Heritage Paper

Life of a WWII Sailor
(Heritage Paper)


It was the early stages of World War II when 17-year-old Don boarded the Queen Mary in New York City. He was the youngest of my great grandparents three sons, who all joined different branches of the military during WWII. He spent four days on the Queen Mary before he reached Scotland. From there he boarded a train that took him to Cardiff Wales. This is where he boarded the one and only LST 306, which is the ship he would be on for the rest of the war.
“Hey Grandpa” I said, “You and mom always told me that you were in World War II. Do you have any more stories that you can tell me.”?
“Well, if you want me to talk about the war, I sure can.” my grandpa said.
I arrived in England in the year of 1944. When I finally got there, the rest of the crew and I had to do a couple of weeks of last minute training before we would take part in the Invasion of Normandy. Our ship, the LST 306 was one of the many ships classified as the Landing Ship, Tank or the tank landing ship. The ship was 328 feet long and fifty feet wide. But, that was not the only thing impressive about it when you saw two huge doors in the front of the ship. These doors would swing out and allow a ramp to be dropped down. This permitted tanks, jeeps, and troops to be loaded on and off beaches or ports quickly and efficiently. The ships crew was made up of seven officers and 104 enlisted men. It was armed with two twin 40mm, four single 40mm and twelve single 20mm gun mounts. The ship also always carried two LCVP, landing craft, vehicle, personnel boats cable of holding thirty-six armed men each. This was indeed no small boat. It was more than prepared when it set sail for the Invasion of Normandy.
It was June 5, 1945 the LST 306 headed out into the English Channel. But, the weather was very bad so we had to turn around. The following day, on June 6, 1945, we went out again. This time the weather was nicer, so the invasion was running full speed ahead. Our ship was a supply ship that was carrying equipment to Utah Beach. We also carried and dropped off part of the 4th Army, who were supposed to go out and take the main roads behind the beach. While we were dropping equipment off on the beach, a slight change in plans occurred. Our ship was supposed to become a medical ship after it had dropped off all of its supplies. But the people on the beach needed the supplies for immediate use, so we dropped off all of our medical supplies. After that, we stayed in the combat zone for about two and a half days before we returned to England.
Upon returning to England, we loaded our ship with tanks and other supplies. This new load of equipment was carried across the English Channel, but this time we had to drop it off at Gold Beach instead of Utah Beach. The equipment that we dropped off was going to be used as reinforcements for the British as they were trying to capture the city of Caen. By the time that we went back to England to get another load, the Allies had captured Cherbourg Harbor. So, we picked up about eleven new railway cars and brought them to the harbor, which, at the time, had one working dock. Altogether, we went across the English Channel forty-six times. When the time came for us to leave Europe, practically all of the fighting in Europe had already stopped. We took the LST 306 to New York, where it got repairs. After the ship was repaired and updated, we were on our way to the war in the Pacific. But, while we were on our way, the war ended. So, we pulled into St. Johns River, Florida and dropped the ship off there. We then took a train back up to New Jersey.
Subsequently, this is not just a story, but it is the remembering of some of our families great and unique past. It shows how my grandpa’s immediate family was willing to serve their country in a time of great need. This story is also a remembrance of not only my grandpa’s past, but of all the people who were willing and are still willing to serve the United States. Last of all it reminds me how lucky I am to have my grandpa telling me first hand about probably one of the greatest wars in history. So, to my grandpa and all of the other men and women who have served in the armed forces, thank you very much.