Amazing sea stories that I find incredibly facinati

[RC44Mag]

All great stories but one great one not mentioned yet was the plight of the Essex. Y'all know the novel written about the event

Also I'll add Five Frigates, the history of the birth of the United States Navy which includes Old Ironsides.

One more, In Harms Way, the true story of USS Indianapolis.
Naval history buff here and still have my Blue Jackets somewhere around here?

 

[eveled]

One of my favorite sea stories.

During WW2, Ernest Hemingway chased U-boats in his fishing boat. Armed with a Tommy Gun and grenades. Lol.

 

[Jeepnik]

Wow, which ship?

USS Johnston.

 

[MaxMan]

USS Johnston.

Wow, again. Dad was at Pearl Harbor he was in the singnal tower got a 360 view. Never talked much about. Had night mates till the mid sixties. How did you uncle handle it.

 

[MaxMan]

One of my favorite sea stories.

During WW2, Ernest Hemingway chased U-boats in his fishing boat. Armed with a Tommy Gun and grenades. Lol.

View attachment 38871

Probably a radio would do more. Maybe against a boarding party.

 

[Jeepnik]

Wow, again. Dad was at Pearl Harbor he was in the singnal tower got a 360 view. Never talked much about. Had night mates till the mid sixties. How did you uncle handle it.

Uncle Ray was and apparently always was a quiet man. Mild mannered and unassuming. But extremely smart. A petty officer on December 7, he was a mustang who eded the war as a LT CMDR. ost of his post Korean war service eas spent as an instructor at the Naval Warfare College.

When he and his peers finally retried the navy no longer had anyone who had actual sea battle experience. They've been teaching theory only ever sense.

 

[KIR]

Reading stories and even watching movies about the submarine services was highly interesting as it brought out the claustrophobia in me.

 

[eveled]

Uncle Ray was and apparently always was a quiet man. Mild mannered and unassuming. But extremely smart. A petty officer on December 7, he was a mustang who eded the war as a LT CMDR. ost of his post Korean war service eas spent as an instructor at the Naval Warfare College.

When he and his peers finally retried the navy no longer had anyone who had actual sea battle experience. They've been teaching theory only ever sense.

Heroes walked among us back then, regular guys who changed the world.

 

[vito]

The world, and our nation have changed so incredibly since those days of WWII. I had one uncle who was in the initial wave in the assault of Tarawa. The only time I remember him saying anything about it was once when he had had quite a bit to drink, and sat there crying, saying that better men than him died in the water while somehow he was untouched. Another uncle served the entire war in the merchant marine, having been rejected by the Navy for some medical issue. Had more than one ship sunk beneath him in the North Atlantic by the U-boats, and like so many others, never spoke about the war at all. Once I asked him what it was like and he just said "I don't like to think about it anymore".

 

[MaxMan]

Uncle Ray was and apparently always was a quiet man. Mild mannered and unassuming. But extremely smart. A petty officer on December 7, he was a mustang who eded the war as a LT CMDR. ost of his post Korean war service eas spent as an instructor at the Naval Warfare College.

When he and his peers finally retried the navy no longer had anyone who had actual sea battle experience. They've been teaching theory only ever sense.

Dad was a mustang also retired a warrant officer 3. He was on a sub tender in the Pacific. The Sperry I believe. He was offered Lt Cmdr and his own ship. He said the Navy was not that generous. He called a friend in Virgina and the friend said don't do it Bob. He found out later the commission was a LST for the invasion of Japan. Later in Korea he was on a supply ship that got too close. Before they could move out of range the gunners found their range and the ship was hit twice. Later he was given a new flu vaccine. Immediately there after he contracted Guion Berre after nine months in the hospital being paralyzed he got out and the doc said better retire since you can't go to cold climates. Retired after 22 years.

 

[MaxMan]

The world, and our nation have changed so incredibly since those days of WWII. I had one uncle who was in the initial wave in the assault of Tarawa. The only time I remember him saying anything about it was once when he had had quite a bit to drink, and sat there crying, saying that better men than him died in the water while somehow he was untouched. Another uncle served the entire war in the merchant marine, having been rejected by the Navy for some medical issue. Had more than one ship sunk beneath him in the North Atlantic by the U-boats, and like so many others, never spoke about the war at all. Once I asked him what it was like and he just said "I don't like to think about it anymore".

Merchant Marine critical to the war effort.

 

[cwweld]

I will take a look thanks. My wife got me a book How to catch fish on the east coast of Florida. Inside was a map of Florida from 1917 in good shape.

I have a hardcover copy of Kon Tiki I ordered a few weeks ago. Read it years ago. It is in my re read pile. And two thumbs up for anything Shackleton
I have had great luck finding some old books at.
Thriftbooks.com
They have an easy search engine and drop down menu. Extremely fair prices. Unless you search for HELL I WAS THERE. Insane pricing for it

I have a hardcover copy of Kon Tiki I ordered a few weeks ago. Read it years ago. It is in my re read pile. And two thumbs up for

I will take a look thanks. My wife got me a book How to catch fish on the east coast of Florida. Inside was a map of Florida from 1917 in good shape.

anything Shackleton
I have had great luck finding some old books at.
Thriftbooks.com
They have an easy search engine and drop down menu. Extremely fair prices. Unless you search for HELL I WAS THERE. Insane pricing for it

Wow, I just looked at thriftbooks because of your mention of Hell I Was There. I have a copy I bought from Elmer when the Shot Show was in Houston decades ago. Why in the world didn't I get him to sign it ???

 

[Zonker5]

Find "The Serpents Coil" by Farley Mowat. True tale of retrieving a cargo ship in the winter North Atlantic. He also wrote "The Grey Seas Under", another tale of deep water salvage.

 

[WendyZXZ]

USS Johnston.

Taffy Three is a good bit of history. My husband Father was on the USS Gambier Bay. My husband and his brother did research about their Dad's past and learned that and some other colorful things about the man beyond what they had merely heard as family lore.

Another good and amazing sea story is Adrift: Seventy-Six Days Lost At Sea by Steven Callaghan.

 

[eveled]

Merchant Marine critical to the war effort.

I met a gentleman a couple years ago. He told me he was a merchant marine in ww2.

I thanked him for his service. He cried.

He shook my hand and told me I was the first person to ever thank him. After all these years.

Find "The Serpents Coil" by Farley Mowat. True tale of retrieving a cargo ship in the winter North Atlantic. He also wrote "The Grey Seas Under", another tale of deep water salvage.

Farley Mowat's The boat that wouldn't float was a fun read too.

 

[4896worker]

No disrespect to the merchant marines . My father was a WW11 navy vet pacific and Atlantic never talked about his actions . Found out after he pasted that he had seen lots of combat. The two things that I remember him saying most officers were 90 day wonders that got people hurt if killed and that the merchant marines were union wage scale paid and did not deserve VA benifits .
Again not to disrespect the merchant marines and anyone who stands in harms why and get shot at .

 

[Jeepnik]

This is a harbor town. Down in the harbor near the old ferry terminal is a monument to WWII merchant marines. It lists the names and numbers of crew lost. The numbers are staggering.

Without their sacrifices the war could not have been won. To say these men don't deserve recognition and the meager benefits is typical of how many in this country have always treated those who served during wartime, almost as soon as the war ended.

 

[MaxMan]

No disrespect to the merchant marines . My father was a WW11 navy vet pacific and Atlantic never talked about his actions . Found out after he pasted that he had seen lots of combat. The two things that I remember him saying most officers were 90 day wonders that got people hurt if killed and that the merchant marines were union wage scale paid and did not deserve VA benifits .
Again not to disrespect the merchant marines and anyone who stands in harms why and get shot at .

Dad said the Chiefs ran the navy. And if they ever invited you to have coffee you know you were in.