For a six-week summer training cruise with the U.S. Navy in 1951, several hundred midshipmen from all over the country boarded the Iowa class battleship USS Wisconsin (BB-64) in Norfolk. Besides the heavy training schedule, the travel and shore leave itinerary included Halifax, New York City, Colon, Panama, and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
For all sailors shore leave provides a change of pace from the shipboard routines. For those who are single, shore leave is an exciting opportunity to meet with the ladies, as there were no ladies aboard ship in those days. The midshipmen aboard the Wisconsin consisted of several hundred beginning sophomores and seniors in college and the Naval Academy. Early on in the cruise they were not aware of the heightened sense of competition they provided on shore leave. The regular sailors aboard ship tended to see the midshipmen as an irritating impediment both aboard ship and on shore leave as well.
The senior midshipmen wore uniforms which emulated that of prospective officers, while the underclassmen wore uniforms similar to that of the enlisted men below the Chief Petty Officer levels. The underclassmen were also provided traditional white sailor hats with a one inch wide navy blue strip along the top edge of the rim. This hat is pictured below on a midshipman from this lower class, who should remain nameless.
Throughout the cruise the underclass midshipmen found it increasingly difficult to strike up new relationships with any of the ladies ashore. Eventually it was learned that the regular sailors were spreading rumors ashore about those folks with blue stripes on their white hats.
The rumor was that the blue stripes mark the guys with venereal diseases, known nowdays as STDs. This revelation explained many surprises ashore, and why otherwise eligible ladies on seeing the blue trim would cross the street or scatter like chickens running in all directions.
All is fair in love and war.
Posted 1 year, 2 months ago. Add a comment
The two ships at rest in the menu picture are the primary combat units of the Nationalist Chinese Navy in 1954. News highlights at the time reported weekly, if not regular attacks by Chinese gunboats on the mainland of China. For the listening audience, it was assumed that the attacks were deadly, and struck fear in the hearts of those who remained on the mainland.
From the look of the ships sitting high and dry at low tide one may infer that any attack will not be launched at least until after the tide comes in. This old navy salt learned early in his career that the tide may be an awesome force when he rode the battleship USS Wisconsin aground in the Hudson River in the summer of 1951. This was a crisis for the Wisconsin, which almost became a competitor of the Statue of Liberty for spectators. These nimble Nationalist gunboats were in no hurry to weigh anchor and get out of port before the tide goes out. All hands may be on liberty until that time. What a bummer!!
The picture does not do justice to what remains hidden from view. The sailors from three vessels were eating lunch on the boat on the right. There seemed to be at least fifty sailors sitting on the main deck. What is not shown are the 50-caliber machine guns which may be manned all over each of the little boats. Their speed and maneuverability was greatly enhanced by Gray-Marine Diesels powering each of the boats, making them an elusive target.
These little boats were at rest in the off-shore islands of Quemoy and Matsu, which are located about fifty miles from the Chinese mainland. While each attack to and from this staging area may take one or several days, these warriors were not without strategic support. Pictured below is the Nationalist Navy’s supply ship which accompanied each attack to the mainland. From its appearance, the supply ship is a coordinated match for the pair of fearsome gunboats.
In any war, supply is a critical feature. Food, ammunition, repair parts, and who knows what else is always needed at the least opportune moment. Hopefully the Nationalist Navy’s Supply Ship was capable of providing everything needed. What a magnificent beast!
Posted 1 year, 2 months ago. Add a comment
In 1955 Hong Kong was judged the absolute best liberty port in the world. This high rating is from sailors who have tested liberty all over the world. When sailors speak of liberty ports, it is accepted that the ladies are not far away, if only for the great scenery they provide. After spending several months in Hong Kong, one lady emerges who stands head and shoulders above all the rest. She was one of a kind, and provided an incomparable service for the sailors on extended stays in the city. She is known throughout the world, and in one magazine, was the featured centerfold. She is Hong Kong’s infamous Mary Soo.
Unlike other ladies, she was granted freedom to move around select ships in the harbor without restriction, plying her trade, and in the process, relieved many sailors aboard ship, whose duties were onerous. Like many ladies, she was a shrewd businessperson, and never passed up a profitable deal. And like most, she accepted no checks, no credit, and no promises. She worked strictly under contract, and required payment for services as rendered. Some claimed she was an artist, enhancing each sailor’s world with her special touch. Others said she was a workhorse, dedicated to an incomparable service. On the Gardiners Bay we knew her intimately. We had an understanding with Mary Soo.
While Mary Soo worked well for her customers, she was also the head honcho lady, the madam working a bevy of like-minded and well-trained girls. They arrived at the ship each and every day on their sampans, small boats that were perfectly adapted to working at the water’s edge. Most surprising was that Mary Soo and all her girls provided their services free for our garbage, no questions asked. Following the strictest of standards, the leftovers from the mess-hall after each meal were collected in individual containers and delivered to Mary Soo each day. To receive such fine service for that which otherwise would be thrown away, was an unbelievable bonus value. She is shown below with some of her girls, hovering next to the Gardiners Bay on one of her sampans.
From top to bottom, stem to stern, all around, she painted the ship. On this day, with long poles in hand, they are painting the ship’s hull with loving care. We provide the paint, and they paint the ship for the garbage, no questions asked. It was a big ship, and required long poles, many girls, and many days for a single coat. Exactly how many coats of paint might have been applied is not known. It was such a fine arrangement, the ship was painted over, and over, and over until it was just right. Following is a glamour shot of the Gardiners Bay at anchor. Sun covers on the bows main deck and 01-level are prepared for hanging out in style, while Mary Soo and her girls slave away. What a novel way to relieve the sailors.
She kept our beautiful little ship in top shape, and carried off the excess food as a bonus. It is understood that she gave much of the food to her many working girls. What they did not want, she distributed on the streets throughout Hong Kong. Through this process, we were feeding those many starving Chinese we had heard so much about.
In the late fall of 1955 we came to the end of our tour as Station Ship, and knew we would miss Hong Kong. We knew that many tears would be shed. For our departure, Mary Soo planned a mighty going away celebration. She rigged a sampan with one of her many long poles, and from the high end of the pole suspended a twelve-foot long cluster of firecrackers. Then she summoned four of her most loyal girls to follow us out of the harbor. As we pulled away, she lit the firecrackers. For five minutes the crackers swished like the tail of an angry dragon, almost blowing Mary Soo and her girls out of the water in the process. Then we were gone.
As we passed out of sight, Mary Soo shed buckets of tears, because she knew we were taking all our garbage with us. What a deal!
Posted 1 year, 2 months ago. Add a comment
