienis Flanders (1873-1923). Three brothers, Edward (1889-?), Louis (1898-), and Thomas Jr. (1901-1985). Four sisters, Frances F. Flanders Jacksland (1891-1978), Margaret (1893-1930), and Lucy Flanders Day (1906-1981).
CIRCUMSTANCES: The SS Azalea City was an American cargo steamer of 5,529 tons built in 1920 by Merchant Shipbuilding Corporation, Harriman, Pennsylvania, as the Waterbury SS for the US Shipping Board. In 1929, it was renamed Excelsior SS for American Export Lines Inc., New York, and in 1937 renamed AZALEA CITY SS for Waterman Steamship Co, Mobile, Alabama. On February 21, 1942, when en route from Bahia Blanca, Argentina, Port of Spain (Feb 12) – Philadelphia carrying a cargo of 7,806 tons of Linseed oil, she was torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-432.
The fate of German submarine U-432
U-432 was a German submarine Type VIIC. She was sunk on March 11, 1943, in the North Atlantic by depth charges and gunfire from the Free French corvette Aconit. 26 dead and 20 survivors. [from wrecksite.eu)
From MobileBayMag.com on February 3, 2022 By John Sledge
LOST AT SEA: THE MEN OF SS AZALEA CITY
In February 1942, a merchant vessel with a Mobile [Alabama] connection disappeared without a trace
The SS Azalea City in port, 1939. Photo courtesy Benjamin L. Narinsky Photograph Collection
Sometime during the winter of 1942, a dozen crewmen on board the merchant freighter SS Azalea City assembled for this informal photograph. Most of them kept a straight face, though a few smiled, and the two chaps at lower right engaged in a little tomfoolery — one with his booted leg playfully thrown across the shoulder of the other, who appears ready to “cock a snook,” or thumb his nose, a beloved gesture at the time. Mercifully, none of these men knew that within a few short weeks they would be lost at sea, their actual fate only revealed after the conclusion of World War II with American access to German naval records.
The Crew
Crewmen of the SS Azalea City pose alongside their vessel. The tall man in the middle is Benjamin L. Narinsky, who captured the image below. Narinsky’s final trip on the Azalea City was the voyage before its fatal journey. Photo courtesy Benjamin L. Narinsky Photograph Collection
The Azalea City was a 22-year-old steel-hulled vessel of 5,000 tons owned by Mobile’s Waterman Steamship Corporation. On February 16, 1942, she left Port of Spain, Trinidad, carrying a cargo of linseed oil for Philadelphia. Her master was George Robert Self, a native Mobilian, and the crew included two officers and 35 men — mates, cadets, ordinary and able seamen, engineers, oilers, wipers, mess men, and a cook. Most were American, including a man from north Alabama, and one was British, one Norwegian, one Italian, one German, and one Puerto Rican.
Unarmed
The United States had declared war on Nazi Germany just two months earlier, but the Azalea City’s master was innocent of wartime precautions, sailing unarmed, unescorted, and in a straight line. He was hardly alone in that, and German U-boat captains gleefully exploited their advantage among the lumbering American merchant fleet, declaring the first months of 1942 the “Happy Time” when they sank dozens of allied ships. Only later would the allies adopt seaside blackouts, convoys, destroyer escorts, and torpedo planes in order to improve merchant ships’ chances.
Under Attack
When the Azalea City failed to reach Philadelphia that winter, she was declared lost with all hands, the cause unknown. After the war, German records revealed the full story. On February 21, U-432 spotted the ship in heavy seas 125 miles east-southeast of Ocean City, Maryland. Over the next several hours, U-432 captain Hermann Eckhardt stalked the freighter, but his first torpedo streaked astern of the quarry. Given the conditions, it is doubtful the Azalea City’s crew even knew the ship was under attack at that point. She did not send a distress signal. Eckhardt crossed the merchantman’s wake, came about, and loosed another shot from only a half mile away. His aim was better this time, and the torpedo slammed into the freighter amidships. A third projectile provided the coup de grace, causing the Azalea City to capsize. There were no survivors.
Photo courtesy Benjamin L. Narinsky Photograph Collection
The ship’s roster lists every man on board, but who exactly posed for this image is unknown. Could one of them have been Thomas Abraham Ervin, age 23, the cook; or 33-year-old Stephen Douglas Hester, a wiper; or 44-year-old Thomas Jefferson Lively, the bosun? Alas, we cannot say. But there they are, captured by the camera, poker-faced, smiling or clowning, 80 years after they disappeared beneath the cold, gray Atlantic.
DOB/DOD: August 17, 1903 (Rockland, MI) – April 10, 1943; 39 years old MARITAL STATUS: Married Margaret E. Ahern Lakeman (1900-1955) in 1941 CHILDREN: William A. Fifield II (1942-2021) LOCAL ADDRESS: Saybrook SERVICE NUMBER: Z-083465
FAMILY: Born to William A. (1870-1957) and Margaret Greenlaw Fifield (1875-1967). One sister, Lillian Fifield Alden (1905-1977).
Photo from Application for Seaman’s Protection
Photo from FindAGrave.com
CIRCUMSTANCES: On March 1, 1943, the SS Edward B. Dudley was in Savannah, GA, taking on its first cargo. The Liberty ship had recently been built in Wilmington, NC, and this was the first leg of its maiden voyage. From Savannah, the ship sailed to New York, where it took on additional cargo, bound for Liverpool via Halifax, Nova Scotia. Total cargo at this point was 4000 tons of Cotton, munitions, and food.
He had signed on as Second Mate, and he was on board on April 4, 1943, as the ship left New York with convoy HX-232, bound for Halifax. The ship was armed with one 4in and nine 20mm guns and a US Navy Armed Guard crew of 27 men. The rest of her complement, all Merchant Marine, included eight officers and 34 crewmen.
After leaving Halifax, still in convoy, the Edward B. Dudley began to straggle and fall behind the convoy. There is speculation that this was due to (a) bent propeller blade(s). Whatever the reason, the ship was not seen or heard from again, and none of the 69 men on board were ever found.
Some years later, the fates of the Edward B. Dudley and her men were learned from German Naval Records. The following is a narrative based on the information in those records.
On Apr 10th, the Liberty ship was spotted in the North Atlantic (52N, 39W) by German submarine U-615. The sub fired off a spread of four torpedoes, but only one hit the ship, and it failed to explode. In an effort to evade another torpedo, the ship began sailing a zigzag course. The U-boat followed it all that night, finally getting ahead of the ship and waiting for it to approach. When the Edward B. Dudley came within its sights, U-615 fired two torpedoes, hitting it amidships and causing it to stop – but it did not sink. U-615 then came to within a half mile of the ship and fired another torpedo, hitting the stern and detonating the magazine for the 4-in gun. Although the Edward B. Dudley remained afloat, the crew began abandoning ship in the lifeboats. The sub moved closer and fired a fourth torpedo, hitting the ship under the bridge and igniting its cargo of munitions, which exploded and utterly destroyed the Liberty ship. So great was the explosion that even those who had made it into the lifeboats were probably killed at that time.
There were 42 Merchant Mariners and 27 US Navy Armed Guards on board. None survived.
Epilogue: Falling debris damaged U-615 and wounded its captain (Kapitsky), causing the sub to end its patrol and return to base. On its next patrol, U-615 was sunk in the Caribbean by Allied aircraft.
Memorialized on a headstone in Achorn Cemetery, 480 Old County Road, Rockland, Maine.
DOB/DOD: December 24, 1906 (Waterbury, CT) – March 19, 1944; 37 years old MARITAL STATUS: Married Doris L. Baker on July 23, 1935, in Pinellas, Florida. LOCAL ADDRESS: New Haven SERVICE NUMBER: Z-149121
FAMILY: Born to Maxim A. [born in Quebec, Canada] (1860-1943) and Marie “Mary” Olivine duLac (1861-1918). Two sisters, Alma (1884-1918), Margaret (1888-1940), Eva Dulac O’Rourke (1894-1983), Lucy (1894-1983), Clara Dulac Goldenbee (1897-1967), Stella (1899-1975), and Alice M. Dulac Dowling (1901-1981). Four brothers, Charles A. (1884-1963), Arthur C. (1884-), Edward (1887-1929), Albert A. (1890-1980), and Raymond (1905-1969).
CIRCUMSTANCES: Francis served as the Master (Ship Captain), S.S. John A. Poor, Merchant Marines, during World War II.
The S.S. John A. Poor was hit by two torpedoes from German U-Boat U-510 in the Arabian Sea. The first torpedo struck on the starboard side between #4 and #5 holds. The explosion blew off the #4 hatch cover and created a hole about 12 feet in diameter in the deck. The second struck in the #5 hold. The vessel immediately listed to starboard and settled rapidly, sinking within two minutes.
Nearly half of the eight officers, 35 crewmen, and 30 armed guards went down with the ship, including the master (Dulac). One officer, 17 crewmen, and 21 armed guards reached three rafts, lashed them together, and rigged a sail.
The survivors were picked up on March 22nd by the British steam merchant Fort Walsh and landed at Colombo, Ceylon, four days later.
Photo from uboat.net
The fate of submarine U-510
Surrendered on May 9, 1945, at St. Nazaire, France. Unseaworthy. Became the French submarine Bouan. Stricken May 1, 1959, as Q176. Broken up in 1960.
From The Day (New London, CT) on October 12, 1944
MARITIME SERVICE HONORS NEW HAVEN SKIPPER WHO LOST LIFE AT SEA IN TORPEDOING
In the presence of 186 newly commissioned ensigns in the maritime service, members of the 39th class to be graduated from the Maritime Service Officer’s School, the mariners’ medal was awarded posthumously at graduation exercises this afternoon at the school to Captain Francis Wallace duLac, master mariner, of New Haven. The medal is the Purple Heart of the Merchant Marine.
Captain Alfred G. Ford, superintendent of the school, made the presentation to Captain duLac’s sister and next of kin, Miss Estelle duLac of 255 Whitney Avenue, New Haven. The superintendent paid tribute to Captain duLac and held him forth as a model and inspiration for the 186 ensigns of the graduating class.
Many friends of Captain duLac from the New Haven area and from out of the state were on hand to witness the presentation. Captain duLac, born in Waterbury, attended Wilby High School in that city. He served in the Navy and Coast Guard for 11 years before entering the merchant marine in 1936 with the Ward Steamship line. He was one of the volunteer seamen to respond to an emergency appeal to assist in the rescue work during the Louisville, Kentucky, flood in 1937. During the next few years, he was promoted rapidly, finally receiving his master mariner’s license in November 1943. He was given command of the S.S. John A. Poor that month and last February, while captain of the vessel, towed a disabled ship, torpedoed by an enemy attack, a distance of 650 miles to port. He saw much enemy action before his own ship was finally torpedoed last March.
Captain duLac was on the boat deck at the time of the torpedoing, and his first reaction, after ascertaining that his ship was going down and ordering it to be abandoned, was to go below to the chart room and destroy the secret log. There he was trapped by the sea as it poured into the ship.
In making the presentation to the New Haven skipper’s sister, Captain Ford read a citation which accompanied the medal signed by Vice Adm. Emory S. Land, administrator of the War Shipping Administration.
The licenses and commissions to the graduates were presented by Captain Ford. Proficiency awards and certificates of merit were presented to the following members of the class:
Deck of Honor Student – Ensign Ronald E. Miner of Mannsville, New York Engineer Honor Student – Ensign Arthur T. Armstrong of Lakewood, Ohio Navigation – Ensign Julian Prager of New York City Signaling – Ensign Harold T. VanSickle of Cleveland Seamanship – Ensign John L. Genta of Manchester, this state Cargo Handling – Ensign William M. Vaughn of Birmingham, Alabama Deck Officer Candidate Overcoming Most Obstacles – Ensign Paul J. Campbell of West Gastonia, North Carolina Marine Engines and Auxiliaries – Ensign Arthur W. Black of Conneaut, Ohio Boilers – Ensign John M. Bevan, Jr., of Pennsylvania Machine Shop – Ensign Robert E. Shannon of Saginaw, Michigan Diesel – Ensign Morris Sperber of New York City Electricity – Ensign Norman P. Benson of Princeton, Florida Engineer Student Overcoming Most Obstacles – Ensign Ottaviano Rice of Providence
From The Day (New London, CT) on October 12, 1944 By James S. Watterson
MYSTIC MAN SERVED ABOARD HARD LUCK VESSEL; SAW HER TORPEDOES AND SABOTAGED
When Leon J. Benoit of Mystic, a chief carpenter in the merchant marine, picked up The Day recently and read about the award of a mariner’s medal to the late Captain Francis W. duLac of New Haven, who lost his life last February in the torpedoing of the Liberty ship, SS John A. Poor, he gave a low whistle of surprise and murmured, “I thought so; if there ever was a hard luck ship the John A. Poor was it.”
Mr. Benoit was speaking from experience because he served aboard the vessel before her fatal trip and saw her sabotaged, torpedoed, and severely damaged another time when her boilers blew up.
After he left the John A. Poor following an Atlantic crossing, he was content to live with his nightmarish memories of the vessel, but when he read that she had gone down and her skipper, Captain duLac, had been lost, he recalled some of the none too pleasant memories. Captain duLac was posthumously awarded the mariner’s medal, which is the Purple Heart of the merchant marine, at exercises last Thursday at the local Maritime Service Officers’ school at Fort Trumbull.
The Mystic merchant seaman says the John A. Poor was commissioned on July 1, 1943, at Portland, Maine. From then on, what luck the vessel had was all bad.
Damaged at Dry Dock
At the very outset of her career, the ship was damaged when she was being taken out of drydock. She ran astern, despite all efforts to halt her, hit a pier, and damaged her propeller. As a result, she had to return to drydock for repairs.
Not being psychic, Mr. Benoit could not visualize what lay ahead and therefore had to take the subsequent bad breaks as they came.
After the repairs were made, the merchant ship was taken from her berth to the grain elevators at Portland. While there, something went wrong below, and both boilers blew up. This meant another long and costly repair job.
After being readied for sea again, the vessel proceeded to Boston to pick up more equipment. She left Boston for Halifax on July 27 and joined a convoy. On the way north, more trouble befell the Poor. The ship kept holding right rudder and consequently had to drop out of the convoy.
Hit by Torpedo
One afternoon, about 4 o’clock, the Jinx struck again in the lethal form of a Nazi torpedo fired from a lurking submarine. The Poor was 200 miles from land and about a mile astern of the convoy at the time. A heavy fog had set in, Mr. Benoit recalled, making things more eerie and troublesome.
As soon as the torpedo hit, the gun crew went into action. The sub was spotted two or three times, but the gunners were unable to get in a telling blow.
About 4:20 o’clock, the second torpedo hit the stricken ship. When the tin fish exploded against the hull, one of the engineers was badly hurt when he fell from the main switchboard to the main deck of the engine room, fracturing his arm in four places.
Despite the two torpedo hits, the Poor managed to remain afloat, so the Nazi submarine threw another tin fish at her. This torpedo struck about 4:50 o’clock. Although her plates were smashed and there was wreckage everywhere, the Poor refused to go down. At this point, an SOS was sent out by the radio operator. The submarine declined to waste another torpedo on her and, perhaps fearing that she might be caught by an Allied ship steaming to the assistance of the Poor, disappeared.
Helpless for Hours
The badly damaged merchant ship lay helpless for hours before a Norwegian destroyer came alongside. After ascertaining the damage, the Norwegian vessel radioed for help ashore, and a tug put to sea and towed the torpedoed ship to Halifax.
Now, you would think the ill luck of the Poor would stop here after all she had gone through, but destiny ruled otherwise. Trouble in big bunches was still to come.
After nine weeks at Halifax, the Mystic merchant seaman related that the Poor was ready for work once again. Sailing from the Nova Scotia port, the vessel joined a convoy and remained with it for 12 hours. It was unable to maintain the necessary knots to keep in formation and was gradually left behind. The commodore of the convoy ordered the Poor back into port to wait and make the trip with a slower convoy.
The Poor stayed in port three days, and when another group of ships was ready to sail, preparations were made to have the Poor join them. But at this point, Mr. Benoit said, the ugly head of sabotage made its appearance.
Sabotaged
When it came time to turn the screw to determine if everything was functioning properly, it wouldn’t work. Mr. Benoit related that the captain and chief engineer went below and found that two big bolts had been placed between the steering gears and several oiling pipes had been torn out. Members of the Canadian Navy intelligence came aboard and investigated while repairs were being made.
After the Navy personnel left and the damage was corrected, the Poor finally sailed and made England without further incident.
“It was sure some trip,” Mr. Benoit said. “We knew we had saboteurs aboard, and the crew members were as jumpy as cats.”
He said that when the vessel returned from England, three men were taken off and held by Canadian authorities. He said he never learned how they fared.
At any rate, he left the vessel, and shortly afterwards the late Captain duLac took command. He lost his life several weeks later when the Poor was again torpedoed and this time sunk.
When the Poor was attacked by the Nazi submarine en route to Halifax, it was the third torpedoing that the Mystic man experienced. He once spent 12 days in a lifeboat off the coast of Norway when his ship was hit, and 21 crew members were lost. Another time, he spent five hours in a lifeboat in the North Atlantic.
Mr. Benoit, who formerly lived in Lowell, Massachusetts, worked for the local contracting firm of Mondelci & Benvenuti before joining the merchant marine. He is now spending a leave at his home in Mystic and expects to put to sea again soon.
DOB/DOD: September 11, 1923 (Lawrence, MA) – April 5, 1943; 19 years old MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried LOCAL ADDRESS: New Haven SERVICE NUMBER: Z-358164
FAMILY: Born to Joseph E. (1901-1980) and Delima Lebel Dubois [born in Canada] (1897-1980). One brother, Joseph A. [Air Force veteran] (1926-2002). Two sisters, Marie Jeannette Yvonne Dubois Sicard (1928-2007) and Marie Therese Dubois (1936-).
CIRCUMSTANCES: Aboard the American motor tanker MS Sunoil as it sailed out of New York with a 62-ship convoy, HX-321. Her cargo of 102,000 barrels of fuel oil was bound for Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Scotland.
Sometime before April 5th, having left Halifax, the tanker developed engine problems and was forced to fall back (straggle) from the convoy. On the 5th, German submarine U-563 spotted the zigzagging Sunoil and fired three torpedoes, one of which hit. The Armed Guards on board forced the U-boat to submerge, and a distress signal was heard by the British ship HMS Vidette, which came forward and averted another attack. Later that day, U-530 spied the tanker again and fired a spread of three torpedoes. One hit and the ship stopped. After being hit by two more torpedoes, the ship sank quickly. A destroyer in the vicinity searched for any sign of the ship without success before returning to the convoy.
There were 43 Merchant Mariners and 26 US Navy Armed Guards on board; none survived.
MS Sunoil from uboat.net
From The Delaware County Daily Times on February 20, 2022 By Pete Bannan
…
At 11:45 hours on April 5, 1943, U-563 fired three torpedoes at the zigzagging which was straggling from a convoy due to engine troubles. One torpedo hit, but the armed guards forced the U-boat to submerge, and her distress signal brought the British destroyer HMS Vidette to the scene.
Hours later, U-530 spotted a tanker and fired three torpedoes at the Sunoil, which was hit by one torpedo and stopped. The tanker sank quickly after being hit by the second and third torpedoes. All ten officers, 33 crewmen, and 26 armed guards were lost.
On January 2, 1945, the ninth Sun ship saw tragedy in the war off of Sandy Hook, N.J., when it exploded for reasons unknown 10. Ten men lost their lives. The ship sank but was later salvaged by the Sun Marine Department.
To remember the sailors, the Sun Seamen’s Memorial is at the entrance to the Marcus Hook refinery. It was paid for by donations from employees and from Sun Oil.
On October 9, 1949, Helen Calvarese covered the two-hour monument dedication for the Chester Times. She wrote that 3,000 people were in attendance, including U.S. Sen. Edward Martin, Congressman Benjamin F. James, and J.N. Pew Jr., chairman of the board of directors of the Sun Oil Co., who presided over the memorial services. They were broadcast over radio stations WCAU, WPWA, and a television network.
Pew listed some of the achievements of Sun tankers and the tankermen being honored and added, “Sun seamen sailed to all theatres of the war-to Greenland, Iceland, and Scotland in the treacherous North Atlantic, to the Mediterranean, Russia, and the Persian Gulf, Australia, and many Pacific islands.”
Altogether, he recalled, Sun tankers traveled more than 2,000,000 miles and carried 41 million barrels of aviation gasoline and other petroleum products.
During the services, a white Coast Guard cutter remained anchored in mid-river, and five Sun Oil tankers, the Mercury Sun, MS Sun, Southern Sun, American Sun, and Louisiana Sun, were docked at the Sun pier. The ships carried their flags at half-mast.
Colonel Joseph K. Carson Jr. of the U.S. Maritime Commission said the monument was only one of its kind dedicated to the memory of merchant seamen of World War II.
“We of the commission,” he said, “know full well that had it not been for the fortitude, bravery, and patriotism of those living and dead who manned the tanker vessels, World War II probably would have been lost and civilization plunged into an era of darkness and despair.”
The climax of the services came at the unveiling of the imposing 9-foot bronzed statue of a merchant seaman standing with his duffle bag over his shoulder and his eyes turned towards the sea, Calvarese wrote. As the blue bunting was pulled from the bronze figure by Mrs. Joseph Pew Jr. (Alberta), muffled sobs were heard from the crowd.
Memorial wreaths were placed at the base of the new statue by four survivors of torpedoed ships — Robert Kelly, Orla Bowhall, Fred Godin, all from Marcus Hook, and Charles Felnman of Brooklyn.
Others placing wreaths were William R. Strafford of the Atlantic Sun: Mrs. J. Howard Pew, representing Sun Oil Co., and Mrs. Anna Stitcheson of Philadelphia,
The program had not called for the wreath-placing by Mrs. Stitcheson, but when she arrived at the last moment, she brought her own wreath in memory of her son, Andrew Stitcheson, who was lost with the J.N. Pew. She was permitted to walk up to the newly unveiled statue before any of the others, Calaverse reported.
The fate of U-boat U-530
Surrendered on 10 July 1945 at Mar del Plata, Argentina. Transferred to the United States and used for tests. Scuttled during tests on November 28, 1947, northeast of Cape Cod, by a torpedo.
DOB/DOD: April 2, 1922 (New York, NY) – October 18, 1944; 22 years old MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried LOCAL ADDRESS: Parsonage Lane, Greenwich SERVICE NUMBER: Unknown
FAMILY: Born to Herman S. (1884-1959) and Dorothy V. Lynch Crossman (1899-1988). Two sisters, Jeanette K. (1918-1989) and Doris Crossman Barton (1920-2013). One twin brother, George W. [U.S. Army veteran 1942-1945] (1922-1996).
The Thacher School, Ojai, California, Class of 1940
Plaque at the Thacher School in honor of those who gave their lives in WWII
Harvard University, Class of ’45 yearbook
CIRCUMSTANCES: USAT ST-720, a small harbor tug, foundered in the Atlantic. Founder means taking on water and being unable to go on. [the rest is from ssarkansan.com] Specifically, ST-720 capsized at 0500, Smith Shipyards, Pensacola, Florida. Winds were in excess of 60mph, and seas were 40-50 feet. The USS John J. Powers (DE-528) saved 4:
Buswell, Charles – SM2c Forbes, Robert – Oiler Lamude, Frederick – 1st Engineer O’Leary, Michael – A.B.
7 crew lost: Crossman, Richard Terrence – Chief Mate McFarlane, James – A.B. Moran, Stephen R. – A.B. Scrivener, James E. – Chief Engineer Sutcliffe, Thomas – A.B. Thrasyvoulos, Joannides – Cargo Officer Wallace, Edward A. – Master
From The Daily Item (Port Chester, NY) on December 16, 1944
LT CROSSMAN WAS DROWNED IN EUROPE
The spreading offensive against the German forces today had claimed the life of another Greenwich man, First Lieutenant Richard T. Crossman, 22, son of Mr. and Mrs. Herman S. Crossman, of Round Hill Road. Lieutenant Crossman met his death by drowning “somewhere in the European theater” on October 18. Confirmation of the tragedy was received by the parents from Major General J. A. Ulio, adjutant general.
A twin brother, Corporal George W. Crossman, is serving with the Army Air Forces in Pueblo, Colorado. Lieutenant Crossman also leaves two sisters, Lieutenant Jeannette K. Crossman, WAVES, and Mrs. C. Sidney Barton, whose husband, a Navy Lieutenant, is serving in the South Pacific.
Lieutenant Crossman was enrolled in Harvard University when he enlisted in the Merchant Marines in 1942. He transferred to the Army Transport Service last May.
DOB/DOD: January 30, 1900 (West Ham, London, England) – February 23, 1943; 43 years old MARITAL STATUS: Married Isabel T. “Belle” Makonis (1918-1951) in 1940 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Isabel later married William Von Winkle of Hamden, Connecticut, in April 1944. LOCAL ADDRESS: 1 Smith Street, West Haven SERVICE NUMBER: Z-172822
FAMILY: Born to Joseph (1863-1915) and Ellen Lovett Cooper (1861-1910). Four sisters, Maud Cooper Barnes (1896-1979), Katherine (1897-?), Ellen K. (1904-1991), and Margaret Cooper Lane (1905-?). Two brothers, William J. (1901-?) and Alfred (1907-?).
Photo from Seaman’s Protection application
CIRCUMSTANCES: Joseph Michael Cooper was born in London, England. He later emigrated to the United States and lived in West Haven, Connecticut. He married Isabel Mackonis on 28 March 1940 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He graduated from the Fort Trumbull Merchant Marine Officers School in New London, Connecticut.
On April 8, 1942, he survived an attempt by the Germans to sink his ship, the Esso Baton Rouge, off the coast of Georgia. The survivors spent 12 hours in the boat waiting to be rescued. Their ship was repaired and recommissioned as “Esso Baton Rouge II”.
On February 23, 1943, they were torpedoed in the North Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. He was one of the four men killed, while most of the crew managed to make it to lifeboats and were rescued.
Between 2217 and 2220 hours on February 23, 1943, U-202 fired four bow torpedoes at convoy UC-1 about 400 miles south of the Azores and damaged the Murena, British Fortitude and Empire Norseman. At 22.21 hours, the stern torpedo was fired, which hit the Esso Baton Rouge.
The Esso Baton Rouge (Master James S. Poche) in station #43 was struck by the torpedo on the starboard side between the engine room and aft bunkers. The explosion carried away the bulkhead between the tanks and the engine room, filled the latter compartment with burning oil, killed one officer and one man on watch below, and stopped the engines. Debris flew over 50 feet in the air, and one armed guard was killed. As the ship started to settle by the stern, the eight officers, 35 men, and 25 armed guards (the ship was armed with one 4in, one 3in, and eight 20mm guns) abandoned ship in three lifeboats, after three rafts were carried away, because the ship still had headway. Within 90 minutes, all survivors were picked up by HMS Totland (Y 88) (LtCdr L.E. Woodhouse, RN). The tanker finally sank by the stern about 04.00 hours the next morning. Two crew members and one armed guard, all seriously burned from flaming oil, were treated on the sloop and put ashore at Antigua on 4 March. The remaining survivors were transferred to the Dutch steam merchant Maaskerk and arrived in Trinidad on 6 March. [from uboat.net]
The fate of Submarine U-202
The German U-boat U-202 was sunk on June 2, 1943, in the North Atlantic by British warships using depth charges, resulting in 18 crew deaths and 30 survivors; its wreck lies on the seabed as a war grave, undiscovered until recent years by the Sea War Museum. Before its sinking, U-202 was notable for sinking nine ships, landing saboteurs in the U.S. (Operation Pastorius), and serving on its ninth patrol, commanded by Kapitänleutnant Günter Poser.
DOB/DOD: November 26, 1920 (New London, CT) – January 1, 1943; 22 years old MARITAL STATUS: Married Barbara A. Rice (1921-1999) on October 3, 1942, in Prince George, Maryland. Barbara remarried to John H. Freeman (1919-1999) in 1945. LOCAL ADDRESS: 49 Shirley Lane, New London ENLISTMENT: 1942 SERVICE NUMBER: Z-238553
FAMILY: Born to Harry Allen (1897-1969) and Isabel Morrow Cooke (1897-1973). One sister, Nancy B. Cooke Read Tucker (1924-1997).
Photo from FindAGrave.com and contributor “Anonymous”
Photo contributed by Kyndall Burroughs, Annual Giving and Communications Associate, Admiral Farragut Academy
CIRCUMSTANCES: SS Arthur Middleton was hit by two torpedoes from German submarine U-73 and exploded within 17 minutes off the coast of Casablanca, near Oran, Algeria, during the war. 78 out of the 81 on board lost their lives.
Harry A. Cooke was born and raised in New London and is a graduate of Admiral Farragut and the New York Maritime Academy. In 1942, he applied to be an officer in the US Navy. While waiting, he enjoyed life in Boston and New York. His mother nagged him about how he was enjoying life while so many were serving their country. In frustration, he joined the Merchant Marine and went aboard the SS Arthur Middleton. His tragic death was followed by a letter in February 1943, granting admission into the US Navy as an officer. In the only letter received from him just before he sailed from New York, it was mentioned that he was put in charge of taking care of the ship’s cat. His death devastated his family for generations. [fromuboat.net]
The SS Arthur Middleton was named for Arthur Middleton (1742–1787), who was an American planter and politician from South Carolina. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress and a signatory of the Declaration of Independence. He was captured by British forces in Charleston in 1780 and held as a prisoner of war in St. Augustine.
The fate of German submarine U-73
U-73 found the convoy GUS-24 off Oran on December 16, 1943, and torpedoed the 7,200-ton American Liberty ship SS John S. Copley. As the damaged vessel returned to port, the destroyers USS Woolsey, USS Trippe, and USS Edison left Mers-el-Kebir to find the U-boat. She was located by sonar at 1815 hours. Hull turbulence made the U-boat’s hydrophones ineffective at the speed U-73 was leaving the area, so she was unaware of the destroyers until Woolsey’s pattern of depth charges exploded below the submarine at 1839. Sea water poured in between the bow torpedo tubes and from a salt water inlet valve for the diesel engine cooling system. All ballast tanks were blown to bring U-73 to the surface as inflowing water exceeded pumping capacity. U-73 surfaced in darkness at 1927, and men manned the heavy machine guns. The destroyers promptly detected her on radar and illuminated the submarine with searchlights. She sank by the stern following a brief exchange of gunfire. 34 of the crew were rescued by 2210. Three of Woolsey’s crew were wounded by machine gun fire, and sixteen of the U-boat crew perished.
From The Transcript-Telegram (Holyoke, MA) on December 16, 1943
There has come to The Oracle’s Christmas table this poem written by a lovely girl in her teens, to the memory of her only brother who went down with his ship in the North Atlantic last February before the German U-boats were tamed. The brother was Harry Allen Cooke, III. His commission as an Ensign in the Navy came after he had gone on his last trip with the Merchant Marine for which life service he had fitted himself in days of peace. Harry and Nancy are the children of the former Isabelle Morrow of Holyoke. Their grandfather was a leading jeweler in Holyoke for many years, and their great-grandfather brought the Farr Mills to Holyoke. There is a place in the scrapbooks of Holyokers who love brave deeds and gallant words for Nancy Cooke’s tribute to her brother:
A SERVANT OF GOD, THROUGH THE SEA
It was his life, the sea, From boyhood he loved it. It held a certain fascination for him, an undefinable power; As tho YOU were speaking to him thru it. It was his religion, A ship was his House of Devotion. His prayer-book was the salty wind, His God was in the roll of the ocean. In him YOU sowed the seeds of its glory, To be taught to us lesser mortals. Its meaning not all of us realized, Its freedom stands for the freedom of all. He prepared for the life of a sailor Because YOU wanted it that way. But when Satan threatened. And would call this sea “iniquity,” It was his job to fight. You gave it to him. He had to fight for his religion, For his right to sail his “House of Devotion,” His right to absorb Strength from YOU. He fought for this, Which had meant his life to him. Then came the day when YOU called him, He returned to YOU, thru the sea. Forevermore to Strengthen, and give power By the ocean, to those who have heeded And will heed YOUR word, thru his call. It was an honor, Bestowed on him by YOU, In YOUR own way, to carry on. He will live forever, And “in the dreadful day of judgement When the sea shall give up her dead” He will walk forth beside YOU, In Glory and in Majesty, a servant of THEE, A servant of the Sea, as it were an Apostle Of YOU, the LORD, To cast away Evil, Always.
—NANCY COOKE. July 8, 1943.
Memorialized on the WWII memorial, Williams Park, 200 Williams Street, New London, Connecticut
Memorial headstone in Fairview Cemetery, 380 Providence Road, South Grafton, Massachusetts.
Photos from FindAGrave.com and contributor Mary S.
