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Memories.......
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THE REAL THING |
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A mid-Pacific storm tested ROCHESTER's
seaworthiness during the voyage to Japan (left). In the center, Fox Div.
is at quarters for entering port. At right, ROCHESTER is moored
alongside at Yokosuka Naval Shipyard.
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Most Yokosuka liberties began at the
Enlisted-men's Club just outside the base gate (above left, background
center), where the surroundings were somewhat familiar. Upon stepping
from there onto the streets of the city, however, it was clear they
weren't in Ventura anymore.
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ROCHESTER was in port just a few
days--enough time to be readied for her return to action in Korea--but
the crew was given every opportunity to get ashore. At left, Jim Flot
(Fox Div.) and Hobson are obviously enjoying some Yokosuka hospitality.
All too soon, however, the mooring lines were cast off and ROCHESTER
steamed out of the harbor. First she headed south, and passed thru
Shimonoseki Strait between Honshu and Kyushu (center). That's ST. PAUL
following astern. Then she headed out into the Sea of Japan,
encountering some weather as she steamed westward (right).
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By morning, a snow-covered Korean coast was
partially visible amid storm clouds. ROCHESTER had joined Task Force 77
during the night and was now on station near the "38th Parallel" (38
degrees north latitude). This is the border between North and South
Korea, where action was concentrated during much of the war. That's the
carrier ESSEX (CV-9) across the water.
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ROCHESTER alternated between steaming with
the carriers offshore and operating independently or in company with a
destroyer to carry out firing missions along the coast. Frequent targets
for such missions were in the area around Kosong, shown under fire
below. Kosong is just a short distance north of the 38th Parallel. |
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Battle Stations: Romig was one of the crew
of a 5" mount. In the left photo they have emerged for a breath of fresh
air (one holds a snowball he had scooped off the deck). Romig is third
from the right (in the middle). Moments later Officer of the Deck called
down from the bridge wing, ordering them to get inside and seal up the
door. Moore (upper center) was ready to direct fire of a 40-mm battery,
but enemy targets never got within range. The only firing by the 40's
was in practice. For Hobson to get to his battle station, he had to
climb down a ladder (center) into the bowels of the ship. There, in a
tiny compartment above the rudder (designated "After Steering"), he
stood ready to steer the ship in the event battle damage took out the
regular steering system on the bridge. This might have been a good place
to avoid superficial damage topside, but there could not have been a
worse place to be if the ship sank!
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Cox's battle station was as crewman of a
40-mm battery (left), which, like the mount directed by Moore, never
fired a shot at the enemy. Although fresh air could be an asset of
battle stations topside, not under conditions frequently encountered
during the long Korean winter. |
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Because ROCHESTER steamed day and night,
there was a regular need for refueling. Below left, an oiler comes
alongside to transfer fuel, while, below right, Romig seems in need of
help with the fuel lines. About this time, he completed the stipulated
12 months in service and once again requested submarine duty. |
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Most of ROCHESTER’S missions involved her
main battery of 8" gun’s. Targets included railroads, bridges, and troop
concentrations at distances of up to 12 or 13 miles. Because of Korea’s
mountainous interior, most major lines of transportation were along the
coast, and therefore within range of ROCHESTER’s guns. Much of this fire
was directed by spotters aloft in the ship’s helicopter, shown below
returning from such a mission. Another of the helicopter’s vital
functions was rescue of downed aviators. The much-decorated pilot of
ROCHESTER’s helicopter, CPO Duane Thorin, made more than 130 rescues and
evacuations from enemy territory. And helicopter crewman Ernie Crawford
was awarded the Navy Cross for heroic action during one rescue at sea.
That the helicopter was itself at times a target is shown by the bullet
hole being inspected here by R. Gibson of Fox Division. This damage
proved prophetic, as during February the helicopter was downed during a
rescue attempt near Wonsan, and Chief Thorin spent the rest of the war
in a POW camp. (See Earl Lanning’s tribute to Thorin and Crawford, "Not
Heroes, Just Good Sailors.")
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ROCHESTER’S varied missions
often took her far north behind enemy lines. Raids on
Wonsan Harbor required traversing Wonsan Narrows, a
mine-infested channel between several islands and
headlands. On the left, ROCHESTER heads into
the channel accompanied by the destroyer O’BANNON. Red
gunners on hills overlooking the channel normally
declined to fire on ROCHESTER, apparently fearing
retaliation from her big guns, but they frequently fired
on minesweepers that worked to clear the channel of
mines (upper center). ROCHESTER opened the attack with a
three-gun salvo from her forward main battery as she
steamed into the harbor at full speed (lower center).
Once inside, the attacking warships zeroed in on a
variety of targets, the prime one being a railroad
junction. On the right, ROCHESTER and destroyer HIGBEE,
their mission completed, steam out through the Narrows
toward the open sea.
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At the rate ROCHESTER was
sending projectiles at targets ashore, she needed to be
frequently re-supplied with ammunition. And it was more
of a chore bringing ammunition aboard than it was in
sending it shoreward. Often combined with the transfer
of ammunition and other supplies was the transfer of
mail--not only for ROCHESTER, but also for other ships
in the area. So after the AKA shown above had delivered
ammo (and mail) and steamed away, destroyer ERBEN pulled
up to receive a bag of mail addressed to her crew. For
most, letters from home were more important than the
ship being re-supplied with fuel and ammunition.
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ROCHESTER alternated
periods of three to four weeks in the war zone with a
week or so in Yokosuka (once Sasebo). Gifts for the
folks and others back home became major objectives of
liberty in Japan, where a seaman's pay could be
stretched much farther than in the States.
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Romig's repeated requests
for submarine duty finally paid off, as in late February
he received orders to report to U.S.S. QUEENFISH at
Pearl Harbor. In the upper photo, flanked by Hobson and
Moore, he is about to leave ROCHESTER at Yokosuka for
his new assignment. He had been set to take the exam for
Boatswain's Mate 3c before the transfer came through,
and only after reporting to QUEENFISH did he learn there
are no Boatswain's Mates in submarines. Thus began his
career as a Gunner's Mate. |
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The only opportunity that
most ROCHESTER sailors had to set foot on Korean soil
was during a March visit to Chinhae, on the southern
coast. The launch was lowered into the water shortly
after the ship dropped anchor, and soon was ferrying the
liberty party to the beach. The launch's coxswain was R.
L. Fears (2nd Div.), and among the passengers were the
three remaining sailors from Ventura. They stepped on
shore to find the cherry blossoms in full bloom, a clear
sign that spring had arrived and that they were now
short-timers in WestPac.
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On 21 April, JUNEAU arrived
at Yokosuka to relieve ROCHESTER in WestPac. Within
hours, ROCHESTER was headed eastward across the Pacific,
sometimes at flank speed. After a brief stop at Pearl
Harbor, she continued on to finally pass through the
Long Beach breakwater and arrive home.
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ROCHESTER came alongside
the wharf at Long Beach to complete her second tour of
war duty. With the experience they had gained, the four
from Ventura were confident they had completed the
transition from civilian to sailor. ROCHESTER would have
two more cruises to the far east during their
enlistments (see
"A
Winter in Westpac" and "To
Show the Flag"), but of the original four, only Cox and
Hobson would be on board.
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Moore transferred to shore
duty on the Island of Saipan (left) before ROCHESTER's
next tour in WestPac. (Did he do this for the more
casual uniform code there?) Meanwhile, Romig thrived in
QUEENFISH. Six months after reporting aboard he pinned
on his submariner's dolphins and a month later advanced
to Gunner's Mate 3c. Hobson's action station during
subsequent operations in ROCHESTER was on the bridge,
where he took bearings of charted objects ashore for the
Navigator. Not only was this more interesting than his
previous station in After Steering, now he could see
where he was going.
Aside from these brief notes, events during the 2.5
years following that first tour in Korea are beyond the
scope of this account. The four from Ventura had become
seasoned sailors.
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The day finally arrived--12
October, 1954--when the Plan Of The Day listed Cox and
Hobson among those to be transferred for separation.
ROCHESTER was at a mooring inside the breakwater at Long
Beach, and the separation was to be at the nearby
shipyard. So the transfer involved just a short run in
the ship's launch. In the two photos on the left, they
have discharge papers in hand and have been civilians
for about 30 minutes. Next to them is Hobson's car, in
which they will drive to Ventura. On the right, two
weeks later, Romig and Moore--civilians for less than a
week--have joined Hobson to celebrate their reunion at
the large concrete "V" on the hillside above town. This
was to be the last time that the three of them would
ever be together.
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Up / Sailors pg 2 / Sailors pg 3 / Sailors pg 4 / Sailors pg 5 |
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