Topeka (CL 67) - Naval Cruise Book

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Je fl' 4. - 4 ' ff J NI J-Q..,,. :H it i719-fa .9 .1-: ' 1f. n -ii: - -, i -R ' ' P '..4f- f'f' 'f' - ' 'M -,f- 1 ' ' T 'F' f ' I -----1 - '- -4 ... -' ' 2 F231 .ill .- 1 , X A N A - 2 . 1 2 ff, ' 41 ' . . T 5 ' ' W! ff .f.. - - f- -2- F47iFf: - One hundred eighty miles east of Tokyo, once-proud cap- itol of the treacherous Japanese Empire, Task Force 38 of the vaunted United States Third Fleet had just completed launching another great air strike against the Japanese homeland, and was steaming leisurely through the choppy seas in defiance of possible enemy counter-attack. On station in Task Group 38.1 was a relative newcomer, the U.S.S. Topeka, CL67, very nearly the baby of the Fleet. It is with her we are concerned. Condition Two Able-Able -anti-aircraft readiness condition-had been set upon se- curing from General Quarters. Nearly half the men aboard her were on watch, manning the guns and directors, the radios and radars, the lookout stations and the repair sta- tions, the engines and boilers. The rest of the men were just finishing breakfast or trying to catch a few minutes sleep. Peace rumors and proposals had been flying back and forth for several days, but there was no cessation of the Navy's War against Japan. Another strike was to be launched within the hour. From squawk-boxes all over the ship came the momen- tary, suspenseful hum that always precedes an announce- ment. Then came the electrifying news: The Japanese had capitulated to the Allied surrender terms, the war was over! This -- participation in the final death-dealing blows against the hated enemy and in victory for the United States - was the Topeka's shining hour, the climax of her thus- far brief career. It was, in effect, the end of a story, a story that began with the laying of her keel, and continued through her launching and commissioning, the gathering to- gether of her crew from the four corners of the nation, the shakedown cruise, the trip through the Panama Canal to Pearl Harbor, the voyage westward through Ulithi to the juncture with the Third Fleet, the stay at Leyte, the final smashing offensive which brought the Japanese warlords to their knees and peace to the world. The story would go on, just as the Topeka would go on, but there would never be another moment in her history to compare with the morning of 15 August 1945. if if -IG EG E? It would be impossible to tell the whole story of the To- peka and her men in one volume. This account will of nec- essity cover only the high spots of that story, and will at- tempt to preserve, for its sentimental value only, the career of the U.S.S. Topeka. J The story properly begins with the laying of the keel on 21 April 1943 at the Quincy Yard of the Bethlehem Steel Company at Quincy, Mass. At that time most of the men who were later to form the Topeka's crew were still work- ing at civilian jobs or going to school. Others were aboard ships of the fleet and would be transferred to the Topeka. Some were to have their ships shot out from under them before they joined the Topeka. American troops were fight- ing in Italy and on the islands of the Pacific, and the rap- idly-expanding Navy was dueling with the enemy on two oceans. Sixteen months later, when the Topeka was launched on 19 August 1944, most of the Topekais crew had joined the Navy and were being prepared for the job ahead at Shoot camps and special schools. By this time, American soldiers were battling across France and the Navy had established its dominance over most of the Pacific Ocean. But there was still a lot of war to be fought. 1 During the early autumn of 1944 the first contingent of the Topeka pre-commissioning detail arrived at Newport NTS to begin the immense task of welding the ship and its personnel into a unit. Captain Thomas L. Wattles, U.S.N., was to be the commanding officer of the ship, and Com- mander O. H. Dodson, U.S.N., the executive officer. On 9 October, the pre-commissioning detail became official. From then until the ship was commissioned in December, life was a series of drills, happy hours, classes, watches and liberty in Newport. fNote on Newport weather: Rain to-day and tomorrowj Various groups of men took their specialized training at places other than Newport. One group was as- signed to the Cruiser Duluth during its shakedown cruise, another was aboard the battleship Wyoming for gunnery I2

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Admiral Halsey awarded him the Silver Star medal for gallantry in action at the Battle of Santa Cruz. He also wears the Presidential Unit Citation for duty in the U.S.S. Enterprise. Commander Dodson is married to Pauline Wellbrock and is the father of a six year old son, John. His wife's father, Captain Wellbrock, is now on active service in Washington, D.C. He is a student of numismatics, specializing in the collection of ancient Chinese, Creek and Roman coins. 11

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Ready To Launch 13 -