Atherton Shipmates Reunite
With A German POW - A must read story!
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Display Aboard USS
Slater DE-766 Museum

USS ATHERTON DE-169 ~ ANOTHER PROUD CHAPTER
IN DE HISTORY
By: Patricia R. Perrella, Volunteer Curator, USS SLATER DE-766
Museum
Although USS ATHERTON DE-169 was credited with one of the final
statistics of the WWII Battle of the Atlantic, she is still writing
history with events that continue to reflect on this Cannon Class
Destroyer Escort ship, her dynamic and personable skipper LCDR
Lewis Iselin, other officers and crew.
Only recently, shipmates learned she is still
serving proudly as RAJAH HUMABON-11 with the Philippine Navy, after
serving Japan many years as HATSUHI FF-6, thus making her unique
for any WWII era vessel. The remaining ATHERTON crew have also
discovered the fate of a young German POW who underwent an
emergency appendectomy in DE-169 “sick bay” while the ship was
underway on the Atlantic escorting GUS-84 back to the United States
in April 1945.
Following commissioning at the Norfolk Navy Yard on 29 August 1943,
Lt. Comdr. Paul L. Mansell, Jr., USNR commanded DE-169 through
shakedown exercises in Chesapeake Bay and Bermuda. While ATHERTON’S
crew drilled for antisubmarine warfare (ASW) patrol duties through
the remainder of 1943, they also recognized the weather challenges
the Atlantic could produce between Chesapeake Bay and the warmer
Caribbean Sea.
ATHERTON operated with Task Force 62 on escort duty for
transatlantic convoys from Norfolk and New York City that included
Mediterranean ports in Casablanca, Morocco; Bizerte, Tunisia; and
Oran, Algeria. Because these areas were supplying a military
buildup towards reinforcing southern Europe, German aircraft and
U-boats constantly barraged this region and the escort crews spent
much of their time at General Quarters or sleeping in their
clothing while keeping lifebelts nearby. Using their ASW training,
ATHERTON’S crew challenged several sound contacts, dropping depth
charges as they worked to protect their convoys that were
transporting men and supplies to the essential Mediterranean ports
and returning others back to the United States.
During the closing weeks of the European war with Germany ATHERTON,
then commanded by LCDR Lewis Iselin, returned to the United States
with TG 60.7. She was headed to the Boston Navy Yard to transfer a
German POW, dock for much-needed repairs, stores and eagerly
anticipated crew “Liberty” when this urgent message arrived from
COMEAST Sea Frontier:
“5 May 45 – 14:55 P.M. - SIGNAL LIGHT * FROM CTG
60.7 TO TASK GROUP 60.7. U.S.S.
AMICK, DE-168, U.S.S. ATHERTON, DE-169, & U.S.S. MOBERLY, PF-63.
ALL SHIPS FULL
POWER, FULL SPEED ADVANCE ENROUTE. U.S.S. MOBERLY IN CHARGE GROUP
OF
THREE X U.S.S. ERICSSON, DD-440. WILL STAND ON BUT KEEP IN VOICE
COMMUNICATION X GO BY XRAY BAKER X ETA CLEVELAND LEDGE 2300 BOSTON
LS X BEAT IT IF YOU CAN”
The location was the shallow continental shelf
waters off Block Island, Rhode Island and Point Judith Lighthouse
where S.S. BLACK POINT, a small coal collier, bound for Boston, had
been sunk by a torpedo fired from U-853. This deadly strike had
torn away 40 feet of her stern and she sank quickly taking 12 men
to the bottom while 34 others were rescued by local boats that
quickly came on the scene.
ASW experience served the TG 60.7 crews well as the three ships
took station 3,000 yards apart and proceeded to pick up sonar
contacts with MOBERLY and ATHERTON instituting depth charge and
hedgehog attacks on the doomed U-853. Quite disappointed not to
remain part of the attack, AMICK was ordered to escort a merchant
ship to Boston via Cape Cod, so had to leave the chase. Following a
relentless attack by ATHERTON and MOBERLY, substantial debris
surfaced indicating the U-boat had been destroyed by 10:45 the
following morning, 6 May 1945.
U-853 was captained by 24 year old Helmut Froemsdorf who evidently
chose to fight to the bitter end as his superior Grand Admiral Karl
Doenitz had issued a “Cease fire at once . . . Stop all hostile
action against Allied shipping” Order to all German naval vessels
on the evening of May 4th. This Order followed the suicide of Reich
Führer Adolph Hitler and the looming victory of the Allied forces.
When the formal German surrender was announced on 8 May 1945, Naval
personnel involved with the U-853 incident recognized S.S. BLACK
POINT was the last ship officially sunk in the war. ATHERTON
and MOBERLY were credited with destroying one of the last two
U-boats in WW II, with U-853 certified as the only enemy ship sunk
in U. S. waters since the War of 1812. (Note: USS FARQUHAR DE-139
sunk U-881, also on 6 May 1945 in the North Atlantic, south east of
Newfoundland @ 48.18 N, 44.44 W)
When ATHERTON shipmates gather for reunions they have the usual sea
stories to share while they recall the U-853 incident and the fate
of the German crew under a Kaptain that disregarded “cease fire”
orders. However, one particular story was always left unfinished
until 61 years later on the occasion of their 2006 Reunion held in
Albany, NY.
Ironically, while U-853 was under deadly attack, with ATHERTON
rocking amidst the tremendous noise and force of the exploding
ordnance, a life-saving drama was taking place below deck in
ATHERTON’S “Sick Bay” and photographs bear witness to the
unprecedented event. A German POW was being tenderly attended by
Jewish Lt. Maurice Vitsky (Dr.) USN, Surgery, following an
emergency appendectomy. Pvt.1/c Franz Krones, German Army POW
#31G668894, had been transferred by breeches buoy to ATHERTON from
M/V 2-1 on 20 April 1945, while GUS-84 was forming near Gibraltar
in the Mediterranean. Krones was critically ill with a ruptured
appendix and Dr. Vitsky, as Division Medical Officer aboard
ATHERTON, operated immediately with the assistance of 20-year-old
Pharmacist’s Mate 3rd Class, Thomas J. Ciaccio. The prisoner was
helpless and desperately ill. Dr. Vitsky and Phm. Ciaccio
compassionately nursed their patient throughout the Atlantic voyage
and U-853 attack to drain his infection, administer penicillin and
provide whatever nourishment he could
sustain. Capt. Iselin was also concerned for his charge and
frequently took time to inquire about the status of the patient.
The ATHERTON crew never forgot Krones and always wondered about his
fate after he was transferred to a military hospital when DE-169
finally reached Boston.
Preston L. Davis of Stafford, VA is a very patient and caring
Southern gentleman who has spent years tracking down former
shipmates while planning ATHERTON reunions. Davis served as a
Gunners Mate 2/c aboard DE-169 and has maintained files of the
ship’s history and prepared, along with his son Tim, several
posters showing ATHERTON’S crew with “then and now” photos of the
73 shipmates he has located. During one of his e-mail exchanges
following a May 2006 inquiry from a German researcher, Davis
mentioned his own search for Franz Krones. Shortly thereafter,
Davis received e-mail from Krone’s daughter, Irmgard Pospischil,
living in Otzberg, Germany informing him that her father was alive
and well and included photos of the family!
This amazing news quickly spread through the ATHERTON crew network
with hopes Mr. Krones and his family could join the crew for their
June 2006 Reunion in Albany, NY. Because of his age (85), Krones
decided it would be too difficult for him to make this trip.
Instead, with the aid of his daughter and son-in-law, he made a
“videobotschaft” (video message on a CD) that was shown at the
Reunion. Even though he spoke in German, the U.S. crew could see
him again and also read an English translation of his thoughtful
message that expressed his heartfelt thanks for the good care that
saved his life. Although being painfully ill, he recalled, “being
packed in a bag” and brought to another ship by “some kind of
ropeway”. He especially mentioned his gratitude “that I was not so
important . . . and we were still in the war and I did not expect
such a big expenditure with a prisoner of war”. While not
understanding English he knew he was receiving penicillin and
attentive care by Dr. Vitsky who tried to communicate with him
using a form of “Yiddish” - a Jewish dialect of German origins.
Realizing Krones was Catholic, Dr. Vitsky also brought him a rosary
while trying to reassure him he was in “safe” quarters.
The remaining ATHERTON shipmates have added another chapter to
their ship’s history as they have finally discovered what happened
to their young prisoner. After two additional operations, Krones
was sent to Camp Edwards, MA and in November 1945, released back to
Germany. Finding his home destroyed and his family displaced, he
finally located his mother through an uncle living in Vienna,
Austria and then came to Otzberg where he worked on a farm. He
married in 1951 and he and his wife have a son, daughter and four
grandchildren. Krones worked as a civil servant for the German
Federal Armed Forces and according to his daughter, he has told his
story “many times” over the years and is now amazed that the
Americans were interested in him and that photos existed of his
transfer and operation.
According to his daughter, Franz Krones always suspected the doctor
was Jewish and said “Der Arzt war ein sehr feiner mann” (The
physician was a very fine man) and this always impressed his family
who are thankful and thrilled to finally be in contact with the
remaining crew of ATHERTON. The Krones grandchildren are also very
excited over this discovery and have brought the interesting news
to school to share with their classmates.
Ms. Pat Vitsky, daughter of Dr. Vitsky who died in 2004, remains in
communication with the ATHERTON crew and the Krones family and was
very familiar with the event because her father always had worried
about his young German patient after leaving him at a port
hospital. The Vitsky family lives in Richmond, VA where Dr. Maurice
Vitsky returned to his bride Betty, after the war and practiced for
many years as an OB-GYN specialist at Richmond Memorial Hospital.
Along with the photos, documents and “Video Message from Franz
Krones” Preston Davis has donated
to the SLATER Museum, additional documents have also been donated
to the Virginia Holocaust
Museum archives in recognition of this unforgettable story
involving human compassion and goodness
that evolved from an otherwise dreadful time of wartime history.
Destroyer Escort veterans have always told stories of “caring and
sharing” with their buddies during service days and many attribute
this camaraderie to the smaller structure of the ship, with a
smaller crew who got to know each other quite well as they shared
many wartime experiences together. We can also point to this
example of the concern and care shown to Franz Krones by ATHERTON’S
crew and be very proud of this chapter in Destroyer Escort history.
Thanks to ATHERTON’S shipmates and their families, Locker # 3 of
SLATER’S C-203L Museum contains an outstanding display of artifacts
relating to this ship’s unique history. These include uniform
articles belonging to LCDR Iselin, U-853 Kapitan Froemsdorf’s hat,
life-raft and other pieces of debris, the DE-169 Commissioning
program, de-commissioning Ensign and numerous photographs.
They can
be viewed online, here.
Anyone interested in contacting the USS ATHERTON
DE-169 shipmates can write to:
Preston L. Davis
75 Driftwood Lane
Stafford, VA 22554 or by E-mail at: USSAthertonDE169@aol.com
Webmaster note 1 June 2008 - It is will sadness that I report to
you the death of Franz Krones on 5 May 2008.
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Franz Krones transfer to DE-169 by Breeches buoy with Cdr. Lewis Iselin
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Operation photo with Dr. Vitsky & Phm. Tom Ciaccio
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Franz Krones
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Dr. Vitsky "then and now"
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Tom Ciaccio "then and now"
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Krones family group in June 2006
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Preston Davis in 2006
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DE-169 Reunion Group on SLATER
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ATHERTON DE-169 Locker #3 Exhibit aboard SLATER
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RAJAH HUMABON-11 in 2006; ex-USS ATHERTON DE-169
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Atherton Shipmates Reunite
With A German POW - A must read story!
Photo 1 | Photo 2 |
Photo 3 | Photo 4 | Photo 5 |
Photo 6 | Photo 7 |
Photo 8 |
Photo 9
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Display Aboard USS
Slater DE-766 Museum
|