Bunker Hill (CV 17) - Naval Cruise Book

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transfer in late July, 1944, to a sister ship of the U.S.S. Bunker Hill. He had served on the ship from the very start, having been hull inspector assigned to the Bethlehem Steel Company's Fore River Yard prior to g01nS to sea. . Before, during, and after commissioning Lieutenant Mario C. Galassi, of Boston, served as R-1 division officer. In May of 1944 he was ordered back to the States to duty aboard another carrier, and he was succeeded by Lieutenant R. L. Boswell, who at the time was Assistant Materiel Gfficer and Records Oliicer. A native of New Orleans, Lieutenant Boswell attended Tulane University and was a member of the R.O.T.C. unit there. Later, however, he graduated from V-7 school and served sixteen months aboard the N avyls first converted carrier, the U.S.S. Long Island, then commanded by Captain J. Ballentine. Bos- well was the first R-2 division ofiicer aboard this ship, being relieved of that post by Lieu- tenant I. H. Millington who was also Ship's Service Officer. Millington later was relieved by Lieutenant George Weber, who was in turn relieved by Lieutenant R. S. F inkbine. The efficient operation of the Ship's Service Activities was due in no small way to such men in charge of various posts as John Zarr, SSB1c of the barber shop, Roland Grady, SSC3c, M. N. Foley, S1c in the geedunk stand, Ernest Tarullo, SST3c, head tailor before his transfer in October, 1944, and Dickey, Har- grove and Price SSL3c's in the laundry. Included in the R-3 Division were the Ship's Masters-at-Arms and the Mess Cooks. Al- though the Ship's MA's were tallied in the R-3 division for administrative purposes, they functioned under the Executive Officer. The division functioned under the leadership of such Chiefs as R. H. Buchner, CWTg F. P. Wheeler, CBM, and D. A. Ruby, CBM. Lieutenant Bodell, Jr., a native of Providence, Rhode Island, and Wasp Sur- vivor, was the R-3 division oHicer. The Ship's Fire Marshal and R-1 junior officer was Lieutenant R. C. Santee, blonde Californian who reported to the ship from the old U.S.S. Nevada. Constant training of all hands in fire prevention and ways to fight blazes, as well as the upkeep of the vast array of fire fighting equipment aboard, was his responsibility, shared by C. A. Diehl, CM1c and L. Schott, SF2c. December 7, 1941, is a date of two-fold im- portance in the life of the Bunker Hill's Chief Boatswain J. M. Curley, for it was on that day twenty-one years before that he began his Naval career, a nineteen-year-old boot. Born and reared in the shadow of the famed battle site for which the ship was named, Curley enlisted at Newport, Rhode Island, and went to the U.S.S. Maryland. Stationed aboard that ship for eighteen years, Curley was the spark of her famed football team and was acknowledged All-Fleet end for his play. He was transferred to the U.S.S. Nitro and later to Brooklyn Navy Yard before report- ing aboard ship in the pre-commissioning period. His aides were Bos'n Phaneuf, and J. O. Messick, Chief Boatswain's Mate who succeeded C. B. Stevens, CBM who reported aboard as BM1c and left as Warrant Bos'n. Efficiency of the shops was due largly to their direction by Chief Carpenter M. Begel- man, a quarter-century veteran of duty on all types of the United States' warships. Car- penter R. F. Chambers was his assistant. The Hull Department's shops, many times on a twenty-four hour schedule in order to meet the demands of the entire ship, were manned by highly competent crews, for which credit was due such men as E. H. Randall, A. R. Rangus, G. R. Hewson and H. A. Whipple, Chief Shipfitters, and P. F. Smith and H. G. Staege, SF1c in the shipfitter's shop? N. A. Morris, CSF, A. F.. Tucholke, SFIC, A. E. Zimmerman, and L. G. Schindler, SFZC, in the Plumbing Shop, C. A. Diehl, CM1c, and L. S. Schott, SF2c in the CO-2 Transfer Shop? R- S. Ayala, CMM, H. G. Rudisaii, and P. A. LQTYO, CM1c's in the Carpenters' Shop and Fllght Deck Repair, D. A. Ruby, Sail Locker CBM before becoming Chief Master-at-Arms, and F. Petrucelli, CM3c, and R. Leblanc, Ptr3c, in the Paint Locker. .4 L.. fi. -3' 'qty

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waiting for hits and near misses a quiet rest, As defined by the Chief of Naval Operations, Damage Control consists of fin partjz . . . the methods necessary to preserve watertight integrity, stability, and maneuverabilityg to control list and trim, to effect rapid repairs to materialg to provide adequate protection from fire and chemical agents, and to facilitate care of wounded personnel . . . Though it seems that these duties should be enough to keep the department busy, there are still more: the First Lieutenant is messing officer and is directly charged with the responsi- bility of feeding the men at battle stations during long periods at Condition One. SHIP'S TROUBLE-SHOOTERS The Hull Department seems to be the cen- tral nervous system for all ship's head- aches. Repairs do not always wait for con- venient times, so it isn't unusual for the carpenters, shipfitters and their aides to be up all hours of the night making good some damaged unit in order that the break of dawn may find the ship in one hundred percent fighting condition again. The senior officer of the Hull Department in the Bunker Hill was Lieutenant Com- mander S. H. King, officially known as the First Lieutenant and the Damage Control Officer-as well as the Chemical Warfare Officer. His assistants include the Assistant First Lieutenant, Materiel Officer, Fire Mar- shal, Ship's Bosun, Ship's Carpenter and other junior officers. Aboard ship the department was divided into three divisions QR-1, R-2, R-31, the first including the shipfitters, car- penters, painters, and personnel of the sail and bosun's lockers. The second included the ship's service personnel, and the third was made up of mess cooks and the masters-at- arms. Lieutenant Commander King, not unlike many other Naval ofhcers, grew up in an atmosphere far from the sea, he spent the first twelve years of his life in Omaha, Nebras- ka, before moving to Maryville, Missouri. Though he was barely sixteen when America got into the late World War, he enlisted in the Navy, the Armistice was signed before he went to sea, however. Later he entered the Naval Academy, where he distinguished him- self as an end on the football team and a member of the rowing crew. While still an ensign he resigned his commission and re- turned to civilian life, where he remained until December 1, 1941, when he returned to the Navy and was assigned as Naval R.O.T.C. instructor at the University of Pennsylvania. He reported to the Bunker Hill in March, 1943, as assistant to Commander C. A. Fer- riter, who was then First Lieutenant. Commander Ferriter, a veteran of sub- marines and commanding officer of a mine- sweeper assigned to the Asiatic Fleet during the early days of the war, was one of the first officers to come to the Bunker Hill. He will be remembered for his keen sense of humor and his all-round excellence as a leader. While in the Asiatic he was awarded the Navy Cross for his work in rescuing the destroyer l -an-1- Perry from a burning drydock the day the Japs first bombed Cavite Navy Yard. Assisting Commander King was Lieutenant R. S. Finkbine, who came to the Bunker Hill from Columbus, Ohio where he did a tour of duty in Naval Officer Procurement. A native of Des Moines, Iowa, Lieutenant Finkbine served in the first World War, as a seaman second at the outset and later as a com- missioned officer. Lieutenant Commander E. Rodee was as- sistant to the First Lieutenant prior to his S5 in

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qfslmzyeaeeezaeev 4 5. 'i a :IJ , -JS-M, Atl-6A,A!x..K5-A,,4,q,,,,a15., A . ,,m-A..-.....-V -iw . . . , 't MEDICAL it 'T ' , ,.,, for ,ljjt g t-41, e-W-Q.-1-ef 'l l .. it . ,. , I rj., ,i 1 a , 1 f 1 ,,1. 1, ll, ., X, Std Y' x N X ln the background, to keep the ships men in fighting trim Ejjfeient, -well-equipped and ready for emergency or routine duties, the Medical Department gave all hands the assurance Qf health. ' A' ' W'-' -' 1-:-- f ' -?7--f- - v--ness.-f -1e- -ef-uq.1..-we-e-13-.ann-F-1-..-,.g. f...a..a- mas. -.1 t goes without saying that a ship is better off when business at Sick Bay is dull. Yet it takes an efiicient Sick Bay to keep its business dull, or, in effect, to keep in number one Hghting condition the crew of a warship. Health, ranging from care of superficial wounds to complex surgery, is un- doubtedly the primary weapon a military force must utilize, it is so primary that the average fighting man takes it for granted, and usually it's not until he suffers from a serious wound or a sudden illness that he realizes the invaluable role played by medicine in wa-,r. Aboard the Bunker Hill the Medical De- partment's job doesn't begin and end in the confines of spaces designated as Sick Bay. Its work entails the inspection of all living spaces for cleanliness and comfort, the doctor's approval on food served at every meal, and fyou probably won't believe thislj such un- thought-of jobs as encouraging below decks personnel to sunbathe or come out and take part in routine athletics. Every time an air- plane takes off or lands, there's a doctor and mn.:-.f.:.c.::mr-.m4c.-.r , 1-...L 1-ag:'--1-4'--f-e-afar, , ,f, -Q, aides standing by to take care of any possible accidentsg and in time of battle, there are Medical Department men scattered over every part of the ship where personnel are stationed. ,A - Y- ,, ,,.,.- , .s,..,.. .., V I Id,- , re 1- 317-1.-1' - , ,e .V V X I xx X li 1, 11,1 Hg ,MU . , I -, A v l fs. . it l l -V p ,yg slimy, A5 tfiiiwam p - --MIX i in 1, uf I in Y A ' ' XL ,W , ,,,, , i ,f il r N The scope of Medical Department work runs from Commanding Oflicer to lowliest appren- tice seamang its practice reaches every one of a crew of nearly 3,000, if in no more than routine semi-annual check-ups. When the first watch was set on board the Bunker Hill, May 25, 1943, the Medical De- partment was ready for business. The dressing room, operating room, dispensary, clerical ofhce, dental office and laboratory and the