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Of and for all MSO sailors, in any Navy around the world.
JOIN the NMSOA
When you are done with this site, please visit the NMSOA web site.....
Mike Warren, Don Cole and the Board of Directors of the Lucid Foundation Need your help. The USS Lucid Museum is now a work in progress. They can use your Help with Labor, Memorabilia or Monetary support. Click on the link for more information.
If you would like to make a donation to the LUCID MSO-458 FOUNDATION please just click on the link above.
We now have an MSO !!!
Click on the caption to go to the story of
the sea battle ,
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Richard DeRosset's "Sea Battle off the Cua Co Chien River Mouth" depicts the heroic sea battle in 1970 between the USS Endurance (MSO 435) and a larger, faster and more heavily armed Viet Cong steel-hulled vessel. A copy of it will be used for the dust jacket of Cdr. David Bruhn's forth coming book "Wooden Ships and Iron Men: The U.S. Navy's Ocean Minesweepers, 1953-1994" Persons interested in obtaining a reproduction of the painting may contact the artist at the below address for details:
Richard DeRosset
1914 El Prado Ave
Lemon Grove, CA 91945-3921
Richard DeRosset is a maritime and aviation historian and is one of the nation's foremost marine and aviation artists. Mr. DeRosset has been named the official artist for the San Diego Maritime Museum. He was also selected to paint murals for the President George Bush Memorial Gallery. The official U.S. Coast Guard artist; Mr. DeRosset spends hours of intensive research from his studio near the seaport city of San Diego, California, into the preliminary background and detail of each of his works. All of which results in paintings of sensitive coloration and unmatched accuracy of execution. |
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A copy of the painting "Hidden Death at Wonsan" by Richard DeRosset will be used as the cover art for David Bruhn's forthcoming book "Wooden Ships and Iron Men: The U.S. Navy's Coastal & Motor Minesweepers, 1941-1953"
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Although it may appear unusual for an image of two steel-hulled minesweepers to be displayed at a wooden-hulled ocean minesweeper site, the loss of Pirate and Pledge along with ROK YMS-516 and Japanese minesweeper No. 14 at Wansan was the impetus for the Navy to construct the post-Korean War mine force. These two ships are a part of the heritage of the subsequent ocean, coastal and inshore minesweeper sailors.
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Possessing insufficient minesweepers to protect U.S. harbors and bays as the threat of war in Europe spread, in the winter of 1939-40 the Navy began purchasing fishing vessels and modifying them to combat mines. One of them, Condor (AMc-14), first sighted the Japanese Type-A midget submarine that destroyer Ward (DD-139) sank on December 7, 1941 with the first shots fired by American forces during World War II. She would be one of six coastal minesweepers to receive a battle star. From boat- and shipyards across America came the largest production run of any World War II warship, 561 scrappy little 136-foot wooden-hulled vessels characterized by Arnold Lott in Most Dangerous Sea as "belligerent-looking yachts wearing grey paint." Although their designers envisioned that they would operate primarily in the vicinity of yards or bases, the YMSs (too numerous to be given names) would see action in every theater of war, earning almost 700 battle stars, 21 Presidential Unit Citations, and 15 Navy Unit Commendations. YMSs were present in the North African campaign, in Sicily, at Anzio, Salerno, and elsewhere in Italy, and swept ahead of invasion forces at Normandy and in Southern France. In the Pacific, they operated in the Marshall Islands, New Guinea, Solomons, Treasury Island, Gilbert Islands, New Britain, Admiralty Islands, Guam, Palau, Leyte, Luzon, Manila Bay, Iwo Jima, Southern Philippines, Okinawa, and Borneo. | ||||
| Following the war, they cleared mines from the East China Sea, Yangtze River approaches, and throughout Japanese waters, and their activities gave rise to the proud slogan of the mine force: "Where the Fleet Goes, We've Been." During the Korean War, a mere 16 auxiliary motor minesweepers (former YMSs) performed the bulk of mine clearance, often while inside the range of enemy coastal artillery, necessary for larger naval vessels to close the coast to support operations ashore. Garnering collectively 124 battle stars, 7 Presidential Unit Citations, and 7 Navy Unit Commendations, the men aboard these ships were then, and remain to date, the most highly decorated crews of minesweepers in the history of the U.S Navy. | |||||
The demolition of the final six took place, we believe, in January 2002.
The minesweepers have been completely dismantled and disposed. There are no items remaining for sale.
Ocean Minesweepers | |||||||
| Name | Nbr | Builder | Keel Laid | Launch Date | Commis -sioned | Decomm -issioned | Additional Information |
| Conflict | 426 | Fulton Shipyard, Antioch, Calif. | 8/13/51 | 12/16/52 | 3/23/54 | 6/9/72 | Scrapped by Al Kidman, Wilmington, CA $32,501. Removal date: 1/22/74 from San Diego under tow of Beverly Gene to L.A., Calif |
| Venture | 496 | Broward Marine | 1/11/55 | 11/27/56 | 2/3/58 | 8/2/71 | Custody of Venture accepted upon arrival INACTSHIPFAC NORVA 01-NOV-71. Berthed Pier "A", South, Southgate Annex, 1-May-78, Scrap Sale, C.B. Herter Jr., Airports Rd., Hopewell, VA. $27,019 |
| Adroit | 509 | Frank L. Sample | 11/18/54 | 8/20/55 | 3/4/57 | 12/12/91 | 18-Aug-94, Scrapped 5/95, Wilmington Resources, Inc.,Wilmington, N.C. $44,950 PiggyBack Minesweepers, Desert Storm |
Can you find the names of all 65 US MSOs in the following paragraph??
(answer at bottom of this page)
I felt a strange alacrity; you know that energy you get when you engage in implicit skill along with the ability and vigor to become aggressive enough and agile in your own right to affray with sufficient force having no esteem for that gallant yet illusive leader that you have shown loyalty and fidelity too; along with that pledge that became vital to the stalwart sagacity that allowed you to fortify your fearless exploit and not just become an observer and pluck any valor out of that direct conflict without a bold yet massive bulwark to enhance your firm and persistent venture with that constant dash of endurance that has allowed you to excel as a notable guide without a prime rival to keep you on the pinnacle of lucid thoughts as your friends become impervious to the prestige that you seem to inflict on those around you with a somewhat dynamic, if not exultant advance towards that adroit goal with the assurance that you can avenge that dominant but nimble salute that you give with that sturdy handshake as you swerve and pivot to dodge that grim reaper that will embattle your conquest to the acme of your success as you struggle through the metal detector of life.
Author Unknown
Two Ships have been found in Private Hands, USS ADVANCE (MSO-510), and USS LUCID (MSO-458).
cold war
The SS Lane Victory, a Merchant Marine Museum on board a Victory-Class Liberty ship tied up in the Port of Los Angeles, I observed the following bit of MSO Hardware:
As you descend the ladder into the Hold, and walk past the moored mine in the on-board Museum, look past the Engine from the San Pablo (From the movie 'Sand Pebbles') and there in all its 'snipe' glory is an actual Packard V-12 diesel engine, as used as the main propulsion and Minesweep generator engines on most MSOs. The engine is intact, and identified by a small sign.
If you, or any other former 'sweep sailors are in the Southern California area, you should pay the Lane Victory a visit. She is a fully-functional ship which gets underway three times in the summer on fund-raising cruises to Catalina.
Courtesy of Denis King - USS Dynamic MSO 432.
Two Ocean Minesweepers ran aground and were lost.
Four experienced fires, only one was rebuilt, the others were scrapped.
Newspaper and Magazine articles about Ocean Minesweepers that have appeared in the media.
Peacetime accidents over the past sixty years have resulted in hundreds of naval vessels being lost or stricken from active service. This book aims to explain why and how these accidents have occurred, being categorized by their primary cause, and covers some of the lessons that have been learned.
The account of the fire on USS Stalwart is contained on pages 79-82 of my book, which also contains details of other MSO tragedies.
Wooden Ships and Iron Men
David D. Bruhn Home PageFrom 1953 to 1994, sixty-five U.S. Navy ocean minesweepers (MSOs) swept mines; searched the seafloor for downed aircraft, sunken ships, and lost munitions; “showed the flag” throughout the world, even sailing up the Congo and Mekong Rivers, calling at dozens of the world's seaports; and carried out patrols and special tasks off strife-torn or hostile countries. Some participated in the 1962 nuclear test program in the Pacific and in the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo space programs. Others, as part of a U.S. armada of military and civilian research ships at Palomares, located a nuclear bomb lost on the seafloor off Spain as a result of a midair collision between two U.S. Air Force aircraft. Iron men in wooden ships were with the Fleet in hotspots around the world, including Lebanon and the Quemoy-Matsu islands of Taiwan in 1958; the Dominican Republic in 1961 and 1965; and the Cuban Missile Crisis and Haiti in 1962. During the Vietnam War, minesweepers participated in Operation MARKET TIME to prevent the infiltration of North Vietnamese soldiers and munitions into South Vietnam. Leader received the Presidential Unit Citation for extraordinary heroism in Operation SEA LORDS; Endurance engaged in close gun action with and helped destroy an enemy armed trawler in a sea battle; and MSOs cleared mines in Haiphong Harbor, which aided in the negotiations in progress for the return of U.S. prisoners of war. During the twilight of their service in the late 1980s and early 1990s, aging sweeps cleared Iranian- and Iraqi-laid mines in the Persian Gulf.
Praise for Wooden Ships and Iron MenWooden Ships and Iron Men is a fitting tribute to the ocean minesweepers and Sailors who crewed them during a critical time in the U.S. Navy’s modern history. While enduring all the hardships common to life at sea in small vessels, these men contributed significantly to the Navy’s successful operations, from 1953 to 1994, in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, off the coast of Vietnam, and in the volatile Persian Gulf. This work is a must read.We are truly impressed with the depth of your research on an important, but often overlooked, aspect of the U.S. Navy's Cold War and post–Cold War operations. I plan to spread the word on this important work to my colleagues here at the Center, who I'm sure will find it a useful resource in their own work. As Project Director of our forthcoming Cold War Gallery [for the National Museum of the United States Navy], I can say that it will be at my elbow as I work to develop the exhibition. Edward J. Marolda Senior Historian Naval Historical Center Washington, D.C. | |||||
| Cdr.
Bruhn’s history of the Ocean Minesweeper will delight all those who
served in and worked with these fine wooden ships. It will also provide
much interesting detail on their employment to anyone concerned with the
U.S. Navy’s mine countermeasures efforts between the Korean War and
DESERT STORM. Bruhn reviews many
of the ongoing issues and competing priorities that have crippled this
important warfare area. Wooden Ships and Iron Men is a real walk
down memory lane for a former MSO Commanding Officer and Mine Group
Commander. Worth the read! Captain David J. Grieve, USN (Ret.) Commander U.S. Mine Countermeasures Force 1990–1991 Operation DESERT SHIELD/STORM (“Persian Gulf War”) | |||||
| Reading Dave Bruhn’s important book on mine warfare, I was
delighted to return to sea on an MSO without the usual seasickness
caused by its endless corkscrewing and the nausea induced by stack gas
blowing into the bridge on a following wind. I could actually walk a
deck without leaving heel prints three feet up a bulkhead! Thank you,
David, for returning me to the days of my youth and callow
innocence. Mike Goss, Former Lt., USN |
'Sweeps
Stephen Haywood BrownAs the Vietnam War continued with no end in sight, America sought to pressure Hanoi into signing the Paris Peace Accord and releasing all American prisoners of war. But Hanoi continued to stall until May 1972 when exhausted carrier pilots sealed North Vietnam’s harbors with advanced mines. Days later Ensign Samuel Vincent Wallace reports aboard USS Vengeance conducting anti-infiltration patrols along the Vietnamese coast. On New Year’s Day 1973, the ship sails with her unsophisticated gadgets on a secret mission to Haiphong to sweep the port in exchange for Hanoi releasing American POWs. Based on actual events in which the author played a major role, ’Sweeps tells how iron men manning wooden ships bring home 591 POWs.
One hundred and one (101) ships were actually built
AS ORIGINALLY BUILT:
All had Diesel engines.
All were outfitted with One 40mm, single; Two .50cal machine guns??
Foreign Classes did not list crew sizes.
(1) AGILE Class, Hull Number(s) 421, Length Overall: 172ft, Extreme Beam: 35ft, Displacement: 755 tons, Max. Draft: 10ft, Designed Accommodations: Off: 8,Enl: 70, Design speed: 14k, Engines: Packard, Designed Shaft Horsepower: 2280
There was only one ship in the Agile class, and that
was Agile. She was unlike any other MSO, with V-16 Packards and 3200
SHP, not the V-12 Packards and 2400 SHP that most of the other MSO's
had. She also had an 8 cylinder 250KW S/S generator instead of the
185KW S/S generator....Bob Adelwerth USN, Ret.
(53) AGGRESSIVE Class, 422-427,432-449,455-474,488-496, 172ft, 35ft, 775tons, 10ft, 5,65, 14k, Packard, 2280
(4) DASH Class, 428-431,172ft, 35ft, 775tons, 10ft, 8,70, 14k,GM, 1520
(5) AM 450 Class, France, 450-454,171ft, 35ft, 750tons, 10ft4", 15k,GM 1600
(10) BERNEVAL Class (per Janes), France, 475-477, 500-502, 505, 512-514, 171ft, 35ft, 700tons, 10.5ft, 13.5k, GM 1600
(4) AM 478 Class, Portugal, 478-479,486-487,172ft, 35ft, 665tons, 10ft, GM, 1600
(6) AM 480 Class, Netherlands, 480-485,172ft, 36ft, 735tons, 10ft, 15.5k, GM, 1600
(2) AM 498 Class, Norway, 498-499,171ft, 35ft, 750tons, 11ft, 15.5k GM, 1600
(5)AM 503 Class, Belgium, 515-516,522,172ft5", 35ft, 780tons, 11ft, 14k,GM, 1600
(4) AM 506 Class, Italy, 506-507,517-518,173ft, 35ft, 665tons, 10ft, 15k, Unkn, 1600
(4) ACME Class, 508-511,173ft, 36ft, 750tons, 14ft, 8,70, 14k, Packard, 2280
(3) ABILITY Class, 519-521,190ft, 36ft, 934tons, 12ft, 8,75, 15k, GM, 2700
These ships bravely went before the fleet in peacetime and war, in operations such as the Cuban Missile blockade, Vietnam, Operation "Ernest Will" (the escort of the re-flagged Kuwaiti oil tankers), and even in Desert Shield/Desert Storm. Many lives were saved by the actions of these minesweepers. We were the first in, sweeping the watery mine fields so others could come after us.
These were not large ships that received great attention. We quietly went about the business of saving lives under what were considered harsh conditions. We had none of the luxuries of the larger Navy vessels.
The well deserved motto for these great ships was "Where the Fleet Goes, We've Been" and for the men that served on them "Wooden Ships, Iron Men".
That's my MSO down there; which one is yours?
It was a terribly long walk down that very short pier
I asked myself many times did I really want to be here
But that old wooden ship that was painted haze gray
Was my ticket to the world and I could get away
Get away from myself and the trials of my days
We would go out to sea and that old ship would raise
She would buck and sway and slam us back down
In that foamy green brine she'd bounce all around
It was hard times at best but she always got us there
You'd think that that you couldn't even like it or care
But you did in spite of the miserable days and the nights
That the old ship took away from you in small little bites
You prayed and you prayed to get off that trash heap
And you asked yourself why you loved that old sweep
It was hard to admit, what you really went through
Not just for the ship, but for the rest of the crew
Had all that I owned, everything that was mine
Stuck in a big canvas bag, strapped over my shoulder
I spent my time there and was feeling much older
Time had passed by much faster than I thought
I was proud of my service and what I was taught
Did I really want to leave her and just get out of here
It was a terribly long walk down that very short pier
She's still afloat today with her leaks and bad wood
Waiting with six others to be saved as we should
We can't afford to forget, with a different course to steer
It will be a terribly long walk down a very short pier
So do what you can and be proud of your ship
And join with our group for a very long trip
A trip for believers and not for the weak hearted
It's going to take from us all, so now let's get started
Author Unknown ......
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related sites |
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Searching our hearts and minds concerning what it means to be a “Follower of Christ” has brought about a conviction to take action upon the erosion of Christian morals through the Media, the entertainment industry, our education system and our local, state and national governments.
We, as The Miracle Cast and Crew in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, have seen what apathy, silence, and lack of standing for our faith as Christians can do to a United States that was founded upon the principles of God’s Word.
We believe it is time for those of us who have a relationship with Jesus Christ to take a stand and say, “Enough is Enough”!
You can help us by signing the Million Voices For Christ Petition which states:
"It's time for Christians to stand up and say, "Enough is Enough!" The name of Jesus Christ should not be mocked, nor should those who love Him be slandered for their beliefs. It is time for people of faith around the country to stand firm against religious slander, bias, and bigotry of all types including against Christianity!"
Number, Name 77410. Dick Lewis, Loves Park, IL
"If men are not self-controlled through the teachings of the Bible, then the only alternative for civil government is coercion"
Thus over 100,000 new laws are introduced each session in state and federal legislatures.
The French philosopher, Alexis De Tocqueville: "America will last until the populace discovers that it can vote for itself largesse out of the public treasury”.
Sir Winston Churchill: "The inherent vice of Capitalism is the unequal distribution of blessings, the inherent vice of Socialism is the equal distribution of misery/poverty".
December 5, 1999
Dear Mr. Lewis,
Thanks for your email it's much appreciated. I do feel very blessed to be in the Murphy family. I am very proud of my uncle and what he did, I am also proud of you and all the others that fought for our freedom too. Thank you ! and thanks for keeping his name alive.
God Bless you and have a Merry Christmas
Love,
Angela (Murphy) Hunt
I felt a strange alacrity; you know that energy you get when you engage in implicit skill along with the ability and vigor to become aggressive enough and agile in your own right to affray with sufficient force having no esteem for that gallant yet illusive leader that you have shown loyalty and fidelity too; along with that pledge that became vital to the stalwart sagacity that allowed you to fortify your fearless exploit and not just become an observer and pluck any valor out of that direct conflict without a bold yet massive bulwark to enhance your firm and persistent venture with that constant dash of endurance that has allowed you to excel as a notable guide without a prime rival to keep you on the pinnacle of lucid thoughts as your friends become impervious to the prestige that you seem to inflict on those around you with a somewhat dynamic, if not exultant advance towards that adroit goal with the assurance that you can avenge that dominant but nimble salute that you give with that sturdy handshake as you swerve and pivot to dodge that grim reaper that will embattle your conquest to the acme of your success as you struggle through the metal detector of life. Author Unknown
Copyright© 2002-2009 Dick Lewis.
All rights reserved.