USS KNAPP DECEMBER NWYF NEWSLETTER 2014 #58

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USS KNAPP
DECEMBER
NWYF
NEWSLETTER
2014 #58
CALL LETTERS
Hi Shipmates,
Leaving no stone unturned in my search for information about the
Knapp’s trip to Kennebunkport, ME in July of 1953, I submitted the letter on the
right to Reminisce magazine. I will share the results in future newsletters.
USS KNAPP REUNION - 2015
As indicated in the last newsletter, I contacted Nicole Foster of the Kennebunkport Historical Society looking for information concerning the visit by the Knapp
to their town to help them celebrate their Tri-Centennial observance during the
July 4th weekend in 1953. She suggested that we have a ship’s reunion there
which we call The Return to Kennebunkport. Nicole along with Christian
McCrory and Michael Nataupsky of the Colony Hotel have put together a very
nice package for us as follows:
Place - Kennebunkport, ME - Colony Hotel - 140 Ocean Ave. 04046
phone 207-967-3331
Time - June 1 thru 4, 2015
Cost - The cost is $300 dollars per person and includes a stay of three nights &
four days and includes free breakfast buffet ($17.00) every morning, free banquet
dinner Wednesday night ($60.00), and all taxes (8%), service charges, and gratuities. In addition, the Historical Society has generously offered to provide a real
New England luncheon for us on Tuesday afternoon at the Historical Society.
Accommodations - The East House has twenty rooms with two queen size beds
and they will be set aside for our group. The hotel is closed for the winter, but
they will start taking our reservations starting Monday January 5th. Any rooms
left in our block after April 17th will be open to the general public. Any Knapp
reservations coming in after that date will be subject to availability.
Reservations - Phone 207-967-3335 (group sales) extension 520 or 523 ask for Christian McCrory or
Michael Nataupsky. If you have any questions you can call me at 309-266-9391 or 309-258-1157. This is
one of the finest ocean front hotels on the east coast at a great price, so you don’t want to miss this reunion.
Transportation is available by plane, train or automobile. Plane to Portland International (30 miles) or Boston’s Logan (90 minutes), or there is great Amtrak service on the east coast with a station in Wells, ME which
is only 6 miles or 10 minutes from the Colony Hotel. You can go online and see many photos of the hotel at
various travel websites. I will provide more details in future newsletters, but make your reservations early.
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The USS Cassin Young DD-793 is a Fletcher class destroyer like the Knapp and is now a museum ship located in Boston, MA, and the drawing
above is part of a new brochure they recently published. Some thoughtful shipmate sent me a copy and I am sharing it with you. It is well done and
should help you locate that favorite part of the Knapp where you used to hide when the word was passed for an all hands work party. My favorite
spot was emergency radio.
I received the following e-mail regarding the USS Knapp website…..”I appreciate the website and information you keep active. It’s a beautiful tribute
to all who served. I did notice a picture on the site with a (?) under one of
the sailors. I am glad to report that it is my father. If you could add his name
it would be greatly appreciated. He is Napolean Blaine FC3c in the bottom
row, second from the left. He served from 1943-1945. All my best, John
Blaine.”
We like to set the record straight so the following is the corrected information that goes with the photo at the right including some spelling corrections.
WWII Fire Controlmen group photo
Back row - John Kruly CFC, Harold Dundon FC3c, Joe Cionek FCRc,
Bruce Williams FC1c.
Middle row - Chester Brown FCR3c, Charles McCool FC3c, Robert King
S2c, Russell Speicher FCR2c.
First row - Paul Lingo FC3c, Napoleon J. Blaine FC3c, Harold Crouch Jr.
FC3c, and Ralph W. Loefeler FC2c.
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Linwood Carter S1c & Maynard “Mike” Astbury S1c riding in a local parade. They were best pals aboard the Knapp
and up until Mike’s recent passing in July of this year.
These are the lovely ladies that attended the reunion in San Antonio
starting at the top but not in any order we have….Julie Johnston, Gloria Jean Johnston, Marianne Loscheider, Pamela Dettmers, Jean
McCarthy, Janet Marlow, Betty Smith, Cherrth Wiseman, Sharon
Reed, Darlene Perfors, Phyllis Rollins, Betty Boucher, Jan Smith, Pat
Brown, Martha Gerety, Theresa Munley, and Susan Scalgione
This photo of Charles “Fuzzy” Knight & his daughter
Lo’ri was taken in a car museum prior to his passing in
September of this year.
This photo shows the two types of four inch square tile
coasters that Norwin “Tex” Schoenfeld of Yoakum, TX
and his daughter made for all the attendees at our last
reunion down in San Antonio. Thanks from all of us.
John C. “Smitty” Smith on his new 3 wheel hot bike with
his church pastor on the back. I assume his pastor has a
very strong faith and his insurance is paid up.
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TAPS………………..
Richard P. “Dick” Day, ENS - 52-53….. Dick passed away in Paradise Valley, AZ
July 15, 2009 surrounded by family. He is survived by his wife Pat and sons Chip,
Bo, Steve, Ward, and daughters Muffi, Keli, and Emily along with ten grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
Dick was an Ensign when he served aboard the Knapp as 1st Lieutenant in 1952 and
53. His hometown at that time was Hartford, CT where he was born on February 13,
1930. In civilian life, he worked his entire career in the insurance business. He was a
member of VFW, Military Officers Association, and American Legion. His memorial
service was held at St. Barnabas-on-the-Desert Episcopal Church. I was trying to
contact Dick for some information for the newsletter and found his obituary and since
others did not know of his passing, I thought it would be appropriate to share it with
all of you.
Napoleon J. “Nap” Blaine……. “Nap” was born February 7, 1924 and went to
school in Medford, MA, graduating from high school in 1941. After the bombing of
Pearl Harbor, he sought to enlist in the Navy but was turned down due to a perforated
ear drum. He tried again in 1943(2?) and this time was successful. He wound up on
the USS Knapp and liked to joke that it was his ship. He served on the Knapp as a
Fire Controlman and was on the ship for the surrender ceremony in Tokyo Bay.
“Nap” passed away on September 24, 1994 and is survived by his children, Lynne,
John, and Stacey. His son John and I met via the Knapp website and he furnished me
the information about his dad. I thought it important to remember “Nap” and share
this information with his shipmates.
CREWMEMBER MAILING LIST CHANGES………………..
Mrs. Warren ( Pat ) Bruels……. Change address to 100 Dublin Road Apt. 3311 - Mankato, MN 56001
phone 507-276-1250
MAIL CALL…………… Thanks to all you loyal supporters of the Knapp Association that have sent in dues/
donation checks since the last newsletter and they include Guinn Fetner, Ron Loftness, Don Rollins, John
Forrester, and Red Speulda. Since this is the December Newsletter, I would like to remind you that dues are
duly due so please do send your dues at this time. The dues are still only $20.00 which hasn’t changed since
2005 and I could also use help with the Memorial Fund.
I was doing a little research for my book and discovered that a
Cyclone, Hurricane, and Typhoon were all the same weather
phenomenon as shown on the right but were called by different
names depending on where they occurred in the world, but I am
sure all of you knew that. It reminded me of the letter I received from Ken Mueller F1c when describing this
occurrence in WWII for his children. “On June 5, 1945 a typhoon hit the Okinawa area. It is hard to describe it
but it seems like you have no control of the ship, bouncing in 40 to 50 foot swells with the propellers going in
and out of the water. The ship twists and turns with the changing sea, while the person at the helm does everything he can to steer the bow of the ship directly into the swells. During all this time, we in the fire-room must
supply the ship with full steam to fight off the surge of the oncoming swells. If you can visualize a 50 foot
swell (tons of water) hitting the bow with a great thud causing the ship to shudder from bow to stern, then as
the swell passes under the ship it takes the stern high in the air leaving it to fall to the surface of the water with
a thundering crash”. ……. This description by Ken Mueller was right on target, because after a little research,
I found an official navy report that contained the following report. Continued on page 5…….
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“On 3 June 1945, the ships of Task Group (TG) 38.1 built around aircraft carriers USS Hornet CV-12 and USS
Bennington CV-20 were operating east of Okinawa, having just completed two weeks of air attacks against Japanese airfields on Okinawa and Kyushu. Contradictory weather reports and other problems did not help the situation. On 5 June, the small tight typhoon overtook TG 38.1 which passed through the eye of the storm at 0700
that morning. Hurricane force winds with gusts up to 115 MPH damaged almost every ship in TG 38.1. The
USS Pittsburgh CA-72 lost her bow, and two other cruisers suffered frame damage. The carriers all suffered
flight deck damage and had 43 planes damaged and 33 washed overboard. Six men were lost or killed and another four were seriously injured.” The one enemy the Knapp could not control was the weather.
Another person I heard from was our friend and honorary shipmate
Antoni Moreno from Tarragona Bay, Spain. He sent me an article
from a January 1952 Spanish newspaper describing our visit to that
port. The photo at right shows Antoni on the left when he was serving his country in the Spanish army. The second photo is the SPS
Nervion which is the Spanish mine-sweeper that came out to meet us
and escourt us into port. The last photo is the USS Great Sitkin AE17 which was an ammo ship that made this port of call with us. I
would think an ammo ship would be about as welcome as a case of
Asian Flu in any port. Needless to say they had to anchor out and did
not allow civilians to tour the ship. We were tied up to a pier and
were open for visitors and they turned out in large numbers. I assume our friend Antoni was a small boy at that time. According to
the newspaper article, a reception was held at the town hall for Captain James Wichfield - Flotilla Commodore, Captain G. L. Phillips USS Great Sitkin, and Commander Hank Heine - USS Knapp. There
was also a party for the officers at Tarragona’s Club Nautico. The
ship’s company was invited to a luncheon and tour of Monastary de
Poblet in Catalonia which is a short distance from Tarragona Bay. It
was built in 1151 and houses tombs of many kings and queens. We
arrived in Tarragona on 9 January 1953 and left on the 15th so we
were able to tour all of the town and surrounding area. It is a beautiful port and everybody had a chance to go on liberty.
USS KNAPP WEBSITE LOG ENTRY……….
The following is the most recent entry in our ship’s log.
Name: John Allen Bolton
From: Trenton, GA
E-mail: [email protected]
“ I was on the Knapp from 1955 thru 56 as a machinist mate
fireman. One of the guys I served with was Mel Gordon. I
am originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee. My twin brother
was in the navy also, but we were never on the same ships.
His name is James Allen Bolton. We joined in 1953 and were
discharged in 1956.”
You can add John Allen Bolton MM3c 1955-56 to the mailing list and you can reach John at 6700 Highway 301 North,
Trenton, GA 30752 - Phone 706-657-7083 or his daughter’s
e-mail which is [email protected] ….. John originally from Chattanooga, TN joined the navy with his twin
brother James Allen Bolton, but they got separated after
“boot” camp. Continued on page 6
The above photos include the Minesweeper Nervion, the
Great Sitkin, and the Cistercian Monastery de Poblet.
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John served on the Knapp in the after engine room as a fireman, and one of his buddies was Mel Gordon, but
he doesn’t know his present location. He made two cruises to the Far East on the USS Powell, and on his return was transferred to the Knapp and immediately left for another cruise to the Far East. After their discharge,
both brothers relocated to Trenton, GA where they are neighbors.
I also need to get caught up on photos that have been sent to me in the past and have never made it
into the newsletter. At some point, I want to get a group of photos on the website that are just individual portraits like the one of Pete Loscheider below in the middle.
On the right - L - R
Shipmates and best buddies
Maynard “Mike” Astbury S1c
and Linwood Carter S1c
Center -Pete Loscheider MM2c
On the far right L - R
Charles Mc Cool FC3c and
Napoleon “Nap” Blaine FC3c
These photos are from a collection recently acquired from Bill McGovern MM3c.
The photo on the on the left shows the USS Ammen DD-527 tied up next to the USS Knapp, but I don’t know the location. That is
Lester “Stringbean” Hass BT3 standing at the rail, and I wondered why he was just standing there looking down into the water, but
on close observation you can see a fishing rod in his right hand. Typical “snipe” work day. Ha Ha…..The other photo is of Jim
“Reverend” Duffy MM3 and apparently he is holding up Mount 55. The open hatch behind him leads to my “rack”.
WE WISH YOU ALL
A JOYOUS CHRISTMAS
AND A
HAPPY HANUKKAH
PETE AND JAN