Benham (DD 796) - Naval Cruise Book

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w I Bi ;.-.. :.l , !!»tV , Mninit!!!!! tnntittt, nii PART OF HAMBURG SKYLINE The following two notes of interest were translated from German papers and forwarded to the ship by the American Consulate General in Hamburg. The only unfriendly note struck by the press was from the local Communist paper, the Hamburger Volkszeitung. It reads as follows: What do the American Destroyers ivant at Harnhurg? Every mat! needs his daily bread. Thus Hamburg port needs the lisit of ships that bring icork and bread, that revive trade, and that make Hamburg again the gateway into the worlds. However, our port does not need ships with the unpleasant name of destroyer, armed uilh guns that may be forerunners of other ivarships and of the General-War-Treaty-Marine planned by Adenauer. To beg:n with, there were 60 NATO officers nosing around in the port of Hamburg, figuring out its use as a war port. Now there are two U.S. Destroyers supposed to lie in port for 6 days. Their names already express which fate will threaten the port of Hamburg and our town unless we try with all our might to preserve peace; destruction. The population of Hamburg does not want to see those ships that make our harbor a sight that is unwanted. City mayor Brauer should know that too. The commanders of the destroyers are paying him an official visit today, and tomorrow he will send his representatives aboard the U.S. warships. The majority of the press articles spoke of our visit in Hamburg in the following manner: Songs at Landungsbruecken . Blue hoys and a charming captain . Crowds of people stood watching at Landungsbruecken, admiring the two American destroyers Noa and Ben- ham that arrived Tuesday. The men off duty aboard had a charming surprise for the onlookers. W ith guitars and voices the sailor boys from beyond the ocean sang their melodious folksongs and Negro chanties. Loudspeakers carried the music across. It is a gay thing if songs are heard aboard a uarship and sailors do tapdancing. Police had difficulties yesterday to keep a pathway free for sailors going ashore from the ships. Many of the blue boys with gay while jollyhat carried a brand new German-English dictionary to be on the safe side of things . SLIGHT ACCIDENT HARBOR, HAMBURG fi- - %p , 4j(j? -r . m TI-T . ■. ■ fcW. ' ' M W t g «as B ' ' -- 5Jr= ' - . SHIPYARDS ON THE ELBE

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HAMBURG, REEPERBAHN PASSING KIEL CANAL HAMBURG, GERMANY BISMARCK MEMORIAL On Tuesday, June 17, we moored in the ' Free and Hanseatic City ' of Hamburg which is located on the Elbe River at a point approximately 75 miles from where the Elbe flows into the North Sea. It is in the British Zone of Germany but only 25 miles west of the Iron Curtain. With a population of 1,662,148 it is the largest city of the Federal German Republic and is second only to Berlin in all of what was pre- war Germany. Hamburg ' s port, on the banks of the Elbe, is the largest in Germany and Northern Europe. The Post-War recovery of the city of Hamburg has been phe- nomenal, stimulated by the re-establishment of its port. It is estimated that 35% of the city and 74% of the harbor facilities were completely destroyed, during air attacks which took place in July and August of 1943. The toll of these raids reached the staggering figures of 55,000 dead, 50,000 injured and some 300,000 homeless. By the end of the war the city population had fallen to less than one million. Already approximately a third of the bomb rubble has been cleared away and the center of the city is entirely free of rubble. It is estimated that 35% of the damage to the city and 70% of the damage to the port facilities have been rebuilt. Sight seeing tours of breweries and local points of interest were provided for all who were interested. Some of the well known Hamburg interest points were the Bismarck Memorial, Art and Trade Museum, Art Hall, Music Hall, Botanical Garden, Hamburg Univer- sity, and the Outer-Alster Lake which offered swimming, boating and sailing. Hamburg is what might be called an ' open city ' with its many varieties of entertainment from classical operas and theaters to bars and nightclubs of all classes. These feature stageshows, dances, or just German music in the atmosphere of fine wines and tasty strong German beers. Despite the difficulty of language barriers, German ' Frauleins found that American sailors are — American sailors.

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S. S. AMERICA AT BREMERHAVEN BREMERHAVEN, GERMANY Bremerhaven-Wesermunde is situated on the right bank of the Weser River about 32 miles from the river ' s mouth. The city of Bremerhaven includes the city of Wesermunde, the largest fish port of Germany. In 1941, the population was 114,000. Bremerhaven was built in 1827-30 by Bremen as an out-port (on land bought from Hanoxer) and it has subsequently expanded. Its population in 1933 was only 25,799, but its development was somewhat hampered by the fact that the Hanoverian (later Prussian) towns of the Lake, Wnesdorf and Geestremunde grew in the immediate vicinity. In 1941 the towns of Bremerhaven and Wesermunde were united. The port suffered considerable damage during World War II, but has since been largely rebuilt. Bremerhaven is the chief port for embarkation and debarkation of American troops in Germany. There are quite a few Americans in the Lity due to the Army and Navy Bases located there. The BENHAM was moored at Columbus Qua) ' , Na al Advance Base. Entertainment was quite limited, the most popular spot was the Anchor Inn, the only place in the city where American food and beverages of all kinds could be obtained. Also there were some interesting tours available including trips to Bremen.