USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Wenham > Wenham in World War II : war service of Wenham men and women and civilian services of Wenham people > Part 10
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In October 1944, after taking overseas training at Kearns, Utah and Camp Stoneman, Calif. he sailed from San Francisco, Calif. on the SS Sea Perch.
"After a month at sea we landed at Biak, which had been retaken from the Japs earlier. We were using its airfields for our planes to fly against the Dutch Indies and the Philippines and Biak was also used as a base for re-deployment."
After a short period as a casual in Biak, Kavanagh was assigned to the 597th Signal Co. on that island. "Preparations were being made at that time for the invasion of the Philippines and it was necessary to get accurate information as to the location, strength, supplies, gun emplacements, etc. of the enemy. The 597th played an important part in obtaining this information prior to each in-
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vasion. Different units, accompanied by Filipino scouts were landed at various places, under cover of darkness, with the main object to get such information in a scheduled time and not to be seen."
Here he had the misfortune, like so many others in the Pacific, to come down with tropical fever and spent three months in the hospital on Biak.
After being released from the hospital, Kavanagh was sent to Hollandia, New Guinea for a rest period. After a brief stay at Hollandia, orders came through to report to Nadzab, New Guinea. At Nadzab he was transferred to the 360th Air Service Group which were making preparations to go to Luzon.
"At Luzon the unit was stationed at Clark Field where it had its regular routine duties. After several weeks I was sent to Neil- son Field, just outside of Manila on detached service, doing duty as Clerk and stayed there until the Jap surrender.
"Shortly after this I got a chance to transfer to the 11th Replace- ment Battalion which was sending a small cadre of men to Japan to set up quarters on one of Japan's largest air training centers. The trip was made in LOT's and after a rough voyage we finally landed in Yokohama sometime in September of 1945."
He returned to the States with members of different outfits, sail- ing from Yokohama, Japan on November 3, 1945.
James E. Kavanagh, Jr. was honorably discharged at Ft. Devens, November 28, 1945.
Good Conduct Medal
American Campaign Medal
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with star for New Guinea.
Philippine Liberation with stars for Leyte and Luzon.
World War II Victory Medal
Army of Occupation Medal
FRANCIS NICHOLSON KEEFE entered on active duty as Sea- man 1/c in the United States Coast Guard Reserve on July 27, 1942. He was sent to Lewis Wharf, Boston, Mass., for indoctrina- tion and then assigned to USCGR 2516; the 2516 was a schooner. She was based at Portsmouth and her operating area was Casco Bay, where her duty was anti-submarine patrol.
Francis Keefe was honorably discharged on October 16, 1942 from Portsmouth Naval Hospital where he had been treated for ear trouble.
American Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
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Wenham in World War II
PHILIP JOHN KEEFE entered on active duty as a Yeoman 2/c on May 8, 1942 in the U. S. Naval Reserve. Due to the urgent need for men at that time he received no preliminary training but was sent immediately to the Navy Department to work in Communica- tions. He was advanced to Yeo 1/c in February 1943. In August 1944 his rate was changed to Specialist (1) (International Business Machine operator), and he was advanced to Chief Specialist.
Keefe worked in the Navy Department throughout the war. His duties were of a confidential nature and still (October 1947) can- not be divulged owing to conditions governing security.
He was honorably discharged in February 1946 but re-enlisted immediately for an additional two years. He will be eligible for discharge in December 1947.
Navy Unit Commendation Medal
Good Conduct Medal
American Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
WILLIAM TYSON KEMBLE was commissioned Lieutenant (j.g.) in the U. S. Naval Reserve on March 17, 1942. He was ordered to Naval Training School, NAS (Naval Air Station), Quon- set Point, R. I. for indoctrination and in June 1942 was assigned as Instructor in Tactics (Air) and Anti-Aircraft Evasion at Air Combat Intelligence School, NAS, Quonset where he served until November 1944, and made Lieutenant.
In October 1944 he was promoted to Lieutenant-Commander and sent overseas. He was assigned to Staff Commander Airforces, Paci- fic, as Officer in Charge Operational Intelligence, NAS, Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, T. H.
William Kemble was released to inactive duty on December 31, 1945.
Bronze Star Medal awarded by Admiral Montgomery, Commander
Airforces Pacific Fleet August 1945 for meritorious service in connection with operations against the enemy. As Officer in Charge Operational Intelligence Section, Com. Air. Pac., he supervised publications helping to standardize air intelligence throughout the Fleet-"his knowledge of air combat intelligence was of great assistance to his superiors when such knowledge was needed quickly."
American Campaign Medal
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
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Personal Records of Those in the Armed Forces
WILLIAM CALVIN KENNARD entered on active duty as Lieu- tenant (j.g.) in the U. S. Naval Reserve on October 14, 1942. After a period of training at Ft. Schuyler, N. Y., he was assigned to the Sixth District's Port Director's office. In connection with this office, he worked as executive of the Brunswick, Ga. branch. The chief duties there were to get ships up or down the coast with- out having these vessels sunk by U-Boats.
In May 1943 he was assigned as an instructor of Communica- tions at the Norfolk, Va. officers' school. While at this station his office was demolished by the explosion which temporarily wrecked the Air Station. Fortunately he sustained only a few cuts.
A short time later he was assigned to personnel work with colored seamen. In connection with this duty he was sent to the Aleutians only to be made a Communications officer there instead. "This duty proved most interesting as it enabled me to cover large areas by plane in varied weather and over grand, although somewhat lonely scenery. It gave me a trip over the Northern Japanese Islands and a nearly fatal plane smash-up when we overran a land- ing strip."
Later he returned to Astoria, Ore. and then to California where he commanded 3,000 colored seamen trained as freight handlers for the invasion of Japan. His last orders were to the fleet located in the Philippine area.
Calvin Kennard was released to inactive duty on November 15, 1945.
American Campaign Medal
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
Philippine Liberation Medal
World War II Victory Medal
JAMES WILLIAM KINSELLA was a veteran of the Mexican Border warfare of June 1916 with Co. H, Massachusetts 8th Regi- ment, National Guard, and a veteran of World War I in which he served as a sergeant in Co. H, 104th Infantry, 26th Yankee Division from May 1917 to April 1919. He enlisted again on Sep- tember 2, 1942 in the Navy with the rate of Carpenter's Mate 1/c.
Kinsella was sent to Norfolk, Va. and assigned to the 28th Naval Construction Battalion (Seabees) for training. Upon completion of his training, he was transferred to the 1004th Seabee Detachment and sent to Newfoundland where the detachment joined the 17th Naval Construction Battalion. The battalion was stationed at Ar-
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gentia Naval Base where it was engaged in constructing airfields and in doing other construction work.
In December 1943 he was ordered to the States and reshipped from Port Hueneme on the west coast with the 9th Seabee Battalion to Hawaii where the unit was stationed at Pearl Harbor and was engaged in construction work on docks and similar duties.
After four months they were sent to Tinian Island in the Mari- anas. In June 1945 they went to Buckner Bay on Okinawa where they constructed airfields.
James Kinsella returned to the States and was honorably dis- charged at Fargo Building, Boston on October 8, 1945.
World War I Victory Medal
American Campaign Medal
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
JOHN JOSEPH KINSELLA served in Co. H, 104th Infantry, 26th Division throughout World War I. He enlisted in Salem, May 14, 1917 and was honorably discharged at Ft. Devens April 28, 1919. He was in all the campaigns in which his unit took part and was slightly wounded in October 1918. He served as Corporal from January 1918 until his discharge. He and his brother James served in the same outfit.
He entered on active duty again as a Private in the Army of the U. S. on May 7, 1942, enlisting in Phoenix, Ariz. As a Private, unassigned, he was sent for basic training to Signal Corps, Replace- ment Training Center, Camp Crowder, Mo. from May to July 1942.
In July 1942, he was assigned to the 813th Signal Service Co., Camp Gordon, Ga. where he remained until he went overseas. He was promoted to Corporal and Technician 4th Grade while at Camp Gordon.
In October 1942 he sailed from New York with the 813th on the SS Queen Mary for Glasgow and says that "Nothing of unusual in- terest happened except that the transport Queen Mary rammed and cut a British escort ship in half on our trip over." He was stationed at Aintree for three weeks. The unit was then sent to Oran, Algeria, landing on November 11, 1942, the final day of the monsoon.
"Though the 813th was at Oran for 26 months, nothing exciting happened to it. Its duties were monotonously routine. During this long stay there were but few air alerts and only once did German
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planes come over and drop bombs, a few small ones, on the port and the railroad yards. Oran was the big base for the Mediterranean operations and millions of tons of supplies of all kinds and thou- sands upon thousands of men passed through the port. It was the 813th's lot to watch nearly everything and everybody arrive at and leave Oran before it finally was ordered to Italy." They were kept busy, however. Attached to the 2nd Corps, the 813th Signal Service Company checked thousands of tons of Signal Corps supplies being discharged from, and loaded on, ships at Oran.
In January 1945, after over two years in Africa, they crossed to Italy where the 813th was stationed at Livorno (Leghorn).
"The company remained at Livorno and was given credit for the North Appenines Campaign because Livorno was the main supply base for the 5th Army in its activities in Northern Italy. The 813th was attached to the Signal Supply depot there." The campaign ended with the signing of the German surrender in Italy on May 2, 1945.
After remaining in Italy until July 12, 1945, John Kinsella re- turned to the States and was honorably discharged at Ft. Devens on September 3, 1945.
World War I Victory Medal
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with stars for Algeria landings and Appenines.
World War II Victory Medal
STEPHEN DANIEL KINSELLA entered on active duty as a Private First Class in the Army of the United States on November 18, 1940. He was assigned to the Medical Corps and after six weeks basic training at Ft. Devens, Mass., he was assigned to the Station Hospital at Camp Edwards, Mass.
In August 1942 he left San Francisco with the 13th Station Com- plement. They were assigned to General MacArthur's HQ at Mel- bourne, Austrialia where Stephen Kinsella served as Ambulance Driver. The unit moved to Townsville and later he was trans- ferred to the 7th Station Complement at Darwin.
In December 1943 he joined the 30th Evacuation Hospital in time to take part in the Cape Gloucester Campaign on New Britain by MacArthur on December 26.
The 30th Evacuation Hospital followed our troops westward along the New Guinea coast as each new landing was made. It was at Milne Bay, Finchhafen, Buna, Aitape and Hollandia during the
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New Guinea Campaign of 1943 and 1944. During this campaign the 30th Evacuation Hospital served as a center in which our wounded and sick could be cared for until they could be moved by plane or ship to the rear.
Stephen Kinsella left the 30th at Hollandia and returned to the States on rotation in November 1944. Thereafter he was stationed at Ft. Myer, Va. in the M. P.'s.
He was honorably discharged on August 29, 1945 at Ft. Devens, Mass.
American Defense Medal
American Campaign Medal
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with stars for Cape Gloucester
Campaign, New Guinea Campaign and Netherlands East In- dies.
VINCENT KINSELLA enlisted in the United States Navy on July 12, 1928. After three months' training at Newport, R. I. he was sent to an electrical school at Hampton Roads, Va. and spent the remainder of his term of enlistment aboard the USS Marblehead, a light cruiser, getting out on July 11, 1934.
The day after Pearl Harbor, December 8, 1941, Kinsella re- enlisted with the rating of Electricians Mate 3/c. He was called to Boston to duty on December 29 and sent to the Brooklyn Navy Yard where he was assigned to the transport USS Chateau Thierry (AP 31) where he was soon promoted to EM 2/c and EM 1/c.
The Chateau Thierry was in the convoy taking the first troops to Northern Ireland in January 1942. Kinsella continued in the transport service in the North Atlantic carrying troops and made many trips to Iceland.
In the summer of 1942 his ship was part of a convoy transport- ing civilians to Arabia by way of the Cape of Good Hope through the Red Sea. He later returned to transport duty in the North Atlantic and on one of his trips back to the States had the pleasure of finding Florence Stobbart,* later Capt. ANC, as one of the pas- sengers aboard.
In 1943 on arriving in Oran, North Africa with more troops, he met his brother John who was on duty there with the 813th Signal Service Co., U. S. Army.
After a short leave at home, he was transferred to the Destroyer Escort Atherton on convoy duty across the North Atlantic to the *See Miss Stobbart's account, page 176.
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Personal Records of Those in the Armed Forces
Mediterranean and was at the Rock of Gibraltar at the time of the preparations for the landing in Normandy on D-Day. Completing this tour of duty he was returned to the States where he was sent to an electrical school in Miami, Fla.
In November 1944 Kinsella was sent to a shipyard in Superior, Wisc. to take the USS Pembina, a newly commissioned ship, down the Mississippi to Texas, where it was loaded with supplies of all' kinds to be taken to the Pacific.
In June 1945 the Pembina left the States for the Pacific, going to the Philippines, Korea and Japan. While enroute V-J Day came and the war was ended.
Vincent Kinsella left the Pembina in Japan and came home on a transport in February 1946.
He was discharged at the Fargo Building in Boston on February 18, 1946, later reenlisting in March 1946.
American Campaign Medal
European-African Campaign Medal
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
RICHARD EARLE KNOWLTON entered on active duty in the U. S. Naval Reserve as a Yeoman 3/c on August 5, 1942. He was assigned to the Boston Section Base where he worked in the Duty Office.
In November 1942 he was transferred to the U. S. Naval Maga- zine, U. S. Naval Ammunition Depot, Hingham and Cohasset, Mass. where he was in charge of security of the Magazine at Cohasset.
In October 1944 he was assigned to the USS Alvin C. Cockrill (DE 366) a destroyer escort. He says, "I got my ship and went aboard in Norfolk, Va. We left immediately, going through the Panama Canal and stopping at Balboa. We visited Balboa and Panama City and went up to San Diego for a week and then to Pearl Harbor and Honolulu."
The Cockrill escorted tankers, cargo ships and airplane carriers. She went to the Marshall Islands; Ulithi in the Marianas; Kassol Roads in the Carolines; Espiritu Santo in the New Hebrides ; and Pelelieu, Guam, Saipan, Tinian, Okinawa, Wakayama and Tokyo. Richard Knowlton's duty was Yeoman in the ship's office and his battle station was lookout on the flying bridge.
"In February 1945, a few miles off the island of Yap we rescued
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some Navy flyers forced down with motor trouble. We rescued safely all aboard the plane.
"About the same time we captured Jap prisoners escaping from the island of Bablethuap. These men were in small boats.
"Near Ulithi we were escorting a carrier when we were attacked. We shot down a Jap plane.
"On V-J Day we were in the Philippine Sea. The cruiser Indianapolis was torpedoed and sank in twelve minutes. We arrived next day, picked up a few survivors and buried many at sea.
"We took part in the initial landing and took occupation troops in to Wakayama, Japan and then went up to Tokyo and were able to visit the city."
In November 1945 Richard Knowlton sailed from Tokyo aboard the USS Duplin (AKA 87). She docked at Seattle, Wash. After two weeks in Seattle he came home and was honorably discharged on December 10, 1945 at Boston.
Good Conduct Medal
American Campaign Medal
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
STUART ELLSWORTH KNOWLTON entered on active duty as a Private in the Army of the U. S. on March 11, 1942. He was assigned to the 8th Coast Artillery and sent to Ft. McKinley, Me. for basic training. He then joined the 417th Anti-Aircraft Artillery at Camp Davis, N. C. where he was promoted to Sergeant in May 1943 and took further training at Ft. Bragg, N. C. He was then ordered to the 201st Infantry at Ft. Jackson, S. C.
With the 201st Infantry, Knowlton went overseas in January 1945. They landed at Le Havre in France, and arrived in time to take part in the Battle of the Bulge, the German counter-offensive that had started in late December. On March 6, 1945 they pushed into the Rhineland. The 201st was part of the 76th Infantry Divi- sion with General Patton's Third Army and in that fast moving outfit they saw plenty of action. They crossed the Rhine at Frank- fort in March 1945 and took part in the dash across southern Ger- many into Czechoslovakia.
Stuart Knowlton served as squad leader with a rifle company throughout the fighting in France and during the advance. After the war he was stationed in Vienna, Austria, with the occupation
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Personal Records of Those in the Armed Forces
army until January 22, 1946. He returned to the States and was honorably discharged on March 12, 1946.
Good Conduct Medal
Combat Infantry Badge
American Campaign Medal
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with stars for Battle of the Bulge, Rhineland and Germany.
World War II Victory Medal
Army of Occupation Medal
STEPHEN Z. KRACZYNSKI entered on active duty as a Pri- vate in the Army of the U. S. on March 10, 1942. He was as- signed to the Army Air Forces and sent to the 308th School Squadron at Keesler Field, Miss. for a basic airplane mechanic's course. In September he was ordered to Ypsilanti, Mich. to spe- cialize in B-24 airplane maintenance.
In October 1942 he was sent to Salt Lake City and assigned to the 94th Bombardment Group, 331 Bombardment Squadron.
Stephen Kraczynski was promoted to Sergeant in February 1943 and Staff Sergeant in April. He left New York with his unit on May 6 on the Queen Elizabeth for England where they were sta- tioned at Bury St. Edmunds.
The 94th Bombardment Group was one of the oldest groups in the service. Its B-17's flew missions all over Europe. With the 385th Bombardment Group stationed nearby at Great Ashfield it took part in the shuttle-bombing of the Messerschmitt Aircraft Plant at Regensburg which resulted in the crippling of the German Air Force .* It was often bombed by German planes which flew over Great Ashfield but found Bury St. Edmunds.
Kraczynski was promoted to Technical Sergeant in June 1943 and was Crew Chief of a B-17. This gave him entire responsibility for keeping the plane in perfect condition and in the air. His Squad- ron was commended for leading the group "in engineering efficiency and percentage of ships in commission for combat." This was accom- plished in spite of the loss of highly trained and experienced per- sonnel.
During the war several hundred American planes had been forced to land in Sweden and they and their crews were grounded there until the end of the war. In June 1945, Kraczynski was ordered to Sweden on Detached Service from the 94th Bombardment Group. *See Frank Corning's account of same mission, page 67.
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He was stationed at Hasslo Air Field, Vasteras, and his duty was to get the grounded planes in condition to be transferred back to the United Kingdom. He returned from Sweden to the 1st Mobile Repair and Reclamation Squadron in England and from there to Camp Shanks, N. Y.
He was honorably discharged at Ft. Devens, September 10, 1945. Commendation awarded by Colonel Raymond L. Curtice, Air Corps, Stockholm on July 10, 1945 for his outstanding work in Sweden.
Distinguished Unit Badge with Oak Leaf Cluster
Good Conduct Medal
American Campaign Medal
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with stars for Air-Offensive Europe, Normandy, Northern France, Rhine- land, Ardennes, Central Europe.
World War II Victory Medal
GEORGE ALFRED LANDERS entered on active duty as Appren- tice Seaman in the U. S. Coast Guard on October 3, 1939. This was before the United States entered the war, and he was assigned to the USS Duane on neutrality patrol off the Grand Banks. The duties' of the neutrality patrol were to keep subs off our coast and outside the 300-mile limit.
In January 1940 he made Seaman 2/c and spent "many hours' and days on two weather patrol stations which were 500 miles SE of Iceland and 200 miles NW of the Azores. While on Station No. 1, we visited Newfoundland, Labrador, Greenland, Nova Scotia and Iceland. The purpose of these weather stations was to send in weather reports to the mainland for 'flying the Pond,' as we called it. The work done enabled the Army and Navy Weather Bureaus to forecast flying weather." For this work, he received a letter' of thanks from the Pan-American Airways for "making it possible for them to fly the Atlantic in safety." He says that his most un- usual experience was "seeing the sun for 24 hours a day during the summer spent in Iceland, Land of the Midnight Sun. During the winter I saw no sun at all for 24 hours a day."
He was assigned to the USS Ingham, March 1941 and as Fire- man 3/c went to Portugal. Portugal was neutral and it was im- portant to keep her so and this was "good will duty." The ship was there to protect American interests, American citizens and the U. S.
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Personal Records of Those in the Armed Forces
Consulate as the Germans were rapidly moving down through' France.
"We returned to the United States from Portugal in September' 1941 because of President Roosevelt's undeclared war on Germany. We started convoying ships to England in October 1941, two months before the actual war. When war was finally declared, we continued convoying until March, 1943 when we came home after spending a whole year up in the ice country. In 1942 we traveled 60,940 miles and were at sea for a total of 225 days." Landers made F 2/c in December 1941 and F 1/c in July 1942.
The submarine menace was acute and men were fortunate if they' were picked up alive from the freezing North Atlantic. The Ing- ham "rescued lots of men from the water" and her crew received' commendations from the Finnish and Swedish governments "for being humane to survivors picked up from the ocean."
The Ingham's strangest duty was as escort to the "give-away con- voy." Just before the African landing (November 8, 1942) when' 800 ships laden with troops were to leave for Africa, word "leaked" out that a large convoy of 64 ships loaded with oil and only pro- tected by a weak escort (2 Coast Guard Cutters, 1 Navy Destroyer' and 6 Canadian Corvettes) was to cross the North Atlantic to Eng- land. The purpose of this tale was to decoy German subs to the' North Atlantic away from the actual convoy routes. The "give- away convoy" was doomed before it started. The ships were filled with ballast and so arranged that the 3 or 4 men who ran them' could all be above decks. Off Newfoundland, 15 or 20 enemy subs' closed in. "We started battle with these subs November 1 through to the 10th. Most of our ships were sunk, 10 the first day, 3 the second, 4 the third, but on the 9th day, we really had fun-lost 18 ships. The escorts sank 9 subs. Most of the men from the ships were picked up-not all of them."
In the North Atlantic, April 1942, the Ingham found her convoy under sub attack. She and a Navy destroyer, the Larry, were given' orders to leave their stations and hunt the sub. They located her. The Larry made her run and dropped her depth charges. The con- ning tower of the sub broke water for a second. The Ingham fol- lowed and the sub broke in two, going down with all hands.
The ship was transferred to the South Atlantic where she did convoy duty (1943-1944) for the African Campaign. In these con- voys, New York to Casablanca, Algiers, Bizerte and Oran, went troops and ammunition, medical supplies and aeroplanes.
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