For questions or comments about this site, please e-mail ww2_troopships@comcast.net. On 7 July 1967, the General John Pope departed U.S. Movements of the Allied ships during the night. On exploding, it opened or split some of the plated near the stern, and water began pouring into the after section. The Exeter's anit-aircraft guns turned loose a salvo and the plane was blown to bits. About ten minutes later the word came to abandon ship, an order we had hoped we would never hear on our ship. With saddened hearts, we knew we would never walk the decks of the Pope again. The lights went out and Goggins was enveloped in superheated flash gasses that seared the exposed skin on his legs and arms and bubbled paint and linoleum. Squier - Booklet of General Plans, 1942, General G.O. The Allies were at that time under the impression that they had obtained a victory. During the lull in the battle, my thoughts turned to the men topside, who were directly engaged in the battle: the gun crews, ammunition handlers, gun loaders, machine gunners, torpedo-men, the officers directing them, and those involved in directing the ship. The Shark was attacked and destroyed at the same time, adding 87 more Americans to the missing. The Asashio turned a searchlight on which was quickly taken out by a salvo from the Java. Only 123 are liberated which include the Commanding officer and 29 died in captivity. The action was over around 0215/20 and Tromp retired from the Strait to the north-east. Welford Charles Blinn, USN) departs Surabaya, Netherlands East Indies on 28 February 1942 together with the British heavy cruiser HMS Exeter and the British destroyer HMS Encounter. The decision was quickly reached to secure the port turbine to stop the vibration. I would like to describe the weaponry at our disposal to fight this battle. J.M.L.I. The Dutch destroyer HrMs Witte de With (Lt.Cdr. The second wave was made up of the Dutch light cruiser HrMs Tromp (Cdr. : The U.S. Navy Destroyer's Service in World War II. USS Pope (DD-225) was a Clemson-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. From 1931 until 1937, the Pope continued to "show the flag" off the China coast, during the summers and spent the winters in the Philippines engaging in division maneuvers. The POW Camps. Please note that we're still working on this section and that we only list Commanding Officers for the duration of the Second World War. As fate would have it, the rain lasted only about half an hour, but at least for that length of time, we had a short respite from the heat of battle. HMS Exeter claims to have damaged one of them. The Philippines were falling as outnumbered American land forces retreated down the Bataan Peninsula. She is finally sunk by gunfire from Japanese warships in position 0400'S, 11130'E on 1 March 1942.only one rating is killed and 8 wounded which include the Commanding officer however 152 of the crew are Rescued by the IJNS Inazuma and Kawakaze and made Prisoners of war. The ships are ordered to try to escape through the Sunda Strait to Tjilatjap. World War 2 (WW2 WWII) veteran, casualty, and military unit records search by WW2 Researcher Bill Beigel. The Trinity Of Jewish Control: The City Of London, The Vatican And Washington DC. Pope returned to Manila in late June on neutrality duty and remained on station there until 11 December 1941, when she got underway for Balikpapan, Dutch East Indies. Others made contact with the natives of Java, who alerted the Japanese to the sailors' presence. Navy muster rolls from 1860 to 1939 are found in two different series in Record Group 24, Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel: Muster Rolls of Ships, 1860-1900 (Entry PI-123 132; National Archives Identifier 563603 ) This series is arranged in three chronological segments (1860-1879, 1880-1891, and 1892 . March 14, 2019. Two throttlemen are assigned to each throttle during battle, at about ten or fifteen minute intervals, we would take turns going to the hatch leading to the main deck, undog it, and gulp in a few breaths of fresh air, while glancing at the action that was taking place above decks. When the two Japanese destroyers entered the Strait they encountered the four US destroyers. At each firing of the 4" guns, the reverberations woul be transferred throughout the ship. J.N. Otis Elevator Vintage. [11][12] These survivors had been adrift for about 22 hours in rafts and life jackets, or clinging to floats, many coated in oil, and some blinded. Three hours after nightfall on Sept. 15, 1942, the U.S.S. The Americans thought they faced a very powerful enemy, even heavy cruisers were thought to be present. After the high level bombers had spent their loads, with no effect, they left. While doing so her smoke generator was started. General John Pope received numerous awards for service in the Second World War, Korean War and Vietnam War: American Campaign Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, Both sides launched torpedoes but all missed their intended targets and then a gunfight was started. At about 0750 hours the lookout in the crow's nest on board HMS Exeter reported sighting two ships nearly right ahead. Soon she was illuminated by a searchlight and the Japanese opened fire. During the Korean War she carried American troops to Japan and Korea to take part in the giant effort to hold back the Communist invasion. She sailed on to Da Nang to disembark remaining elements of the 3rd Marine Regiment. In the Orient, Pope protected American lives and interests during the civil strife in China. Pope fired all of her torpedoes and 140 salvoes of naval gunfire. HMS Encounter followed suit and the resulting smoke screen proved effective. Later another Japanese ship came and pulled my grandfather and the rest of the . She must have been hit in the ammunition magazine, as she blew up and sunk immediately. She remained in this area until her return to Manila 12 October for the Neutrality Patrol off the Philippines. He further angered Asiatic Fleet Commander ADM Thomas C. Hart when he judged Marblehead worthy to make her own way the day following the attack, and steamed ahead independently to Java. The crew was ordered to abandon the doomed destroyer and she soon sank. Pope was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 8 May 1942. USS Corvina: USS Pope: USS Cotton: USS Porcupine: USS Cowell: USS Portent: USS Crow: USS Porter: USS Cushing: USS Porterfield: USS Cythera: USS Preston: USS Daly: USS . CDR William B. Goggins, the light cruiser's XO, scurried below decks to the wardroom, his General Quarters station, lest he and the CO both be caught on the bridge. W.C. Blinn, USN). French Indochina had fallen and the Japanese were marching down the Malay Peninsula toward Singapore. There are 3 cities on earth that come under no national authority, they have separate laws, they pay no taxes, they have their own police force and even possess their own flag of "independence" the City of London, the Vatican City in Rome and District of Columbia. This effort seemed futile, we were taking water on faster that we could pump it out. They contented themselves with lobbing six and eight inch shells at us. The Dutch cruisers were the Java, De Ruyter, and Piet Hien. United States. Gordon, MVO, RN), the British destroyer HMS Encounter (Lt.Cdr. Pope was transferred to Division 59 of the Asiatic Fleet 6 May 1940, and resumed patrolling off China during 11 May 24 June. The three of us left Surbaja at about 2200 hours, the night of the 29th of February. During the Second Battle of the Java Sea, Pope and Encounter were directed to escort Exeter away from the action. USS Pope (DD-225) was a Clemson -class destroyer in the United States Navy that served during World War II. Asashio and Oshio when went after them. [5] Pope remained afloat long enough to be sunk about 2pm[6] by the sixth salvo of a Japanese cruiser arriving on the scene. Please use this if you spot mistakes or want to improve this ships page. HullNumber.com's mission is to provide a means for shipmates to keep in touch with one another. As HMS Exeter was loosing way, HMS Encounter and USS Pope drew ahead. J.B. de Meester, RNN) and four US destroyers; USS Stewart (Lt.Cdr. Very shortly afterwards an enemy destroyer was seen ahead steering towards. USS General John Pope (AP-110) was a troop transport that served with the United States Navy in World War II.After the war she was transferred to the Army and redesignated USAT General John Pope.She later served in the Korean and Vietnam Wars as a civilian-manned Military Sea Transportation Service vessel, as USNS General John Pope (T-AP-110). When the skipper received the word "bombs away", he would have the ship veer hard to port or starboard, varying the directions, and the bombs would fall harmlessly into the sea. After a brief stop in San Pedro California, she made passage through the Panama Canal on 15 June 2010, continuing on to ESCO Marine in Brownsville, Texas where she arrived at her final destination for dismantling. ADDITIONAL NOTES: Doorman received criticism after calling-off this attack. The attack force consisted of ships of the American, British, and Dutch navies; namely the cruisers USS Houston and Marblehead, the British cruisers HMS Hobart, Exeter, Jupiter, and Express. The Museum's PT-305, nicknamed USS Sudden Jerk, was acquired in a state of disrepair. The destroyers Asashio and Oshio remained with her. Asheville does not strike her colors, raise a white flag, jump into the lifeboats or scuttle . The Pope was named after John Pope, a US naval officer in the early years of the American Civil War, taking part in the blockade of the Gulf Coast and the battle at Heads of Passes on 12 October 1861. HrMs TM-13 (?) Sidloso Published on Apr 17, 2023 Cuck John Paul II went to the Western Wall to ask for forgiveness for "antisemitism" E.J. By now most of us realized we were going to lose the ship: "we were finished". The explosion also bent our port propeller shaft, which sent a strong vibration throughout the ship. T. Chihagi) and Wakaba (Lt.Cdr. She engaged in maneuvers with the battleship divisions off Guantanamo Bay from 12 January until her return to Philadelphia 27 April. Pope was heavily engaged in fighting in the Dutch East Indies in the early days of World War II. The Allied ships worked gradually to the southward and westward eventually steering 260 degrees. Piet Hein was a little ahead of the US destroyers and opened fire with her 4.7 guns and also fired two torpedoes. With no further means of propulsion, she slowed to dead in the water. It was 50% thicker than the armored belts found on German and Japanese competitors. Found to be too badly damaged to continue the fight, after emergency repairs Marblehead was ordered back to the United States. This gunfire was coming from both Japanese destroyer that were now engaging each other by mistake. Another shipmate by the name of Mathews and myself went with him to set off the charges. USS Pope (DD-225) was a Clemson-class destroyer in the United States Navy that served during World War II. They closed gradually until the range was about 18000 yards. Though Marblehead had been knocked out of action and Houston and De Ruyter damaged, Doorman still had a sizable fighting force under his command. After the destroyer's single 3-inch anti-aircraft gun failed, one of six dive-bombers scored a near miss which wrecked the port engine shaft and started flooding from damaged hull plating. Thy obtained eleven hits on the Tromp causing heavy damage to the Dutch cruiser. The nervous reactions, while engaged in battle, made it seem even hotter. E.V.St J. Morgan, RN) and the US destroyer USS Pope (Lt.Cdr. Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp), USS POPE (DE-134) Crew Links. Eighteen days later on 24 June 1966, the 503rd PIR disembarked at Vung Tau, South Vietnam. By that time however the Dutch cruisers had moved on. The three Allied ships fought four Japanese heavy cruisers and four destroyers throughout a fierce three-hour action, and they damaged a number of enemy ships. By now the enemy had resumed firing at the Pope. HNLMSWitte de With was unable to recall her crew from shore leave in time to join their retreat to Ceylon. We were forced to stay in Surbaja, tied to the dock, to effect emergency repairs to the hotwell. Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-19-LCM. Speed was increaded to 27 knots and they proceeded up Badoeng Strait. Add Your Name to the DE-134 Crew Roster . This collection of records was created by the Office of Naval Records and Library from various Naval components in an . The enemy took avoiding action and no hits were obtained. The spring of 1945 saw a round-trip troop-carrying voyage begin in San Francisco 26 March, which took her to Manila, Leyte, and Biak before returning 21 May. Click here to Submit events/comments/updates for this vessel. by HistoryNet Staff 6/12/2006. Soon after HMS Exeter was brought to a halt, HMS Encounter also had to stop due to damage received in the engine rooms by splinters. These started making bombing runs at our ship. US Navy Roughly 250 feet long and displacing about 1,200 tons submerged, U-505 was a Type IXC U-boat with a crew of 60. You can help improve our commands section A line was then formed in the order, HrMs De Ruyter, HrMs Java, HrMs Piet Hein, USS John D. Ford and finally USS Pope. Industrial Parts Cabinet. After a refit, Pope departed 12 May for duty in the Pacific. Sailing of these ships from Surabaya and course to follow. William D. Porter. Having distinguished herself in the MAKASSAR STRAITS, in the battle off BALIKPAPAN, (see 1 on map below) and again in the Bali straits, in the battle of Bali, plus a big battle in the LUMBOK STRAITS, (2 on the map) the USS POPE had earned quite a reputation as a fighting ship. The enemy cruisers to the north-west were the first to open fire from long range. USS Pope (DD-225) was a Clemson-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. A. Kroese, RNN) as well as the US destroyers USS John D. Ford (Lt.Cdr. During the naval battle of Balikpapan she made close-quarter torpedo and gun attacks which helped delay Japanese landings at Balikpapan and later in the Battle of Badung Strait she impeded the invasion of the island of Bali. We had to get away from her fast to keep from being sucked under as she sunk. During the Battle of Balikpapan she made close-quarter torpedo and gun attacks which helped delay Japanese landings at Balikpapan and later in the Battle of Badung Strait she impeded the invasion of the island of Bali. They then worked round to the northward and resumed their course of 345 degrees at about 0430 hours. The enemy ships were steering to the north-north-east. This was my grandfather's terse review of the Steven Spielberg movie back in 1998.