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August 6, 2025 • 24 mins
Listen to Stories of Survivors of the USS Drexler DD741 with Roll Call
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Episode Transcript

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Speaker 1 (00:41):
Welcome to the New Heights Show on Education. This is
your host Pamela Clark, and this is an episode of
American Men and Women's service members tell their stories of survival.
Last week I shared the remainder of the story is
that I had about the actual sinking from survivors, but

(01:06):
I wanted to share some things from the lighter side
of it, and so let's go to that. Bob McIntyre
SM one C sent us a number of stories concerning
happenings aboard the Drexler. We are including some of these
stories as follows. One Monday morning, while we were in

(01:30):
the Boston Navy Shipyard and not being too bright eyed
and bushy tailed from a rough weekend in Boston, the
muster report was submitted that all signalmen and were present
or accounted for a short time later, we realized that

(01:50):
no one had seen Bill Celowoski. SM three C killed
in actions to a lookout to watch up the pair
for him. When he finally came into view, we sent
him a signal to stay put and that we were
sending him dungarees and a white hat so he could

(02:12):
change out of his dress blues and flat hat. Bob
Burley S one C killed in action was immediately dispatched
with a g I can containing, among other things, Svosky's dungarese.

(02:34):
The switch was made, and shortly thereafter the two of
them were back on the signal bridge. Slovowski told us
he had sent a telegram indicating he might be late.
We told him if anyone asked why he sent the telegram,
that it was a precautionary measure because he wasn't sure

(02:58):
he would get back on time, but that he was
able to and return returned aboard around zero's seven thirty.
A short time later, the XO LC D R. Bidwell
was on the bridge with a telegram in hand. He
wanted to know where Silvasky was and was told that

(03:22):
he was on the other side of the bridge. The
XO questioned Sky about the telegram, and he told him
the above story. I'm not sure the EXO believed him,
but that was the last we heard of it. The
scare was over, for in those days, a false muster

(03:42):
report was a general court martial offense. Next after arriving
in Pearl Harbor, the shipyard workers in installed are all
around infrared signal lights on the yard arms, and we
received infrared signal light covers and related instruments. Some of

(04:07):
the signalmen was sent to a half day class covering
the care and use of the equipment. This equipment allowed
us to signal at night and no one could see
the signals unless they had the line of sight instrument
to receive the signals. The forty millimeters gun crews just
aft off the signal bridge thought the signalmen were nuts

(04:32):
because we were sending and receiving messages and they couldn't
see any lights. The phone attack code name for this
method of communication was Nancy Hanks. Next, the following are
some of the voice called signs concerning us as a

(04:53):
radar picket ship Commander of all picket ships known as
Delicate Base Commander of Karama Karama Reto Area. Weiseman. Collective
call for picket ships were called Handyman. The USS Strexler

(05:15):
was Wardrobe. It is rather a ironic that in quotations
other than direxer, the voice calls were appropriate for their
command functions. A typical voice transmission to the picket ships
on the transport screen could be something like this, Handyman,

(05:37):
this is Delicate Base flash red controlled greenwiseman says make smoke.
This translates to enemy air attack, eminent guns, free fire
on any and all aircraft, light off smoke generators. Okay. Next,

(06:01):
en route to tell tell Age, a makeshift raft was
sided with a small Japanese flag on it. We circled
it a couple of times and then launched the motor
well boat to investigate. I believe mister Pappas was the
boat officer. After determining that the raft was harmless, the

(06:24):
flag was removed and we returned to the ship. As
we came alongside, I was waving the flag and someone
took a picture. You would have thought that we had
captured the Japanese Navy. The picture hung in the thwart
ship passageway and went down with the ship. Wow. Okay.

(06:47):
Next one, this is Post Drexler in nineteen forty six,
while serving on the USS Iowa, I went up to
the navigation bridge and there stood a second class quartermaster
with two hashmarks. I almost dropped my teeth. It was
Carl Ignoll or ignew excuse me, who was the chief

(07:10):
quartermaster on the Drexler. I said, quote, my god, Carl,
I thought you were dead. End to quote none of
the bridge personnel could account for him. After we got sunk.
Egnew had received burns and swallowed a great deal bill
of oil and spent some time in the hospital on Guam.

(07:34):
After recuperating in a short time after the war, he
was discharged out of the Navy. Civilian life wasn't to
his liking. He elected to return to the Navy in
a second class quartermaster. As a second class quartermaster, he
was a survival of the battleship West Virginia sunk during

(07:57):
the attack on Pearl Harborn't that crazy? I got okay.
Next one, in nineteen fifty I ran into Del Rocco
TM two C in San Francisco. We had a newspaper
and magazine stand on one of the downtown corners. Next,

(08:21):
in nineteen fifty seven, I visited the Captain Wilson in Washington,
d C. In addition to the Drexler. We talked of
many things, families, careers, and et cetera. Something a lot
of the crew members on the Drexler did not know
was Captain Wilson loved to play ac deucy acducy. Every

(08:48):
time he had the chance, he would go back on
the signal bridge playing ac deucy. Okay, here's the events
of the Drexler. The Commandment of the first Naval District
in the Boston Navy Yard, Rear Admiral Felix Guy gets

(09:13):
US Navy goes aboard for commissioning. The Commandment directs that
the ship be placed in commission. All hands face in
the direction that the colors are to be hoisted. The
band plays the national anthem, colors and commission pennant are hosted.

(09:36):
The commission pennant is lowered and the admiral flag is broken.
Honors by band, and the commandment introduces the chaplain and
an invocation by chaplain addressed by the commandment, the commandment
turns the ship to the ship over to the perspective

(09:57):
commanding Officer com Under R. L. Wilson of the US Navy.
The prospective commanding officer reads his orders and assumes command.
The first watch is set. The commanding officer reads a
letter from the Secretary of the Navy. The commander or
the commanding officer addresses the ship's company. The commanding officer

(10:21):
introduces the sponsor, and the ceremony is then completed. Okay,
so that's what let's speak from one of the revenions.

Speaker 2 (10:35):
I'm assuming.

Speaker 1 (10:44):
Okay, this is kind of hard to read. It has
a combination of old writing in it and then the
pipe version, but it says March first. I'm not sure
this is nineteen forty something. I can't make it out.

(11:08):
Maybe it was forty five. It's really almost impossible to
read that, Okay, So subpoena and summon's extraordinary. The Royal
High Court of the Racing Main Region of the South
Seas Domain of neptunis wrecks to who may come these presence,

(11:31):
greetings and beware. Whereas the good ship USS Strexler d
D seventy forty one, bound for the Equator, the secret
mission is about to entire enter our domain. And whereas
the afore said ship carried is a large and lowsome
cargo of land blubbers, beach combers, girdle, ghett our. I'm

(12:00):
saying guardo, rats, sea lawyers, lounge lizards, parlor dunnegans, plow deserters,
park bench murmurs, chicken chasers, hay tossers for flushing, crossword
puzzle bugs, dance hall, shisks, drug store cowboys, asphalt arabs,

(12:26):
and all other living creatures of the land, and last,
but not least, heath vamps, liberty Hounds, Brooklyn and Jersey
carrillos masquerading a seaman, which low scum you are a member,
having ever appeared before us. And whereas the Royal High

(12:50):
Court of the Racing Main Wheel convene on board this
good ship Drexler on the second day of March nineteen
forty five. Okay, so now we know the day at
longitude is not written in and whereas an inspection of
our royal roster shows that it is high time your

(13:15):
and wandering nautical soul appears before our presence. And be
it known that we hereby summon command you FJ. Dubinskas
now a storekeeper third class USN so appear before the

(13:38):
Royal High Court our p Presslonko on the aforehand date
at such time as my best suit our pleasure, you
will accept most heartily and with good grace the pains
and penalties of the awful tortures that would be inflicted

(14:00):
upon you to determine your fitness to be one of
our trustees. Shellbacks an answer to the following charge charges
Charge one, and that you hear the two willfully and
maliciously or no, I'm sorry, Mats failed to show reverence

(14:27):
and allegiance to our royal person and are thereon thereby
a vile land. I do not know Land, it's cut off.
And Pollywog charge two in that you have sneak across

(14:50):
the line any times and failed huh, I'm sorry, it's
hard to read it. Sneaked across the line many times
and failed to come before our royal court. Do not
keep the ship's store open. It's cut off twenty four

(15:19):
hours a day. I'm guessing, disobey the summons under pain
of our swift and terrible disposure. Our vigilance is ever wakeful,
our vengeance is just unsure resigned. Davy Jones subscribe and

(15:46):
I can't read the other one. So there's that. Okay,
So we're going to take a quick commercial break and
then we're going to be right back. Stay tuned for
more men and women BRVIS members tell their stories of survival.
Are you enjoying the New Heights Show on Education? If

(16:08):
you love our show, please consider liking and following us
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at six pm and Fridays for our Empowering HR and

(16:32):
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become a volunteer. Consider donating to our calls at www

(16:56):
dot New Heights education dot org. Welcome back to the
New Heights Show on education. In this episode of American
Men and Women's Service members tell their stories of survival. Okay,

(17:17):
so now we are going to do a roll call.
I'm going to actually share or the roll call from
the seventy fifth anniversary because I really don't want to
have mispronounced anyone's name. It's too important. So hopefully we

(17:38):
won't have any commercials because I'm playing it from within YouTube,
so bear with me if something like that pops up.
Here we go.

Speaker 3 (17:53):
Grant TenneT Hicks Ensign Hill Tennant, Kale, Lieutenant Lewis Tennant
Rupert Benson, Staalter, Tennant Thompson.

Speaker 4 (18:08):
Those were the officers oh the Worthy Crew, Edward Kanowits,
George Amberton, Delmer.

Speaker 5 (18:19):
Bailey, Robert James Baird, Billy Barber, Barbie Beamon, Lee Bison,
Robert Black, Daniel Bowen, Kenneth Boyer, Glenn Bridges, Earl Brixis,

(18:39):
Alphonse Buniki, Robert Burley, Jule Cantrell, William Carl John Carrier,
Harry Carruthers, Dennis Cartwright, Gietano Caruso, Merril Chapman, Arthur Clark,

(19:01):
Willard Clark, Gerald cobbe Lewis Coleman, Maxi, Crisco, Thomas Kinnard,
Russell Digg, Donald Iotto, wends Ol Dallas, Edward Daniels, Francis Donci,
Donald Dessenberg, William de.

Speaker 6 (19:22):
Vito, Edward Devlin, Anthony Desefano, Lauren Dunn, Anthony Dicas, Charles Edwards,
Robert Ferguson, Palmer Fleming, James Foley, Edward Foreman, Robert Frederick,

(19:45):
Robert Fernow, Frank Gannem Bernard Gannon, James Gray Gruber, Kenneth
Kenneth Gruber, Ernest Hall, Leonard Hall, James Hannah Walter, Harper,
Robert Hart, Raymond Herdina, Samuel Holt, Philip Holter, Henry Horridge,

(20:14):
John Hughes, Frank Humes, John Hunt, James J. Jackson, James
Daniel Jenkins, Clarence Johnson, Robert Johnson, Carl Jones, James Taylor,
Robert Caping.

Speaker 7 (20:38):
Billy Kelly, Alden Kern, John Ketchum, Lewis Kincaid, John King, L. G. Lauderdale, Body, Libo,
Marvin Lemke, Urban, lenkling Elmer, Lewis, James Lewis, James Little,

(20:59):
John William Long, Eugene Loquette, Walter Maddox, Ralph Merchant, Rush Martin,
Arl Matthew, James McCullough, James McMillan, William Miles, Jerry Monds,
James Moore, Arma Nouva, John O'Day, Eugene Oliver, Francis Osborne,

(21:26):
Joe Paget, John Parsons, John Pendleton, Leo Phillips, Everett Pollard,
Carl Poole, Richard Pendergrast, Eugene Presley, Steve Prestige, Gilbert Pride,
William Reese, Thomas Riley, Edmund Robinson, Johnny.

Speaker 8 (21:49):
Robinson, Robert Rosenfeld, Marden Rowan Roy Row Russell Shaw, Gilbert Siebert,
William Silkowski, Maurice Silkiner, Ralph SIPs, Charles Smoot, Frederick Snyder,

(22:15):
Nicholas Spinado.

Speaker 6 (22:17):
Paskell, Stacy, William Stallings Junior, Joe Stangele, James Stewart, Darmund Steiner,
Thomas Sullivan, Robert Sweeney, David Swiney, Frederick.

Speaker 2 (22:34):
Tretault, Fred Thomas, Joseph Thompson, Harold Titus, Matthew Tompkins, Robert Turner,
Anthony Vetters, Thomas Walker, Oliver Warren, Junior, Lee Washington, Hugh Waycaster,

(22:56):
Worth Wellans, Joseph west Olland Fight, Horace Whitfield, Marvin Witchman,
Clarence Wimbish, Jean Winfield, Edward Winston, Walter, Rojakowski, Thomas Wood.

Speaker 9 (23:16):
And Ray Yorke, reading from Isaiah, Do not be afraid,
or I have redeemed you.

Speaker 4 (23:28):
I have called you by.

Speaker 7 (23:29):
Your name, and you were mine, because you're precious in
my eyes, because you were honored, and I love you.

Speaker 8 (23:37):
Yes seem.

Speaker 1 (23:43):
Thank you for spending another show with me, and and
thank you to all of our veterans and to the
families your shared respect, but those of us that our
family members didn't get to come home until next time
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