**The information contained in these pages is taken from a book written by Hank Henderson LT., USN, (ret) on the History of the USS Pompon. Mr Henderson was a crew member of the Pompon when it was put in commission. He made all nine war patrols and was transferred off the day that hostilities ceased. This material was provided courtesy of Robert H. Gray MoMM3c who served aboard her 1945-1946.
St. Patrick’s day of 1943 was cold and windy in Manitowoc, Wisconsin as the USS POMPON (SS-267) was formally turned over to the U.S. Navy by the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company. Earle Hawk, the first commanding officer, accepted the submarine on behalf of the Navy.
Earle Hawk, a graduate of the class of 1928 at the U.S. Naval Academy, was known as an outstanding submariner in peacetime. He had an enviable record of accomplishment as an “S” boat skipper before World War II. However, on January 24, 1942, his boat, the S-26 was outbound from Balboa, C.Z. in company with the S-21, S-29, S-44, and an escort vessel, PC-460, for a defensive patrol station on the Pacific side of the canal. At 2210 hours, about 14 miles west of San Jose Light, PC-410 sent a flashing light message to the surfaced submarines stating that she was leaving the formation, and they were to proceed on duty as assigned. Only S-21 received the message, however. Shortly thereafter PC-460 collided in the dark with S-26, ramming her on the starboard side of the torpedo room. The S-boat sank within a few seconds carrying 46 men to their deaths. Of the four people on the bridge, three survived, including Earle Hawk, R.E.M. Ward, the executive officer, and J.B. Hurst, Sic, a lookout. The water was over 300 feet deep with strong currents. Rescue was impossible even though hammering on the hull could be heard for many hours afterwards. (R.E.M. Ward was later to earn fame as CO of SAILFISH when he sank the carrier Chuyo in December of 1943).
Trial runs for POMPON were conducted on Lake Michigan utilizing the services of the Coast Guard Cutter Tamarack as escort. The Manitowoc Herald Times featured a photograph of POMPON entering harbor after one of the trials. The picture portrayed a large iceberg with four puffs of diesel smoke coming out of the sides. It was c-o-l-d on Lake Michigan!
Late in the construction phase of POMPON, the SJ radar was installed in the conning tower. From that moment on, an armed guard was posted adjacent to this new and highly classified piece of equipment until POMPON went to sea.
On Friday, April 4th, POMPON departed Manitowoc and sailed across Lake Michigan to Chicago, Illinois. On Saturday, April 5th she sailed through the middle of the city of Chicago via the Chicago Drainage Canal under her own power at two thirds speed on two main engines. It was an impressive experience to pass under the multiple draw bridges, and to see the thousands of spectators that lined the streets and bridges. After transiting Chicago, POMPON entered a floating drydock at Lockport, Illinois - on the Illinois River. The periscopes were removed to provide clearance under the many bridges that spanned the Mississippi river during the succeeding days. Most of the crew took several days leave -their last chance - as POMPON floated leisurely down the Mississippi to New Orleans high and dry within the protective embrace of the floating drydock and tugboat. How many people can say they have sailed a submarine, under its own power, through the middle of the city of Chicago?
The crew and POMPON were reunited in New Orleans on April 13th. The periscopes were reinstalled, stores were loaded, and on Sunday, April 17th, POMPON sailed for Coco Solo, C.Z.. The departure message from the Navy Signal Station at the foot of the Mississippi was, “Goodbye, good luck. German submarine sighted....then gave the latitude and longitude”.
POMPON arrived in Panama on Sunday, April 24th. A swimming area adjacent to the pier where POMPON was berthed in Coco Solo was protected by nets to keep the sharks out. The Japanese and the Germans were not our only enemies, apparently. Several days later, as we approached the Gatun locks, the noise of the parrots and monkeys in the jungle off to our starboard side were remarkable. In the Gatun locks, POMPON shared the first lock with a school of large Tarpon. What a sight! Upon reaching the Pacific side, at Balboa, POMPON commenced six weeks of advanced training at the Perlis Islands in preparation for the real war ahead. The deep blue of the Pacific was punctuated by the occasional splash of a huge giant manta ray, occasional whales, and other marine life. Evenings at the anchorage in the Perlis Islands were marked by the occasional catch of a Spanish Mackerel by crewmen, and by the visits alongside by the native canoes selling exotic fruits. Underway times were drill and exercise, exercise and drill. POMPON and crew became one.
POMPON bade farewell to Panama on Tuesday, May 27th. The sealed orders were opened and our destination was revealed as Brisbane, Australia. Extremely heavy weather slowed our progress, and made it necessary to pull in to Auckland, New Zealand for fuel and voyage repairs. The armor splinter shield on the forward 20 millimeter gun was completely wrapped around the gun by the force of the seas. We were berthed just aft of a merchantman at the public pier in Auckland. He had been torpedoed when returning empty from Guadalcanal. The torpedo had struck at the #2 hatch on the port side, leaving a hole of about 15’ diameter, and approximately 45’ diameter on the other side. Only one crewman was injured, however. He had been standing on top of the hatch cover, been blown into the air, hit his head on the cross tree of the mast, and had fallen back to the deck. His only injuries were a cut on the head that required several stitches. Auckland was also noteworthy due to the great numbers of U.S. Marines there who were just back from Guadalcanal, or just going to Guadalcanal.
POMPON arrived in Brisbane, Australia in June ready for whatever lay ahead.
Click here for a Synopses of USS Pompon (SS-267)
War Patrols. Text only file so it should load well. It
is a must read. Also includes an epilogue to this fine boat and some
personal anecdotes from crew members who served aboard her.
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