|
Joe
Bellinghiere, Seaman 1st class, torpedoman
striker. (Sometime between 1/1/43 and 7/1/44). |
|
I enlisted
in the Navy in Omaha, Nebraska, on 30 September
1942, at the age of 20. After boot camp and
torpedo school (both at San Diego), I was shipped
out to New Hebrides where I joined the destroyer
Wilson as a Seaman 1st class on 28 March 1943. I
was transferred from the ship at Auckland, New
Zealand, on 30 June 1943. Having applied for sub
school--mainly as a way to get back home--I was
ordered to New London, where I reported on 15
August 1943. I graduated on 1 January 1944, and
was assigned to the Cavalla. I missed the
commissioning party on 18 February because I was
back in Omaha getting married! When I returned to
New London, I noticed that most of the guys were
bringing their wives, and having spent only 3
days with mine, I wanted to bring her out so we
could be together for whatever time remained. So
I talked to Captain Kossler, and said,
"Captain, I just got married and I'm anxious
to bring my wife out here." Kossler replied,
"I can't tell you when we're leaving, but I
can advise you not to bring her out." She
stayed in Omaha. I was on board when Cavalla was
commissioned. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sub
School, New London: One of the chief petty
officers in charge of instructing the students at
sub school took a dislike to my non-regulation
boots. "Where did you get those boots?"
he demanded. I replied: "Off a dead Marine
at Guadalcanal. Where were you?" [I had
been on Guadalcanal--but not during any of the
battles.] |
|
Joe Bellinghiere,
with submarine combat pin. (Sometime after Cavalla's
first patrol, which ended 8/3/44. And sometime
before he grew his moustache, which he's had ever
since.) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Torpedoman 2nd
class, celebrating
the end of the war in San Francisco,
September 1945. |
|
The Cavalla crew was a
little nervous about the journey to Panama: the
submarine Dorado, also built by the
Electric Boat Company, had departed New London
the previous October on her maiden voyage and
been sunk en route to Panama. A notice
was posted in the submarine that a volunteer was
needed to wash the crew's clothes. Each man,
including the Captain, paid in $1 per month. No
one wanted the job, but I saw an opportunity to
make $65 a month without a lot of extra work
(everyone wore shorts and sandals, at least when
we got to the South Pacific), and the clothes
were dried by putting them on the engines.
|
November 1998 ~ All photos courtesy of Dr. Bellinghiere virtue of Stephen Ford
Return to Cavalla Crews
Return to the Deep Domain
|