April 15, 1945 - Sunday - 80 years ago today

Status - John Skinner - USS St. Croix

The St. Croix remained in New Caledonia, readying to transport troops to the Philippines in May. 

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The invasion of Okinawa began on April 1st.  Many Navy ships are sunk or damaged by kamikaze aircraft.  On the 7th, Navy planes sink Japanese battleship Yamato.  US Navy attacks (air and submarine) sink many Japanese transports and small vessels.  Despite the capture of Manila, fighting would continue in the Philippines until July.  The St. Croix would bring troops to the Philippines several times during 1945.

The western European allies had moved into central Germany, capturing several cities including Muenster and Essen.  The Buchenwald concentration camp was liberated on the 11th, and Bergen-Belsen on the 12th.  Two Soviet armies began a race to Berlin.  Hitler had moved to the Fuhrerbunker on the 1st.

Death of President Roosevelt

 On the 12th, President Roosevelt, whose health had been fading for some time, died at the resort in Warm Springs, GA.  Vice-President Truman assumed the Presidency.  Truman would have to make many momentous decisions about the finish of the war and the post-war world.  Truman had not yet been, but soon would be, briefed on the atomic bomb program.

More Information:

• Official Navy Chronology, pp. 653-664.
• The Liberation of the Philippines, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 228-302. 
  
• Victory in the Pacific, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 169-236.
• USS_Saint_Croix
• Events of April, 1945
  

 

NEXT POST: MAY 1ST

April 1, 1945 - Sunday - 80 years ago today

Status - John Skinner - USS St. Croix

The St. Croix remained in the Solomons area ferrying passengers and equipment between Guadalcanal the Florida Islands until the 18th, and then left for New Caledonia, reaching Noumea on the 26th.  There St. Croix boarded army troops for transportation to the Philippines.

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The island of Iwo Jima was secured by US forces on the 26th.  The invasion of Okinawa began on April 1st.  Many of the Haskell class transports like St. Croix were used at Iwo Jima and Okinawa.  Planning was already underway for Operation Downfall, the invasion of Japan; slated for November 1945, it would certainly have included St. Croix and all of her sister ships that were available.  So John and his shipmates would already be preparing for this final invasion.

Despite the capture of Manila, fighting would continue in the Philippines until July.  The St. Croix would bring troops to the Philippines several times during 1945.

The western European allies were crossing the Rhine River at many places along its length.  Soviet forces were advancing throughout what is now central Poland.  Gdansk (Danzig), the focus of the start of the war in 1939, fell to Soviet forces.

More Information:

• Official Navy Chronology, pp. 641-653.
• The Liberation of the Philippines, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 228-302. 
  
• Victory in the Pacific, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 64-169.
• USS_Saint_Croix
• Events of March, 1945 
• Events of April, 1945
  

 

NEXT POST: APRIL 15TH

March 1, 1945 - Thursday - 80 years ago today

Status - John Skinner - USS St. Croix

The St. Croix remained in the Solomons area ferrying passengers and equipment between Guadalcanal the Florida Islands.

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The Battle of Iwo Jima began on February 16th as the Navy started the pre-landing bombardment.  Although Mount Suribachi had been taken, by March 1st the fighting was still intense on the island.  

There were landings on Corregidor as battles continued in the Philippines. Manila was taken and mostly cleared of Japanese resistance by March 1st.

Allied advancement on both European fronts continues.  Soviet troops are within 100 miles of Berlin, although advancement would be slower in the coming weeks.

More Information:

• Official Navy Chronology, pp. 623-633.
• The Liberation of the Philippines, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 194-302. 
  
• Victory in the Pacific, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 24-65,
• USS_Saint_Croix
• Events of February, 1945 
• Events of March, 1945
  

 

NEXT POST: MARCH 15TH

February 15, 1945 - Thursday - 80 years ago today

Status - John Skinner - USS St. Croix

The St. Croix was approaching Guadalcanal by February 15th.  John was returning to a very familiar area that was now a staging area for the fighting further west.  St. Croix arrived at the island on the 16th.

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Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met at the Yalta Conference in Crimea from the 4th to the 11th.  Roosevelt's health by this time had weakened considerably, and he was taxed by the long travel and a full week of high-level meetings.  At Yalta it became clear that Stalin intended that the Soviet Union would control all of eastern Europe, and free elections would not be allowed; Roosevelt was criticized then and after for essentially agreeing to this.  He would later say something along the lines of "it wasn't a good deal, but it was the best deal I could get".

Soviet forces continued to advance through central Poland, and crossed the Oder River.  In the west, the Allies were attacking west of the Rhine River.  Dresden was bombed starting on February 13th.

The Japanese army had mostly abandoned Manila, and it fell to the Allies on the 6th.  The Japanese navy gave some resistance to the Allied forces in the city.  Preparations were under way for the invasion of Iwo Jima.

More Information:

• Official Navy Chronology, pp. 617-623.
• The Liberation of the Philippines, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 194-210 
  
• Victory in the Pacific, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 19 24
• USS_Saint_Croix
• Events of February, 1945
  

 

NEXT POST: MARCH 1ST

 

 

 

 

 

 

February 1, 1945 - Thursday - 80 years ago today

Status - John Skinner - USS St. Croix

The St. Croix left San Diego at the end of the month, deploying to the South Pacific, first destination Guadalcanal.

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Fighting continues in the Philippines as the Navy finishes plans for the invasion of Iwo Jima.  The island was needed as an emergency haven for the heavy bombers making the round trip from the Marianas to Japan.  Navy task forces roamed the western Pacific sinking Japanese shipping, mostly cargo and support vessels.

The Allies had reversed the German advance in the Battle of the Bulge by January 25th, and went over to the offensive again.  Hitler made his last visit to the Western Front, and returned to Berlin where he would remain for the rest of the war.  Hitler gave his last public speech on the 30th.

In the east, the German command center (Wolf's Lair) had been abandoned, and the Auschwitz camp evacuated.  Most of Poland was in Soviet hands by this time.

President Roosevelt began his fourth term on the 20th, with new Vice President Harry Truman.  He soon left on a trip to Europe that would end with the Big 3 conference at Yalta.

More Information:

• Official Navy Chronology, pp. 611-617.
• The Liberation of the Philippines, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 136 194
  
• Victory in the Pacific, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 1 19
• USS_Saint_Croix
• Events of January, 1945
  

 

NEXT POST: FEBRUARY 15TH

January 15, 1945 - Monday - 80 years ago today

Status - John Skinner - USS St. Croix

The St. Croix had left on a shakedown cruise up and down the US West Coast that would end in San Diego.

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Further invasions in the Philippines were conducted.  The escort carrier Ommaney Bay was sunk by a kamikaze attack.  Several other ships were damaged by kamikaze attacks during this time.

Intense fighting continued in western Europe as the Allies counterattacked in the Battle of the Bulge.  In the east, Soviet forces continued across Poland.

More Information:

• Official Navy Chronology, pp. 601-611.
• The Liberation of the Philippines, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 1 136
  
• USS_Saint_Croix
• Events of January, 1945
  

 

NEXT POST: FEBRUARY 1ST

January 1, 1945 - Monday - 80 years ago today

Status - John Skinner - USS St. Croix

The St. Croix, now commissioned, was doing the various provisioning and ship preparations that were required for deploying to the South Pacific.  The ship had left (or would soon leave) on a shakedown cruise up and down the US West Coast, ending in San Diego.

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Fighting intensifies throughout the Philippines during December.  The US Navy suffers greatly from kamikaze attacks on its ships.

On December 18th, the US Third Fleet encounters a typhoon northeast of the Philippines.  Three destroyers are sunk and a number of other ships are damaged.  This typhoon was likely part of the inspiration for the central scene of the book (and later movie) The Caine Mutiny. 

The Battle of the Bulge began on December 16th as Allied troops were pushed back in Belgium and France.  German advances had been mostly blunted by the end of December, and General Eisenhower was planning his counter-offensive for the new year.

More Information:

• Official Navy Chronology, pp. 586-601.
• The Liberation of the Philippines, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 1 136
  
• USS_Saint_Croix
• Events of December, 1944
  

 

NEXT POST: JANUARY 15TH