Transcript Slide 1

The events of August 31, 1942
until December 11, 1942
After finishing Fire Control School in
Washington, D.C., Adrian was told to report
“to the receiving station” at the Norfolk,
Virginia Navy yard and then from there to the
Navy yard in New York to get his new
assignment. To the right is the record of
being received by the Navy yard in New York
on August 31, 1942. He was placed with the
USS Melville (AD-2).
The Melville was a destroyer
tender. It was launched in
1915. By the time World War II
began, the ship was almost 30
years old. After being
stationed for two years on the
brand new USS Helena, Adrian
always referred to it as “a
bucket of bolts.”
At the time of Adrian’s assignment, the Melville was based in Hafnarfjordur, Iceland.
An obvious question would be - why was a destroyer tender in Iceland? Convoys of
ships were used to carry supplies and personnel among the Allied countries, and
Iceland was conveniently placed along North Atlantic shipping lanes. But the waters
they were crossing through were full of German submarines. The convoys were
protected by a type of fast, agile ship called a destroyer. Consequently, Iceland was an
ideal place for a destroyer tender to be based in order to help maintain the destroyers.
Destroyer tenders were well-named. They did
just that; they "tended," serviced, repaired,
and supplied destroyers and other ships.
Destroyers were small, fast ships, jammed
full of machinery and weapons, with
necessarily small crews. Destroyer tenders,
like the Melville, serviced the ships at sea, so
they did not have to return to land for most
repairs. Their work was not limited to
destroyers but included any ship in their
location that needed help they could provide.
If he was a fire controlman, why was Adrian placed on a
tender instead of a “fighting ship?”
Adrian became a fire controlman while on the USS Helena. His rating included
additional knowledge beyond fire control. He began as FC(M)3c, not the general
designation of FC3c, and continued to move up in rank with this extra designation of
“Maintenance.” This meant that he had the additional knowledge necessary to take
apart, trouble shoot, and repair the complex machinery needed to fire the guns. This
gave him abilities that would be valuable well beyond a single ship. By placing him
on a tender, the Navy was providing this knowledge to many ships. A plus for his
family was that, though he was not completely out of danger, he was no longer on a
ship specifically designed to go into battle.
Notice the differences between the
Melville and the Helena. If you look
carefully, one can see that the Melville
had only a couple of antiaircraft guns.
The Helena, being a battle ready, light
cruiser, was armed to the teeth.
Everything in the forward part of the
ship are large guns. A similar
arrangement of guns was in the back,
and antiaircraft guns were on the port
and starboard sides. It is also obvious
that the Helena was built for speed.
USS Helena
After waiting in New York
for a few weeks, the Navy
decided to send Adrian to
Iceland to join the Melville
by way of ships moving
in that direction. Adrian
was sent to Casco Bay in
Portland, Maine and on
October 12, 1942 boarded
his first ship toward
joining the Melville in
Iceland. Here he joined
the enlisted passengers
on board the USS Prairie
(AD 15).
Original document cropped to fit.
To the left are the records
from the Prairie showing
Adrian’s being received
on board. The lower,
highlighted line says that
he was received (Rec.)
from receiving station
(From R/S) Casco Bay,
Portland Me.
The USS Prairie was also a destroyer tender but much newer than the Melville. As
the war began, this ship was normally stationed in Argentia, Newfoundland. In
May of 1942, a fire broke out in a ship that was alongside the Prairie, which was
tied to it having repairs made. The fire spread to the Prairie. The ship was sent
from Newfoundland to Boston for repairs. The USS Vulcan (AR-5) was sent to
Newfoundland to take its place.
USS Prairie AD-15
One would think that
being on a ship off the
coast of Maine and
Newfoundland would be a
relatively safe place to be.
Such was not the case.
Six months after the war
started, 171 American
vessels had been
torpedoed off the east
coast of the Unites States,
mostly in the Northeast.
Between October 15 and 19, the
repaired Prairie made its way
from Maine back to
Newfoundland to resume its
duties there. The record to the
left shows Adrian’s being
transferred (Tran.) from the
Prairie to the USS Vulcan (AR 5)
on October 19, 1942. This
transfer occurred in Argentia,
Newfoundland.
FFT means For Further Transfer.
Original document cropped to fit.
In the tense months before
America's entry into World War II,
a series of agreements with Great
Britain gave the United States a
set of bases located strategically
with respect to the North Atlantic
shipping lanes. In 1940, as a part
of the “Destroyers for Bases”
agreement, an area at Argentia,
Newfoundland, was set aside for
the development of an American
naval base.
Argentia,
Newfoundland
This photo was taken some time in 1942. The view is from the
island of Argentia, across the Little Placentia Sound toward
Newfoundland. The US Naval base and air station were just
being constructed. As can be seen from the photo, seaplanes
played a major role in this area. Adrian was here from October
20, 1942 until November 10, 1942 waiting on the next transfer
toward the Melville in Iceland.
The Vulcan (AR 5) was based in the Northern Atlantic Ocean. Its designation as
AR means it too was a repair ship but not built specifically to repair destroyers.
This photo was taken four months before Adrian went on board. It probably still
had its camouflage paint when he was on it.
Adrian arrived on board the Vulcan the same
day he left the Prairie. The record shows him
being received (REC) on October 19, 1942.
The Vulcan remained in Newfoundland until
November 14, 1942. On this date, she left to
relieve the USS Melville from her repair
assignment in Iceland. It seems ironic to us
today that Adrian spent a month in route to
join his ship in Iceland just to turn around
and leave again!
As one works with these old records, they
draw you into the “bigger story.” This page
was not edited so that the reader could see
the duties of the other men on this page
(which only covers men with last names
beginning with D, E, and F). Notice that most
of the men were being assigned to PatRon
84. This was the Naval Air Patrol Squadron
84 which was an Anti-Submarine Patrol
Squadron that would quickly be known for
sinking six German submarines in the North
Atlantic Ocean.
This USS Melville “Report of
Changes” done on November
23, 1942 from Reykjavik, Iceland
show that Adrian was received
from the USS Vulcan on
November 21, 1942. Adrian was
now officially part of the
Melville’s crew.
The Vulcan was now in port to
take over for the Melville which
was scheduled to go to New
York!
By November 27, 1942, after
only a few days in Iceland,
Adrian began a return trip
across the Atlantic. Being a
skinny gentleman from
southern Mississippi, that was
probably just fine with him.
Also, he was heading back to
the New York Navy yard which
was less than 2 miles from
where his wife, Wanda was
living.
What was going on in Iceland?
Another view of the USS Melville
During this time period, Iceland
was a sovereign kingdom united
with Denmark. In the late 1930s,
Hitler was very interested in
finding a way to secure a
location in the North Atlantic.
Though Denmark and Iceland
declared themselves neutral,
Germany invaded Demark in
April of 1940. Britain offered
Iceland assistance but they
declined. Due to the strategic
placement of Iceland in the
North Atlantic, Britain felt
compelled to take action.
Winston Churchill knew the country would not be able to stay out of the reach of
Germany for very long. He put a plan into action the same day he became prime minister
of England. On May 10, 1940, the people of Reykjavik awoke to see four British warships
in their harbor; they had been invaded. On July 1, 1941, Britain asked the USA (then
neutral) to take over responsibility for Iceland. Once the US military arrived, the 40,000
marines outnumbered the Icelandic adult male population! Our military presence proved
critical to keeping the shipping lanes open and supplies flowing.
These two beneficiary forms for
Wanda give us addresses for her
during 1942. The first one, dated
February 27, 1942 was filled out
when Adrian had recently arrived in
California after the bombing of
Pearl Harbor. He gave his wife’s
full maiden name – Wanda Maria
Werbicki. That was obviously not
what they wanted as seen from the
request below!
By November, 1942, the family had
moved to 146 North 4th Street,
Brooklyn. The Werbicki family
would remain at this address until
the end of the war.
An interesting
side story
Wanda and her father, Raymond Werbicki
1942
There were several required registrations related to World War 2. The Fourth
Registration, often referred to as the "old man's registration," was conducted on 27
April 1942. As can been seen on this card, men born on or between 28 April 1877 and
16 February 1897 (between 45 and 64 years old) and not already in the military had to
provide information to the government. This is Wanda’s father’s registration
information. It shows he was born on January 29, 1892 in Lomza, Poland and was
living at 152 North 9th Street in Brooklyn, NY. This provides an address for Wanda
Fortenberry as of April 27, 1942.
Adrian received his assignment
to the USS Melville on August
31, 1942. It was three months
before he was actually on
board. This is the Navy record
of his official transfers on
board the three ships.
Adrian’s log shows dates that are little off from the official Naval records. It
does show that he left Iceland soon after arriving and returned to New York by
December 11, 1942. He would have just turned 24 years old the week before!
Since no photos have been located
that were taken during this specific
time period, several images with
unknown dates have been added
here.
This picture taken of Wanda shows
off one of her outfits that she
made. It was probably copied from
a design she saw in a store
window! There is a good chance
that she decorated the hat too.
Interesting Side Story: She is
wearing a pearl necklace that
Adrian gave her when he returned
from Pearl Harbor. Her daughters
remember this necklace well. It
was the only piece of jewelry she
owned that she truly loved and
treasured. They were not cultured
pearls as is common today but
natural pearls. Sadly, no one has
seen them in many, many years.
Though the picture to the right cannot be
dated, Wanda is wearing her pearl
necklace. This photograph came from a
small album Adrian kept with him
throughout his time in the Navy.
The photo on the left was taken
on April 4, 1964 at Raymond’s
wedding. If you look closely
enough, you can see that Wanda
has on her pearl necklace.
One of Wanda’s favorite places to visit in
New York City was the American Museum
of Natural History. She and a friend,
Anne Riley, are standing on the steps in
front of the museum. Visiting this
specific museum was instrumental in
developing Wanda’s passion for the
natural world.
Evidently her mother, Pauline Werbicki,
went to the museum with them. That is
probably a picture of Wanda’s finger in
front of the lens!
Wanda and Anne Riley
visiting the Brooklyn
Botanic Gardens in
Prospect Park.
At this point, Adrian had just
turned 24 (December 7, 1942) and
Wanda would soon be 22 (January
24, 1943). Adrian had just finished
his fifth year in the Navy and the
war was really having an impact
on the world. While Adrian was
doing his part to keep the guns on
the Navy’s ships in order, Wanda
was also helping the war effort
from home. More about that next
time!