Ohio County Agent Becomes a Naval Officer on a Liberty Ship During WW II

                                                                Eldon F. Studebaker, courtesy of Stephen Studebaker

Eldon E. Studebaker, a young Church of the Brethren member, watched as his friends signed up to fight in WWII.  The members of this church had a long history of being pacifists, but for some, this war was different.  After what I am sure was a great deal of soul searching, Eldon signed up for the Navy in May 1944.  He had completed his education in agriculture at Manchester College and Ohio State University.   Because he already had a degree, the military sent him to Princeton and later to the Armed Guard Training School in Norfolk, Virginia, for further training.  His college education and military training allowed him to obtain the rank of Ensign quickly.

Newspapers.com, The Journal Herald, Dayton, Ohio, 4 Mar 1945, Page 10

The Navy assigned him to the liberty ship, S.S. Harold T. Andrews.  He commanded a twenty-four-man armed guard aboard the Andrews, where most of the crew were civilians.  Liberty ships served various purposes in the war, including carrying food, fuel, vehicles, and aircraft.  Some were used as troop carriers or for transporting prisoners of war.  The Navy used some of these vessels as hospital ships.  Eldon’s ship was carrying Coca-Cola syrup, uniforms, and Studebaker trucks.

                             Liberty Ship Harold T. Andrews, photo taken by Eldon F. Studebaker, courtesy of Stephen Studebaker

Their ship left Rhode Island and crossed to the Pacific through the Panama Canal, heading for Manu, just north of Papua, New Guinea.  Manu had been a hotly contested island, finally liberated from the Japanese by the Americans and Australians in February 1944.  The island was significant to the United States because they used it as a supply hub for shipping items to many other conflict areas.

Map of Manu and  Seeadler Bay, Wikipedia

After a harrowing journey across the Pacific, Eldon arrived at what he called Manu Bay (probably Seeadler Harbor) in Dec 1944.  He photographed his ship in the harbor on December 25, 1944.  Luckily, he avoided the terrible explosion of the U.S.S. Mt. Hood one month earlier in the same harbor.  The Mt. Hood carried ammunition when she went up, killing many sailors on board and sinking seven smaller nearby vessels.

                                                                The Explosion of the U.S.S. Mt Hood, Wikimedia

The days must have seemed long for the men who spent weeks at sea.  Many of the men gambled, but Eldon did not join in.  He noted that when the ship got to Manu, a couple of the card sharks had the rest of the crew’s money.  Eldon spent time reading his prayer book, keeping a journal, and making sketches in the margins of the small book.  He wrote many letters home to his beloved Ruthy and his small daughter Nancy.  Eldon was a farm boy, learning to carve with a pocket knife as a child.  While at sea, he carved things that he saw, including a native outrigger he had photographed from the deck of his ship.  This treasure is in the collection of his son Stephen, who was born during the war.

Photo of an Outrigger Canoe by Eldon F. Studebaker, courtesy of Stephen Studebaker

Back of the Outrigger Canoe photo, courtesy of the author

               Carvin g of an Outrigger Canoe carved by Eldon F. Studebaker, courtesy of the author

    

Originally published in Generations, the newsletter of the Southwest Colorado Genealogical Society.