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ACTIVITIES OF THE FOX 1952 OFF KOREA
It was five in the morning and the Fox was steaming aft of the Laffey.
Suddenly the primary radio circuit blasted a message.
“Execute to follow” the voice said “240 corpen”. The Fox turned left.
“Tell the Captain.” The Captain was alert in spite of the fact that he
had been awakened out of a sound sleep. “Did you read the night orders?”
he asked. The JOOD muttered a series of unintelligible sounds. “Well get
back on base course” the Captain ordered.
And the Fox was spared from following the Laffey to Wonsan harbor and
continued up the coast to where she was to rendezvous with the USS Edmunds
just north of Hungnam. The Captain ordered the whaleboat tested and when it
was put in the water the batteries were dead. A half hour was spent with
the electricians bending over the connections and as a result the tactical
data was transferred via the Edmund’s whaleboat. The Edmunds left for the
south and the Fox’s whaleboat now ready was lowered into the water.
Mr. Doran and the raiding party climbed
aboard with grenades and rifles and a few hundred yards off the bow practiced
firing and throwing the hand grenades in the water. The sound traveled
through the liquid and slapped the entire hull as if a giant hand were
pounding the ship. On the bridge Chief Rogne tested the radio by which
communication between the ship and the whaleboat was kept. As it turned
out the raiding party never used the hand grenades in defense, passing
through the valley of the shadow of death as if the enemy did not know
they existed or by skillful foresight avoiding all potential spots of
danger.
April 30 was warm and calm and as the Fox fired upon shore positions, the
Reds returned fire and the first salvo fell thirty yards from the ship.
General Quarters sounded and all stations including the forty millimeters
were manned. The forty-millimeter stations were later secured because
they were of no use in firing at shore positions being out of range, and
keeping the crews in a topside position increased the chances of injury.
A few rounds whistled over the director landing on the other side of the
ship and as the Fox maneuvered forward of a trail of white smokescreen to
close the position the rounds fell short of their mark. On the shore near
the position of the firing, gun puffs of smoke arose where the answering
fire of the Fox made its impact. Through these puffs a yellow flash would
break out as the enemy tried to send another round towards the destroyer.
As the projectile hit the water a beautiful fountain of water would rise
into the sky and shrapnel would patter down over the entire area like drops
of rain. The batteries ceased fire and the Fox continued its patrol.
And then an errand of mischief was in the air. There was a rock a mile or
so off the coast of Hungnam which reached fairly high into the air.
Captain Dare dispatched the raiding party to it equipped with an American
flag and a large white flag. Mr. Doran climbed the rock and firmly
installed the flag placing instructions below it prepared by Koo that
anyone wishing to surrender to the destroyer should wave the white flag
and a small boat would come to rescue them. That the instructions would
fall into red hands was obvious for their curiosity was bound to get the
better of them when they saw the flag waving in their own back yard, and
they would be bound to investigate it. Also the U.S.S. J.C. Owens was in
the area and due to pass by the next afternoon and so for their benefit the
words U.S.S. D. H. FOX were painted in red letters to seaward and the
raiders returned to the ship.
May Day failed to produce the expected peace and was spent off Hungnam
pumping lead into the city from the five-inch battery. In back of the
city rose the hills from which the retreating American Army had descended
in December of 1951, when the Chinese Communists entered the war. It was
possible to see how by firing at those hills the Missouri was able to hold
back the hordes while the Americans embarked from the city. To the left
towards the inland area were radio antennas and further to the left was a
railroad which airplanes bombed with napalm and high capacity explosives
on several occasions. The Reds chose to ignore the firing destroyer who
was counterpointing their May Day ceremony and no counter-battery was
received. Few signs of life were evident in the city and the Fox left
in the afternoon with a few shell holes in buildings and more bricks in
the rubble among raging fires as evidence of its presence.
The flag island raid did not produce any refugees although the flag was
missing the next day. Captain Dare summoned attention to starboard as
it was passed out on the morning of May 2 as the Fox steamed from the
north. Signalmen on the bridge spotted a tiny sampan in the water and
when viewed through glasses it was evident that people in it were waving
to the ship. As the sampan came closer several adults and some children
were visible huddled in the tiny space. When the sampan came closer the
adults increased to six, and as it came still closer it was possible to see
several babies carried by the women. In all there were thirteen who had
taken advantage of the May Day hangover of the authorities to escape the
worker’s paradise. When they saw the Fox steaming down the coast they had
rowed out and managed to attract enough attention to be picked up. The
children were showered with gifts of candy and fruit, but none of the
Koreans were allowed the run of the ship being placed instead in the
shipfitter’s shop which became the acting jail. Signs appeared on the
quarterdeck pointing to “Embry’s Hotel” and when their sampan was towed
off behind the LCVM which took them off the ship in Wonsan harbor, there
was a big sign visible reading “For Sale--See Chief Embry.”
Late in the night of May 2 Captain Dare bending over the radar scope
noticed numerous contacts which he correctly judged to be fishing sampans.
He had the JOOD call the word over the 21MC which was later to become a
nightly event, “Away the sampan party number one.” Soon Mr. Doran appeared
on the bridge for a last minute briefing and then stepped into the whale
boat which was lowered in the dark calmness and puttered away, guided
towards the sampans by means of a radio which the Captain used, evaluating
his information as to courses from the radar scope. Six fishermen and a
forty-foot sampan were captured. All were brought back to the ship.
Unkel the corpsman and Costello the barber were routed out of their rest
and processed the prisoners in the after crew’s washroom. Unkel treating
the men for disease and delousing them, Costello, cutting their hair.
Their clothes were sent to the laundry to be cleaned and they wore hospital
clothes while on board. Koo and Mr. Engelmann quizzed them as to military
information.
Later in the morning the Fox commenced operations in support of two
minesweepers giving them gunfire protection. In this operation Mount
45 was used to rain a steady stream of bullets on shore positions to force
the enemy gun crews to keep under cover while the five-inch guns concentrated
on knocking out known and visible gun positions. In spite of the heavy
support from the Fox the Minesweepers complained of small arms fire from
a town on the beach and it was not until the big guns went to work with
white phosphorus and heavy fire that the offending area was completely
destroyed. In spite of the roaring flames in the area, and the steady
flow of five-inch ammunition, white clad Koreans could be seen from time
to time running for cover and changing their positions of safety. At the
end of the mission the Minesweepers thanked the Fox for its help and
mentioned that they had never felt safer.
Proceeding southward a few minutes later around the point which opened
the heavy gun position of Mayang-do to view, the enemy spoke up with
twenty two rounds of 75-105 millimeter ammunition the opening salvo of
which fell fifty yards from the bow. Bells sounded in the engine room,
the hull quivered as the throttle valve opened permitting steam to rush
into the turbines and all hands rushed to their General Quarters stations.
The guns of Mount 52 swung around and opened a double salvo at the shore
battery the proximity of which blasted the glass out of the shield on the
open bridge causing Record the quartermaster severe cuts. Several of the
bridge watch were seriously jarred. The firing stopped and the Captain,
Mr. Bixon and Mr. Stoessel stood near the flag-bag while Mr. Woods sent
a few more five-inch reminders of poetic justice towards the offending
cave position. McKay the quartermaster poked his head out of the flag
bag where he had jumped for safety with the first round. White puffs of
dust from Fox guns were rising around the mouth of the cave and suddenly
a yellow flash burst in all directions.
“COUNTERBATTERY” yelled Morse the signalman, and McKay fell back into the
flag bag. “Direct hit, secondary explosion,” said the officers.
A short while and the enemy projectile hit the water ten yards from the
ship.
Minesweeping support continued on the fourth with the Fox staying just
to seaward of the unswept line while the two Minesweepers hunted inside,
their crews at General Quarters and their little three-inch guns throwing
amazingly accurate fire into enemy positions. On May 5 General Quarters
sounded again while the five-inch guns opened rapid answering fire, and
all hands knew that their ship was under counter-battery fire. Sixty-nine
rounds were thrown at the ship, but…………………………………………………………………………………………….
These are 4 of 11 pages in Chapter V of a booklet prepared by Ens.
Stoessel who was aboard during this time. Photo 02 shows Doran's
Raiders, which are also included in a display at the Navy Museum
(Washington, DC) where a section devoted to the Fox was dedicated
June 23, 2000.
U.S.S. Douglas H. Fox, (DD-779)
Care of Fleet Post Office
San Francisco, California
COMMANDING OFFICER MEMORANDUM NO. 9-52 29 May 1952
To: ALL HANDS
- Before , the tales of our counterbattery missions become too wild, I would like to summarize the
results and explain why we almost always re-engaged the batteries immediately.
- We were fired on by a total of nine or ten different batteries. Of these, seven were coastal
type batteries which had the capability of damaging us. Those few wild rounds near the bombline
hardly amounted to counterbattery action. One battery, Light House Point at Hungnam, (4 guns), was
silenced completely and permanently on the first engagement. I estimate we dismounted or destroyed
one gun and killed about 2 gun crews. The first fire received from Mayang-do, (5 guns), and from
the south of Hungnam Harbor, (4 guns), was not accurately returned immediately because of poor
visibility. Consequently, we were fired on three more times by each of these batteries. On 5 May
we had 3 distinct engagements with the battery to the south of Hungnam. I think we hit the biggest
gun, and I'm sure we killed a lot of their personnel. On the fourth pass at this battery, they did
not fire back. After the first engagement that day the enemy fire control was very poor. Later that
same day we engaged the small battery north of Light House Point (2 guns). We had hit their control
position about one hour before the engagement. Their fire was poor. Our guns dropped bursts in the
entrance to the gun positions. When we turned to close the range for the second pass, they had ceased
firing. I think we wounded some of their control personnel and gun crews. The second time we engaged
this battery we were supporting minesweepers and had been called in rather late. We fired on the
control positions and had the fire adjusted about they time they opened fire. Their control was very
poor, and we again put bursts in the gun ports. No return fire when we re-engaged to destroy the
positions. Believe we wounded their personnel again.
- The battery at Mayang-do (3 guns) and the supporting battery to the northwest (2 guns) were fairly
accurate when they opened on us on 7 May. One position on Mayang-do was totally destroyed and one the
northwest was severely damaged. Prisoner reports indicated that we had killed one gun crew and
destroyed the gun outright, and dismounted one gun in the other battery. The Mayang-do battery never
fired on us again, and we totally destroyed 3 gun positions, a control position and blew out a cave
in the area two days later. The battery to the northwest was reduced to one very inaccurate gun. That
was the one which finally hit us by shooting a large pattern as fast as he could shoot. In short,
that was luck, not fire control. In those two batteries we probably killed or wounded 4 gun crews
and destroyed 3 guns and obliterated the gun positions. Two guns were dismounted or destroyed.
-
At Kojo and again at Suwon Dan Point we hit inside gun positions while they were firing on us.
I think we dismounted two guns and probably kllled their gun crews at Kojo. We totally destroyed
a gun and crew at Suvon Dan and probably wounded or killed part of the other gun crew.
- To sum these experiences up. Very few guncrews, probably less that 50%, ever had two chances to
hit us. Those batteries which were silenced, re-engaged and pounded the first time they fired on
us, never gave us trouble a second time. None of the batteries ever had good fire control when
re-engaged immediately. That was why we normally turned and closed the range after the first
smothering fire had landed on the enemy. It was fairly safe and certainly made the area safer to
work in thereafter. If, as some ships have done, we had merely run away, those batteries would have
fired on us every time we were within range, and they would probably have become more accurate each
time. I believe we the right ting, and I think we avoided a lot of trouble and possible damage and
casualties by knocking them out.
James A. Dare
CDR, USN,
Commanding
Recollections From 1952
"ONE FOR THE FOX"
I'll never forget an incident which happened in May 1952 when I had the watch in the Main Battery
Director atop the pilot house. As Assistant Gunnery Officer, I shared this duty with our "Gun Boss"
Ed Woods, and sometimes with Joe Reeves. On this day the ship was patrolling independently north of
the bombline , and Captain Dare had the "Conn". I remember that he yelled up to me from the open bridge
that he was going in very close and to keep a sharp lookout from the director's optics. As usual when
we were in dangerous territory, we had one of our twin 5-inch mounts loaded, trained out and ready to
fire. I was looking at nothing in particular, other than the green vegetation, when all of the sudden
the screen fell away from the front of a cave and a gun battery rolled out forward on what appeared to
be a small track. As I yelled at the Captain I saw two orange flashes, and then the enemy's rounds came
whining and screaming over the ship before exploding beyond us. The twin geysers were not that far away,
so they couldn't have cleared our mast by very much. Since I had the director's cross hairs directly on
the cave, all I had to do was order the "ready" mount to, "Match Up and Lock On" and, "Shoot". They did,
and I saw our two-gun salvo go directly into the cave, blowing guns, men and everything out the front!
They only had time to fire those two rounds before we finished off the entire area!
At the first explosion the Captain activated the smoke generators and made a high speed turn to seaward.
When he next appeared on the wing of the bridge, I yelled down the good news. His expression was a strange
mixture of excitement, elation and almost disbelief. I must admit that the chances of our first round of
counter-battery resulting in a direct hit on the cave were slim, at best, but that is what happened.
Undoubtedly, credit for this should go to our Gun Boss, Ed Woods, who insisted on frequent drills and
battery alignments.
Later I discussed these events with the men in the 5-inch duty mount. The were even more excited than
I was. It has been 40 yeas since that day, and in my reflections I have watched that cave explode a
thousand times.
Lt. (j.g.) William K Doran, USNR
"RETURN FIRE"
We were shot at many times while off the Korean coast, but very few rounds came close. Our confidence
in the in-accuracy of their gunners and in our luck was high. One afternoon in May 1952 when we were
on independent patrol, we shot at gun emplacements and other targets in the hills for about three hours.
Not seeing any activity, we kept getting closer and closer to the shore to improve our accuracy. I was
O.O.D. during G.Q., but since Captain Dare always had the "Conn", I in effect had a ringside seat to all
of the action. We drifted in to about one-half mile from the shore, when suddenly a gun came out of one
of the caves and the North Koreans started shooting back at us! At that close range we were in big
trouble !. The Captain immediately called for full speed, and we started high-tailing it out of there.
Fortunately, their first shots were not close, but as we picked up speed they began to get closer.
Captain Dare kept calmly watching the splashes as the great mathematical wheels in his head analyzed
their shot patterns. Finally he said, "I think it's about time to move". Just about that time their
next shell came over, and I swear, the splash was just where the ship would have been if we hadn't
turned!
"THE SHEIKS ARRIVAL"
When we got to Ras Tanura in the Persian Gulf (June 1952) most of the officers and crew went on liberty,
leaving just a skeleton crew. Unfortunately, I had the duty as O.D. I think there was only one other
officer on board (Ensign Reaves) and about twenty-five of the crew. It was a quiet, hot, sunny afternoon
when all of the sudden a caravan of about six long limousines pulled up at the gangway. The scene that
unfolded was right out of the Arabian Nights. First out of the cars came a bunch of big, rough-looking
Arabs in native dress with big swords hanging from their belts. Next, the more important local
characters stepped out, and finally, their leader, who I believe was a minor sheik, emerged. There
were about twenty-five of them in all. Through an interpreter the sheik explained that this was a
goodwill call and that he'd like to meet the Captain and tour the ship. My orders were not to let
anyone on board, but I wasn't about to argue with those long-knives ! I explained that the Captain
was away, but that I would be glad to show him around. So he and four of his associates toured the
ship with me. After about a half-hour they thanked me and took off in a cloud of dust.
Bob Richman, Communications Officer
Ode To The U.S.S. Douglas H. Fox (DD 779)
The U.S.S. Douglas H. Fox DD 779.
A ship, a name, a crew of men, a bond
That forever unites us as one.
A tale of good times, and of bad times,
Stories of individual lives brought together,
From across our great nation, ocean to ocean, state to state,
Cities, and small towns everywhere.
Joined by who knows what calling.
A spirit of something that is intangible.
It is a part of belonging, of being. A desire of the
Unknown to most. Love of the sea and adventure.
For some, exciting lands only heard of before.
Of peoples, places, and cultures, heretofore
Only read of in books.
The U.S.S. Douglas H. Fox DD 779.
A symbol of strength, of speed, of power,
Sailing the seas in search of new beginnings,
Of entering new chapters in our lives.
The satisfaction of belonging, of camaraderie.
We are all comrades in arms, tied together for eternity.
We grow old, but the memories, stories, and ties,
Will forever remain fresh and lasting.
Our lives may change with each passing day,
But our memories and stories will never change.
They remain as clear and vivid, as the day they happened,
Yesterday, today, tomorrow, and through all our years.
Some, may be retold through our children, or grandchildren.
We would like to think so, we would hope so.
I am a fortunate man, truly fortunate,
For I have been blessed, and allowed to be a part of a special fraternity.
The fraternity of a great ship, its masters, and crew.
Of a kinship with all of it's human frailties,
And yet, steadfast in our beliefs and faith in each other.
I sailed and served aboard this ship, stalwart and proud.
A pride that I will ever take through life with me,
Wherever my destiny may lead me.
I AM a Fox crewman, now and forever.
And I am truly thankful
Tom "Windy" Sherman RMSN, 1951-1953
Memories From 1952, Korea and the World Cruise
Tom "Windy" Sherman's letter to Bill Oliver, June 4, 2004
I hope that someday Alice and I will also get to see the Fox motor whale boat (replica) at the Korean
War exhibit in the Washington Navy Yard Museum. I served aboard the Fox as a radioman with Bill Sims
when those raids took place. Probably the most exciting time of my young life. Hell, I was a "snot
nosed" kid on a World Cruise which included 4 months of operation along the coast of Korea from Hungnam
to Wonsan. My memories include our crossing the International Dateline, and also the equator where we
became full fledged Shellbacks. Going through both the Panama Canal, and the Suez Canal. An all-hands
swimming party at the entrance to the Suez while waiting for our turn to pass through. Watching shipmates,
myself included, drunk on rum in Port au Prince, Haiti and swinging from trees like damn monkeys.
Or leaving a club after several officers from ships in our squadron entered and neatly put their hats
on a table. As we left, we all grabbed a hat and ran like hell. We kept them all night long and only
got rid of them when we got back to the ship. And that was just in time to hear over the PA that anyone
caught with officers hats would be in "deep doo-doo" ! As a result many officers hats were found
floating the next morning. I remember the name in the hat that I had was "Cdr. H. A. Adams", our
skipper.
I remember a Change of Command while on board and all the excitement that went with getting the Fox
shipshape for inspection. That was a real inspection, white gloves and all. I remember being in Japan
and loving the country and it's people, from Yokosuka to Tokyo, Sasebo to Karatsu. But also I remember
the excitement of Korea when we received a direct hit from their shore batteries. Bob Cross and I were
on "spud" duty out side the Officer's Pantry on the main deck, when their guns started to fire back at
us. Cross and I stopped peeling and went to the rail to watch. In a short time with their fire getting
closer. weI both wondered when were we going to be called to GQ? We no sooner got the words out when
GQ sounded. Both of us flew through the hatch to our stations, me to CIC. As I reached the top of the
ladder, we were hit. When GQ was over, Cross and I went back to our station to peel more spuds. As we
approached the sea tub with the potatoes in it, we saw that it was full of holes from shrapnel where
the shell had hit just a couple of feet away. It was then that I got scared and started shaking,
realizing how lucky we both were. Just a minute or two earlier we were both right there and surely
would have been hit with shrapnel or worse, had we not left immediately. I will NEVER forget that!
I remember meeting a young girl (Maureen Leister-Dunn) and her family while in Singapore treating
me as one of their own, taking me to Raffles and other places of interest. I still have the photo
she gave me. How about an audience with the Pope while we were in Rome, held at his summer home and
my being thrilled as he greeted all of us in our native tongues with a special aside to the "servicemen
from the US". Memories of spending an entire day and evening with 2 young men in Istanbul, Turkey, who
sort of looked after a fellow shipmate and me while we were lost. One could speak a little English so
we went on a great tour of Istanbul and got gloriously drunk and eventually they got us back to the
fleet landing and the ship. How about riding a camel in Ras-Tanura, Saudi Arabia? Trading old shirts
and stuff with the "bum boats" that came out while we were at anchor in Haiti. Or turning the fire
hoses on the "bum boats" in Aden when they came too close. There were problems in Aden at that time
and we kept our sentries armed and on alert.
Even today, things come back to me that I had completely forgotten. There are more, but hell I've
already made a "book" out of this message! But these are a part of my life and they will be with me
always. Friendships developed which will last forever. Names may be forgotten, but faces, circumstances,
and times together will never dim. Bill I hope this answers your question? It was a WONDERFUL time of
my life and I cherish it.
Tom "Windy" Sherman, RMSM, 1951-1953.
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