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The Merchant Marine at D-Day

by Albert J. Herberger, Maritime Administrator, 1993 -1997

"As we honor the heroes of D-Day and World War II, it is fitting to include among them the civilian American merchant mariners who sailed in harm's way to supply the needs of our Allied fighting forces...Their sacrifices were crucial to victory, as were the unparalleled efforts of American shipbuilding."

-- President William J. Clinton
May 19, 1994

In February, 1944 the American merchant ship SS AUDACIOUS with its crew of civilian seafarers sailed in a convoy across the North Atlantic, carrying American troops and supplies to England.

After discharging its cargo in Liverpool, the ship was taken to an anchorage where large holes were cut between the cargo holds and explosive charges were set in the double bottoms beneath them. The ship sailed to Scotland, where it waited for its mission.

Then, after about two months, 2,000 armed U.S. Army combat troops came on board. The ship sailed with American and British Navy ships and arrived just after midnight on June 6, 1944, at the Normandy beachhead.

As one participant reported,

"Gunfire filled the air. We were positioned close to a Navy cruiser that was firing at Normandy beach. Many Navy ships were firing into and beyond the beach and a large number of Allied planes were in the sky as cover protection for the invasion convoy. I saw some planes (I do not know from which side) explode on fire."

Landing nets were dropped from the deck of the AUDACIOUS as military landing craft came alongside and the troops left the ships to join the invading forces.

Merchant seamen remained onboard while the ship was towed into position and final arrangements were made to scuttle her. They left the ship on a landing craft, heard the explosions and watched it settle on the bottom.

With Army gunners onboard, the ship served as both a breakwater and an offshore anti- aircraft gun platform to protect the Allied forces.

Overall, 32 American merchant ships were purposefully sunk off the coast of Normandy to support Allied forces. They were crewed by more than 1,000 civilian seafarers.

On June 6, 1994, I will have the honor of standing with a number of merchant marine war veterans on the deck of an American cargo ship which participated in the invasion, but which has survived these many years.

During World War II, the Liberty Ship JEREMIAH O'BRIEN operated in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters, from Omaha Beach to Calcutta. It had been built in East Portland, Maine, in just 57 days, part of the incredible American war time shipbuilding effort. Today, the O'BRIEN serves as a memorial to all who built and sailed on Liberty ships in service to the nation.

Our records show that 5,601 cargo ships were built during the war. This includes some 2,751 Liberty Ships built by 18 American shipyards between 1941 and 1945.

Over a quarter of a million men were trained to be seamen and officers of merchant ships.

Many ships and many lives were lost. A total of 733 American cargo ships were lost to enemy action and more than 6,000 civilian American seafarers were killed.

Thousands were injured during attacks. Many were forced to wait aboard lifeboats and rafts, hoping for rescue after their vessels were lost. Nearly 600 were held as prisoners of war.

As dangerous as D-Day was, for merchant mariners the most hazardous duty was on the infamous trip across the North Atlantic to the Russian port of Murmansk.

In the words of the War Shipping Administration in a post-war report to President Truman:

"Our merchant ships ran innumerable gauntlets of air, surface and submarine attacks ranging from the early danger zones in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean to mid-Atlantic and the Mediterranean, and the kamikaze attacks off the islands of the Pacific. But none of these combined all elements of danger from man and nature alike, such as did the Murmansk run ... "Through icy, fog-bound seas, their flanks exposed to the dive bombers, surface raiders, and submarines moving out from the Nazi-held fjords of Norway the slow gray convoys moved -- and kept moving. Nor was their sanctuary at their destination, for every hour on the hour, it was said, the black-cross planes of the Luftwaffe blasted heartbreaking delays in the grim business of unloading the ships in the ice-cluttered harbor of Murmansk. Yet the cargoes were delivered."

There were many merchant marine heroes during World War II.

Joseph Squires was aboard a ship that ran into heavy weather and suffered considerable damage. Before repairs could be made, a second storm of greater intensity hit. The vessel began to sink and orders were given to abandon ship.

Squires and an able seaman volunteered to lower the lifeboats. Both had the opportunity to leave the ship but chose to remain behind to help their shipmates. Both perished with their vessel.

Albert Boe, a chief engineer, disregarded his own safety when the starboard engine on his ship exploded. He ordered the engine room cleared. He successfully cut off the main generators, preventing the chance of an electrical fire, but lost his life in the process.

There were many other heroes and it will be with great pride that I will join merchant marine veterans of World War II aboard the JEREMIAH O'BRIEN to commemorate the 50th anniversary of D-Day. I plan to remind them of the words of Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, spoken in London in 1944:

"Every man in this Allied Command is quick to express his admiration for the loyalty, courage, and fortitude of the officers and men of the Merchant Marine. We count upon their efficiency and their utter devotion to duty as we do our own; they have never failed us yet and in all the struggles yet to come we know that they will never be deterred by any danger, hardship, or privation.

"When final victory is ours there is no organization that will share its credit more deservedly than the Merchant Marine."

Prepared June 1, 1994