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Mess cooking
Posts: 17
| Subject: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
or surviving relatives of shipmates... if you have memories or possibly pix please contact me. I am seeking to know more about my late Grandpa than dad can tell me. If any of you are out there please email me or contact me via the board.
huggz,
MJ
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Master and Commander
Posts: 1814
Location: Boydton, Virginia | Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
MJ,
Do you know what boat your Grandpa rode, during what period of time and what the boat's home port was?
Steamboat sends
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Master and Commander
Posts: 1107
Location: Tucson AZ | Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
I checked Don's 'Find a Shipmate' and he's listed, but there is no info on boats served on. |
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Admin
Posts: 2297
Location: Renton, WA | Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
Welcome Mary... tell the guys as much as your can about your grandfather... you may find out a lot. Folks... don't go treating Mary like some kinda flower as she races motorcycles - she's tougher than most of us  |
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Mess cooking
Posts: 17
| Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
All I know is he was "frozen" in his enlistment because of the outbreak of the Korean War, I know from what dad tells me that the cook had a penchant for food coloring. If anyone remembers being on the same boat please let me know. I think the boat sailed out of somewhere in the bay area, possibly Mare Island but I am not sure. It had to have been before my dad was born (1953), but I am not sure.
Edited by OnBehalfOfBarneyJ 2008-09-04 9:16 PM
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Plankowner
Posts: 9165
Location: Upper lefthand corner of the map. | Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
Mary, have you tried National Archives? You can get a copy of his military service records from them. I knew very little about my dads limited service in WW II and ended up getting a copy of his service jacket from them. They aren't fast but they do the job.
http://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records/get-service-records.html
You can do it online here:
https://vetrecs.archives.gov/VeteranRequest/home.asp
Or send via the mail service
http://www.archives.gov/research/order/standard-form-180.pdf
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Mess cooking
Posts: 17
| Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
I'll try to talk dad into trying it... I had a look and only he or one of his bros can do it... hmmm maybe uncle jim woukd do it... |
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Mess cooking
Posts: 17
| Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
I emailed my dad's uncle Jim this is an excerpt from the message...
"There was a TV documentary series called Victory at Sea, which recounted the naval battles of WWII, and the lead-in footage for each episode of that series was film of a submarine surfacing at a very steep angle, coming about half way out of the water. It turns out that that was the most nearly vertical surfacing of a submarine up to that time, and it was of your grandfather's sub. He was on board at the time of filming. Apparently the skipper was a wild man who was always doing crazy things.
P.S. I think it was the Pickerel"
if this sounds familiar to anyone let me know |
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Master and Commander
Posts: 2254
Location: Foothills of the Ozarks | Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
The boat your uncle refers to is indeed the Pickerel.
There's another piece of the puzzle for you.
Good luck on the quest. |
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Mess cooking
Posts: 17
| Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
now I just need a time line..... |
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Master and Commander
Posts: 2254
Location: Foothills of the Ozarks | Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
OnBehalfOfBarneyJ - 2008-09-05 2:01 PM
now I just need a time line.....
Here's a number of links to USS Pickerel SS 524; I pulled this piece out on her Korean War service
From 16 March to 5 April 1950, Pickerel completed a 5,200 mile voyage from Hong Kong to Pearl Harbor in 21 days while completely submerged, probably the longest distance ever traveled by a submerged diesel-electric submarine. During her first deployment in the Western Pacific in 1950, Pickerel spent 4 months in the Korean War Zone, one of the first submarines to enter the Korean Conflict.
They have a reunion coming up next month so if you contact them their might be sombody who remembers.
http://www.esryle.com/coblinks/links/524LINKS.html
Edited by Doc Gardner 2008-09-05 1:28 PM
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Mess cooking
Posts: 17
| Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
more info from dad...
he was sort of an electronics expert, he was trained to fix radar, sonar and radio gear. He originally had a desk job at Pearl but while delivering some mail he fixed the radar on a sub one day the skipper offered him a "on the job training" job on the sub to start the next day. |
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COMSUBBBS
Posts: 2561
Location: Rapid City, SD | Subject: The "Big Angle"
The Pickeral surfaced off Manila at a 72 degree angle in February, 1950. I believe the Commander was Paul R. Schratz.
Cora |
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Mess cooking
Posts: 17
| Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
72 degrees holy poo! that's pretty darn steep! anyone got pix of that... |
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Plankowner
Posts: 9165
Location: Upper lefthand corner of the map. | Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
Go here for the photo
http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/08524.htm |
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Senior Crew
Posts: 206
Location: Edina. MN | Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
Welcome Mary,
Now that you have the date of the surfacing (3/1/52), I recommend that you go to Don Gentry's Find a Shipmate and click on SS. Enter Pickerel and find crew members who were aboard at that time. Send an e-mail with USS Pickerel as the subject and ask if they remember your grandpa. Good luck.
Edited by Pete 2008-09-07 11:09 AM
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COMSUBBBS
Posts: 2561
Location: Rapid City, SD | Subject: I'm confused, Pete...
Commander Schratz, in his book,"Submariner Commander," lists the date of the 72 degree angle as February, 1950 off of Manila, not March 1, 1952 off Hawaii. Perhaps you have better information than I do?
Cora |
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Senior Crew
Posts: 206
Location: Edina. MN | Subject: RE: I'm confused, Pete...
Cora,
This is from the Navsource.org site with the famous photo.
"Pickerel (SS-524), surfacing at a 48 degree up angle, from a depth of 150 feet, during tests off the coast of Oahu, Hawaii, 1 March 1952.
The purpose of this operation was to enable the Navy's submarineexperts to evaluate the sub's capabilities and characteristics of the GUPPY-snorkel type sub.
This picture was taken from Sabalo (SS-302). Her sonarmen kept Pickerel under observation while she was submerged and preparing to surface. During Pickerel'smaneuvering the sonar gear delivered the constantly changing relativebearing which enabled the photographers to make this shot as she brokethe surface."
Note:The official record of the "surfacing" pictured above is that it started at 150 feet and reached a 48 degree up-angle.From a crew-member manning the helm during this evolution:
"We started at 250 feet, flank speed. The surfacing order included 'use60 degrees' (the highest reading on the -bubble-type' angle indicator).
"We overshot, and lost the bubble at 65 degrees. The maximum angle (72degrees) was calculated later by the highwater marks in the Pump Roombilges. Thinking back, even with the bow sticking above water up to thebridge fairwater, the screws wouldn't have been much above where westarted, still pushing us upward.
"First message from the Queenfish (SS-393) which was accompanying us: 'What is the specific gravity of your Torpedo Room bilges?'
"As you may imagine, the C.O. was something of a competitive wildman, pushing to find out what the limits were for these new GUPPY boats, after putting up with the older WW2 boats. And, we had to beat the Amberjack's (SS-522) record of 43 degrees." Text from All Hands magazine, May 1952 edition, courtesy of Stan Svec & /ussubvetsofworldwarii.org.
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, # NH 97019, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center.
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Old Salt
Posts: 359
Location: Saco, Maine | Subject: RE: I'm confused, Pete...
Corabelle - 2008-09-07 4:31 PM
Commander Schratz, in his book,"Submariner Commander," lists the date of the 72 degree angle as February, 1950 off of Manila, not March 1, 1952 off Hawaii.
Cora
Did he take the International Date Line in consideration? That may explain the difference. |
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COMSUBBBS
Posts: 2561
Location: Rapid City, SD | Subject: Can you gain or lose two years, John...
,,,when you cross the International Date Line? (1950 - 1952)
Cora |
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Master and Commander
Posts: 2357
| Subject: RE: Can you gain or lose two years, John...
Corabelle - 2008-09-08 9:57 AM
,,,when you cross the International Date Line? (1950 - 1952 )
Cora
There is a saying....'Stranger things happen at sea you know'
Either that or all those lobsters are affecting John's brain!
Blue *_* |
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COMSUBBBS
Posts: 6180
Location: Summerville, SC | Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
I'll defend John Bay just a tad. His brain is a "little muddled". We sent that old hurricane Hanna up his way and the low pressure must have affected him---ain't that right John. From Maine it must have gone up to Newfieland because I haven't heard from Hairball--then again he's a tad muddled on a constant. |
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Mess cooking
Posts: 17
| Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
My uncle has sent for the archival information and he says he will send it to me when it comes! |
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Senior Crew
Posts: 217
| Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
Al Rieboldt went aboard the Pickerel shortly after the famous surfacing. His e-mail address several years ago was subqm@tenforward.com
I don't know if the address is still good.
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Mess cooking
Posts: 46
Location: east river, South Dakota | Subject: RE: Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
Mary another, maybe faster and or easier posibility to get some good if brief info, would be to see if he filed a copy of his discharge papers with the county courthouse where he lived when he was discharged. I know several years ago I was frustrated in trying to get info about my father. I mentioned it to a customer (I worked for a bank then). The customer had served during Korea, and told me tht they were all encouraged to file a copy with the county seat, I think the auditor's office handles it. I called the county courthouse where pa had lived then, and they were very, very helpfull and sent me a notarized copy of his discharge papers. It has great info. In fact a few years back I made a point of sending a copy of it to each of my siblings, so that the info is less likely to get misplaced. It also means that if anyone else wants info that is on there, they won't suffer the frustration, of not knowing where to go for the info. It included his duty stations, company numbers, etc (he was army aircorp). It can't hurt to try, and might get you a lot of info to make this search easier. Good luck Mary, and please keep us updated. The folks here really do care |
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Attn: Shipmates of Walmer Jorgenson
