Hollandia (CVE 97) - Naval Cruise Book

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OLD 9 7M THE STORY OF THE U.S.S. HOLLANDIA BY LIEUT. ARTHUR C. WALSH , ILLUSTRATED BY LT. CDR. PHILIP L. CHENEY HIS is THE STORY of Old 97, U.S.S. HOLLANDIA QCVE 975, its ofiicers and men, and its work as a wartime ship of the U. S. Navy. It is not a tale of a glamour ship. The HOLLANDIA made no headlines, yet it did all-important work, work that made it pos- sible for others to make Page One, as they drove the enemy back and back and finally to complete defeat. We carried planes and fighting men to the Far Pacific. We flew off Marine pilots to Okinawa airstrips. We replenished Admiral Halsey's big carriers for those last big strikes at Honshu. We did much we will want to remem- ber in years to come. It is hoped that this book will help keep those things fresh in our minds. It all started 18 June 1942, when the 97 was authorized to be built by Kaiser Co., Inc., Van- couver, Washington, under direction of the United States Maritime Commission. The keel was laid 12 February 1944, the ship was launched 28 April of that year. Sponsor was Mrs. W. H. Wheat, widow of a one-time Illinois congressman, who smashed a bottle of champagne Qdomesticj across the bow and christened the ship U.S.S. A.rir0labe Bay. But the Navy changed its mind, as often it does. So on 51 May the name was changed to U.S.S. HOLLANDIA, for the Battle of Hollandia Air Base, New Guinea, which had been fought 22 and 23 April. The following day, 1 june 1944, she was commissioned at Astoria, Oregon, with Captain Charles Loomis Lee, USN, taking command. Commander john Thompson Brown, USN, posted the first watch as executive ofiicer. U.S.S. HOLLANDIA was a Navy ship. Captain Lee, a native of Swissvale, Pa., was graduated from the Naval Academy in 1924, took his Hight training at Pensacola in the class of 1926. He served aboard U.S.S. Lexington, U.S.S. Portlfmd, U.S.S. Alifex, U.S.S. Honolzzlu, U.S.S. Ranger, and U.S.S. Charger before taking command of U.S.S. W0!ve1'i1ze in 1943. From the Wolverine he came to Old 97. Chink married Thelma Collins in 1927. They have one child, Charles Loomis Lee, jr., now 13 years old. Commander Brown is a native of Virginia. He was graduated from the Naval Academy in 1927 and received his wings at Pensacola three years later. He had a tour of duty in cruiser aviation and six tours of carrier duty before re- porting to the HOLLANDIA from U.S.S. Kalinifz Bay, CVE 68. He was married to Cary Hanckel of Norfolk, Va., in 1929. QUR WORK had started long before commis- sioning and it continued with no abating. Organization of departments started at the CVE Pre-Commissioning School at Bremerton, Wash- ington, weeks before commissioning. Officers came along in driblets as the weeks passed, and before long there was a large group of HOLLANDIA officers mustering each morning, then dispersing to enjoy the country club life of the Seattle area. But when our enlisted personnel arrived, the play ended and the work started. Men were interviewed by officers and placed in the depart- ments in which they would be of most value. There was very little departmental work done until we boarded ship, but the organization task wasn't easy and kept everyone well occupied. ff yin l

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ZH I.lQ Qu 3 TRN .X., 1 1 ' ' . , . V, . ' , , , ,V , , .. . W Captain Calgln E. Wakeman, who tmxcliii frimniuvmislwinggrcvil tg Gui? to Commander Charles J. Eastman' Executive Omcsr Since 13 May 1945 Command' 35 Suwd 115 our Cummammg OHMC1 'imc 3 eww' C1 UIQ' scrxmg first with Commander Brown, then with Captain XX'-ZIICCIUEID. WITH THE TRADITIONAL EXCHANGE OF SALUTES, CAPTAIN WAKEMAN RELIEVES COMMANDER BROWN AND TAKES OVER THE COMMAND ,an-M I ji If

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THIS SUPPLY DEPARTMENT had the first taste of heavy labor. Lieut. Nichols reported to Astoria as Supply Officer, aided by Lt. Qjgj Otis Brown as Disbursing Officer, Lt. fjgj Bill Rees, and Chief Pay Clerk Dave Davis. These officers found plenty of work awaiting them. Checking, sorting, and verifying kept them busy for I' ,I if I Q' o ., 5 ,125 9.0, lt' f..t ,' . nx:,o.,',4 some time. Then came the -x o . 'EX' loading of stores and gear. Chief Storekeeper Pauly and -3 Chief Commissary Steward as 7 Homer and a large contin- sg I gent of storekeepers and i.., ll ship's cooks all pitched in. H, The material was carried aboard, allotted to the proper 1 E de artments, and laced in i th? storerooms-End there are plenty of storerooms aboard a CVE. All this was done with a minimum of con- fusion, and at last the men were able to sit back for a while and relax. Or so they thought. But the work didn't end there. It never ended. Supply had the all-important job of handling the groceries. This was a :B14,000-a- month business. Ask any of the many passengers carried on Old 97 about the food. The HOLLANDIA ate as well as any ship in the Navy, and better than most. Another tough job was handling that payroll. Disbursing a monthly total of 3B100,000 is no child's play. Add to that the monthly clothing business of 33500, and the post office funds. It was a real job. But nobody was ever short- changed, and nobody ever had to wander around ship with no shoes. Credit for that goes in large part to Otis Brown. Probably the most difficult, if least colorful, job in the department was estimating require- ments and maintaining sufficient stocks of avia- tion material and general stores at all times. Items handled ranged all the way from a com- mon pin to an airplane wing. Not only should this material be aboard when needed, it should be aboard before the actual need is known to exist. Administering this deal required all the knowledge of an A-1 crystal gazer. Bill Rees and his storekeepers qualified 100 per cent. The Supply Department also ran the laundry. Phil Cheney swears they had one machine de- signed for the sole purpose of turning black socks green, and O.K. johnson claims the laun- dry was guaranteed to tear the sleeves of all shirts, shrink clothing beyond all recognition, and mash each and every button-but the com- plaints were few and far between. The laundry did a fine job. Then there were the tailor shop, cobbler shop, Coca-Cola and ice cream bar, two barber shops, and a store which sold anything from a Tootsie Roll to uniform equipment for officers and men. Dave Davis ran all these establishments. He ran them well. THE AIR DEPARTMENT also had its work cut out. The HOLLANDIA had no squadron, to be sure, but there were plenty of planes aboard throughout its life at sea. And planes mean work for the the Air Department. Ask Ja. any of the men who had to remain aboard to load or un- load planes while more for- tunate shipmates were enjoy- ing liberty. .95 There are three Air De- - partment divisions, V-1, V-2, L ,Y and V-5. V-1 was the flight W j ' if deck gang. Lieut. Ted Hele- ' Q f l X VQJ otes was in charge there until sent to another ship, when he was suc- ceeded by Lt. Qjgj Win Hodge. Their men handled catapult and arresting gear and the planes which landed or took off. There were many landings and takeoffs. We qualified squad- rons in the States and at Pearl Harbor. We flew off those Marines to Okinawa. We flew off planes to Halseyis Task Force and took aboard many of his flyable duds for transportation back to Guam. That all meant work for V-1, and for tri-lltffii-lgilili