October 31, 1945

Joe wrote no entry today.

Another photo of Nagasaki survivors.

October 30, 1945

30 _____ 240 days out of states.
________

Pictured is a postcard that Joe purchased in Japan and brought home.

October 29, 1945

29 _____ Still in Nagasaki.
___________

A rare color photo of the bombed area.

October 28, 1945

28 _____ Sun. Had mass on focasle at 900 & Divine services at 10.00 _ More men were trans fered at 1200 _ first Div. lost 3 more men. Rope yarn sunday. 3
________

The "3" was the number of men transferred.

Rope Yarn Sunday = Originally in the Navy, this was any day BUT Sunday when sailors were given a day or a half day off to do sewing and mending. Usually it was a day in port when a tailor came aboard. Later, the term just came to mean a day off, either for personal chores or recreation. Joe used it on a Sunday, and since this is the first he's used it, he probably meant they were given the afternoon off for personal chores. He might have used the time to mend uniforms or write letters. This photo from the Mobile's cruise book was captioned "Feurt the Tailor." No clue if that was his real name.

October 27, 1945

27 _____ Sat. _ Navy Day.
_____ The Ship was all dress up with flags from focasle to fandtail. Sure look swell _ Marines from Shore came over to look over ship this afternoon. Some of the fellows were transferred today more is going off tomorrow. First Div lost four in the transferry 4
_______

transferry = transfer or transferring. Joe begins to count how many are transferred.

Photo shows Navy Day 1945 aboard the submarine USS Puffer.

October 26, 1945

26- _____ Fri. _ Had field day & lower deck inspection. Japs are bringing unfinish cargo ships back to rapair dock to be completed. One tied up to dock today about 500 yards from us.
______

A field day, to remind all, was a complete cleaning and organizing of the ship. In this case, it was for Navy Day on the 27th.

Photo shows what was left of a Nagasaki munitions plant.

October 25, 1945

25- _____ Tue. A few fellows were told to get ready for trains ferry tomorrow. All those who do not have 9 months of sea duty will be transfer to other ships or shore base.
_____________

Tue. - should be Thursday.

trains ferry = transferring

Photo of Mobile sailors.

October 24, 1945

24 _____ Wed. _ Still in Nagasaki. News going around is that were going back to the states Nov. 15. also new point system came out which will let me out by late Jan or early Feb.
_________

As of May, all G.I.s were required to have 85 battle points for discharge. In October, with the demobilization ahead of schedule, the total was rolled back to 75 (some sources say less).

Photo is of a Nagasaki Shinto shrine.

October 23, 1945

23 _____ Tue. same as yesterday movies on main deck aft.
_________

Photo shows buildings in Nagasaki not leveled by the bomb.

October 22, 1945

22 _____ monday not much _ movies on main deck aft.
_______

This begins a few days of short entries. The sailors (according to Joe's later entries) were given shore leave some of the days. Despite the devastation, Nagasaki still had a few sites worth seeing, and some were published in the Mobile's cruise book. Photo shows a fisherman's junk against a backdrop of terraces.

October 21, 1945

21- _____ Today being sunday we had mass & divine services on focasle I also had liberty in after noon. Got a Jap commona.
(231 days out of states)
________

commona - kimono.

Ed. note: Joe brought home 3 silk kimonos. 2 are pictured. My brother and I often wore them as Halloween costumes, never knowing that one, at least, might have come from Nagasaki only 6 weeks after the bombing. Mine was the small gray one -- a child's kimono, about 3 feet in length. Joe also brought our family a purple one with a brilliant red obi (sash).

October 20, 1945

14
to
20 __ from 14 to 20 _ Stayed in Nagasaki
_________

Photo: A dramatic photo of a Nagasaki bridge taken the day after the bombing.

October 19, 1945

14
to
20 __ from 14 to 20 _ Stayed in Nagasaki
_________

Photo: A bombed out Nagasaki torpedo station.

October 18, 1945

14
to
20 __ from 14 to 20 _ Stayed in Nagasaki
_________

Photo shows 2 Nagasaki children.

October 17, 1945

14
to
20 __ from 14 to 20 _ Stayed in Nagasaki

_________

Photo: Devastation around a Shinto temple. Amazingly and appropriately, the torii was left standing. The torii is a symbolic gateway between the profane and the sacred.

October 16, 1945

14
to
20 __ from 14 to 20 _ Stayed in Nagasaki

_________

Photo: A Nagasaki mother and child.

October 14 & 15, 1945

Ed. Note: Circumstances prevented me from getting to the PC yesterday. Though you'll note that Joe's entry covers 7 days, so I'm combining the first 2. I'll post photos of Nagasaki at the time over the next week.
_____

14
to
20 __ from 14 to 20 _ Stayed in Nagasaki

_________

Today's photo is of two Nagasaki women with the bomb's destruction behind them.

October 13, 1945

13- _____ Had inspection this morning in dress blues _ another Jap mine sweeper pulled in with soldiers & left after unloading them _ same was (Sweeper) a Jap hospital ship pull in at 17.00 Jap ship yards here a starting to work again building ships. three transports have been completed. Liberty this afternoon at 1245 to 16[4]0.
(224 days out of states)
__________

1640 - I put the 4 in brackets because it looks like a 3 with a 4 written over it.

At the war's end, the Japanese needed to evacuate their armies from the islands they'd taken over. Many Japanese ships had their guns removed and were converted to transport ships. The painting shows the IJN Soya, an ammunition ship converted to a transport in September of 1945.

October 12, 1945

12- _____ Sa Fay left this morning _ we had inspection of all lower decks spaces this afternoon. Japan mine sweeper pulled in at 1300 (Saihan) & left upon unloading the soldiers it took in here.
________

Shown is a painting of the Imperial Japanese Navy ship W-19, a minesweeper later converted to transport duties.

October 11, 1945

11 _____ Wind died down today & its starting to get better out but is still cold.
________

Photo shows more damage from Typhoon Louise, this time to a Japanese barge.

October 10, 1945

10- _____ Wind still bade but dying down some _ not much happen today. Rained a little.
221 days
________

Photo shows the damage caused to Navy ships by Typhoon Louise on October 9 in Buckner Bay, Okinawa. Good thing the Mobile was in Sasebo.

October 9, 1945

9th _____ Not much doing except bade weather out side of harbor believe to be a typhoon. Heard a 110 mile an hour wind hit Okinawa last night. USS Sa Fay
________

Joe left the last sentence unfinished. There's no reference in the USS Santa Fe's history of anything happening on October 9. The light cruiser was in Sasebo Harbor with the Mobile. Maybe all Joe wanted to mention was her presence there.

Pictured is the actual typhoon warning sent to all Navy ships on October 9th.

October 8, 1945

8th _____ Rained this morning _ Jap DD that pulled in yesterday pulled out. I got 9 letters last night.
_______

Photo is of the Japanese destroyer (DD) Sawakaze.

October 7, 1945

7- _____ Sunday - mass this morning on focastle at 1300 recreation party went over to sub bace. I was on it, came back at 1600.
_____ This afternoon at 1700 a Jap destroyer pulled in with a load of soldiers which we think came from China or some island. Movies on main deck aft _ 15 bags of mail came on this afternoon.
________

Photo shows Danny Kaye entertaining the troops at Sasebo. Unfortunately, he didn't show up until November and Joe was gone by then.

October 6, 1945

6- _____ This morning we had inspection in undress Blues _ also lower deck & living compartment inspection _ after inspection a recreation party left the ship to go to Sub bace for recreation came back at 1600. Movies on main deck aft.
_____________

Sub bace = Sasebo was the main Japanese submarine base. Photo shows beached Japanese submarine there, October 1945.

October 5, 1945

5- _____ today was payday _ after pay day they changed our American money for Japanese money so were sure to get liberty soon. At least I hope we do. Ship took on stores today from only AK here. Also here is one tanker & a few LST also a few other small landing craft.
_____ Lower deck inspection this afternoon at 1300
___________

AK = general cargo ship. Photo is of the AK-200, USS Pembina.

October 4, 1945

4th _____ left Sacabo Harbor at 800 for Nagasaki Bay _ got there at 11.00 & tied up to buoys for & aft. USS Wichata is also here. Came down here for the big trial of a sailor from the Wichata who killed a man & raped a girl. Dont expect to stay here long _ Our captain is on the Court martial board here. thats why were here. No sight seeing time here.
215 days out of states

_________________

Photo: USS Wichita from above. She was a heavy cruiser.

October 3, 1945

Oct3- _____ Still not much doing today _ liberty party left ship this after noon. Heard were leaving tomorrow morning.
__________

Photo shows a pile of Japanese planes at Sasebo, waiting to be destroyed.

October 2, 1945

Oct2 _____ still not much doing except it rained most of the day. There was no sight seeing tore because of rain.
________

Photo shows a Japanese signalman on the carrier Junyo in Sasebo harbor, October 1945.

October 1, 1945

Oct.
1st _____ there wasnt much to do today _ another group went on liberty in Sacabo City but theres still nothing to do except go sight seeing. We change quarters _ I have [...] of (2nd deck)
__________

Ed. Note: The word at [...] looks like "charge" -- as in, Joe had charge of the 2nd deck. Or he might have just been saying he was changing his quarters to the 2nd deck.

Pictured is a plan of the Cleveland class cruisers, with what I think is the second deck highlighted.