Extract
Resolving a D-Day Mystery
MEMORIES OF A SURVIVOR
First a little background information on our ship and myself: The USS YMS-350 was a small 136-ft long and 300-ton wooden minesweeper that had been launched in Florida 298 days before. In it, we had been in tropical storms off Florida, crossed the North Atlantic on convoy duty, fought off German E-Boats while towing in the English Channel, swept mines off Omaha Beach hours before the first landings, rescued American soldiers from a sinking LCT as battleships fired over us at German artillery positions, and watched the USS Osprey strike a mine and sink near us. Through it all, our ship had been like a strong and dependable friend, always saving the lives of others and sheltering those who served in her. Even in death she maintained a sort of dignity with her oil-soaked flag still flying as her broken hull sank stern-first into the sea off Cherbourg.I was a Lt. jg. in the Naval Reserve, qualified for deck and engineering duty and served as the ship's executive officer throughout its short life. In 1938, as a freshman at UC Berkeley, I had entered the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps and later graduated with a BS in Mechani...See the full content of this document
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