Naval History - February 1997 - Iwo Jima Seabees

February: 1896 Pea Island Lifesaving Station against hurricane-strength tides; Iwo Jima Seabees; David Susskind on Iwo Jima; "The Peleus War Crimes Trial"

UNITED STATES NAVAL INSTITUTE January / February 1997 Volume 11 • Number 1
16
46
Cover
16 Against a Raging Storm
By Commander Steve Rochon, U .S . Coast Guard
'Hurricane-strength tides in 1896 proved no match for the men of the Pea Island Lifesaving Station—the only all-Black such facility in the country.
20 'Thank God for Blohm & Voss'
By Russell Drumm / Photography by Doug Kuntz
Horst Wessel/Eagle crews, past and present, hail the ship's German builder.
22 Iwo Jima Seabees Stay Unsung
By Lieutenant Commander Peter S. Marra, CEC, U.S. Naval Reserve (Retired)
Why was a U.S. Navy construction battalion—in heavy combat, elbow to elbow with other fighting units—neglected at award time?
26 'Not All Flaming Spectacle' for David Susskind
By Colonel Joseph H. Alexander, U.S. Marine Corps (Retired)
One future celebrity at Iwo Jima failed to see glamour in the task at hand. 28 Mapping and Charting the Solomons
By Lieutenant Colonel Norman Porter, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve (Retired)
Success or failure often depended on Coast and Geodetic Survey officers. 30 'She Died a Noble Death'
By Robert Mason
A cache of papers from a Virginia attic bears eyewitness testimony to the epic Civil War battle between the USS Kearsarge and the CSS Alabama.
36 The Peleus War Crimes Trial
By David Miller
Claims of "operational necessity" for firing on survivors of a torpedoed' Greek steamer were a weak defense for officers and crew of the U-852.
41 Farewell to the Troopship
By Winn B. Frank
So many have embarked in them that it won't he the same without them.
46 They Are Still Magnificent Men
By Heyward Lewis Osteen
A disillusioned Korean War veteran reveres World War II heroes.
48 'Who's In Charge Here?'
By James Edwin Alexander
The destroyer John A. Bole (DD-755) got up close to the Chinese in 1951. Departments
4 Looking Back 6 In Contact
15 Navy Yarns
51 Museum Report 59 Salty Talk
53 Book Reviews 61 Reunions
56 Naval History News 62 Historic Fleets
"The Barque Eagle," by C. G. Evers, depicts the USCG Eagle under full sail at sea. In summer 1996, seamanship trainees and officers took her back to her roots. See her story on page 20. To order an Eagle print, see page 8.
Naval History, ISSN 1042-1920, is published bi-monthly by the U.S. Naval Institute, 2062 Generals Highway, Annapolis, Maryland 21401. The U. S. Naval Institute is a private, self-supporting, nonprofit professional society, which publishes Proceedings magazine as a forum for the sea services and professional books. The Naval Institute is not part of the U.S. Government. The opinions and assertions herein are the authors'. Second class postage paid at Annapolis, Maryland, and at additional mailing offices. Annual Naval History subscription rates: Naval Institute member, $18.00; nonmember, $20.00. International subscribers add $6.00. Copyright 1997, U.S. Naval Institute. Copyright is not claimed for editorial material in the public domain. Postmaster: Send address changes to Naval History, U.S. Naval Institute, Circulation Department, 2062 Generals Highway, Annapolis, Maryland 21401. Home page: www.usni.org.
tness Accot nt of the Civil War at Sea
NAVAL HISTORY
I. \ I I I I) STATES NAVAL INSTITUTE
Februar 1997
U-boat Sailors
Tried for Crimes
Heroic Rescue at
Pea Island