Grouping of Seaman 1st class James W. Greene: 19 year old victim of the surprise attack on Bari Italy

[LYONSJ9]

Grouping of Seaman 1st class James W. Greene: 19 year old victim of the surprise attack on Bari Italy

 

James William Greene was born on January 23, 1924 to the large family of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Greene Sr. One of ten children, James had a happy childhood as he came of age in his hometown of Fountain City Tennessee. While in High School, he would find work at the Standard Knitting Textile Mill in nearby Knoxville, and begin to build his life when America would suddenly find itself at war. 

 

After turning 18, James along with his brother (Charles Jr.) would make the decision to volunteer for service, with his brother joining the Army, and James enlisting in the Navy. After graduating from basic training and serving briefly in Newport News Virginia, “Jimmy” would be assigned to the crew of the Liberty Ship SS Joseph Wheeler where he would become a highly popular figure aboard the ship, and a great friend to many of the other young sailors. 

 

After an uneventful journey across the Atlantic and through the Mediterranean, on December 2nd, 1943, the Wheeler anchored in the busy Italian port of Bari, where she was to spend the next few days unloading her cargo, taking on new supplies, and allowing her weary crew an opportunity to finally relax ashore. With Christmas fast approaching, and warm thoughts of their families filling their heads, James Greene and his fellow sailors had no idea of the horror that awaited them. 

 

After a single German reconnaissance aircraft breached the harbor’s AA defenses and reported its findings to the badly mauled Luftwaffe forces of Albert Kesselring and Wolfram von Richthofen, eager to strike a crippling blow to the Allies after losing air superiority, the two Field Marshals immediately ordered that an attack be prepared. With haste, planning began on what would come to be considered by Allied leaders as the second Pearl Harbor. 

 

After another uneventful day at anchor in the crowded port, Greene and the other sailors were likely getting ready to turn in for the night as the sun began to set. Most of the crew were ashore, and the ship’s Armed Guard Officer was in the town retrieving the men’s pay that would be distributed to the crew the following day. All was calm and quiet until, the drone of airplane engines roared through the sky. Suddenly bombs began falling all around the Wheeler, and one by one the ships anchored in the port began to explode and sink. The Joseph Wheeler suffered a catastrophic explosion that ripped a massive hole in her starboard side, causing her to rapidly sink. Nearby, a gigantic explosion sank the SS John Harvey, causing her secretive cargo of Mustard Gas to leak into the air and water which, coupled with burning oil, killed many of the survivors in the water along with many of the eventual rescuers. 

 

Somewhere in the fog of the ship’s sinking, James Greene disappeared, never to be seen alive again. After several days, he was declared missing in action, and his family notified. The following month, just weeks before his 20th Birthday, his family finally learned that their son had been killed. His body would be recovered from the wreck of the Wheeler, and interred in the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery. 

 

His brother Charles would survive the war after seeing heavy combat in the Pacific. He would have four children with his wife and pass away at the age of 85 in 2003.

 

The US and British governments, deeply embarrassed that the John Harvey’s internationally banned cargo of Mustard Gas had killed countless Allied sailors and their rescuers, instituted a cover up. The truth about Bari would not be known by the public until 1959.

 

[tdogchristy90]

LYONS, this is a great piece. Thank you so much for sharing and what an incredible well written and researched story! Very well done, thanks again!

[LYONSJ9]

7 minutes ago, tdogchristy90 said:

LYONS, this is a great piece. Thank you so much for sharing and what an incredible well written and researched story! Very well done, thanks again!

Thank you Tdog, I’m honored to be able to tell his story. It’s amazing how overlooked Bari is in comparison with other WWII naval disasters.

[tdogchristy90]

4 minutes ago, LYONSJ9 said:

Thank you Tdog, I’m honored to be able to tell his story. It’s amazing how overlooked Bari is in comparison with other WWII naval disasters.

I’ll second that with this. I worked on a WW2 project as part of my graduate schooling and one of the soldiers was KIA on a Liberty Ship as they were headed to Africa. The Liberty ship, transports, and Merchant Marine don’t get enough credit I feel. 

[katieony]

A very interesting and historic group...thank you for sharing it.

 

Mike