USS Melville
http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-m/ad2.htm
October, 1943 – May, 1944
After seven months in Recife, Brazil, Adrian’s
dates on his log were not nearly as accurate as
before. Events occurred that caused the ship
to vary its plans. Upon returning from Recife,
Brazil, the Melville docked at Norfolk, Virginia
on October 6, 1943.
On November 16, 1943, the Melville left the
Norfolk Navy Yard for Newport, Rhode Island.
Before leaving the waters of
Virginia, the ship went through
a series of degaussing tests.
(Electromagnetic coils were
installed in ship to prevent the
magnetic mines developed by
the Germans from detecting
the ships passing over them.)
At 8:04 p.m. the ship ran
aground in sight of the Cape
Henry Lighthouse. Various
tugs came to help. They finally
resorted to off loading some of
the fuel oil and ammunition.
Note: All subsequent War
Diary entries will have the
declassified label removed to
save space for images.
At 12:13 on November 18, 1943, the ship finally floated free. Late that
day the ship anchored back at the Norfolk Yard. On November 19 a
Board of Investigation was convened to “inquire into and report upon
the circumstances attending the grounding of the USS Melville.” Divers
were sent into the water to inspect the hull for damages.
http://www.uscg.mil/history/weblighthouses
Finally, on November 21, 1943 at 7:58 the Melville once again
left Norfolk in route to Newport, Rhode Island where they
arrived on November 23. While there, the crew had
extensive drills. After a week, the Melville set sail for New
London, Connecticut.
There are actually two
lighthouses at Cape Henry.
The black and white one was
built in 1881. The older one in
the background was built in
1792 and was the first
lighthouse ever commissioned
by the US government.
More strange
problems for
the Melville!
As noted in the War Diary above for December 2,
1943, the USS Melville and the USS Bass, a
Barracuda class submarine, were involved in
maneuvers off Block Island. At some point the
Bass collided with the Melville.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Bass_(SS-164)
There is very little information about the USS Bass.
Every entry on the internet for this ship states that
during the month of December, 1943, the USS Bass
was off Block Island near New London,
Connecticut completing “secret experiments.”
These experiments are never explained.
After the accident of December 2, the Melville stayed in port at New London, Connecticut to pump out
the chambers that had been flooded. Divers were sent to inspect the underside of the ship. Once it
was considered seaworthy, they made their way back south to the New York Navy Yard. Once in New
York, it was determined that the repairs would need to be made at the Bethlehem Steel Yard in New
Jersey.
As the ship was making it’s way to New York,
Adrian had his 25th birthday.
The ship was placed in dry dock from December 9
until December 21. At this point, probably much to
Adrian’s joy, the ship returned to New York and
remained there until December 30. This meant that
Adrian probably did not eat Christmas dinner on
board the ship but most likely enjoyed some Polish
cooking for the holidays.
Though the picture to the right has an unknown
date, this was probably an image of Wanda that
Adrian treasured. She is wearing her pearls from
Pearl Harbor.
Adrian is shown above with the 700 member crew
listed in the 1943 Christmas menu. It is not likely he
was on board since they were docked in New York a
couple of miles from the Werbicki household.
On December 30, 1943, the Melville sailed once again for Newport, RI. They
remained there until February 7, 1944.
As can be seen from
Adrian’s log entries for the
first half of 1944, the USS
Melville, with Adrian on
board, spent a lot of time
on the move. No known
photographs exist during
the months the ship was
moving around England
and Scotland, but an idea
of his experiences can be
gleaned from official Navy
records.
This article appeared in a
wartime publication called the
Clarkston Clarion. As
mentioned, all three brothers
had the same December 7th
birthday. When the article
appeared in the January, 1944
edition, Adrian had just
turned 25, Jack was 23, and
Don was 19.
Because three brothers
served in the military, a flag
with three stars could be seen
in Ferman and Mae
Fortenberry’s front window.
Once arriving in Newport , Rhode Island, the Melville remained until February 7, 1944. As noted
above, they men went ashore to attend various training sessions. Adrian would have definitely
attended the “Day and Night Firing.”
Between Feburary 7 and March 8, 1944, the ship spent time in Casco Bay Maine and New York
getting ready to join and support the 12th Atlantic Fleet stationed around the British Isles. Because
it was a tender, the Melville carried personnel and goods not found on most ships. They even had a
dentist office!
Understanding some Navy terminology
As you read the War Diary entries for the Melville, you will come across quite a few terms that may be
confusing to you. Hopefully, the explanations below will help you understand the events recorded in
the daily logs!
Material Condition referred to what was
happening with the physical environment of the
ship. During wartimes, Baker and Affirm were the
most common.
Material Condition Baker – The ship is alert to
possible problems. Procedures are in place to
make the ship as water-tight as possible but still
continue with a reasonably comfortable living
environment.
Material Condition Affirm - It took about 30
minutes to move from Baker to Affirm where
“living conditions became secondary to the
requirements of water-tight and air-tight
integrity.” Everything on the ship would we
stowed for safety and all systems were put in a
“safety first” battle ready condition. By the time
Material Condition Affirm was instituted, fire
controlmen and other battle positions were in
place.
http://digital.library.northwestern.edu/wwii-posters/img/ww0207-67.jpg
Understanding some Navy terminology continued
“Conditions” (without the word material mentioned) referred to what the men were doing.
Condition III was called for when a ship was cruising during wartime. Generally one third of the
crew would be on watch and; strategic stations, such as guns, were manned at 50%.
Condition II was a modified “General Quarters,” used on large ships and was a modified call to
battle stations.
Condition I was synonymous with General Quarters, both meaning all hands were at their battle
stations.
You will also see the terms “dawn alert” and “dusk
alert.”
Special precautions were taken, normally all hands to
battle stations (General Quarters), at times when
attacks were most likely – prior to first light and at
sunset. This meant that every morning began in a
battle ready position and every day ended the same
way.
http://history1900s.about.com/library/photos/blywwiip68.htm
The two ships (Borum and Maloy) traveling with
the Melville were destroyer escorts. This type
of destroyer was smaller than a standard
destroyer and used mainly to protect ships
against submarine attacks. They were both
new ships being moved to the British Isles to
support the war efforts closer to Europe. They
would stop in the Azores to refuel.
USS Maloy
http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/DE/DE-791_Maloy.html
Typical German U boat
Location of contact with U boat
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U-boat
Everyone on both sides of the war
wanted a base in the Azores (owned
by Portugal) due to the
advantageous location. It would
make a great refueling station and
air base for fighting the U boats that
were playing havoc with the Allied
ships.
In 1943, the Portuguese ruler leased
air and naval bases in the Azores to
the British Empire. The British took
over operations there in October of
1943. With the help of the American
Air Force and Navy, it was now
possible to provide some protection
to men and goods being moved
across the North Atlantic.
An interesting side note: The Portuguese (fascist at the time) were forced to negotiate with the
British for the use of the Azores because of an old treaty (the Treaty of Windsor) signed between the
two countries in 1373. Yes, you read that right. The British leasing of land in the Azores in 1943
was negotiated because of a 570 year old agreement!
The Melville, with the two destroyer escorts, arrived at the Azores on March 15, but due to high
winds and seas were unable to enter the bay. After dropping anchor on March 16, they loaded
123,446 gallons of fuel oil on board and prepared to continue to the British Isles.
On March 18, the Melville got underway from
Ponta Degada in the Azores for Londonderry,
England. Not long after leaving, a submarine’s
periscope was noticed by their escort. The ship
began zigzagging to evade the enemy. The sub
evidently moved away.
http://www.maritime.org/tech/scopes.htm
While on the way to
Londonderry, Ireland,
their destination was
changed to Rosneath,
Scotland.
Their destination,
Rosneath, is marked
on the map on the
below.
With all the alerts and
sounding of general
quarters, Adrian must have
spent a lot of time waiting for
an order to fire! The ship
spent most of March 19 – 21
zig-zagging toward Rosneath
and at general quarters. On
March 22, they anchored in
Rosneath Harbor and
immediately began support
services for both U.S. and
British ships.
Throughout April, 1944, the USS Melville remained in Rosneath, Scotland supporting the Eleventh
Amphibious Force. The ships they were working on are listed as LST’s. This is short for
“Landing Ship Tank.” These were amphibious ships that carried tanks.
Typical LST
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landing_Ship,_Tank
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Normandy
In April and May of 1944, LST’s were being prepared for the Normandy Invasion (shown
above) that was to occur on June 6, 1944. Most of the ships seen is the picture are landing
craft containing either tanks or troops. Because of the extensive rearmament of the LST’s,
Adrian would have been involved with the mechanics of the gun systems as he was
qualified to disassemble and repair fire control systems.
On May 1, 1944, the Melville
left Rosneath, Scotland for
Portland, England to
finalize repairs for ships
preparing to cross the
English Channel for the
Normandy Invasion. The
Allies had staging areas
along the entire southern
coast of England. In his
log, Adrian called it
“Waymoth.”
Invasion of Normandy
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/293930313151174482/
The Melville dropped anchor on May 4 and immediately began working on LSTs and LCIs. An
LCI was a “Landing Craft Infantry” used to move soldiers quickly onto shore. Below is a photo
of LCI 326 practicing for the invasion.
German reconnaissance began picking
up a lot of activity along the coast of
England. Consequently, more bombing
raids were sent over. During May,
enemy airplanes were constantly being
sighted. The term red alert would
indicate that planes were sighted
overhead and white alert indicated that
all was clear.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landing_Craft_Infantry
The Melville was at anchor in Weymouth which was about 20 miles east of Lyme and 20 miles west of
Needles. Air raids occurring along the coast in those areas would affect the Weymouth area too.
In the early morning hours of May 15, 1944, the
Melville became involved in an antiaircraft
engagement. It appears that there were quite a
few German air attacks during May on Lyme
just to the west.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Britain
Adrian would have surely been involved with this attack. He never talked about being part of any
battles. His children knew a little about Pearl Harbor but nothing about the rest of his time in the
Navy. It was only after requesting his Navy records and receiving about 200 pages concerning his
time in the service that a more complete picture could be formed. Within these pages was
something called a service record which is a summary of his changes in rank and what he did while
holding each rank. Below is the section concerning the time when he was ranked as Fire
Controlman 1st class.
Explanation:
2-43 indicates that Adrian became a fire controlman first class in February of 1943. The last column lists
some of the specific tasks he would be required to or did perform.
The paragraph is saying: Adjusts and checks on Mark 1 computer, Mark 7 Range Keeper. Complete
repair of Ford power drive 1.1. Complete disassembly and reassembly of Mark 2 and Mark 6 range
keeper, battle, sound power telephones, bore sight and Tram guns. Two antiaircraft engagements.
The previous information about May 15, 1944 would be one of the two AA engagements. The other is
unknown at this time.
Why did Adrian save this
buckle?
Because of the “British” feel to this belt buckle, it
may an item that Adrian brought back from England
with him. No one in the family seems to know its
story! It was well worn and originally had a woven
belt. Sure do wish it would give up its story!
If anyone has any ideas, please let the family know!
When talking about the war with
his son, Raymond, Adrian
always mentioned that he signed
up for any schooling available
for his occupational rating of
Fire Controlman. It was one
advantage Adrian had for his
four years in the Navy before the
US entered the war in 1941. At
some point after being promoted
to Fire Controlman 1st class, he
must have applied for additional
schooling. When his orders
came in sending him to
Washington, D.C., Adrian was
probably ecstatic about leaving
southern England. Because of
changes in technology and his
“mechanical” qualifications, he
was assigned on May 18, 1944 to
report to the Navy Yard in
Washington, D.C. for a ten week
course in “New Construction.”
Adrian left the Melville on May 18 and made a somewhat circuitous route back to the USA. As
noted below, he was transferred from the location of “Navy No. 902” which was the Navy’s location
code for Portland, England. According to his log, he arrived at Rosneath, Scotland on May 19, left
there on the 24th, from there to Liverpool, England on the 25th, and finally to Boston, Massachusetts
on June 1.
As noted on the previous
record, Adrian arrived at the
Washington, D.C. Navy yard
at 3:00, June 3, 1944.
Because of the length of this page, only the pertinent parts were included.
Adrian is now back onto American soil and will remain in this county until the end of the war. Wanda
was probably thankful to have him closer to home!
It is obvious from the 1937 image and the one from 1943 that Adrian was no longer the naive farm boy
from Mississippi but someone aware of the realities of a world war.
His story will continue. There are still some interesting things to learn!