A PT Skipper in the South Pacific

A PT Skipper in the South Pacific: A Naval Officer’s Memoir of Service on PTs and a PT Boat Tender

 

by Kenneth W. Prescott, Captain, USNR (Ret.)

A Merriam Press Original Publication
Military Monograph MM110

From training at Melville, Rhode Island, to the South Pacific where as XO and CO of PT 61 and CO of PT 48 he served at Tulagi-Florida Island, Guadalcanal, and the Russells, as well as on different assignments in Torokina, Bougainville, and Emirau, New Ireland, back to Melville and on to the USS Jamestown (AGP-3) as XO, home based in the Philippines, and finally to his post-war career in the Navy.

Included are his bird collecting and taxidermy efforts during and after the war, as well as an encounter with future president John F. Kennedy.

Acknowledgments

From time to time, I have had phone calls from researchers and authors, asking about my experiences in the South Pacific during World War II. I have gladly shared with them my recollections and photos, never giving thought to put pen to paper to write about them myself. My civilian career and family absorbed my time and interests, although I always kept up my Naval Reserve training and was frequently recalled for duty in Washington, D.C. At this late time in life with plenty of leisure time at my disposal, I find my thoughts returning more often to those far-gone days, buffeted by recent writings, documentaries, and films from World War II.

Thus, when my physician, Dean L. Kellogg, Jr., MD, PhD, Professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, Texas, in Physiology and Medicine, Admitting Physician at the South Texas Veterans Health Care System, San Antonio, and an avid student of Naval activities in the South Pacific during World War II, suggested that I sit down and write my memoirs, I immediately warmed to the idea. He even furnished me with the name of Ray Merriam, the publisher of this book. Many years had passed and details have faded, so my recollections from my service in the Navy represent a personal view, looking through a window, somewhat dimmed with time. It is with admiration and gratitude that I dedicate this book to Dr. Kellogg, who represents the best in science and the healing arts of medicine.

My dear friend at The National Museum of the Pacific War, Fredericksburg, Texas, Helen McDonald, whose excellent symposia I have enjoyed for many years, steered me to Joanne Carpenter, who took upon herself the heroic job of deciphering the undisciplined notes of my memoirs and type them into legible copy. This book is the chapter that deals with the Navy. My appreciation for her dedication and the cheerful way in which she tackled the tedious assignment is only surpassed by that of my wife and editor, Emma-Stina.

Granddaughter Elise Nuding arrived from Brown University for a short visit during her Thanksgiving holiday, just in time to lend a helping hand at proofreading, and I value her contributions.

Last but certainly not least, I am grateful for the interest and selfless efforts that my beloved Emma-Stina has put into this endeavor as she has into all others throughout our long and happily married life.

Contents

• Acknowledgments
• Chapter 1: Pearl Harbor and Joining the Navy
• Chapter 2: Motor Torpedo Boat Training, Melville, Rhode Island
• Chapter 3: To the South Pacific
• Chapter 4: The Old-Timers: Heroes of the PT Saga
• Chapter 5: Calvertville
• Chapter 6: XO of PT 61
• Chapter 7: Patrolling and Boxing
• Chapter 8: The Russells, Rats, and Poker
• Chapter 9: Taxidermy—South Pacific Style
• Chapter 10: CO of PT 61
• Chapter 11: Kennedy, Crocs, and Gunboats
• Chapter 12: CO of PT 48
• Chapter 13: Torokina and Malaria
• Chapter 14: Bougainville and Bird Collecting
• Chapter 15: Emirau and Back to the U.S.
• Chapter 16: Melville Again
• Chapter 17: Back to the Pacific
• Chapter 18: XO of the Jamestown
• Chapter 19: Japan Surrenders and Jamestown Returns Home
• Chapter 20: Recuperating in Hollywood
• Chapter 21: My Post-War Studies
• Chapter 22: Naval Reserve and Civilian Life
• Chapter 23: Epilogue

Specifications

• First Edition (July 2009)
• Paperback: ISBN 978-0-557-07887-5 — $19.95
  • Perfect bound, full-color wrap-around cover
• Hardcover: ISBN 978-0-557-07811-0 — $34.95
  •  Blue linen cover with title stamped in gold on spine, full-color dust jacket
• 177 6 × 9 inch pages
• 100 photos/illustrations

Booksellers: This title will be available soon from Ingram.