Humble Heroes: How the USS Nashville CL43 Fought WWII
by Steven George Bustin
Privately published, 2007, 205 pages
On December 13, 1944, a kamikaze aircraft carrying a bomb under each wing
crashed into the deck of light cruiser USS Nashville (CL43) with both bombs
exploding. The kamikaze attack and resulting fires killed 133 and wounded 190,
and the serious damage required the ship to return to the States for repairs and
forced the ship out of the war in the western Pacific until May 1945. Steven
George Bustin, whose father served as gunner's mate for three and a half years
on the ship, has written a fine history that skillfully weaves the high points
of Nashville's history from official naval documents and the personal stories of
men who served aboard her during her US Navy service from her commissioning
(June 1938) to her designation for disposal as surplus (March 1946).
This ship history displays the thoroughness of Bustin's research, who
mentions at the beginning of the book that it was "an endeavor of 98% research
and 2% writing." The book has a ten-page bibliography and listing of other
sources, but unfortunately it lacks an index to quickly locate the numerous men
and places mentioned. Historical photos of the ship and crew totaling 35 pages
are displayed throughout the book. The book's ten chapters cover Nashville's
history in chronological order, but the author does not try to cover every
single event in the ship's history but rather selects the most significant ones. The numerous crewmember eyewitness accounts make the
history come alive and provide humor.
Nashville had a distinguished history in WWII. Highlights include
participating in the Doolittle B-25 bomber air raid on Tokyo in April 1942,
cruising the north Pacific to defend Alaska and the Aleutian Islands from May to
November 1942, shelling various Japanese-held Pacific islands in 1943 and 1944,
serving frequently as flagship for General Douglas MacArthur including during his
return to the Philippines, and fighting off 90 air attacks over 40 days in the
Philippines between late October and early December 1944. Before the devastating
kamikaze attack, Nashville had a couple of close calls. On June 4, 1944, a bomb
dropped by a Japanese aircraft exploded next to the ship resulting in no
casualties but causing moderate damage that took about one month to repair
before she returned to battle. On October 26, 1944, a Japanese torpedo bomber
released a torpedo that missed less than 15 yards off Nashville's stern.
Even before the kamikaze crash on December 13, 1944, Nashville's crewmen had
witnessed suicide attacks on other ships and knew well the danger of a kamikaze
crash. On November 1, 1944, a kamikaze plane hit the destroyer Abner
Read (DD-526), and Nashville had to maneuver hard to avoid being struck when she
released her torpedoes just before sinking. On December 11, 1945, three kamikaze
aircraft hit and quickly sank the destroyer Reid (DD-369), and Nashville picked
up 150 survivors. The book includes personal accounts from about 30 survivors
regarding the kamikaze attack on Nashville off the southern end of Negros Island
in the Philippines, but most of these are quite short and some like the
following example (p. 135) are not direct quotations from survivors:
GM3c Alfonso Garcia Vejar had just left his station as he was relieved
and went below deck to eat. The man that took his place was killed
instantly. Alfonso was alive by sheer chance and fate.
The Japanese reported several times that Nashville had been sunk, but the
light cruiser survived through the end of the war. After Puget Sound Navy Yard
workers repaired Nashville's kamikaze damage, the ship returned to the western
Pacific in May 1945 and spent the final months of the war primarily supporting
operations in Borneo. In 1951, the US Navy transferred the ship to the Chilean
Navy, who used her until finally sold for scrap in 1983.
The book contains just a few typos and misspellings, such as McArthur instead
of MacArthur and Yamato instead of Yamamoto. The description of the end of the
war has an incorrect statement that all of the eight kamikaze planes led by Vice
Admiral Ugaki were shot down (p. 166), but actually it is not known what
happened to them, and it is likely that most or all of them crashed into the sea
without finding any American ships during their nighttime flight.
The title Humble Heroes describes the crewmen's sincere humbleness regarding
their service during WWII. The Preface ends with the following words:
All of them were in danger at various times and all of them saw the
grotesqueness of death during war. Many displayed stunning acts of heroism
in defense of their ship and the care of their shipmates. Yet never once
during hundreds of conversations did I hear a boastful remark from a crew
member in regards to his role and actions. They were proud and boastful
about the ship and their crewmates, never about themselves. They truly were,
and are, humble heroes.
Kamikaze damage amidships
USS Nashville CL43
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