Records illuminate war service of families

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This Memorial Day, I thought I’d share some excerpts from my dad’s separation documents and personnel records from serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II.

If you are a veteran, or a deceased veteran’s next of kin, the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis encourages you to make your request at http://vetrecs.archives.gov.

I filled out the form and then mailed it, and received a good bit of information. I only wish I had helped my dad send for these papers while he was alive, because I know they would have given us lots to talk over.

Gayland Alton Moore Jr.

June 18, 1943 First enlistment, NRS, Bangor. 18 yrs 11 mos. 5 feet 8 inches, 131 pounds, hazel eyes, medium brown hair. Scars: front, left chest. Inducted into the U.S. Navy as Apprentice Seaman, USN-I, this date, in accordance with Selective Training & Service Act as amended.

Voluntarily enlisted as Apprentice Seaman, Class V-6, U.S. Naval Reserve, SV this date to serve for a period of two years. BNP Form 603 (Shipping Articles) executed. Ordered home on active duty without pay, upon arrival home released to inactive duty.

June 25, 1943. Recalled to active duty at 0800 this date with full pay and allowances. Transferred to the Naval Training Station, Newport, Rhode Island, for recruit training.

July 31, 1943. Rating changed this date from AS to F3c. B.E. Decker, Lt. (jg) USNR.

Aug. 21, 1943. V6 SV Naval Training School (Diesel), Richmond, Va. Eight weeks. Date of separation, Oct. 15, 1943. Graduated 18 in class of 361. L.W. Luce, Lt., D-V(S) USNR Educational Officer.

Nov. 20, 1943. Transferred to the Amphibious Training Base, Solomons, Maryland, for training and assignment to duty by the Commander Service Force Atlantic Fleet (Subordinate Command). Auth. BuPers Ltr.Pers-6331c-emn-6, dated 11 Nov. 1943. M.R. Wortley, Captain, USNR. W.R. Cooke, Capt., USN.

Nov. 29, 1943. Date reported aboard PhibTraBase, Solomons, Maryland.

Jan. 13, 1944. Instructed in the use of small arms, actual firing on range completed.

Feb. 14, 1944. RecSta Pier 92 New York, N.Y., for duty in connection with fitting out LCI (L) 565 and on board when commissioned. Auth. BuPers Ltr Pers-312-VM of 20 Dec ’43 Comphibtralant Ltr FE25/P 16-3/00 Ser 68 of 3 Jan ’44. To USS LCI (L) 565, W.R. Cooke, Capt., USN.

March 3, 1944. Transferred to USS LCI (L) 565, W.H. Pashley, Capt., USN (TWP).

July 22, 1944. In accordance with BUPERS C/L 173/44, authorized to wear amphibious force insignia.

Sept. 19, 1944. Authorized to wear the ribbons of the American and Asiatic-Pacific Theater of war campaign medals as a regular member of the crew of The LCI (G) 565. Crossed the International Date Line this date. G.J. Headley Lt. USNR Commanding Officer.

Oct. 1, 1944. Crossed the Equator on board the USS LCI (G) 565 at Longitude 154 Degrees E. Initiated into the Ancient Order of the Deep, and declared a Shellback. G.J. Headley Lt. USNR Commanding Officer.

Jan. 9, 1945. Honorably participated in the shore bombardment and close-in fire support while leading in the first amphibious assault wave on the Japanese-held island of Luzon, Philippine Islands, at Lingayen Gulf, while attached to and serving on board this vessel, the USS LCI (G) 565. G.J. Headley Lt. USNR Commanding Officer.

April 1, 1945. Honorably participated in the first assault wave in the invasion of Okinawa Shima, in the Ryukyu Islands, while serving on board the USS LCI (G) 565. G.J. Headley Lt. USNR Commanding Officer.

June 22, 1945. Participated in anti-small boat patrol, Okinawa Shima, continuously from 1 April to this date. Subjected to numerous air attacks and aided in rescue work to ships suffering damage.

I was interested to note that he had graduated 18th out of 361 students in his first Diesel School. And of course, I knew about his ship’s participation in the battles of Luzon and Okinawa in the Philippines.

Did you pick up on the fact that he was assigned to the Atlantic Fleet, but his ship was in the Pacific?

The spring of 1944, he told me, the LCI 565 had started across the Atlantic (to take part in the invasion of Normandy), but part of the convoy turned around and returned to Norfolk, Va. The ship was refitted as a gunboat and sent to the Pacific via the Panama Canal.

The papers indicate that the ship crossed the Equator Oct. 1, and took part in the battle at Luzon in January.

But there’s no mention of the battle at Leyte Gulf in October, nor of the ship being at Hollandia, New Guinea, at Christmastime 1944. Nor do the papers indicate that the LCI 565 was in Hawaii the summer of 1945, when the war ended, or that my dad actually came back to California aboard the USS Saratoga aircraft carrier.

Still, the records add immeasurably to what I have on his service in World War II, and the photocopies include his signature in a couple of places.

Today is a time to remember – and to thank the veterans who are still with us.

Send genealogy queries to Family Ties, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor, ME 04402; or e-mail queries to familyti@bangordailynews.net.