Brown (DD 546) - Naval Cruise Book

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the Naval siege at Wonsan, Korea. Here tfie endless drills and underway training paid off during duels with ttie shore batteries. The BROWN answered the chol- lenge of the big guns on the beoch with coocentrofed salvos of the moin battery to silence the enemy gun enplacements. In the doys of Wonsan, a splash in the water from o near miss turned the BROWN into a blazing bottery of 5 inch gun mounts. At Wonsan the Navy supplied their share of firepower by pouring hundreds of rounds of ammunition into the North Korean coastal installations. If there is such o thing as history repeating itself it was certainly proven when the BROWN, for the second time in her history, failed to be daunted by the enemy as she dished out more than ever. A fighting ship had come back to life after more thon four years of retirement. The agility ond perseverance of the officers and men at their battle stations surely deserved a well done! In these duels we suffered only two casuahies. A hot shellman in one gun mount was struck on the chin as a shell casing took a freak course out of the breech. The other hoppened when a five-inch projectile fell on the toes of an ammunition passer. The accuracy of the ship ' s guns was unexcelled as the BROWN blasted main shore batteries, silencing them. Carrying on shore-ond-ship duels the first two nights, the BROWN, along with the other ships, remained unhit and more than capable of answering the enemy by showing her full firepower, superior to ony- thing the shore batteries could offer. Some excitement was created late one night in the Operotions Division sleeping quarters when suddenly someone shouted, Hey! Quick! Get a fire hose, the magazine is on fire! All hands immediately rolled out of their racks to discover that gun mount five, which had been firing all night, hod caused a thick haze of smoke to settle in the compartment. Relieved by this discovery, everyone turned to in passing ammunition to overcome the momentary confusion, restoring the normal order of rapid-firing. The next day on the firing line was a fairly peaceful one until it was suddenly shattered by the enemy throwing heavy fire into the task force from the shore batteries. Splashes made by the shells could be seen hitting the water around the BROWN and the other ships as the enemy batteries were foiling short of their targets. Immediately all hands were piped to their battle stations and the BROWN again became a roaring fury as she answered the challenge of the foe. From Wonson, Korea, the BROWN went to Yokosuka, Jopan, for repoirs and maintenance, and liberty and recreation for the crew. Chipping hammers resound- ed from all parts of the ship as rust was removed and paint added. The rough seas and strong winds during the Korean Campaign had taken their foil on the paintwork. Yokosuka meant sight-seeing in Yokohama and Tokyo and other points of interest - if meant shopping for souvenirs and gifts to send home - it meont eating in restaurants ashore - and it meant getting some rest from the rigors of the forward area. Our stay in Yokosuka included some days spent at sea in more anti-submarine worfare exercises and anti-aircraft drills. Over 40 new men reported aboard for duty who helped in making the necessary preparations for returning to Tosk Force 77. We were constantly busy during the last day in Yokosuka bringing aboard ammunition and provisions. Then, early in May, the BROWN backed down from her berth and steomed out into Tokyo Bay with Fujiyama in the background. Two days later as dawn stretch- ed itself across the cloudless sky the task force was sighted in silhouette on the

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trials and re-activation, the day of commissioning arrived - 27 October 1950. It was a gray misty day when, at ten o ' clock the colors were hoisted at the gaff and the command of the USS BROWN was turned over to Commander Emerson H. Dimpfel, with Lieutenant Commander Roland G. Mayer, Jr. as Executive Officer. The commissioning ceremonies were performed by Admiral Wilder D. Baker as the crew, and tfieir wives and guests looked on. That evening a ship ' s party was held in commemoration of the event at the Armed Forces Y.M.C.A. in Long Beach, California. Each man looked forward to the months ahead, wondering what assignments the future would hold for the BROWN. Work went on as usual, for there were many things to be accomplished to make the ship ready for sea, and ready for whatever task would fail to her. More men reported aboard, provisions were stowed and a few days later the BROWN went to San Diego, The shakedown cruise for the ship, underway training for the crew, and the ever-present ship ' s work absorbed all our days and some of our nights in San Diego. Many days were spent at sea, with Naval observers and advisers aboard. That meant drill and more drills - general quarters drills, fire drills, collision drills, abandon ship drills, steering casualty drills, - seemingly endless. To many of the men new to the Navy, much of this seemed pointless and a waste of time, but the months ahead were to show the profits of all this refresher training. Then one day a special group of Naval observers came aboard to go to sea with us. These men had the authority to determine if the BROWN and her crew were ready to rejoin the great fleets of the Navy - and they found us ready. Near the end of January the USS BROWN steamed out of San Diego harbor, passed familiar Point Loma, and nosed her way into the blue Pacific toward Pearl Harbor. The questions in every mind were the same: Where are we going now? When will we return to the States? One question could be answered - we were heading for Japan for assignment. The other question was to remain unanswered for several months. Pearl Harbor in February was pleasant for everyone. We continued the work on the ship, completing last minute details for what lay ahead. The time in Pearl Harbor was spent, in part, in anti-submarine warfare and anti-aircraft drills to give us the polishing we needed, for every man aboard must know his job thor- oughly for anything that might arise. Liberty in Honolulu and at Waikiki gave all hands a chance at swimming and recreation. Enroute to Japan, we stopped at Midway Island long enough to refuel and for some of the crew to wander about the island. Everyone soon discovered there was nothing to see but Gooney birds and sand! Early in March, the BROWN finished the final leg of her journey to the Far East when we entered the port of Sasebo, Japan. We were met on aJI sides by ships of the United Nations - all united against the aggressor on Korea, across the Sea of Japan. The very next day, after refueling, the USS BROWN left Sasebo to join Task Force 77 off the east coast of Korea. We were in mighty powerful company, too. This was a fast carrier task force which included, at times, the carriers VALLEY FORGE, PRINCETON, BOXER, PHILIPPINE SEA, the battleship MISSOURI and occasionally the cruisers MANCHESTER or SAINT PAUL. Along with our own division of destroyers, there were the ZELLARS, PARKS, FISKE, BLUE, KENNEDY and many others. Our next assignment, a few weeks later, was with the bombardment group in

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horizon. When we were just about to join up, the Engineering Department had opportunity to demonstrate their ability and competence when one of the feed lines broke down. After an hour of feverish work, it was back in commission and normal operations were resumed. Day after day Jets and Corsairs from the carriers made vicious strikes against the enemy in support of United Nations troops, while the BROWN and the other destroyers were constantly alert for air, surface or sub-surface attacks that might threaten the task force. Shortly, however, we returned to port - Sasebo this time, for a brief stay. While we were in port the entire area was alerted by typhoon warnings. The possible necessity for getting underway on very short notice hindered the normal repair and maintenance to the ship. Only half of the engineering plant could be disabled at a time and before all the repairs could be made the ship was ordered back to the forward area. Early in July, the BROWN was assigned to Task Force 95 off the West Coast of Korea. This time, we operated with ships of several nations, included were a British aircraft carrier and destroyer, and destroyers from Australia, the Nether- lands, and Canada. During this time the carrier USS SICILY was part of our task force. From it our Marine Air Wing launched Corsairs to harass the enemy with bombs and rockets. While we were operating with this task force the cease-fire talks were started at Kaesong. Before returning to port again, the BROWN was assigned to the siege of Won- san and each day there was evidence of the manner in which we profited by those endless drills. The bombardment of rail centers and shore battery targets about Wonsan filled our days until the BROWN was detailed to move down the coast to lend the support of our five-inch battery to the United Nations troops. During those days of bombarding the enemy we could see skirmishes on the beach and hear their small-arms fire. Constant firing and long periods of lying-to caused steam leaks throughout the engineering spaces. In a short time these leaks depleted our fresh water supply and we were on very strict water hours. For one brief period there was not even a drop of fresh water aboard. Late one afternoon, as we checked our firing while a squadron of Marine worked over the enemy positions, one of the planes was hit by AA fire. Only a few thousand yards from the BROWN, the Marine ditched his plane just off the beach. Almost as soon as his plane hit the water, we were making flank speed towards the crash to rescue the pilot. As we drew close enough to spot the yellow life raft, he was drifting toward the enemy-held beach. Our boat was lowered and the rescue party was on its way in a matter of a few moments. Then, as they were fishing the pilot out of the water someone shouted, Fire! From the beach! As the boat headed back, with shell splashes spouting all around it, the fire control director crew spotted and zeroed in on the shore gun. When the boat was clear, the BROWN blanketed the area with a dozen rounds from the main battery. After the smoke cleared, the hillside was bare . . . another enemy battery knocked out. We then returned to Yokosuka. By then, our return to the States was in sight - and a very welcome sight it was. We had proven that history can repeat itself, for the BROWN came through with flying colors again. From the graveyard of silent ships, she had taken her place in the fleet among the other great fighting ships of Uncle Sam ' s Navy . . She had become a ship to be proud of and every man who took a part in her second Operation Pacific could be proud to say he had served on the USS BROWN.