WW II War Letters |
Vincent Grobbel, BM1/c USCG
Letter written on 8 June 1945 from aboard the USS Davenport, while located about 100 miles off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina
June 8, 1945 |
Dear Dad,
Sorry that I haven't written sooner but I have been at sea since the middle of April and you wouldn't have received it anyway. In fact I am still at sea right now, we are about hundred miles off Charleston, South Carolina. We will be in the Navy yard tomorrow morning. We have been on convoy duty, just came back from Oran, North Africa with a convoy, in fact the last Convoy in the Atlantic. We were just off the Azore Islands when the Germans surrended. We also had a German sub surrounded near our convoy but I will tell you all about that in a couple of weeks. I am getting leave - our ship is being converted to a weather ship and all hands are getting leave. I possibly will be in the second group to go. I intend to mail this letter from on the beach tomorrow because it wouldn't pass the censor on the ship. Dad, that's one reason I don't write often - you can never say what you want to say.
Dad, I told you by phone while in Norfolk about the cigars. Well, I didn't get them off in time, so damn much red tape, but I still have them and will send them.
Well now that our job of convoying - which this ship was built for - is over, we will possibly go to the Pacific. All I know right now is that we are being converted to a weather ship and possibly be in the ship yard here at Charleston at least thirty days or more.
We had a nice trip across, nice weather, stayed in Oran a week. Boy, those people over there are really starving to death. They even came to the ship and went through our garbage, eating stuff that was eatable.
Coming back with the convoy, and the war being over in Europe, all the ships in the convoy had their running lights lit. It sure seemed funny after having the ships darkened at sea before.
Well Dad, that's about all I have to say right now. I will possibly give you a buzz by phone on my first liberty and let you know the story on the leave situation. Tell all the kids hello for me.
I hope you and Mom are fine and hope to find you all in good health when I get home. I will sign off for now - hope to be seeing you all soon.
Your son,
VinceVincent A. Grobbel BM1/c
USS Davenport P.F.69
c/o Fleet Post Office
New York N.Y.
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