Tag Archives: WWII

How the U.S. Fishing Fleet Served the Navy and Coast Guard in WWII

In the early days of World War II, demand skyrocketed for vessels to fill the needs of the U.S. sea services. The Coast Guard was no exception as they competed with the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army for new construction as well as privately owned ships. Facing a high demand for vessels, the service turned to the U.S. fishing industry as a source for its cutters. These emergency acquisitions included East Coast trawlers, whalers from both coasts, and East Coast menhaden fishing vessels, such as the Emergency Manning vessel Dow (WYP 353). During World War I and World War II, the menhaden fishing fleet became a ready reserve for the Navy and Coast Guard. Both services needed small, shallow draft vessels for coastal convoy escort, mine planting, minesweeping, and anti-submarine net tending duty. Many of these vessels were purchased or leased, while others were loaned to naval forces by fishing businesses as their contribution to the war effort. >click to read< 18:28

A ‘little ship’ of Dunkirk hero is being saved at its original home in Bideford, Devon.

In May 1940 the Jane Hannah MacDonald III (JHM), then known as Jane Hannah, set off from Blakeney in north Norfolk and became one of the little ships of Operation Dynamo. The ships rescued more than 300,000 British and Allied troops from the beaches of Dunkirk after the fall of France to Nazi Germany. The ship had been bought for fishing and leisure fishing trips out of Blakeney, after previously serving as a 35ft lifeboat at Flamborough, Yorkshire. It was owned by Bernard Chase and skippered by George Long, a 60-year-old Blakeney fisherman. Helped by Billy ‘Fat Freddie’ Long, the son of George’s brother William, he took the boat from Blakeney to Lowestoft and then on to Ramsgate in Kent, from where it was then requisitioned by the navy and taken across the choppy waters of the Channel on the night of June 5, 1940. >click to read< 09:30

Royal Canadian Mint Honors Canadians who Landed at Juno Beach 75 years ago

The Royal Canadian Mint has launched a $2 circulation coin honoring the Canadians who, landing in Normandy, France 75 years ago, helped establish the Allied foothold that would lead to the liberation of Western Europe.  This coin was unveiled on Monday at the Moncton Garrison, home to the 37 Brigade of the North Shore Regiment (New Brunswick) whose troops were among the 13 Canadian regiments landing at Juno Beach on June 6, 1944. “Like all Canadian soldiers landing at Juno Beach on June 6, 1944, the North Shore men fought valiantly and suffered heavy losses in securing their landing objectives at the end of D-Day,” said North Shore Regiment Commanding Officer Lieutenant-Colonel Renald Dufour. >click to read<14:44