CREDITS AND RECOGNITION   I HAVE ALL OF THESE PEOPLE TO THANK FOR THE CREATION OF THIS WEB SITE:   Ron Martini of Sheridan, Wyoming, Webmaster of the Submarine World Network, also provides an online bulletin board: Rontini's Submarine BBS. The BBS is intended for Submariners, as well as others, to post messages. The Creation of this Web Site is the direct result of two messages posted on the BBS, which were: =================================================================================
USS Menhaden Artifacts
Posted by Thumper on March 26, 1997:   I was able to watch the cutting up of the Menhaden in Everett, Wash., a few years ago. . . . I hung onto a few small artifacts. Contact me if you are interested in any of them.
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Re: USS Menhaden Artifacts
Posted by Carl Callender, LCDR, USN (Ret.) on April 18, 1997:
In Reply to: Menhaden Artifacts posted by Thumper on March 26, 1997:   While I do not have any MENHADEN artifacts, I would like to offer an interesting note concerning that boat. While serving as the last CO of NAVCOMMUNIT Marquette at K.I. Sawyer AFB, MI, I often had lunch with the 1st CO of MENHADEN, Capt. Dave McClintock, who still lives in Marquette, MI. At our last lunch in April of 1993 at the officer's club at K.I., I gave him a clipping from the Bremerton (WA) SUN that detailed the "last cruise" of the MENHADEN when it was taken from SUBASE Bangor over to a shipyard in Seattle for scrapping. Well into his 80's now, he's one of the last WW II submarine heroes!
================================================================================= I read that message with stunned amazement! It seemed almost unbelievable! I looked up his phone number, then called Captain Dave McClintock and talked with him for over an hour. In that time, he briefly told me the story of the USS Darter, Dace and Menhaden. When I mentioned that I had served aboard the Menhaden from 1961 to 1963, he said that during that time period, he was the Commander of Submarine Flotilla One in San Diego -- the same Flotilla to which the Menhaden was attached!   Captain Dave McClintock also told me about the Darter, Dace and Menhaden Reunion in Las Vegas, Nevada, in October of 1997, and gave me the name, address and phone number of the person who was coordinating it. When Captain McClintock told me that he would be attending the Reunion, I said that I, too, would be there to meet him.   Less than six months later, when I went to the Reunion in Las Vegas, it was really enjoyable to meet and talk with not only Captain Dave McClintock, but also with many of the other men from the USS Darter and Dace who had actually participated in the events depicted on these pages, as well as the post-war crew members of the USS Menhaden.   If it had not been for Ron Martini and his BBS, and the messages posted on it by Tom "Thumper" DeBartolo and Carl Callender, all of that would not have happened! Thank you, Ron, Thumper and Carl!   My brother, John "Shotgun Jack" Carpenter, Webmaster of Shotgun Jack's Home Page, in January of 1998, taught me the "Basics" of how to create this Web Site, using Netscape Communicator 4.03 Page Composer. The lessons consisted of: 1) here is how to create a Web Page; 2) this is how to put an image on the Web Page; and, finally, 3) this is how to link one Web Page to another, or to another Web Site. From that simple beginning of two Pages and three Menhaden images, this Web Site has grown "much larger" than I had ever anticipated at the time! I'm not sure that I should be grateful to him or not, because he didn't tell me that I would never be finished with it! Well? . . . Okay! . . . Thank you, Bro!   Some of the information on this Site was gleaned from a book written by a former crew member of the USS Menhaden, John Mansfield, Jr., RM2(SS), 1963 to 1965, which is entitled: "Cruisers for Breakfast." The book -- liberally interspersed with comments from the crew members -- is a detailed account of the War Patrols of the USS Darter (SS-227) and the USS Dace (SS-247), including the events which led to the Darter's crew getting a brand new submarine, the Menhaden. John was kind enough to loan me all of the photos in his book so that they could be included on this Web Site. Thank you, John!   My good friend, Jim "Texas Jim" Kelley, Webmaster of the Special Forces List Teamhouse, spent many countless hours scanning John Mansfield's photos for the initial images used on this Web Site. Thank you, Jeeem!   Other information for this Site was extracted from Theodore Roscoe's book, "Pig Boats." Copyright, 1949 and 1958 by the United States Naval Institute. (Originally published under the title: United States Submarine Operations in World War II)   Some further information for this Site, as well as photos and/or images, were provided by former USS Darter, Dace and Menhaden crew members. Thanks, all of you!   After finding out from John Reilly, Chief Archivist, that brief summaries of the Menhaden's history were on file at the Naval Historical Center in Washington, D.C., I contacted Arizona Senator John McCain's Staff in January, 2000. I was sent the information that I needed to complete the Menhaden's history in time for the United States Submarine Force Centennial on April 11th, 2000. Thank you, Senator John McCain and your Staff!   Okay, "Bratty Kid," I haven't forgotten you! Robin "The Brat" Ator, aka "Daisey Duke," Webmaster of Daisey Dukes's Military Tribute Page, made all of the "push buttons" for this Web Site! Thank you, Brat!     GROG'S COMPUTER   On June 15th, 2001, my five-year old "dinosaur" computer "crashed" for the final time! A month and a half later, I managed to send an e-mail message from a remote location, Bookman's Cyber Cafe, which had a connection to Infomagic, stating: "Please inform everyone that my computer has "crashed" and I can't afford to buy a new one right now. Although the Web Site is still up and running, I am no longer able to edit it."   Within days of receiving that message, unknown to me at the time, several former Menhaden crew members began to organize a campaign to collect donations to buy me a new computer. John Mansfield, Editor and Publisher of the "Scuttlebutt," the newsletter for all former USS Darter, Dace and Menhaden crew members, even published a "Special Edition" of the newsletter in August, informing everyone of my situation.   Two months later, in early October, I received a letter from John Mansfield, stating: "On behalf of all of your shipmates and friends in the Darter, Dace and Menhaden group, I am very proud to enclose this check in the amount of $1,200 in hopes that it will allow you to get the necessary equipment to get back into business with the Web Site, photos, crew lists, etc." The Contributors to the "Grog" Computer Fund included:   Werner and Irene Alchenberger (Darter/Menhaden) Floyd Angus (Darter/Menhaden) Bladen D. and Poppy Claggett (Dace) Jim and Marilyn Clepper (Darter/Menhaden) Bob and Marcia Frier (Menhaden) Douglas Guerrero (Menhaden) Les and Nancy Guille (Menhaden) Wilma James, widow of T.R. James (Darter/Menhaden) Ira King (Darter/Menhaden) Henry and Rita Krautter (Dace) John and Lori Mansfield, Jr. (Menhaden) David H. McClintock, Jr., son of Captain David H. McClintock (Darter/Menhaden) Don and Marquita Miller (Darter/Menhaden) Charles and Shirley Robinson (Dace) Bill Stokes (Darter/Menhaden) Robert and Dorothea Toner (Darter) Walter and Mary Welch (Dace) Tad and Carol Whitehead (Menhaden) Anonymous Members of the McClintock Recognition Committee, Marquette Maritime Museum, Marquette, Michigan, the hometown of Captain David H. McClintock.   Grog, "Da Neanderthal 'Pooter Geek," happily whacking on the keyboard of his brand new "state-of-the-art, high-tech, whiz-bang" computer! Hopefully, I will now be able to edit and maintain this Web Site for many more years to come. Thank you, all of the Contributors to the "Grog" Computer Fund!