Battleship X - The USS South Dakota

battleship X the USS South Dakota because of the world war two exploits against the Japanese in the South Pacific this mighty battleship became a legend before she was a year old she caught the fancy of the American people when her heroics were reported in newspapers under the titles of battleship X and old nameless old incredible would be an equally appropriate name for her the Navy in its official reports on her gallant and glorious deeds called her merely a United States battleship that's a cold appellation for such a fighting slugging sharpshooting indestructible battle wagon security was tight US leaders were tense information for news media was non-existent and the identity of the battleship was concealed in secrecy the South Dakota was of a new class of battleships bearing up-to-date armament and possessing extensive firepower numerous reports out of Japan claimed the vessel had been sunk always untrue she was a brand-new ship she'd never even had time for a proper shakedown cruise when the Navy sent her out to sea looking for trouble more than sixty percent of her crew was made up of green boys who had joined the Navy since Pearl Harbor back in their own hometowns they had been excellent salesman or mechanics factory workers were accountants but they just hadn't been sailors until they met a man named Gaucho many of her junior officers were freshly appointed naval reservist the crease hardly out of their new blue pants the ink hardly dry on their new Commission's but old nameless went out to sea under the command of a hard-boiled methodical skipper who was something of a wizard training men Tomas El Gaucho was his name and to be under his command was about as good a break a green crew could get he was a black-browed broad-shouldered unflustered fighter whose only gripe in life was that he hadn't seen enough action in the First World War and whose principal current ambition was to relieve an old grudge he bore against the Japanese Empire the South Dakota battleship BB 57 was built by the New York shipbuilding corporation of Camden New Jersey it was one of four South Dakota class battleships that represented the second group of 35,000 ton capital ships whose construction began shortly before the Second World War the main battery consisted of nine 16-inch guns and triple turrets their innovative hull design featured an internal armor belt to protect the ship's vitals against 16-inch shells and outboard propeller shafts that extended further aft than the inboard ones they also had improved anti-torpedo side protection and more powerful engines the latter being necessary to drive their shorter hulls at the design 27 knot speed compared with their three sisters South Dakota was fitted as a fleet flagship with offices and an additional bridge level just below the navigation bridge the majestic ship was ready for christening and she lay expectantly in the slip June 7th 1941 dawned warm and sunny dignitaries gathered on the raised platform near the draped bunting mrs. Harland J Bush field the wife of South Dakota's governor raised a champagne bottle and smashed it into the bow I christen thee the USS South Dakota she declared for all the year as the ship slowly and sadly slipped into the Delaware River admits great pomp and ceremony she stood out of Philadelphia Navy Yard on the 16th of August and headed through the Panama Canal on her way to the Pacific Theater as I was in the Navy from 1937 to 1941 I got out in May of 41 went to work in a New York shipbuilding and actually worked on a South Dakota up until Pearl Harbor when I had to re enlist in the Navy requested duty on the South Dakota so soon then I went aboard put her in commissioned and sale honor the South Dakota was assigned to Task Force 16 which was built around the aircraft carriers enterprise and Hornet the task force or deed from Pearl Harbor and was ordered to make a sweep of the santa cruz islands and then move southwest to block any japanese for is approaching Guadalcanal Catalina patrol bombers sighted a Japanese carrier force at noon on October 25th and the task force steamed Northwest to intercept it early the next morning when all carrier forces were within striking range a Japanese Snooper spotted the American force triggering the Battle of Santa Cruz the first enemy attack was concentrated against the Hornet at 10:45 South Dakota was operating near Enterprise to provide protective fire with her numerous anti-aircraft guns when their group was attacked by dive bombers approximately an hour later about 40 torpedo planes and dive bombers struck at the two ships South Dakota sustained a 500 pound bomb hit on top of her number one turret the bomb did minimal damage to the ship with no casualties in the turret due to the armored plates the shrapnel killed one sailor on the captain's bridge and seriously wounded captain gash the shrapnel severed his main artery in his neck and all the ligaments to his arms which he never fully recovered the use of when asked why he had not hit the deck when he saw the plane coming Gatch answered I consider beneath the dignity of a captain of an American battleship to flop for a Japanese bomb when the action was broken off that evening the American forces retired toward New Caledonia with the battleship downing at least 26 enemy planes captain Gatch received the Navy Cross for his engagement and though not recovered from his wounds came aboard two weeks later and resumed command the traditional three cheers soon gave way to a yelling whistling reception characteristically the modest catch said they pinned this medal on me because I'm the captain but you're the people who really earned it on the 11th of November 1942 South Dakota sortied from Nemea for Guadalcanal where she joined the battleship Washington and four destroyers to form Task Force 64 under command of Rear Admiral waa Lee the next evening the force was operating 50 miles southwest of Guadalcanal when Lee learned that an enemy convoy was coming through the passage off Tsavo Island this was Admiral bataki condos bombardment group consisting of battleship Kirishima heavy cruisers and a destroyer screen a quarter moon assured good visibility three ships were visually sighted from the bridge of South Dakota range 18,000 yards Washington fired on the leading ship thought to be a battleship or heavy cruiser and a minute later South Dakota's main battery opened on the ship nearest to her both initial salvo started fires on the targets South Dakota then fired on another target and continued firing until it disappeared from her radar screen turret number three firing over her Stern and demolishing her own planes in the process opened on another target and continued firing until the target was thought to be sunk her secondary batteries were firing at eight destroyers close to the shore of Tsavo Island a short law followed after which radar plot showed four enemy ships just clear of the left tangent of Tsavo approaching from the starboard bow range fifty-eight hundred yards battleship X maneuvered to avoid two of the burning American destroyers that have been hit in opening moments but soon found herself the target of the entire Japanese bombardment group skewered by searchlight beams South Dakota boomed out salvos at the book Meisha Sena me as did the Washington which was attempting to deal out severe punishment upon the kurushima one of South Dakota's assailants South Dakota's secondary batteries put out the lights and she shifted all batteries to bear on the third ship believed to be a cruiser which soon gushed smoke continuing her effective fire battleship X helped sink the formidable quarry Shima and another destroyer south dakota which had been under fire from at least three of the ships had taken 27 hits which caused considerable damage 40 sailors aboard the south dakota gave their lives that night and another 77 were wounded her radio communications failed radar plot was demolished three fire control radars were damaged there was a fire in her four mast and she had lost track of the Washington as she was no longer receiving enemy fire and there were no remaining targets she withdrew and met the Washington at a pre-arranged rendezvous and proceeded back to no maiya of the American destroyers to were destroyed during battle one was sunk later and the fourth was damaged but survived greetings to the superb officers and men on sea land and in the air also under the sea the men who have performed such magnificent feats for our beloved country in the past few days you have written your names deeply in golden letters on the pages of history and have won the undying gratitude of your countrymen my pride in you is beyond expression no honor for you could be too great magnificently done may God bless each and every one of you to the glorious dead hail heroes rest with God William F Halsey Vice Admiral of the US Navy November 17th 1942 a repair ship patched the South Dakota backup enabling the battleship to sail for home South Dakota arrived at New York City on December 18 1942 for an overall and the completion of repairs to her Battle Damage the 1942 Christmas service in the South Dakota was a sad one for the men of the sodac were saying farewell to their skipper Thomas Gatch when the time came the church was packed for the word spread that gach was leaving it was announced that the captain wanted to say a few words gacha rose scowling I suppose that you men realized that I'm going to be detached from the ship gat started to say something about what he thought of his men but he choked up and sat down abruptly without finishing catch his eyes were wet and so were the eyes of every man present when the South Dakota reached the Brooklyn Navy Yard for repairs captain gash went into the hospital for treatment his final visit to the South Dakota was January 31st 1943 when he returned to sign the papers transferring the ship's property to his successor Captain LD McCormick she was back at sea on February 25th 1943 and following sea trials operated with the aircraft carrier Ranger in the North Atlantic until mid-april the battleship was assigned to the British Home Fleet Based at Scapa Flow Scotland among her principal duties was an attempt to lure the German super battleship Tirpitz into battle South Dakota made a number of provocative faints off the coast of Norway but the Germans never took the bait she returned to Norfolk Virginia having never saw action in the North Atlantic after some more upgrades old nameless sailed for the Pacific Theater again battleship X then returned to her carrier group for attacks on the Gilbert and Marshall Island assault these islands were valuable stepping stones as US forces marched their way toward Japan during this time the South Dakota was not only used to shield the aircraft carriers but also trained her massive 16-inch guns on the coast of the enemy islands in support of amphibious army landings on the morning of June 19 1944 a large group of bogeys were reported coming in from the West at 10:49 a d4y Judy dropped a 500-pound bomb and some photos made back were blown a large hole cutting wiring and piping but inflicting no other serious material damage however personnel losses were heavy 24 killed and 27 wounded the ship continued to fight throughout the day as air attacks were continuous this was the first day of the Battle of the Philippine Sea and was called the Marianas turkey shoot as the Japanese lost over 300 aircraft when it ended the badly mauled Japanese fleet no longer posed a threat to the American conquest of the Marianas right we were G at General Quarters and I was in a repair party and officers quarters right behind the word room and where the officers staterooms were and the bomb went off at the other end of the passageway where I was that it blew me out the doorway and it killed the other 19 men in the repair party I was the only one lived out of the repair party yeah the turkey shoot was quite into Marianas and my battle station was always below decks and during the turkey shoot was a long time and we were allowed to go up to the leave our battle station down below and the flood boards we were able to go up for lunch and I went topside and I don't know if you've ever seen the pictures of the South Dakota with all the with all the bombs going by that is the same picture that I saw that day there was a lot of planes up there and they were coming in when I want to board the ship I went aboard in the Marianas before we went to Saipan and where we got a 500-pound bomb and I went on the portside went underneath the captain's bridge for you I was I was in the magazine for 40 millimeters and 20 millimeters you could see the bottom of the magazine anyway that was the first experience I had and I was scared to death this communication was sent from Rear Admiral II W Hansen from commander battleship divisions nine to commanding officer USS South Dakota subject air action of 19 June 1944 I wish at this time to commend the captain officers and crew of South Dakota on their excellent record fine spirit and great fighting ability in particular I wish to express my admiration for her action during and subsequent to the air attack of 19 June 1944 off the Mariana Islands as always it is difficult to say just how many aircraft were brought down by a single ships fire it was evident enough that the South Dakota bore the brunt of the attack and destroyed or helped destroy at least twice her share of enemy the quiet efficiency of the repair parties and quickly repairing the damage to the ship the handling of the casualties both dead and wounded the continued high rate of fire and the way in which all hands responded in the emergency and the fact that the ships fighting efficiency was never impaired we're in keeping with the highest traditions of the naval service once again the South Dakota had proved that above all she is a fighting ship she can take it and she can dish it out well done South Dakota GW Hansen the Task Group returned to Ulithi in the Caroline Islands and South Dakota sailed via Pearl Harbor to the west coast arriving at Puget Sound on July 10th the battleship was overhauled at the Navy Yard there and after sea trials sailed back to Pearl Harbor South Dakota was attached to a fast carrier task force in their attacks against Tokyo while rearming from the ammunition ship rangel on may 6th a tank of 16-inch high capacity powder exploded causing a fire and exploding four more tanks turret number two magazines were flooded and the fires put out the ship lost three men killed instantly eight more diet of injuries and 24 others suffered non-fatal wounds South Dakota was then attached to a bombardment group she participated in the shelling of the Komachi steel works on the mainland of Japan battleship X was the first American warship to use its batteries against the Japanese mainland during World War two over the next month the sodac and her cohorts participated in the heavy shelling of targets along the coast one of the happiest times that we had we all had in this whole war was when they dropped the atomic bomb on Japan for the first time at her Ashima we couldn't believe it we couldn't believe that this war could be over and it was over and the people that say that we shouldn't have dropped it we're not out there on the line like these guys were on the morning of August 15th the South Dakota's law contained the simple entry received information from the Secretary of the Navy that Japan has surrendered she entered Tokyo Bay on August 29th where Admiral Nimitz came aboard and was anchored next to the Missouri for the historic signing of the Japanese surrender on September 2nd the war was officially over and battleship X old nameless had made men out of boys and heroes out of all yes it was the peace signing aboard Missouri Indiana September 45 I was lucky enough to have a camera and and go over and take pictures of the actual signing of the peace treaty and I still have the pictures that some of the pictures I took at that time about the highlight of my whole life really life on board the South Dakota we didn't know the other 2,500 people you just you knew the ones that were in your division and that was about it sometime you didn't know all of them days aboard the USS South Dakota was not limited to battles alone there was time for rest and relaxation to this floating city as it was known had several sports teams the South Dakota baseball team played ball while in Port and were ready to take on any team in the Pacific even the famous Bob Feller played against the South Dakota's team when he was stationed aboard the USS Alabama while in Tokyo Bay the so Dax basketball team narrowly lost to the Ticonderoga team on the deck of the carrier witnessed by a crowd of 1,500 boxing was another favorite athletic endeavor since it didn't require much equipment sodac boxers swamped 53rd Seabees and smoker was the headline in the ship's newspaper the boxing team took on the 53rd Naval Construction Battalion while in drydock in the Atlantic Ocean there called hurricanes in the Pacific Ocean they're called typhoons but in either case proximity to this severe weather phenomenon is potentially risky sailors aboard the South Dakota braced themselves for a danger that could equal the ferocity imposed by the Japanese Navy by late afternoon of November 7th 1944 the seas were growing steadily and continued to grow throughout the next morning despite a northeasterly chorus in an attempt to escape the wrath of the storm the typhoon center steadily approached the Task Group heavy seas broke over the battleships main deck even a ship the size of the 35,000 ton battleship was required to reduce speed to minimize damage topside when the center of the typhoon had passed and winds had somewhat abated the Seas remained heavy as the task group slowly proceeded back westerly to the vicinity of Leyte the South Dakota would again experience the wrath of Mother Nature just one month later as yet another fierce typhoon bore down upon her the crew knew it would take more than torrential winds and rain to brew his battleship ex life aboard the South Dakota was filled with moments of terror followed by days of Restless uncertainty the men who called the South Dakota their home knew she could take a beating and still get them back to port they also recognized that their captains were experienced sailors who knew how to handle the mammoth ship through the fiercest of battles and how to weather the mightiest of storms she was a warship and that she had a lot of fighting power and that she was a very famous battleship during World War two she was the most decorated battleship at that time and we were pretty proud of her record had the 64 planes shot down and three ships sunk and we had bombarded enemy territory nine times and two or three those were Japan before they drop the atomic bomb the end and a new beginning the South Dakota left Tokyo Bay on September 20 and headed for home via Okinawa and Pearl Harbor on October 15 1945 palsies third fleet led by flagship south dakota steamed in the san francisco bay thousands of americans lined the Golden Gate Bridge to welcome the sailors home Bob Hope performed a USO show for all aboard while the ship rested in San Francisco Harbor the crew starts drawing submarine pay the new year found the South Dakota underway for the Philadelphia Navy Yard for an overhaul in June of 1946 the South Dakota was attached to the Atlantic 16th fleet but remained inactive she was decommissioned on January 31st 1947 and placed in reserve at the Philadelphia Navy Yard she was obsolete the Navy said in 1962 so it decided to get rid of her battleship X had served her country magnificently the people of South Dakota were dismayed by the decision they would like to bring the ship intact to the Upper Midwest but it wasn't possible before she made her sad journey to the scrapyard a group of concerned South Dakotans formed a memorial foundation to preserve selected portions of the ship as well as other mementos which could help remind Americans of the gallant part she played in their nation's history the result of the Foundation's efforts is the battleship USS South Dakota memorial a tribute to a great ship and her fine crew two years later in 1964 item started arriving by rail car for the new memorial including the ship's bells anchor and chain teak wood decking mainmast electronic equipment in various logs and records lifelines and stanchions were used to recreate the 680 foot long outline of the South Dakota's main deck the memorial was completed within five years and dedicated with appropriate ceremonies on September 7 1969 the principal speaker was Vice Admiral Bernard F rotor commander of the Navy's first fleet in his dedicatory remarks he said this grand memorial shall stand and quiet tribute to a man o'war a navy fighting ship that did its best for her country the memorial grounds today have many unique pieces many of which were rescued off the old battleship along with the anchor and mast other items have been added such as the fire-control radar antenna 5-inch guns the screw and a massive 16 inch gun barrel the gun barrel presented a distinct challenge in this cross-country journey the memorial Commission wanted to bring the barrel to South Dakota intact without a welder's torch slicing it into after loading it onto a barge in New Jersey the metal giant made its way by rail car through the Midwest to Sioux Falls once there it was offloaded to a flatbed truck for its final trip to the memorial where it stands today beside a 27 hundred pound shell that the old cannon used to slough inside the museum many rare and unique items are on display including hundreds of photos paintings and newspaper articles the actual design model of the ship is an interesting item in the exhibition the 50 thousand dollar model was built in the late 1930s to the scale of one quarter inch equaling one foot and allowed the Navy to envision how the ship would look and operate in days long before computers this visualization was necessary to understand the space needed for all the vital components including anti-aircraft guns Kingfisher Scout planes and catapults cranes and other mechanisms located next to the ship's 900 pound Bell is a silver service belonging to Captain gas presented to him by the first crew to sail with him on the South Dakota teakwood deck planking salvaged from battleship X makes up the ceiling of the building and gives the museum a familiar scent of an ocean-going vessel even though it's been 60 years since their last mission a solemn piece acquired from the battleship USS Arizona lies in front of a special flag following the Japanese surrender Nagato the last active Japanese battleship was boarded and secured by American sailors from the sodac her flag hangs in the newest section of the museum today the battleship memorial is located at the corner of 12th Street and Kiwanis Avenue in Sioux Falls the museum is free of charge and open from Memorial Day to Labor Day every summer the outside displays are open year-round since 1970 the crew members of the USS South Dakota have been getting together to share their experiences aboard old nameless reunions are held every other year over the fourth of July weekend in Sioux Falls the pride shown among the crew members is still evident there isn't a battle that is not mentioned at least once when they come together to reminisce the sea language is still used and the respect for their commanding officers still exists the sons and daughters of the crew members have formed a group called the second generation and regularly participate in reunions and edit and publish a newsletter that helps keep the memories of the South Dakota alive during the ceremony the names of those former sailors that have passed during the last two years are read and remembered the ship's Bell Tolls and a 21-gun salute honors those men who joined the 95 sailors who died aboard the South Dakota there's a certain feeling in a camaraderie that you have with these guys because we're all a lot of us born during the Depression we know that we know the feeling of being poor and and going to fighting and coming back and and so that people can be free and you know this is the way we feel the South Dakota received 13 battle stars for her proficiency in the Pacific Theater she also was bestowed the Navy Unit Commendation and numerous other medals citations and ribbons in all she officially accounted for 64 down planes and nine Shore bombardments she crossed the equator 30 times and the Arctic Circle twice logging over 240 thousand miles from her birth and Camden New Jersey to the final surrender at Tokyo Bay it was a very important ship and of course it was palsies flagship so he was in charge of the task force and that type thing so there's a lot of things going on on that ship and it just had a great record most warships are built for an active career of 20 or 30 years the USS South Dakota was in commission less than five in that short lifetime she covered herself with more honors and glory than most ships realize in much longer periods of service she truly was a legend before she was a year old whether she was called battleship X old nameless or sodac the USS South Dakota and her crew served America proudly and for that we are eternally grateful you

Channel: CityofSiouxFalls

Views: 2,651,496

Rating: 4.7818775 out of 5

Keywords: Battleship, The, USS, South, Dakota, WW, II

Id: S1mX_K9lFbA

Length: 29min 41sec (1781 seconds)

Published: Wed Jul 14 2010

Reddit Comments

[u/dziban303]

The best Short Documentary I've seen on BB USS South Dakota

Are...are there a lot of short documentaries on the USS South Dakota?