The 90th U. S. Naval Construction Battalion was born at Camp Peary, Virginia on the twenty-fifth day of July, nineteen hundred forty-three, in the blistering hot sun, as those who were there will well remember. As an indication of what was to come later the sun, in all its glory, was appropriate; for the battalion, on its tour of duty in the Asiatic-Pacific Theatre, has scarcely ever found the smallest amount of shade! From Peary to lwo Jima and V-J Day our stirring saga runs. The inevitable triumph of Allied arms found us deep within the shattered inner perimeter of the Land of the Setting Sun. This, The History and Achievements of the 90th United States Naval Construction Battalion, is our LOG.
From the Introduction: Activitated 15 December 1941 at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, the 649th Engineer Battalion was assigned to the First Army and placed under the technical direction of the Chief of Engineers. In an Army the size of ours the activation of a battalion causes only the slightest ripple on the pool of available manpower. It's just another battalion with a number and that's as far as it goes. But this book isn't about numbers; you can find numbers in an arithmetic book. This is the story of a group of men and we'd like to tell you from whence they came. At its inception, the battalion comprised three companies, viz: Headquarters and Service, including Photomapping; B, the Reproduction company; A, the Survey company ... Though the majority of us came from New York, New Jersey or Pennsylvania, all sections of the country are represented in our ranks, and practically all the states. What better beginning can a battalion in this man's army have?
One of the war's famed Engineer Light Ponton Companies was born on paper in Washington, D. C. on 14 January 1943, a full five months before its first soldier opened the door of the orderly room at Camp Hood, Texas. Never then realizing what a great part he would play in World War II the 549th Engineer knocked the dirt from his spikes and got ready for the great race across the States and half way 'round the world. It was indeed to be history · and now the curtain opens on the big show ...
It is with the hope that your book will aid you in appreciating the part played by the 42nd General Hospital in this War that it is presented to you. A scarcely less important purpose is that of familiarizing each section with the work of other sections and of the unit as a whole. In after years, its value will increase to each one of us, and it will come to form a tangible link with the comradeship we shared in working toward a common end--the alleviation of suffering. Wherever possible, the record is presented pictorially. If some group or department feels itself slighted, the editors can only plead pressure of time and the shortage of film and photographic service, trusting that any shortcomings will be graciously overlooked. To all those whose kind cooperation made your book possible, we extend our sincere thanks, and to the Signal Corps of the United States Army we are indebted both for many of the pictures and much of the general photographic work.--The Editors. The Staff: Major Theodore A. Schwartz, Major Walter E. Karfgin, Sgt. Clarence G. Luther, Sgt. Charles E. Church, Pvt. 1Cl. Julius Goldstein, Pvt. Burton V. Doyle.
From the Introduction: That is the purpose of this book--to tell a story, the story of the men of the 233d Engineer Combat Battalion ... their combat experiences, the story they want to be told. It comprises the better part of the history, and in its writing it is fully realized that at its best this book will be only a brief summary of the full story. Each act of heroism or determination, each recording of skill and self-sacrifice, and each feat of bravery depicted will be only one of many. Throughout the entire writing of this book I have had to be content with the telling of a few incidents with the full certainty of neglecting many. The only records of many acts of courage are still being held in the hearts of the doers, and only because they were seen by someone else did those related here become known. For it was the spirit of the Battalion that to sacrifice, to go beyond the call of duty and to accomplish the job at any cost was merely doing the job well. If this book tells the story they want told, if it brings a feeling of pride to the members of the Battalion, if it brings enjoyment to its readers, it will have fulfilled its purpose, and it is further hoped that in its recording I have brought forth the spirit of undying cooperation that so successfully carried the 233d Engineers across the many beaches in the Pacific Theater and made the accomplishment of their every mission possible.--Victor E. Weaver, 2nd Lt, 233rd Engineer Combat Battalion, Adjutant
"From February to December 1945, the 102nd Construction Battalion was engaged in the building of the Submarine Base, Subic Bay, Philippine Islands. Their nucleus planning group came in with the assault in February and immediately started work at the selected site which at that time was mostly rice paddies, swamps, and bare hillside. Under great difficulties of lack of adequate personneL materials and equipment, together with adverse weather conditions, the Battalion cheerfully and efficiently improvised and established essential elements of the base which were extremely useful to our submarines in fighting the last few months of the Jap war. Although uncompleted at the termination of hostilities, many members of the Battalion voluntarily stayed on long after with the avowed intention of completing the base which they had started. For their future memories, the members of the 102nd Construction Battalion have left a monument to themselves which will serve their Navy and their Nation for many years to come. It is a base which we did not have before World War II started and which is now available to us should any future aggressor nation decide to to interfere with our rights and liberties. I salute the 102nd Construction Battalion for their excellent spirit and achievements." James Fife, Rear Admiral U.S. Navy, Commander Submarines, Philippine Sea Frontier
Foreword: The battalion arrived at Pearl Harbor on March 29, 1943. "Remember Pearl Harbor" had become a battle cry for all Americans in the Pacific War. Our Marines had turned the tide of the Japanese offensive at Guadalcanal and the enemy had begun to feel the blows struck from Henderson Field built by the Seabees. The Navy was beginning to marshal her fast growing forces at Pearl Harbor. Men, material, and ships required new barracks, warehouses and ship-repair facilities. The 62nd Battalion was the first to take over work from the contractors at Pearl Harbor and our officers and men carried through their jobs with the true Seabee spirit and ingenuity. Among the vital and urgent projects completed were the Submarine Base Extension, the Waipio Point Amphibious repair facilities and housing at the Advance Base Reshipment Depot. As the Pacific War moved in to full scale offensive, our battalion was assigned to the Western Pacific on the assault eschelon at lwo Jima. Our battalion arrived on " Bloody lwo" soon after the Marines and started to work immediately on the Southern Airfield. As soon as the Southern Field was operational, the 62nd Battalion was ordered to the Central Airfield. Both jobs were started under enemy mortar and sniper fire and the courage and the spirit of the battalion can never be forgotten. This book is a history of your battalion, a battalion in which you can take well-earned pride. It is a record of your experiences, both the hardships and pleasures which have made up your part in the winning of the war in the Pacific.--F.B. Campbell, Comdr. USNR (CEC), Commanding Officer
"On July 15th, 1946, the U.S.S. Hancock was officially awarded the Navy Unit Commendation for outstanding heroism in action ... Today she is one of many proud ships moored along the thousand-mile shore-line of Puget Sound, a memorial to the men who trod her decks in the hope of providing a just and lasting peace. At dusk as the sun dips behind the snow-capped Olympic Mountains to the westward it sets upon a nation which has yet to know a conqueror's tread. The price of that freedom is so great that if the lowering of colors each evening were a tribute to a single fallen hero of World War II it would take a year to honor the Hannah's own casualties and more than eight centuries would elapse ere homage were paid in full. May we build no earthly monuments to those who lie beneath the far Pacific, or on some foreign shore, save the monument of a lasting peace for posterity--should we falter in our course may those ghostly ships, rising and falling on the eternal tide, serve as a reminder of our obligation to them."
The Bangor Water Works were built in 1875-1876 following a State act to supply Bangor with a reliable source of clear water and confront the constant problem of sewage. The Water Works, which also contained a dam, was designed as a source of power and transportation as much as of drinking water, and the $154,000 project included a wheelhouse, sluice, and fishway. The pumping house in the photograph was designed by the Holly Manufacturing Company of Lockport, New York, and shows a four-story tall steam stack in the background.
The Bangor Water Works were built in 1875-1876 following a State act to supply Bangor with a reliable source of clear water and confront the constant problem of sewage. Shown here are the Penobscot River and the area of the dam.
Stereograph showing an intermediary stage in the progression of Bangor's High School. Following the destruction of the original high school in a fire in 1882, the opportunity was taken to greatly improve the building. Wilfred E. Mansur, a graduate of the previous high school and later architect of many buildings in Bangor, followed much of the existing design but with enlargements and modifications. In 1903 a back wing was added to house the Manual Training School, and the entire building perished in the Great Fire of 1911.
Dedicated in 1875 by B. C. Kenway, the Union Street Grammar School was one of a new wave of schools designed as imposing edifices to the potential of youth. The three-story building held eight schoolrooms, three playrooms in the basement, and a coal furnace, and was outfitted with the then-new combined desk and chair, described as "superior to any other" for "the health and comfort of the pupils."
The Bangor Children's Home was completed in 1869 following the design of Henry W. Hartwell. It was designed in memory of Sarah, the late wife of Franklin W. Pitcher, and built with $25,000 which he donated. Although it derived from the Bangor Female Orphan Asylum, chartered in 1839, the state legislature granted a new charter as the home was under construction allowing the admission of boys. The back of the building is shown below the rise of Thomas Hill. Samuel Prentiss donated the land next to the Home to serve as a playground. Located on Ohio Street, the Home was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.
Charles A. Boutelle (1839-1901), poses in front of the U.S. Capitol in 1898 when he was serving in the U.S. House of Representatives. Boutelle was elected to the House in 1882 and became the second longest-serving Maine Representative. Boutelle was so popular that, when he suffered a seizure in late 1899 and was removed to a mental institution in Massachusetts for the rest of his life, he was nonetheless re-elected. He was a popular figure; using his naval background he was instrumental in modernizing the American navy and in the rise to prominence of the Bath Iron Works. A charismatic writer and speaker, he was noted for speeches defending the foreign policy of President Cleveland. He resigned from Congress before the session commenced, and, when he was left in financial distress, Congress appointed him to the Naval List, enabling him to draw half-pay for the rest of his life. Boutelle had been a seaman, served in the Union Navy during the Civil War, and in 1870 became the editor of the conservative Bangor paper, the Bangor Daily Whig and Courier. He bought the paper in 1874. He was married to Elizabeth Hodsdon.
When the mail train to Bangor hit the Tin Bridge on the evening of August 9, 1871 running fast, the old bridge--later found riddled with dry rot--collapsed. Five cars were sent off the tracks and down the embankment, and two people were killed. The next day, thousands of spectators began to arrive at the scene. This picture shows the back of the bridge, the fallen truss lying on the ground and the back of a carriage ripped open, as well as a selection of spectators.
President Ulysses S. Grant arrived with an entourage laden with the influential Maine men in late 1871 in a visit to open the railroad connecting Maine to Canada and thence a steamer line to Europe. The railroad was a significant undertaking, much lauded and full of great expectations in spite of its $4.5 million cost. Grant made several small stops at receptions along the rail line to Bangor, and once he arrived, there were enormous crowds waiting to greet him. This photograph shows the assembled schoolchildren of Bangor waiting along the parade route on Broadway to serenade the President, the Mayor, the Governor General of Canada, and the president of the rail line, who rode together in a carriage. The children sung a song and presented bouquets; one, at the top of the podium, is arrayed as an allegorical Justice. The parade involved all of the Maine regiments, who later passed in review before the President, although the exercise had to be cut short when night fell. Newspapers recorded that several men, mostly Civil War veterans, broke through the barriers along the parade route in order to shake hands with the President, who responded with grace.
A stereograph showing Marston's Photograph Rooms and office of the Bangor Daily Whig & Courier, 3 Bowman's Block, at the east end of Kenduskeag Bridge.
Known as Elmbank, the Henry E. Prentiss House was first owned by Thornton McGaw. It was known as Weed House when it was built in 1835. Details about this earlier house are scarce. Prentiss bought the property and began remodeling it in 1868. He added the mansard roof, which created a full third story, as well as the angled portico, Italianate trim, and a gazebo (not visible in photograph). The house still stands at 31 Kenduskeag Avenue.
Stereograph showing Bangor's East Market Square bustling with horse-drawn carts and carriages in front of Center Park. In the background are the Universalist Church with its double steeples designed by Harvey Graves and built in 1860-1862; and the First Baptist Church, 1828-1829, probably designed and built by Charles G. Bryant.
Stereograph showing a broad view of Bangor and the Penobscot River. This photograph was taken from the belfry of the Hammond Street Congregational Church and shows the dense clusters of buildings in downtown Bangor. Crossing the Penbscot is the old covered toll bridge to Brewer, with the Egyptian style entrance arch on the Bangor side.
Soldiers Monument, a 20-foot high obelisk near the entrance of the Mount Hope Cemetery, may be the oldest Civil War monument in the United States. It was dedicated in 1864, when the body of Bangor native Stephen Decatur Carpenter was laid to rest. Although his body was moved to a family plot at their request in 1881, those killed in action as well as veterans filled the plot, and in 1907 the Grand Army of the Republic fort and monument was dedicated, followed in 1960 by the 2nd Maine Regiment memorial near the gates of the cemetery. Mount Hope Cemetery was itself something of a trend-setter; inspired by the Mount Auburn Cemetery in Massachusetts, it became the second-oldest garden cemetery in the nation when it was consecrated in 1836, covering one hundred acres.
The Bangor House decorated for the visit of President Grant in October, 1871. Grant, his entourage, and the Governor General of Canada stayed overnight in the best rooms of the Bangor House, which is elaborately decorated with bunting, flags, and mottoes. Grant made a brief speech from the balcony as well as several other public remarks at receptions in his honor. Bangor was so thoroughly decorated that bunting had to be rented from Boston, and British flags borrowed from Canada. Businesses and private homes eagerly tried to out-do each other, and the celebrations were to culminate with an elaborate illumination along the streets--unfortunately, rain descended to douse lights, but not enthusiasm.
Built in 1827 by Zadock French, the Penobscot Hotel (originally French House) was so big that it was known locally as 'French's Folly.' In 1828, the Penobscot Exchange Coffee House, named after Boston's Exchange Coffee House, opened. The building is made of brick, four and a half stories, gabled roof and eight chimneys. The Queen Anne balustrade balcony was added later. The mansard roof was added in 1859, along with two extended wings, possibly the work of Benjamin S. Deane and Edwin Lee Brown. Additions and revisions were a constant theme, and the character of the building continued to shift. In 1908 a city ordinance required that all downtown buildings have a flat roof to alleviate danger from ice and snow, so the building was expanded to a full five stories with an Italianate cornice, as well as modern bathrooms and an elevator. In the mid-twentieth century, the building was briefly a dormitory for Husson College, but was eventually razed in the Urban Renewal program of the 1960s.
