Harry Boyer, Seaman

Written By Quincy Dermody

Harry Boyer never really talked about his time in WWII in the Navy, but I don’t know why—if it was traumatic, or boring, or he wasn’t proud of it, or for no reason other than that it was in the past. His son Bruce and I recently requested records of his service from the National Personnel Records Center of the National Archives, and although there was not as much detail as I had hoped, there is a lot there to explore—to help paint a fuller picture of this time in his life. And maybe others can recollect any tidbits to add to the story, or help me to better understand the Navy acronyms, terminology, and practices? Please comment below!

Harry served in the U.S. Navy for about a year and 9 months, from 16 March 1944 through 4 January 1946. He was a month short of his 27th birthday when he joined, and had been married for almost 5 years. Although he had registered in the first draft in October 1940, as required by the new selective service law, he wasn’t called into service and inducted until 1944. For the three years before that, he had been a civilian part of the US-based war effort, working at the Lebanon Steel Foundry in Lebanon, PA, “testing armor plate”. The Lebanon Steel Foundry supported the war effort, for which steel was critical. According to Harry’s wife Pauline, “he would have been deferred from joining the service because of his job but he volunteered to go.”

I couldn’t find much online about the Lebanon Steel Foundry’s specific activities, though there is a printed history I need to read: The Circle “L” Story by John J. Foster, which may provide more details. There are also some great photos for sale on ebay—of a Lebanon Steel Foundry celebration of M3 Stuart Tank Production from about August 1941, when Harry would have worked there (February 1941 to February 1944). According to the post, the photo shows Boy Scouts and foundry employees for a banner at the event. Could Harry be in this photo?

After Harry was enlisted on March 16, 1944, he went to the U.S. Naval Training Station in Sampson, NY for training. Harry entered as an Apprentice Seaman, and completed his training as Seaman Second Class. According to the brochure, going from Apprentice Seaman (pay grade 7) to Seaman Second Class (pay grade 6) took you from a monthly base pay of $50 to $54. Harry would have also gotten an allowance of $50 for his wife, as well as a 20% increase when serving on sea duty or overseas service. If you want to know more about the training (or what they wanted you to know about joining the Navy, I suggest checking out the entertaining “Helpful Hints to the Navy Recruit”.

After his initial recruit’s training (usually 5-8 weeks long according to the brochure), Harry was granted leave, along with a number of others from Lebanon, PA—as noted in the Lebanon Daily News on April 24. From there, he continued on to San Diego, CA to the Naval Training Center. (It changed names from Naval Training “Station” to “Center” in April 1944.) There, he received more specialized training, attending 16 weeks of C1 “A” Torpedoman’s School. He continued on to Advanced Torpedoman’s School at the Naval Torpedo Station in Keyport, Washington for 12 weeks. As of December 14, 1944, he was certified for Mark 13, 14, 15, and 18 type torpedoes.

The Mark 14 (and 15) torpedoes had many issues in the first couple of years of the war—with inconsistent depth control and detonation, and any faults generally being blamed on the operators. By 1944, when Harry was training, the multiple technical issues had been addressed, so they were more reliable. But throughout his training, he was possibly learning about the various factors contributing to the failures of the Mark 14.

While Harry was taking his advanced torpedo training, and possibly for some time serving in Keyport, Washington as well, Pauline also got a job nearby – working 11 miles south in Bremerton, WA. In 2001 she recalled, “I had been to Bremerton, Washington. And he was serving, north of Bremerton at that navy base. So I was there about 3 months I guess, while he was stationed there. And I got a job at the Navy base there—the Navy Yard, where the ships came in for repairs. And I had promise of an office job. And I could walk from... We rented a room, just a bedroom, from a private family in Bremerton, and I was able to walk to work. It was through the town; it wasn’t a big town. It was through the town to the, to where the Navy Yard was. So I walked there, from there, and worked in that office in the Navy Yard. … The papers came through, showing the ships, what repairs they were going to be having, etc.” Listen below.

The Lebanon Daily News noted in the Mt. Zion section that “Mrs. Harry Boyer returned home Wednesday evening [December 27] after staying for several months in the state of Washington with her husband who is in the U.S. Navy.” On 23 January 1945, Harry started his foreign service – listed on his Notice of Separation form as ComSer 7th Fleet (R/S TRIM). Despite a lot of googling, I cannot figure out exactly what that means. I did find out that the 7th fleet had a Royal Australian Navy component– which I enjoy given our family’s current Australian connections. Usually, the vessel he served on would be listed on his Notification of Separation form, but I can’t see anything to lead me to research further. Perhaps he wasn’t on a vessel (though that seems strange for a torpedoman). Any thoughts? I always assumed he was on a ship, but maybe he was on a submarine? He was likely a Torpedoman’s Mate by this point in his service (having previously been Apprentice Seaman, Seaman 2nd Class, and Seaman 1st Class by the end of his advanced torpedo training).

Pauline recalled many years later that one of Harry’s first jobs was in Manila, guarding the lieutenants’ quarters—Eisehnower’s quarters. I think she must have confused some things. Although Eisenhower was a lieutenant in Manila in WWI, later in WWII he was beyond the rank of Lieutenant and overseeing the war in and around Europe. Eisenhower could have gone to the Philippines while Harry was there, as Chief of Staff for the U.S. Army, but I didn’t easily find evidence that Eisenhower was there. It could have been another famous Lieutenant? Thoughts?

When Harry joined the 7th fleet in the Pacific in January 1945, the Allies had only recently begun to retake the Philippines from the Japanese, after the battle of Leyte Gulf in October. Did Harry fire any torpedoes? Kamikaze pilots continued their attacks while the seventh supported landings in Luzon, Philippines. Did any crash into Harry’s ship? The Japanese held Manila through March. Ships of the seventh fleet conducted other operations in the Pacific including landing operations in Borneo in May 1945. Without knowing more about Harry’s ship, it is hard to know what he experienced. During his time in foreign service in the Pacific the war turned. In August, atomic bombs were dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and in September Japan surrendered.

Harry’s final foreign service station was the U.S. Naval Base 3142 – Manila, Philippines—in what I imagine was conducting the paperwork of ending a war. His foreign service ended 20 December 1945, and he returned to the U.S. By the time of his honorable discharge on January 4, 1946, it had been about 7 months since VE Day, and 4 months since Japan’s unconditional surrender was accepted. On Harry’s separation of service document, it is noted that he wanted to work at the Lebanon post office when he returned. Although I don’t think this ever happened, the Lebanon Daily News noted in December 1949, that “Harry Boyer is again assisting the local mail carrier by serving a part of the route each day during the holiday rush.”

For his service, Harry received the Pacific Theater Ribbon, the American Theater Ribbon, the Victory Medal (awarded by the Government of the Philippine Islands to those who served on active between duty December 7, 1941 and December 31, 1946), and the Philippine Liberation Ribbon (issued by the Philippine government to recognize service personnel who contributed to efforts in the liberation of the Philippine Islands in WWII—in Harry’s case due to service of at least 30 days in the Philippines or surrounding waters between October 17, 1944 and September 3, 1945.).

Harry brought back a pair of red wooden platform shoes for his wife Pauline – shoes with a painted Philippine village carved inside the heel. I am not sure Pauline ever wore them, but I have seen the shoes (I own them now), but I have never seen his war ribbons.

Bibliography

Quincy Dermody
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