The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors

[fknorr]

I am 95% through this book and will have to state it is pretty damned good!!!

Anyone else read this?

It is about the Naval battles off Samar Island during the Philipine campaign where escort carriers, DD's and DE's took on a Japanese surface fleet (including the Yamato) and turned it back!!!!

hard to put down....

[fknorr]

This book was damned good and only ten people have looked at this thread in three days....

[ejwahl1]

I have read the book with a very special and personal interest. My uncle, S2 Thomas M. Kennedy was among the 267 lost with the sinking of the USS HOEL. His remains were never recovered.

As quoted by one of the reviewers: "This is a book for every reader who wonders about the true nature of heroism and sacrifice in times of war."

Excellent book!

Ed

[NavyFCO]

This book was damned good and only ten people have looked at this thread in three days....

BUT... the book wasn't about SS or US Airborne, so therefore there is no interest!

Seriously, I have all of the uniforms and a ton of paper to the former commanding officer of the USS Samuel B. Roberts that was sunk during the battle.

One of the items that I have is their 20 November 1944 original after action report of the battle. One of the most poignant paragraphs I have ever read is located on page 14 of the report. It reads as follows:

"The performance of officers and enlisted personnel of this command was exemplary - in accordance with the very highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. To witness the conduct of the average enlisted man aboard this vessel, newly inducted, married, unaccustomed to Navy ways and with an average of less than one years service would make any man proud to be an average American. The crew were informed over the loud speaker system at the beginning of the action, of the Commanding Officers' estimate of the situation, that is, a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival could not be expected, during which time we would do what damage we could. In the face of this knowledge the men zealously manned their stations wherever they might be, and fought and worked with such calmness, courage and efficiency that no higher could be concieved than to command such a group of men."

It is by that testimony alone that it might well be said that this was one of the greatest naval battles in United States history.

Dave

[fknorr]

Ed and Dave,

Thanks for your responses to this thread re: this book and the actual battle. I apologize for my delay in responding.

I was familiar w/this battle for some time but upon reading this book I realized that my knowledge on it and the men involved therein was definately not enough. The story is almost unbelievable in the valor shown by those few men on those DD's, DE's and CVE's. This story is yet another that really needs to be known, possibly immortalized by Tom Hanks or something of the sort - for too few people know of it.

If those words within the cover of the book were not chilling enough, the photos showing the water geysers from the Japanese fleets big guns bracketing the CVE's (which dwarfed the ships) sent a chill up my spine. I could not imagine being on one of those ships staring right down the barrel of the Yamato and having nothing bigger than a DD to face them.

It also had yet another instance of our boys from sunk vessels in the water way too long, being knawed upon by sharks....