Posted by Carolyn Moore on March 11, 2010, 3:03 am
Anyone who served on the USS Emma Willard, please Contact me. My Father Willis Broadus Taylor Sr. Served on this ship and is now 88 years old. He talks more now about serving on this ship more than ever. Also, Does anyone know how I can get one of the Hat's they wore back then. Would love to get one for my Dad. Thanks so Much to all, I salute those who served during WWII. May God Bless Each of You. Carolyn
My stepfather Clarence Allen Hardin (Buzz) served aboard her during the war I believe during that period. Sadly he passed away in 1999. I am desperate for copies of any photos as we have none of the ship or shipmates.
Carolyn, I was a gunners mate in the U.S. Naval Armed Guard Service from 1942 to 1946. On January 4, 1944, I was assigned to the S.S. Emma Willard on its maiden voyage. Before departing, we were visited by students and instructors from the Emma Willard school to view the ship that was named for their school's namesake, and also to see us off. Unfortunately,because I was on five different ships during the war, I do not remember the names of the crew with whom I served on the S.S. Emma Willard. I served on the Emma Willard from 1/4/1944 until 8/30/2944. Sorry I couldn't be of any help, but I'll be happy to answer any questions if I can, if you care to e-mail me. N.J. "Dee" D'Oria
Sorry, I can't help you with your father's shipmates. I made a number of searches but did not turn up your father's name, indicating only that the information available to me is not complete.
As to a hat, are you referring to the round white "dixie cup" cap? If so you might be able to find one in a military surplus store. One can find them on the Internet although they seem mostly to be in children's sizes or a novelty costume type of hat. However I was able to find an official manufacturer of U.S. military clothing and they have what looks to be a genuine cap available for retail sale. See http://www.orcind.com/webstore/proddetail.asp?prod=DH2815 (scroll down).
Your father might also appreciate a baseball-style cap with the words or logo "Armed Guard" as a way to display his pride in his service. These caps may be available from the U.S. Navy Armed Guard World War II Veterans Association. Please contact their Chairman, Mr. C.A. Lloyd. Mr. Lloyd does not sell the caps so much as makes them available for a donation, which avoids the administrative burden of collecting and reporting sales tax. You can contact Mr. Lloyd at:
C.A. Lloyd, Chairman U.S.N. Armed Guard World War II Veterans Association 115 Wall Creek Drive Rolesville, NC 27571 Telephone: 919-570-0909 E-mail: clloyd@nc.rr.com
Tell him I sent you.
Just FYI, the correct name of your father's ship was SS Emma Willard, not "USS" Emma Willard. USS, meaning United States Ship, designates commissioned warships of the U.S. Navy. SS Emma Willard (SS means steamship) was never a naval vessel. Rather she was a cargo ship, manned by civilian merchant mariners along with U.S. Navy Armed Guard gunners.
I don't know where you are located but if your father is anywhere near Baltimore, he would surely enjoy coming aboard SS John W Brown, a sister ship of Emma Willard, and one of only two operating World War II Liberty ships still in existence. I am a volunteer crewman aboard John W Brown as well as webmaster for Project Liberty Ship, which owns the Brown. One can visit the ship at dockside or sail with us on occasional day trips on the Chesapeake Bay. See www.liberty-ship.com.
Best wishes.
Ron Carlson, Webmaster Armed Guard / Merchant Marine website www.armed-guard.com
My father (Stanley Kotowski) was on the SS Emma Willard. I’m not sure of the years. If anyone has information our family would appreciate it. Thank you in advance Stanley Kotowski Jr.
My uncle served aboard this ship. I have pictures that are dated from August 1945. I believe one of the ports that they stopped at was Antwerp Belgium. I also have a picture of some of the crew, their names are as follows; McDonald, Dinjens, Hagstrom, Shanks, Hayward, Jones and Bateman as well as my uncle, Lawrence Van Hove. If anyone is interested I would be more than happy to share them
My wife's grandfather served on the SS Emma Willard in 1945. I am trying to obtain any type of service records that would have his name. our family is planning a very grand 95th birthday for him and we wanted to get something that marked that part of his life. His name is Herman Nolen. Thanks in advance.
Re: USS Emma Willard 1945
Posted by Edwina Garrison on March 26, 2015, 4:11 am, in reply to "USS Emma Willard 1945"
Mike, My uncle, Broadus Taylor, served on board the SS Emma Willard in 1944/45. He passed away on March 1st of this year. His daughter, Carolyn Moore, is trying to find more info on his days aboard ship. She would very much like to talk with you. Would you please call her at 828-681-5802. She doesn't have internet access at this time. Thank you!
Re: USS Emma Willard 1945
Posted by Ron Carlson on January 6, 2014, 11:52 am, in reply to "USS Emma Willard 1945"
Michael,
I discovered your message when searching through the Armed Guard message board for unanswered messages. I'm probably too late to help you in celebrating Herman Nolen's 95th birthday but let me give you some information, better late than never.
You may be able to find Mr. Nolen's merchant marine service record by contacting the U.S. Coast Guard. The record may include photocopies of actual documents. See this web page from the website I manage: http://armed-guard.com/searchmil.html. In particular see section A.2. Records of Individuals – Merchant Marine. You will have to contact the U.S. Coast Guard’s National Maritime Center in Martinsburg, West Virginia. The Coast Guard was and is responsible for issuing certain documents ("seaman's papers") to U.S. merchant mariners, so should have information about Mr. Nolen's merchant marine career. You will have to provide as much identifying information as possible about Mr. Nolen.
Note that while you or your wife could request this information, neither of you are his next of kin (next of kin = parent, spouse, child, sibling). As such you may not be able to obtain his complete record. So it would be better if Mr. Nolen himself made the request or, if you want to surprise him, someone else who is next of kin could make the request, if such a person is available. You could do the leg work of preparing the request but it would be better if Mr. Nolen or a next of kin to him could actually sign any necessary document(s). Otherwise make the request yourself and hope for the best. There may be a fee for this service but I expect the Coast Guard would not begin work without informing you of any charges.
Additionally I have found information on Mr. Nolen's service aboard EMMA WILLARD in 1945. This information comes from a search at the subscription website Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com). The site is more commonly used for genealogical research but it also contains databases with the names of crewmen and passengers aboard merchant ships that arrived at certain U.S. ports of entry following a foreign voyage. Information for New York is particularly extensive.
Herman Nolen was aboard EMMA WILLARD for at least two voyages:
Voyage #1 Departed Newport News, Virginia, May 7, 1945; arrived Marseilles, France, approx. May 28 Departed Marseilles June 2, 1945; arrived New York June 17, 1945 His position in the crew: troop cook and baker Other description: age 27; 6' tall, 160 lbs.
Following are the names of the men listed for the steward's department on this voyage, with whom he would have worked most closely. The steward's department is responsible for the "hotel" functions of a ship, primarily meal planning and preparation, set-up and clean-up, provisioning, laundry, and general cleaning. I do not know whether any of these men are still living (although some were younger than Mr. Nolen; one was ten years younger) nor would I have any contact information for any of them. But maybe he will remember some of the names.
Alyrio Nunes, chief steward Bernardo Andrado, chief cook William Drury, 2nd cook and baker Billie Leggett, assistant cook Enrique Roman, assistant cook Gilbert Cassel, messman Alexander Chrzanowski, messman Joe Hrovat, messman John Maxwell, messman Eugene Corder, utility James Holbrook, utility Franklin Martin, utility Murray Freeman, troop cook
The name of the master (captain) for this voyage was Timothy Driscoll.
Voyage #2 Departed New York July 5, 1945; arrived Antwerp, Belgium, unspecified date Dep Antwerp July 30, 1945; arrived New York August 13, 1945 His position in the crew: Army 2nd cook *
Members of the steward's department for this voyage:
John Ferro, chief steward Edward Issacs, 2nd steward Bernardo Andrado, chief cook Kalervo Hovi, 1st cook Murray Freeman, 2nd cook Abe Patt, Army cook Herman Katthoefer, chief baker Edward Rajkowski, 2nd baker Eugene Perry, chief butcher Michael Ferrara, storekeeper Romeo Lecroix, pantry utility James Hines, utility Henry Rooney, utility Maurice Teeter, utility Lucas Arture, messman Gordon Benjamin, messman Luis Echevarria, messman Damie Gruber, messman Harry Mehr, messman Miguel Suarez, messman
* This does not suggest that he was in the Army, only that he helped prepare meals for the Army troops aboard the ship. A 2nd cook is also typically the baker, as was his position on the first voyage.
The name of the master for this voyage was again Timothy Driscoll. Otherwise, as was typical, there was nearly a 100% changeover in the merchant marine crew from the first voyage to the second.
EMMA WILLARD was a Liberty-class ship, the most common and numerous of merchant ships built before, during and immediately after World War II. More than 2,700 Liberty ships were built, the largest single class of ships in history. About 90% of Liberty ships were used exclusively to carry cargo but a smaller number was built (or converted) to carry troops as well as cargo, EMMA WILLARD apparently being one of them. A troop-carrying Liberty ship had a capacity of as many as 550 troops, traveling in great discomfort, plus a civilian merchant marine crew of 45-60 men and a U.S. Navy Armed Guard crew to man the ship's defensive weapons of 28-40 men. Given that the dates of the voyages noted above were near or after the end of the war in Europe, it is very likely that the voyages involved returning American troops from Europe to the United States rather than the reverse. The ship was named for Emma Willard (1787-1870), an American women's rights activist and founder of the first school of higher education for women, the Troy Female Seminary, now known as the Emma Willard School, in Troy, New York. A number of Liberty ships were named for women.
EMMA WILLARD was built in 80 days between February 1 and April 22, 1943, by the New England Shipbuilding Company, South Portland, Maine. She survived the war and was given or sold to the French government in 1946. In 1947 she was sold to a French shipping company and renamed SAINT NAZAIRE, and sold again to a Greek shipping company and renamed AGHIA SOPHIA in 1961. She was scrapped in 1968 in Hong Kong. For a postwar photograph of the ship as AGHIA SOPHIA, see http://searcharchives.vancouver.ca/s-s-aghia-sophia;rad.
If you are interested in obtaining a wartime photograph of EMMA WILLARD, please see this web page: http://usmm.org/photosource.html. I refer you in particular to Mr. Hultgren, the second source on the list, as his collection specializes in Liberty ships. I know enough about his collection to be able to say that he apparently has an image of this ship. My understanding is that Mr. Hultgren charges $10 for an 8x10 photograph. Mr. Hultgren is quite elderly but at last report he was still actively managing his collection. He does not have e-mail or Internet capability, so you will need to call him or send him a letter.
Good luck. I hope this information is useful.
Ron Carlson, Webmaster Armed Guard / Merchant Marine website www.armed-guard.com
Thank you so much for all the information. I will have next of kin check into this so we could obtain more information. Thanks again for your response.
Thank you so much for the information Ron. And I realize I had made a mistake after I had alredy posted the SS Emma Willard by puting a "U" in front of it. And I will go to the link you provided for me. Much appreciation. Also I do know my Dad served from May 1944 until Nov. 1945. His full name is Willis Broadus Taylor Sr. from Asheville, N.C. Born in Buncombe County on Dec.7, 1921 His serial number was 9320904. I don't know if this will help or not in finding the roster of the men who served with him. Also I have his SS# if you need it, if so I can call you with that info. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and wishing you and your family a Blessed New Year, Sincerly, Carolyn
Dear Ron, Sorry I'm just getting back to you. Thank you so very much for the info you sent. My Dad's health is failing fast. And what information I have been able to get about the SS Emma Willard has been a blessing to him. He will sit and read the info, over and over again. If you can find anything else for me please help me. I will be glad to pay for anything pertaining to the Emma Willard or any other artifact's of my Dad's service in the Navy. Beleive me it's in my blood. I love anything connected to the Navy. I even try to find clothes that look military. May I salute you Ron for the work you do in helping people like me. May God Bless you. Ron if you can help in any way, please call me collect at 828-681-5802. Or my address is 20 Pine Needles Dr. Apt. E-4 Arden, N.C. Again, let me extend my appreciation to you and all who help gather information for the rest of us.
Here is more information about EMMA WILLARD, which you may or may not already have.
EMMA WILLARD was constructed by the New England Shipbuilding Company, South Portland, Maine, in early 1943. Her keel was laid February 1, 1943, she was launched April 5, and was completed on April 22, 80 days after keel-laying. She was sold to a private shipping company in 1947 and scrapped in 1968. See http://shipbuildinghistory.com/history/shipyards/4emergency/wwtwo/newengland.htm and scroll down to hull #267.
More specifically, EMMA WILLARD was constructed to carry troops (as many as 550 men) as well as cargo. During the war she was operated by Eastern Gas and Fuel Associates of Boston. On her maiden voyage she carried grain, steel and lumber to Avonmouth, England, in convoy HX 238 (see http://www.warsailors.com/convoys/hx238.html). She also made voyages to the Mediterranean. You may also want to make a Ship Search at the excellent ConvoyWeb website (see http://www.convoyweb.org.uk/ports/index.html?home.php~armain and http://www.convoyweb.org.uk/hague/index.html) which will give you the whereabouts of the ship in various convoys and dates. I would do the search for you but have exceeded the rather generous limit that the webmaster of that website allows, out of a reasonable concern that users will steal his information for their own use. Any information you find will be about the ship, not its crew.
In 1946 EMMA WILLARD was sold or given to the French government. In 1947 she was renamed to SAINT NAZAIRE, sailing under the French flag. She was sold in 1967 to a Greek shipping company and renamed AGHIA SOPHIA until finally being scrapped in Hong Kong in 1968. See http://www.mariners-l.co.uk/LibShipsE.html and scroll down to the name of the ship.
I have found two web pages that have additional information and photographs of the ship in her postwar service and appearance. Both pages are in French but you can translate the pages by placing the following URLs into the search box at www.translate.google.com (change the "From" and "To" language selections to French and English, respectively). See these pages: http://www.es-conseil.fr/pramona/stnazaire.html http://www.frenchlines.com/ship_fr_1323.php
Among other things the ship carried French troops to Indochina and also carried prisoners of war from Viet Nam to France during France's unsuccessful attempt to retain control of that country in the early 1950s.
Emma Willard (1787 – 1870), after whom the ship was named, was a women's rights advocate who founded the first women's school of higher education in 1814, now named the Emma Willard School, located in Troy, New York.
I hope this information is useful to you and your father.
Thank you so much Roy, Sorry Iam just now answering you. Just had so much going on in the past year with my Mom and Dad. I know you understand. Again thank you for the information. May God Bless, Carolyn