Fort Mandan (LSD 21) - Naval Cruise Book

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THE CAPTAIN Commander ROBERT G. LAURIE relieved Commander S. W. BASS, Jr., as Commanding Offi- cer of the USS FORT MANDAN (LSD-21) on 7 May 1959 at Stavromenos, Crete. Commander Laurie is a native of Providence, R.I. He attended Providence Technical High School, and later studied at the University of Iowa under the Navy stemard gram. He is married to the former Christine Rebecca Bell of Kinston, N.C. Commander Laurie entered the Navy in 1933 as an enlisted man and served aboard the battleships, USS NEW MEXICO and USS TEXAS, and the destroyer USS LUDLOW as a fire controlman. He was commissioned Ensign, U.S. Navy on 4 June 1942, and was made Gunnery Officer in the LUDLOW, a position he held through the remainder of World War II. After the end of the war, he served aboard the Gunnery Training Ship, USS WYOMING, as Assistant Gunnery Officer, and later a s Navigator and Opera- tions Officer aboard the fleet oiler USS CHIPOLA. His first command was the landing Ship Medium Rocket 515. During the Korean conflict, he was Commander Landing Ship Rocket Division 32, serving three tours in Korean waters. This was followed by a tour of duty as Gunnery Officer with the Fleet Training Group at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Immediately before taking command of the Fort Mandan, Commander Laurie was Assistant Chief of Staff, Intelligence and Security, of Joint Task Force Seven in Washington, D.C. He wears the bronze star with the Combat V, the letter of commendation with the Combat V, the American Defense Service Medal, the American Campaign Medal, the African-European Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with seven battle stars, the World War II Victory Medal, the China Service Medal, the Navy Occupation Service Medal, the Korean Service Medal with two stars, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Med al and the Good Conduct Medal with two stars. 1(11 Vr COMMANDER ROBERT G. LAURIE, USN Commanding Officer, USS Fort Mandan The wardroom welcomed Captain Laurie aboard with a party, which included a fine looking cake that would do honors to any baker. Our two Captains give each other a hand in cutting the cake. While welcoming Captain Laurie, we also said goodbye to Captain Bass.

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CROSSING THE We had to get that magic E painted on the stacks before we left. Mr. Stemlicht did the job at Morehead City ... The ship was cheered, the harbor cleared, Merrily did we drop Below the kirk, below the hill, Below the lighthouse top. SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE It was a brisk February morning that we all pre- pared to get underway for our six-month venture into the Mediterranean. Wives, families, girlfriends, sweethearts all were on hand to give us a fond farewell. And it was with a wistful look that we saw Little Creek. We steamed down to Morehead City, N.C. where we picked up the Marines, and then proceeded on our long voyage across the Atlantic. It didn ' t take long for the chores brought on by an extended period of steaming to give us plenty to do to keep us occupied. There was cleaning to be done, watches to stand, maintenance to take care of, and a thousand and one other tasks that had to be accomplished. We steamed across in formation with four other ships of Amphibious Squadron Four--the USS Fremont (APA 44), which was our flagship at that time (the USS Mount McKinley, AGC-7, was to join us later), the USS Rankin (AKA-103), the USS Grant County (LST-1174), and the USS DeSoto County (LST 1171). We encountered a little rough weather on the way over, and there were several nights when we thought the rolls were about to get out of hand. But we wiapped ourselves around our bunks, held on with a firm grip, and weathered it. We had training sessions, and on the job in- struction as we readied ourselves for the job that we would have to do for the next six months. To some of us it was old stuff. But there were those of us who were making our first big cruise--and a few of us who were making our first trip out on a Naval vessel. We learned fast, and soon knew what we would be up against. In many ways the trip was tiring, but it was also profitable. We were all glad, however, when we finally reached that first port on the other side. Once we got underway there was plenty of work to be done, including menial tasks. Of course, we could pause for a picture . . . Checking out our fire power was part of the job too . . . Honest, fellas, I ' m working too- real hard . . . Well, Mr. Moncure, you see, it ' s this way . . .