Merchant Marine Veterans of WW II

[jdon]

I need to locate name/addresses of companies that owned tugs & barges that transported war materials, (ore, scrap iron, sugar, salt, lumber, coal, etc) to ports along the east coast during WWII. We mostly loaded these materials at Hampton Roads, VA or Baltimore, MD, then carried it north to these ports: Baltimore, MD; Bangor, ME; Boston, MA; Edgewater, NJ; Fall River, MA; Hoboken, NJ; New Bedford, MA; New Haven, CT; New York, NY; Norfolk, VA; Perth Amboy, NJ; Philadelphia, PA; Portsmouth, NH; Providence, RI; Stamford, CT, Williamston, NC and others. My family worked on these barges and I need to establish evidence of their employment on those barges. This data is required in filing our claims to gain recognition as US Merchant Marine Veterans of WWII. The barge companies have long since gone out of business and I am unable to locate employment records to support our claim. I have contacted some of the cities that we visited during the years from 1941 to 1947 with no luck. We worked as a family during the summers between school semesters. My dad was the captain, mom the cook and the boys were the crew. Dad was employed as captain year around. These tug/barge companies and the companies loading/unloading the coal may have records that would identify the barge names as well as the captain’s names, along with dates visiting their coal piers. I would appreciate any help you can offer. Even the names and addresses of the companies unloading the coal would be a great help. Listed below are the names of barges and approximate years we were aboard. Efforts to gain formal information via the US Government Archives and other government offices have proved to be of no help. The five members of my family collectively spent approximately 8 years on the hostile east coast waters during the 1942-1946 period when the German submarine wolf pacts were spreading havoc on our Merchant Marine and I would truly like to have my family recognized for their efforts. I lost one brother because of their sinking’s. Thanking you in advance.<O:p></O:p>
Regards,<O:p></O:p>
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JD Horton of 104 Riverview Ave, Camden, NC 27921 (Phone) 252 336 5553
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OWNER: SOUTHERN TRANSPORTATION CO. 16 S. Broad St., PHIL. PA; SOC SEC Employer No. 23-1107690 & 29 Broadway, New York, NY; SOC SEC Employer No. 13-5403997<O:p></O:p>
Barges: TENNESSEE, (yrs 1941 & 43); COHASSET, (yrs 1941 & 42); CHELSEA, yrs (1942 & 43); PORTLAND, yr (1943 & 44) <O:p></O:p>
OWNER: CULLEN TRANSPORTATION CO. 80 BROAD ST., NEW YORK, NY; SOC SEC Employer No. 13-5017994<O:p></O:p>
Barge: CULLEN #17, (yr 1945) <O:p></O:p>
OWNER: P. DAUGHERTY CO.; GAY & LOMBARD STS., BALTIMORE, MD; SOC SEC Employer No. 52-1296180<O:p></O:p>
Barges: MARYLAND, (yr 1945); DELAWARE, (yr 1946); BALTIMORE, (yr 1947)<O:p></O:p>
Name Birth Date Death Date Seaman Z No. Position<O:p></O:p>
William Lee Horton 12/06/94 02/17/70 Z 187260 Captain<O:p></O:p>
Sadie Owney Horton 11/25/99 12/08/98 429571/ 031 Cook
William Lee Horton, Jr 11/17/24 03/31/42 Z 245 185 Able Seaman
Jack Oswald Horton 01/19/29 Z 474 431 Ordinary Seaman
James Donnell Horton 03/03/32 Z 474 532 Ordinary Seaman

[jdon]

I have requested assistance from all 49 Chartered VSOs in hopes of gaining assistance in getting some 10,000 MM seamen that served on barges during WWII.
I thought the VSO's main mission was to assist the veteran in time of need so they culd also enjoy the benefits bestowed on the via public Laws.
Only one VSOs responded they would help and they have sent a letter to congress to look into the reasons these veterans have not been recognized by having alternative methods of recognition for those records lost by government actions.
I have a request to all VSOs chartered by the VA and Congress that grants them the priveledge to interface with the VA and congress on behalf of the veteran. These VSOs have learned how to talk the talk buy very few can walk the walk. A sad representation for the support of the veteran. What do you think?


ATTENTION VSO: SEEKING ASSISTANCE FOR US MERCHANT MARINE VETERANS OF WW II
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As a former veteran of the US Merchant Marine and the USCG I am reaching out to all Veteran Service Organizations for help. I need assistance from VSOs that support the US Merchant Marine as a veteran. They were Americans that came from all walks of life, multiracial and varied ethnic groups, but they all served with pride and honor; with one thing in mind to serve their country in the best way they could. Partisan politics played no part in their desire to serve and should not play any part in correcting a wrong that has gone on for 60 years. Some of the chartered VSOs seem to have forgotten their involvement. Where does your organization stand on this issue? As one veteran to another we are in need of help. We are calling upon you for assistance. Will you help? As this is a national issue, action to support this request should initiate at the national level vice post level.
We wish to gain recognition for some 10,000 Merchant Marine seamen that served on the East coast and probably just as many on the Gulf and West coasts. These merchant marine seamen served on seagoing tugs and barges carrying war materials up and down the East Coast on the Atlantic seaboard. Those seamen worked on obsolete barges, with below standard living conditions and rock bottom pay. These barges have long since been replaced with larger and more modern ships, placing those out of service as well as the companies owning them and; with records lost to history. Nevertheless they served and should be recognized, just as much so as the Filipino veterans who just received recognition through the last stimulus package via a 198 Million dollar grant. If we can help others we should be able to help our own and especially with no cost.
Research has identified two specific Agency actions that have placed these seamen at high probability of not receiving their due recognition. Public Laws 95-202 and 105-368 gave these seamen US Veterans status for those serving between 07 Dec., 1941 and 31 Dec., 1946, provided they met certain service criteria. Trip discharges and entries in ship’s logbooks were the primary criteria for proof of service. (1) On Mar. 20 of 1944, The CMDT, USCG issued an order to the Masters of tugs, towboats, and seagoing barges that relieved them of the responsibility of issuing shipping and discharge papers to seamen shipped. (2) Research from the National Archives and Records Administration brought forth this report: “After WW II, the deck and engineering logbooks of vessels operated by the WSA were turned over to that agency by the ship owners, and were later destroyed, by the Maritime Administration, in the 1970s on the grounds that they were voluminous, costly to house and service, and very seldom used for research”. Without those discharges and ship’s logbooks it makes applying and obtaining a Form DD 214 near impossible. Additional info can be found at www.usmmv.blogspot.com.
Applications sent to the National Maritime Center (NMC) for acceptance as veterans are repeatedly rejected because they cannot find records (trip discharges and/or logbooks) that show service for the periods required and they accept little else. Alternate methods to prove employment must be provided in order for these seamen to become veterans. This can be accomplished through administrative legislation at no cost. A proposal is attachment (1) Please let me know your actions.
Will your organization commit to supporting an offering to congress of a proposal leading to legislation that will recognize these seamen and provide veterans’ status for those of the US Merchant Marine? Please send a message to your congressional contacts and request them to support this cause. You can reach me at jdonhorton@embarqmail.com.
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Very Respectfully,
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James D. Horton
104 Riverview Ave, Camden, NC 27921
jdon