Sunday, September 4, 2011

Another Crew Member Heard From

Good Afternoon,

I don't know if you are still updating your web-site on the Mitchell but if you are I want to let you know that I too served aboard the Mitchell. I was sent there in early 1965 and did a number of cruises to Hawaii then to Yokohama Japan, to Okinawa (or however you spell that). From there we would go to either Inchon Korea or Keelung Taiwan. Then back to Yokohama, to Hawaii and back to Oakland. I think I made that trip 5 or 6 time before we finally took her on her final cruise. I was one of the last crew members.

I pulled her up on the net a few months ago and had heard she was now scrap but I just hoped she wasn't, but sadly she is.

I would have loved to be able to go aboard once again and look her over, but it won't happen.

Just thought I'd add my 10 cents worth. Keep up the good work.

Dale Nickel
RM2 

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Anyone HELP him out ..............

I ran across a blog today while searching for the date that I was on the Mitchell when we had a collision in the harbour @ Yokasuka, Japan. My memory is faded on the event and a friend even says that the collision was @ Pearl Harbor, but I know that it was in 1960 and we were on our way home after serving a tour in the Marine Corps in Iwakuni, Japan and bound for Treasure Island, San Francisco. Can yoiu help my feeble memory? I may even be talking about the wrong ship, as this was a troop carrier and I was one of the unlucky ones to be placed on it for the trip home.
 
 
 
 

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Another Mitchell story .......

  I received this email yesterday from Mr. Hunt. I was shocked when I saw his name, I served aboard her with a Hunt, only an H. W. Hunt from Texas. In doing some checking of dates, I think that was his Father, how neat is that? Those pictures were taken before I got on board, so it well could be him.

 Hello Mr. Dooley. I enjoyed reading about your time on the Mitchell, and after looking at your pictures, I believe my Dad is the seaman standing guard as an officer comes aboard the ship. His name was Gilbert Hunt, and he passed away a few years ago from Parkinsons.  
He is wearing the correct number of stripes, and has the same glance I saw a million times growing up. Dad joined the navy shortly after graduating from Lane Tech High School in Chicago after World War ll.  He told me he was having a very difficult time finding work because all the jobs were being given to veterans that had returned from the War, so he figured he'd join up and see the world, then try job hunting after his time of service was up. He said he was due to get out when "Harry" sent him a telegram "Suggesting" he stick around as Korea was starting up.  Dad never talked much about his time in service, but did mention that he felt horrible about seeing guys leaving ship one trip, only to pick them up later in terrible shape after going thru what must have been some sort of Hell. I am pretty sure the only ship he served on was the Mitchell, and I'm sure he stayed thru most if not all of the war.  He was a machinist mate in the engine room, and he did once tell me his ship had " 2 stacks", which he seemed proud of .  Your timeline seems to be just after Dad would have left, but it sures does look like him to me !!  By the way, if that is him, and if he is wearing a sidearm, I find it funny, because whenever he trained with a 45, he told me he couldn't hit **** , and he never owned a gun .  Thanks again for your stories and the site .   

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Photo of the Mitchell

I have a picture of the Mitchell that I purchased aboard ship. I may try to have some copies made of it, not sure of how much that costs. If you would be interested in one, let me know

joedooley@yahoo.com

Email from John Dawson who sailed on the Mitchell

Another email I received, published with his permission..............
Hello Joe....I'm John Dawson from Ohio.  Was just recalling some memories of my youth when the Mitchell came to mind.  So I started googling, and here I am.  I served in the USMC from 1958-61 with 15 months of my tour being on the island of Okinawa.  Arrived there on the USS Talladega in March of 1959, and departed June of 1960 on the Mitchell bound for Treasure Island, San Francisco, CA however, we did stop for 1 day in Yokohama where we were given liberty.  One short story about Yokohama. We were fortunate to make it back to the ship on time. A group of 5 or six of us were making the rounds of the bars, when one of our number (a Navy Corpsman) managed to somehow offend the locals.  We left rather quickly to avoid any repercussions by  running down the street to catch a taxi. As it turned out we stopped in Yokohama to pick up a USA civilian who had been kicked out of the country again.  I had brig watch on the return, and he was among several who were incarcerated. One a Marine who got caught in some black market activities on Okinawa.
   The voyage home was rather leisurely.  We sailed the northern route to the states (14 days I think)  so the days on deck were quite cool unless you could find a nice sunny spot in which to sit down in the sun.  Spent a lot of time spit shining my dress shoes.  One can get a pretty good shine in 2 weeks.  Your experience in Tijuana sounds interesting.  I remember being told by the Mexican Police before I departed CA,  that I'd better get back across the border very quickly, for reasons different than yours. I remember the galley from your pic, but not specifically a mural.  It was a pleasant trip, and we were all filled with excitement about getting back stateside.  
    Anyway was hoping to get a pic of the Mitchell perhaps to leave amongst my posessions for the grandchildren to look at after grandpa makes a final voyage.   Thanks for the site, and God Bless!

John

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Wonderful Memories

Mr. Dooley,

What a great site, and service you have provided.  I was on the Billy Mitchell from around February 1959 thru around March of 1961. When I first boarded her, she was in Seattle, later we moved to Oakland. I was an Aerographers Mate, doing weather work on her.  Great to see these pictures, can not believe I found your site.  Wonderful memories.

Best Wishes
George Scudder

Howard Averbach

My name is Howard Averbach; I'm from Pittsburgh, PA.
 
My father, Louis I. Averbach, who is now 95 years old, was an administrative officer in the Army Air Corps, stationed at Boca Raton Air Field in 1942 & 43, then in 1944 & 1945 served in India.
 
I'm writing a history of my father's service, after finding his Army 201 file and combining that original documentation with the information and stories he has been telling me.
 
I'm writing to you because I found your website in my search for the USS Gen. Wm. Mitchell, which is the ship my father sailed on when he left the US from VA in August 1944 and arrived in Bombay India, October 1944.
 
I have the original schematic diagram of the ship, bunking orders, etc.
 
Only a page or two of my work focuses on the trip from VA to Bombay, including why it took so long and some of his experiences aboard; however, if YOU are writing the history of the USS Gen Mitchell, my documents may be of great interest to you.
 
Howard Averbach
 

Another one heard from

I stumbled across you website by accident. 

I served on the Mitchell in the early 50’s, about 1950-1952.  I can give you the name of one of our commanding officers at the time, CAPT J. V. Query.  He was a WWII submariner and a very good skipper.

The Mitchell was one of the first ships to bring reinforcements into Korea after the start of hostilities.  We loaded up at Fort Mason , CA and unloaded in Pusan when the defense perimeter was just miles outside of Pusan .  We later participated in the evacuation at Hungnam after the Chinese bought into the war.  Our first trip out was with much of the 1st Cavalry Division and its ROK attachment, I think we had somewhere around 8,000 troops aboard with the ROKs sleeping on the weather decks.  The second trip was harder, we loaded most of what was left of the Marines who were trapped at Chosen and fought their way back to the port.  We brought LCVP and LCVP of litter cases out and hoisted them aboard.  The Marines came aboard with their weapons locked and loaded and left them behind.  On our passage through the Strait of Moji we were busy dumping GI cans of weapons and ammunition over the fantail.  We spent Christmas Eve that year anchored out in Yokohama Harbor cleaning troop compartments.

I left the Mitch in 1952 to transfer to the USNS General Simon Bolivar Buckner.

Interesting sidelight.  When first assigned to the Mitchell I was assigned to D2 Division where I worked for what must have been one of the very first black BM’s in the Navy, BM2 Vincent Rudolph Bates.  The guy was something else – 6’ or thereabouts, strong as two bulls, one of the best small boat handlers I’ve ever seen and a great leader and motivator.  Raised in strictly segregated Texas it was an eye opener for me but I quickly grew to admire and trust Bates.  When the division went on liberty together anyplace which wouldn’t serve Bates served none of us and we might well leave some wreckage behind when we exited.

Kenn Smith

Another Shipmate Heard From

Got an email from a Bill Call who was aboard the Mitchell in the early 50's. He is going to send along some old photos, will put them up when I get them ......