Saint Paul (CA 73) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 16 text:

NOW HEAR THIS.. . K ' Pier D was teeming with activity during those first few days of November, 1951. The USSSAINT PAUL, in long Beach, California, was being readied for her second cruise in the Korean War Zone. On the dock, hundreds of seamen piled up supplies and provisions for the long cruise ahead. On the ship, officers and crew worked tire- lessly to get the SAINT PAUL in top notch condition for months of war and weather. V ln long Beach itself, another side of the picture could be seen. Wives, sweethearts, andlfamilies found them- selves staring into space instead of working. They remem- bered the happy days in San Francisco while the Saint Paul was in the Shipyard. They thought of War and Peace, and of the long lonely months of waiting ahead. On Monday morning, November 5th, the ship was ready. At 0904 the Bosn's pipe shrilled loud and clear, commands echoed the length of the ship, and the 8 haw- ser snaked swiftly from the pier into the water. Water churned beneath her fantail as powerful screws started the ship on that familiar course. Men of the Saint Paul say that their ship doesn't even need a helmsman when sailing to Far Eastern waters. Like' the milkman's horse, they say, she's travelled the road so many times that she'll make every course change and every stop almost automatically. That morning of November 5th, tears flowed freely from the Navy families standing on Pier D, and many a tough sailor on the Saint Paul found a lump in his throat that he couldn't swallow away. At first only a few hundred feet separated the ship and shore, but soon the feet turned into miles and the iourney began. ln company with the light cruiser Manchester, the Saint Paul steamed to Pearl Harbor, where she took on fuel and provisions and introduced the new members of her crew to the enchantment of the islands. Then, with the heavy cruiser Rochester and the bat- tleship Wisconsin, she steamed on to Yokosuka, Japan, to relieve the USS Helena, her sister ship. The Helena was moored in the harbor with the battleship New Jersey, and the cruiser Toledo. A few days later the ship made the last lap of her iourney, ioining Task Force 77 off the East Coast of Korea. Thus, in a period of three weeks, she had made the transi- tion from home to war. Action came quickly for the Saint Paul. Within a few hours after ioining the Task Force, she left for a series of gun strikes along the enemy held Korean coast. A large part of the Saint Paul's war efforts were on gun strikes along the enemy coast. Such ports as Wonsan, Hungnam, Choniin, Songiin and Koio came under regular bombardment from the heavy cruiser's eight and five inch guns. In these cities, rail, transportation, supply, and manu- facturing points were given top priority, but enemy gun po- sitions and troop concentrations received their share of ammunition also. One of North Korea's most vital rail lines stretches down the Eastern Coast. Keeping this rail line out of commission is one of the most important iobs of United Nations ships. The Saint Paul and other ships along the 4 , .t

Page 15 text:

Sv L K- v K N rl ,LY 'ii ' J' 1 wwf' iff rf! if . .iii ' 'M T' ,, X Jig? sN? 'f' Q A r 4 KY ,J x ! ' ' ' J N

Page 17 text:

coast regularly bombarded the rails where they are vulner- able from the sea, to stop the flow of enemy troops and supplies to the front lines. This first series of gun strikes began in Wonsan harbor. The Saint Paul steamed in with her guns blazing. Each shell was a calling card saying, The Saint Paul is back. The second stop was Chongiin, and then Songiin and Hungnam . . . All in a period of three days. There was no doubt along the enemy coast . . . the Fighting Saint had returned. After a few days with the Task Force, the Saint Paul took another of the Navy's big iobs in the war zone, bomb- line duty. The ship steamed back and forth along the coast within firing range of the enemy's front lines. At the call of U. S. and South Korean ground forces, she directed her guns on Red mortar and field gun positions, troop dispositions, supply bunkers, and other troublesome points. Many times Shore Fire Control Parties were used to direct the fire of her guns to the targets. In other instances, the spotting was done by Air Force, Navy or Marine air- craft, or the ship's helicopter. The Callfire missions were restricted mostly to day operations, but at night, on the bombline, another form of bombardment came into play. All night long, shells were lobbed into enemy front lines in H and l iharassing and interdiction! firing. Even when nothing was hit, the Red troops were kept awake and constantly on edge. The shells that missed would light close to the target disrupting any traffic or work in that area and a surprising amount of damage was done. On the first trip to the bombline, a U. N. correspond- ent, Dick Kallsen of the Mutual Broadcasting System, went along to observe and report the Naval side of the war. The Saint Paul had a visit from two other correspondents some two months later. Mr. and Mrs. Keyes Beech, a man and wife correspondence team working for the Chicago Daily News were conducted on a tour of the ship by the Execu- tive Officer. Members of the crew who were lucky enough to see Mrs. Beech, as she was shown around the ship, thought they were being visited by a Hollywood Pinup. A strikingly attractive blonde, she made as good as im- pression with her looks as she did with her pen. The Saint Paul was relieved on the bombline by the Wisconsin in mid-December, so back to the Task Force she went for replenishment and a stint of Air Defense support for the carriers Valley Forge and Essex. Aircraft carriers hold their fighting power in their airplanes. To defend them against enemy air and sub- marine attacks, it's usually necessary to put a circle of destroyers around them. Inside this screen with the car- riers, a heavy like the Saint Paul keeps her anti-aircraft guns manned and ready. This was the work of the Saint Paul while operating with the Task Force. Replenishment was always a day of hard work for the crew of the Saint Paul. lt meant early reveille so that the transfer of fuel, ammunition and provisions could begin at the first light of day, and it meant an all hands evolu- tion until the job was completed. The Saint Paul would come up from astern of an oiler or ammunition ship and steam alongside at the same speed . . . heavy lines were rigged on blocks between the ships. The supplies were car- ried across trolley-fashion in cargo nets and boxes. The operation takes a great deal of skill. It takes skill to keep the ships at the proper speed and distance to get the sup- plies across, and to stow them quickly. In fueling, big oil hoses were rigged between ships, across the stretch of water. The labor of replenishment also had its compensa- tions, for among the cargo transferred would be any- where from ten to sixty bags of U. S. Mail. Mail is an im- portant morale factor in any war zone. For this reason the Navy makes an attempt to get mail to its men no mat- ter what the conditions. On one occasion, during a gun strike, a fleet tanker arranged a special rendezvous with the Saint Paul to transfer mail. Other times when the ship missed a scheduled replenishment, a destroyer would be sent wherever the Saint' Paul might be to deliver the mail. l 41. L,