U.S.S. Oklahoma, U.S.S. Yorktown - Nicaragua, WWII, Korea Navy Group

[Clohesey]

This is a grouping i recently acquired and wanted to share with the forum. Navy items are not really a big interest of mine, however, when i seen this show up on ebay, split up into 5-6 different lots, over a 2 week period, i felt a duty to save it from being scattered across the country. as it appears to hold a very interesting story.

 

I have yet to do any real research, i spent a few hours on google with next to no specific results, however, the group contains a ton of information in itself.

 

The group is attributed to James Winsor Stokes, Included in the group is his uniform, that is in excellent shape, with his name inside the jacket, and trousers, featuring a nice custom ribbon rack, a beautiful bullion Aviation Electrician Chief Petty Officer Rate, and 5 Gold service stripes (for a total of 20 years of service i believe). my guess from evidence in the grouping is that he enlisted in or about 1928 and retired shortly after the Korean War. from his ribbon rack, you can see he spent time in Nicaragua, Both the European and Pacific Theatres in World War Two, as well as the Korean War. Quite a service history! i would imagine this gentleman has seen it all.

 

Also included is is Log Book/Photo Album, Consisting of about 75 photos from early in his career, Several pictures of him on the USS Oklahoma, and of him in Nicaragua. there are also a few pictures that appear to be taken in Hawaii, or possibly stateside or both.

 

In the riker display, i have his dog tags, A custom ribbon rack from his green Aviation uniform, and another set of clutchback ribbons. His Aviation wings are Sterling with 10K gold filled, and several assorted pieces of insignia. i am not sure how the ensign bars ended up in the group, other than he may have just acquired them and kept them as they are sterling. There was a Navy Rifle Expert medal included, it was missing the ribbon, i replaced the ribbon so it would display well, i think i did a fairly good job, and pleased with the results. there was a small piece of period ribbon included, but it was far to small to use. there are a few small cards/documents that were included, that confirm all of his awards, except the rifle expert medal.... Unfortunately, his Good conduct, Nicaragua, and China Service medals are missing from the group. However, several of his medals were included, and came with their original boxes, American Defense with Fleet Bar, EAME Campaign, American Campaign, Asiatic Pacific Campaign and WWII Victory Medal. Also included is a Desk Placard, or whatever you call it, With his name on it.

 

From what i can gather, His service in Nicaragua would have been on board the USS Oklahoma, i wonder if he was possibly still serving on the Oklahoma during the attack on Pearl Harbor? Among the items in his grouping is a Liberty Pass, with his picture, from the USS Yorktown, this is what i found most interesting about this group. i wonder if he was on board when she was sunk???

 

Here are several photos that i took of the group, and some of the pictures in the album. Enjoy, Thank you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few more pictures coming....

 

[Clohesey]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Clohesey]

 

 

 

 

 

That is all, unless you want to see more...

[KASTAUFFER]

It looks he was on the USS Yorktown until at least Dec 1941. He may have been in one of the Squadrons which could explain why the muster rolls disappear.

[Clohesey]

According to one of the documents, he was part of Utility Squadron One (VU-1) in 1947

[Clohesey]

I found a muster roll on fold 3 that says he was on the USS Arcturus (AKA-1) in 1941, i do not have a subscription so a cannot see the details. If that is the case, he would have been on the east coast during the attack on Pearl Harbor. The Arcturus, was involved in the operations below.

• Invasion of North Africa (1942)
• Invasion of Sicily (1943)
• Salerno Landings (1943)
• Landings in southern France (1944)
• Battle of Okinawa (1945)

[KASTAUFFER]

I found a muster roll on fold 3 that says he was on the USS Arcturus (AKA-1) in 1941, i do not have a subscription so a cannot see the details. If that is the case, he would have been on the east coast during the attack on Pearl Harbor. The Arcturus, was involved in the operations below.

• Invasion of North Africa (1942)
• Invasion of Sicily (1943)
• Salerno Landings (1943)
• Landings in southern France (1944)
• Battle of Okinawa (1945)

 

He was a passenger on that ship in 1941.

 

Kurt

[KASTAUFFER]

in Jan 1942 he was at the NAS Corpus Christi TX.

[Clohesey]

Fantastic grouping! Doesn't look like he was on the Oklahoma by the time of the attack (thankfully for him), but that doesn't detract from a very nice grouping.

Thank you P-40Warhawk, It is pretty neat, I personally like the photo album the most, I find the old pictures fascinating.

 

in Jan 1942 he was at the NAS Corpus Christi TX.

Thanks for the information Kurt, I may have to send off for his service record, I bet its extensive, and very interesting. Maybe in a few months as i have other groups with prioritiy over this one.

[bobgee]

Very nice group! The Naval aviator wing is interesting. Did he qualify as an NAP (enlisted pilot) ?

[Clohesey]

Thank you Bob,

 

I was wondering that myself, odd that wings would be in an enlisted mans group. perhaps the seller threw them in to spruce up the group, there are officers insignia within the group as well. Another possibility is that Stokes received them from an officer as a keepsake.. I would imagine they only way to answer would be getting his service record. I may breakdown and just order it.

[vietvet7071]

What a fantastic historical grouping.Thanks for posting it for all to share.

[sigsaye]

Thank you Bob,

 

I was wondering that myself, odd that wings would be in an enlisted mans group. perhaps the seller threw them in to spruce up the group, there are officers insignia within the group as well. Another possibility is that Stokes received them from an officer as a keepsake.. I would imagine they only way to answer would be getting his service record. I may breakdown and just order it.

. In the early days, many Aviation enlisted Sailors who were NOT NAP, qualified as Aviators, wore wings and flew

[Clohesey]

. In the early days, many Aviation enlisted Sailors who were NOT NAP, qualified as Aviators, wore wings and flew

Thank you for the info, i just put in an order for his service record, i will post the findings when they arrive.

[sigsaye]

It looks like for most of his career he was an EM ( Electricians Mate (Non Aviation). The photo of him in the Jumper Blues is as a Fireman First Class (F1/c). The Liberty Card from USS Yorktown has him as EM2/c (Electricians Mate Second Class). The photo of him in CPO whites shows him as Chief Electricians Mate (CEM). The (post War) Blue Uniform is for an AEC. When he is assigned to the Utility Squadron, he is Aviation Chief Electricians Mate (ACEM) (In 1947. Rate has name change in 1948, so he then would be AEC). Would love to see this guys story.

[KRIS FORD]

Me too.

 

I LOVE this pic!

[sigsaye]

It looks he was on the USS Yorktown until at least Dec 1941. He may have been in one of the Squadrons which could explain why the muster rolls disappear.

. According to his Liberty Card, he was EM2/c, ships company, non Aviation. He would have been Enginering Department. He could have been assigned to several different divisions, as at that time, EMs did Generation, Repair, and Interior Communications.

[sigsaye]

Thank you Bob,

 

I was wondering that myself, odd that wings would be in an enlisted mans group. perhaps the seller threw them in to spruce up the group, there are officers insignia within the group as well. Another possibility is that Stokes received them from an officer as a keepsake.. I would imagine they only way to answer would be getting his service record. I may breakdown and just order it.

. Enlisted pilots were very common in the Navy before WW2. There was even a separate rate for enlisted pilots NAP (Naval Aviation Pilot). Also, many senior enlisted (P.O.1 and CPO) of aviation maintenance rates were also qualified pilots as they tested the aircraft after maintenance. And they did, indeed wear the same wings as officers.

 

While there were several fighter squadrons made up of enlisted pilots, enlisted flew mostly Scout and utility. Those float planes on the back of Battleships and Cruisers, mostly were flown by enlisted. Not all, but mostly.

 

When WW2 started, many PO1 and Chief NAPs were commissioned as Ensigns and JGs (Temporarily for the duration of the war, paid at the higher amount), so they could help train new pilots and not be excluded from the Wardroom activities. Due to time in service, they were senior to all other ensigns, and Chiefs drew more pay. After the war, most opted to revert back to CPO. On my fathers first ship, Heavy Cruiser USS St. Paul, (CA-73), they still had the scout planes. All the pilots were Chief NAPs, all had been Ensigns and LTJG during the war. My dad was an EM, and would work on the catapults or crane if he could because it was mostly out on deck and not down in the Fire or Engin Rooms where the generators were.

 

Now, could the seller have tossed wings and Ensign bars in to sweeten the deal? Of course! But, they should not be simply dismissed.

[Clohesey]

Sigsaye, Thank you for the lesson, i am alway impressed with your knowledge and appreciate your input. Fascinating information.

 

 

The wings have not been dismissed, just pointing out possibilities until they can be confirmed or denied.. I ordered his file yesterday as his story grows more interesting by the day, and moves up on my priority list. i will definitely post the highlights of his record when they arrive, they sould shed some light on these questions. im sure his file must be a 3 foot stack, i can't wait to get it!

[Clohesey]

Update,

 

I was not able to get his full record, I did get a little information under FOIA.

 

Stokes enlisted April 30, 1928 and retired April 1, 1961, an impressive 30+ years of service.

 

I was only able to get a basic summary of his service up to 1948

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I did a quick look for information on Carrier Aircraft Service Units 37 and 33, and found nothing so far.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[KRIS FORD]

Hmm..does look like he lost his 3rd class when he re-enlisted 1st time, and given Seaman 1/c? (for prior service? It is after a year..) And got out and went back in 2 times? First in '28, then in '33, and '40?

 

His first boot camp was 3 months, then his second is only 8 days, but the 3rd is 20..maybe just to catch a few classes, get caught up, and receive new uniforms and what-not. Probably treated like a new boot til they found out he was pretty salty LOL.

 

Was hospitalized a few times as well.

 

Great stuff!

[Jumpin Jack]

Fantastic grouping! It's rare to see a grouping this extensive. Thank you for sharing. Jack

[sigsaye]

Ok, looks like this Chief got off Yorktown in 42 and went to shore duty in Texas for the duration of the war. Became aQualfied Naval Aviator and became a Naval Aviation Electricians Mate. Not uncommon. Made sure aircraft headed to The Front were 100% squared away. Many enlisted aviation guys were qualified pilots. They made Check Rides in aircraft they fixed Tomake sure all was good.

[sigsaye]

Hmm..does look like he lost his 3rd class when he re-enlisted 1st time, and given Seaman 1/c? (for prior service? It is after a year..) And got out and went back in 2 times? First in '28, then in '33, and '40?

 

His first boot camp was 3 months, then his second is only 8 days, but the 3rd is 20..maybe just to catch a few classes, get caught up, and receive new uniforms and what-not. Probably treated like a new boot til they found out he was pretty salty LOL.

 

Was hospitalized a few times as well.

 

Great stuff!

. Chris. He probably only did Boot Camp the first time. The other times, when you go back ( into the same service), you draw new uniforms and get your records up to date. Then, you hang out waiting for orders and transportation. Sometimes that can take awhile.

[CUBUSMC]

I am curious, what in his record indicates that he became a qualified naval aviator? I see where he went NAAS Kingsville, but I assumed that was for aviation electronics training? Thanks - Jeff