Eldorado (AGC 11) - Naval Cruise Book

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'C 7 Division, handling all commun- ications, perhaps has a right to feel slightly superior aboard this, a com- munication vessel. This group of sig- nalmen, radiomen, radio technicians, and yeomen are responsible for the maintenance and operation of all equipment used in communications, and almost all 'paper work' done aboard ship. Although they man no guns, they have slaughtered their percentage of the enemy with type- writers, signal flags and paper clips. The efficiency with which they dis- charge their duties is shown by their records during the invasions of Iwo Jima and Okinawa, during which the Eldoradoss Communication gang broke all existing records for the handling of messages for any ship at any time! More than a thousand were handled in a single day! -1-o-1ob-4-v-- GD' Division is the Marine detach- ment aboard .... a wing, so to speak, of the 'C' Division. They are almost all high-speed code men, many of them are equally proficient as radio and radio teletype materiel men, and any one of them will admit that 'DP Division has the best radiomen...and the best of anything, for that matter, on the ship, and possibly in the entire Pacific Fleet. These men,,however short they may be on modesty, are long on ability, they are a group of highly skilled communication person- nel with a unique ability of making good their boasts. i...l.p.qqp-411-1 Radar, that 'miracle invention' of this war that has done so much to win it for us, is maintained and operated by 'K' Division. The activities ofthis division were kept mysteriously sec- YEOMEN ret until only recently, until the end RADIO 1 of the war brought a release on some aspects of it. Most of us, however, after reading about it, are willing to let matters stand as they weregv the technical complications of radar are sufficient to maintain its security. Radar and 'K' Division proved their value to us during the invasions by their amazing ability to detect the approaching enemy planes at great distances, thereby giving us time to prepare a suitable reception. .l--9-497-4:-1-1 'N' Division is perhaps the most versatile aboard, it is composed of Quartermasters, Cartographers, Lith- ographers, Printers, Buglers and Aer- ologists. The Quartermasters primary t duty is navigation and suffice to say they have done a first class job of sail- ing our ship some 23,000 miles without mishap. The Cartographic Section, which includes the Cartographers, Lithographers and Printers, has print- .WMM C.I.C. PLOT Seven

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S IIVIISII INIS I.C. ROOM X gn, itil 3HYVWY7QYiSH l no ttn, ix! H4 k Q K n vi, .I U . MACHINE SHOP ix ' DECK HANDS More than a thousand men, grouped into fifteen divisions, are necessary for the successful operation of a ship of this type. To these divisions goes the bulk of the credit for the efficiency with which the Eldorado has discharged her duties. The work of each division, ' though distinctly outlined and different from that of the other divisions, is in close harmony and relationship with that of the others. This 5inter-depen- dency'. makes it impossible to say that one division is of more importance than any other oo.. although the 'Black Gang' fcomposed of 'AZ sE','B', and 'M' Divisions? make a strong bid for first place. ' The men of the black gang work be- low decks in the fierce temperatures and bewilderingly complex mechanical arrangements of the engine room . That engine room, to a casual visitor, seems like the bowels of an unusually vast and intricate pinball machine, com- plicated With bright lights and deafen- ing noise. In it are most of the many engines, motors, generators and pumps maintained and operated by the black K gang, though there is a large amount of other gear scattered throughout the ship that falls under their. supervision., ln-qon-4 - The superiority of the black gang has always been challenged by those divi- sions that work topside.....the deck force, comprised of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd di- visions. The men of these divisions , known to the engineer department as 'deck apes', do the work and stand the watches necessary above decks, from the hu mble paint chipping to the respon- sibility -bearing and dangerous jobs of look-out and gun watches. A great amount of skill and knowledge is necessary to perform the duties re- quired of these men. They must moor and anchor the ship, assist the officer of the deck in his watches, raise and - lower boats, load and unload cargo, op- erate the booms and Winches, and be ready 'at all times to man the guns for action against the enemy. So proficient in airplane identification are these di- visions aboard our ship that not once during the invasions of Iwo Iima and Okinawa did they open fire on a friend- ly plane! l + R Division, composed of ship- fitters and carpenters, are the crafts- men of the ship. They handle all wood- work and welding and are responsible for the maintenance of the ship's boats. Their emergency duties are as impor- tant as any on theship .... that of damage control. Fortunately, the ELDORADO has sustained no damage of an emer- gency nature, but through their routine duties, HR Division has proved its ability to deal competently with any that may arise.

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fi: A :ff ,W Sf A A P QQ ! Q i AEROLOGISTS i 1 l . N 1 W l w 1 E . if E , COBBLER'S SHOP Q , wg f 41. N, gggwiggif 4, 'Q 5 -4 5 I I i 3 X 5 SICK BAY - h Eight l xi 3, ed over 300,000 charts and maps and over 7,000,000 pieces of copy. This Year Book was printed by the Carto- graphic Section. The Photolab has contributed its share to the success of the operations, the lab has pro- cessed over 15,000 negatives and de- livered over 130,000 prints, including stills, aerials and sonnie rolls, their battle reconnaissance photos deliver- ed by the Lab have saved many lives. The Buglers have blown reveille over 400 times Cin which function they have yet to achieve perfectionl. The Aer- ologists release their balloons and track them, then with the use of their various gismos and gadgets plot wea- ther charts and keep us posted on the coming weather. 1 'S' Division, also multi-rated, bears the main burden of maintaining the crew's morale. It is the division re- sponsible for feeding the crew, supply- ing it with cigarettes...a vital factor in morale building...handling the ship's service, small stores, disbursing, tail- oring, cobbling and laundering. Any one of these branches of GS, Division, caring for 1200 men, have a difficult jobg the most difficult of all, probably, is that of satisfying gastronomically the needs of these 1200men, each of whom uses, as a basis for his judge- ment, the memory of food that 'mother used to make'. SS' Division has done Wellg if they have consumed an inord- inate amount of aspirin, they have had sufficient reason. , Our hospital facilities are adequate- ly taken care of by 6Hy Divisiong the men comprising that division are well-trained, hard working and con- siderate. A year of treating the El- dorado's sick, with a seasoning of wounded from the invasions, have 'made them calm and ,confident veter- ans. They operate the equipment in our dental office, pharmacy, steril- izing room, dressing station, isola- tion ward, ix-ray room and diet kit- chen. They are not 'castor oil and throat spray' specialists! +-4ou-4-i-- 'Ly Division, the Eldorado's'b0at crew, is one' of the smallest and least known divisions of the ship. During the invasions they were of- ten called upon to 'make smoke' during air -raids, and to make trips to and from the beaches under enemy fire. The competency of 'L' Division gives it a proportional equality with its bigger brothers. i These are the fifteen divisions that have sailed the.Eldorado from New V York to Manila, through two invasions, through rough waters and high winds.