EL PALACIOvol.107 NO.2May 2002US$ NEW MEXICO

Nov. 18, 1944:

N0v.20,1944:

Nov. 25, 1944:

Nov.27,1944:

Dec. 28, 1944:

April 15, 1945:

May 28, 1945:

?he diar) of sailor Robert Thomas Drinan. a recenl dona-

I rion ro rhe Palace ol rhe Covernors Fray Angelico ChavezII Hrstory Library, records his time aboard the USS New

Mexico-from near boredom, at first, to sheer terror, espe-

clally during the tumultuous times between November 1,

1944, and September 23, 1945. Those eleven monrhs were

pivotal for both the couniry Drinan served and the battleshlp

he served aboard. The war in Europe formally ended on May

8, 7945, with the proclamarion of V-E Day, but only after

Allied successes ln the Pacific (followlng the decisive U.S.

naval victory at Guadalcanal ln November 1943) continued"up the ladder" of islands leading ro Japan: the Solomons,

the Gilberts, and the Marshalls, the Marianas, and the Bonin

Islands.

Drinan was 27 went he served the Unrted States aboard

the USS New Mexico, the preeminenr ship of her day She,

too, was 27.

She was conceived by an Act of Congress on June 30,1914, authorizing the construction of the as-yet-unnamed

battleship, referred ro only as "Battleship 40," that com-

menced in October 1915. The records show that the first

10 il Palario

name recommended for the ship was "USS Calit'ornia";how-ever, the name was "USS New Mexico" eighteen months laterwhen the battleship as iong as rwo footbali fields plungeddown the ways at the Brookiyn Nar,y Yard on April 23, fgIT .

Miss Margaret C de Baca, daughter of New Mexrco GovernorEzequiel C de Baca, who had died only a monrh before, offi-cially chrrstened the firsr U.S. Nary ship named New Mexico

with a bottle containing champagne from France and waterIrom tne K10 Grande.

The new ship was a departure from the previous battle-ships of the era. Instead of the outward curving bow typicalof U.S. battleships slnce 1889, the USS New Mexico had a

sharply backward,swepr bow giving the ship a forward-lean-ing appearance. But its fast looks weren't the only innova-tion: the battleship was rhe first turbo-electric-driven battle,ship, powered by four mammoth General Electnc motors

driving four propellers and enabling the ship to cruise ar an

accredited speed of twenty-one knots (an attribute measured

according to naval and nautical engineering standards).

Commissioned on May 20, 1918, and wtth Captain AshleyH. Robertson in command, she hit rhe high seas displacing

33,400 tons. measuring 624 feet by 106 feet 3 inches, and

U$$ lllew Mexico: 0ueen of the Pacific

BY CIIARI.T$ ETNtIITII

lnterim Director

Palace of the Governors

"At Se,az Nad, cl^au to- B watclu ?e44.ed" cl..o5eto-Trul<r."

"At Sen . foda,y wo got pa{da, I le,nt w vnbn4/ o{dp,t to Ire,net?Wed'ca,,/da a,nd.,lD* $5... "

" A r. r iN edt ?h,ilipp tnp* Lw vna-r mi,vt4<, . . "

'?atrolt dnty ALr De.{e,wrcz 14 planw*, 5 thrt d,or^)t4r. j- h,{tthp/St Lotli*...""ArrireA., Leyta...'

"AU/ attq{l</. TLwyw bo'frord* lcc.e4 cntwLvt4<"*Left OWno,nwfot, quana Brg tu{o qtta.d<, o-'ru ou.,r wa,y ottt.I nenor u)a,y w s.c ,,.ed/ fuv a.lL ywy Lifu. Got one: w{en ya,rdtililaa/ {-rovnt u,y."

#\*g'. m**"ry99#.*+-+"*-d. -

packrng heat in lour turrets in the form of twelve l4-inch,5O-caliber "rifles" (the technrcal term for the large guns most

larzmen refer rn es lnno ."..^.. ) Th.r m.i.../...-.. ..- . - j lalLlloll> I. lllal lllaln afmamenl

could send a ton-of-shell wal1op as far as 15.000 )ards away

(almost 20 miles off).

^-r 'Lr^ L^L-- --'^^ not to be breached: l4-inch-thrck^ltu

Llll) uau) wa>

armor nrole.ted the shin. hrrll rhe rrnner decL had o inch-

es and the lower deck had 4 inches of armor, the gun turrets

and connins tower had 18 inches of steel armor. Al1 that

armor protected the ships crer,v of 1,323 men, a fuel load of

UsS NEW Ni EXICO

2,200 tons of oil, and the investment of $21 million to buildand equip the USS New Melico.

A beauty of a battleship, the USS New Mexico was the

eTeale<r iear oili ( nar':i ccience at thar rime and also the

model for those that followed. Other ships constructed withsimilar features were considered to be in the USS New Mexico

, la.' of hatrle.hinr and 'L \'- r ' *rost efteclirerrf \4\y) ldlBq>l diru rl

of harrleshins until a new class was introduced in 1941.

The naming of a battleship for New Mexico was such a

disi rnct honor that the state senate passed An Act proriding

"d"' -

Ed.tfriidf

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il Palacio ll

US$ NEW MEXICO

Above

Silver tobacco humidor and cigar lighters,

all with the New lVexico State Seal,

made by Tiffany & Co., 1918.

In the background is Tiffany & Co.'s

working desrgn of the humidor.

Pa ace of the Governors,

Museum of New Mexrco.

0pposite page

USS New Mexicollying a four-star

admiral's f lag, c. 1920.

for the gift of a Silver Service for ihe UNITED STATES BATTLESHIP NEW MEXICO, and

appropriating Moneys therefore, and appointing a commission to have charge of the pur-

chase and presentation there ofl .l'Subsequent[;. CovernorWashington E. Lrndsey did so

by issuing an Executive Order, on March 12, 1917, appointing Mrs. Mary C. Prince (for-

mer first lady of New Mexico). Miguel Chavez. and Bronson M. Cutting to the commis-

sion. The commission made several rrips Lo Tiffany & Co.. New York. to work with artists

on the design of the silver service.

This fifty-six-prece sterling silver service. among New Mexicos most cherished pos-

sessions is heins nreserved in the collections vaults of the Palace of the Governors. ltems

oi rhe srlver inclrrdins rhe rr.tentv-forrr desserl nlates each ensraved with a differenL' r'*---' ---" ., b -'.'scene from New Mexico history, are put on exhibit from iime to time; the tobacco humi-

dor in rhe form of a nrreblo house block and a select ion oithe desserl nlares were reecnr-

ly returned to coliections after having been on exhiblt in the Palace for more than ten--"- Ti rT^^' c- ' ' ^onsiders the humidor to be one of its outstandinp nieces. andygdl>. I llldrl/ u LU. Lurr)ru(l> tlrc lrurrrruur LU uc ullc vl lt) uuL)tatr..---b r.----. - ..

recently featured it prominently in the book MagniJicent TiJt'any 5ilve r. by Tiffany & Co.

Design DirectorJohn Loring rHarr; N Abrams 200I"). In 1988 Tiffany & Co. donated

the original workshop design drawings for the silver service to the Palace of the

Governors after beins cont:r'red hv a memher of Lhe Palace curatorial staff.

The USS New Mexico was ready for active warlime duty too late for World War 1, and

so spenl several peace trme years praclicing on the Pacific. outmaneuvering other ships.

and occasionally escorting the most important of dlgnitaries. OnJanuary 15, 1919, for

example. it deparred New York for Brest. France. accompan) ing the transport ship George

Washington, carr)'1ng President Woodrow Wilson to the Versailles Peace Conference. Later

i6,ct teqr ir rrres named thc firct ll:sqhrn nf the newlv oraanized, Pacific l-leet wirh San''*6'"'vPedro, California, as its base. During the years between the world's wars, the New Mexico

continued with routine operations. making trips to Hawair. Panama. Chile. the

Caribbean, New York, Australia, New Zealand, Samoa, New South Wales, and other

porrs-of-call. and with regular maneu\ers. or combat competrtion wjth other ships in

nrcnlr2tion fnr thc rcrl 'l-:'- - r' " l -: - - - '^h rr rr nrrrrirc thrt rhe USS Ngrn MexicoPl(PdlaUUll lul ilI( I(dl LrlilE. lt wa> uulIilB )ulrr wdl Pl4ltlLc tll4r {llE

picked up the nlckname "The Queen" in tribute to honors won. In 1920-2I,1927-28,

l2 tl Palario

and 1929-30, the ship won top scores rn gunnery, engineer-

ing and hatrle efficiencv After all rhar onprrtino and mqnett-'''b. -""

vering, the USS New Mexico was ordered to the Philadelphia

Nar'y Yard for a complete overhaul. Over the course of the

nexl several vears lhe once stale-ol-lhe-art shin was mod-.....,/..,'ernizeA rr ilh nerrr anoinparino "-,.1 i-ro.."l ^'rrIr-(u. wrrll ltrs !|lBLrrLLllllBattu trrLLtll4t ptOteCtIOn- new

boj lers. a tower bridge to enhance visibiliry for navigating

and in combat, and additional defenses against submarine

and air attack. The other rwo batrleships of her class, the USS

Mississippi and the USS ldaho, also were revamped ar rhls

time.

After shakedown cruises in Cuban and Haltian waters

and a presidential review off New York in May 1934, the USS

New Mexico was ordered back to San Pedro for a time and

then made cruises in 1936 and 1937 to Hawaii. In 1940,

after the Nazi rnvasion of Poland and the subsequenr decla-

ration of war on Germany by Great Britain and France (and

the proclamation of neutrality by the United Stares), the USS

New Mexico was ordered to participare in a series of neutral-ilv natrols in the norrh Atlantic.

Then after lwpnl\/-[i\/e rre:rc nf nrrerieino tn he ncrfeer

the call came to prepare for whar would become war.

Following the atrack on Pearl Harbor that desr roved or'' -"'-'b

effectlvely disabled one-third of the U.S. Nary, the USS New

Mexico was brought ro rhe peak of fighting condirion byworkers at Hampton Roads (Va.), San Francisco, and San

Pedro Nar,y Yards. It then was ordered back to San

Francisco for final fine-tuning, even as carrier battles in the

Coral Sea and Midway were taking place. Flnally primed for

battle and loaded for much more than bear, the New Mexico

made serrcrrl trinc tn Sen Pcdrn nartirinaterl. -_.-. r-,-.-.r*". _ tn Jolnl exer_

cises off Hawaii, and then headed on orders to the "forward

area," Nar,y patois for the battle zone. That was onDecember 7,1942, one year after rhe date which would livein infamy. Three harrowing years would pass belore the shipwas rested.

The USS New Mexico arrived in the Fuli islands in mid-Decemhet and helned with the final consolidation of theSolomons In lantrarv I Q43 rhe shin nrnvided srrnnnrr in.,.'-.,,ythe action at Guadalcanal. In response to Japanese seizure ofthree of the Aleutian Islands, the batrleship was dispatched

next to Adak Island in May 1943, and, over the course of rhe

next three months. played an imporrant role in driving rhe

Japanese lrom the AIeut ians. Alter putring in ro Puget Sound

Nar,y Yard for repairs, the USS New Mexico was at Pearl

Harhor hv the end oi Ocrober I94J.

U$S NEW MEXICO

Two atolls on the equator 2,500 miles away were rhe

next desrinarion for rhe baLtleship. which parricipared in

"Operation Galvanlc," the U.S. push to seize rhe GilberrIsl:nds th:l renrrired thp desrrrrer inn nf rha I.,,. japanese sea_

plane base on Makin Atoll. On November 20,1943, the USS

New Mexico and other shrps began full-scale bombardmentof militarv ohiecrives Once the Gilberts were secured the

New Mexico was ordered back to Pearl Harbor, where itarrived in December 1943.

The next thrust was directed to the Marshall Islands, a

string of islands extending over 600 miles and providingscreening protecrion for Tiuk Island, the "Pearl Harbor" ofthe Japanese Nav1. and a key U.S. militar; oblective. The

New Mexico left the real Pearl Harbor inJanuary L944,pro-ceeding to Ebeye and Kwqalein lslands, which were effec-

tively shelled. During this action a USS New Mexico

crewmember was killed, the first actual casualty of war forthe battleship, when one of rhe ships two seaplanes was hitby enemy fire while scouting over Kwa.lalein lsland. The

pilot, Lt. Forney D. Fuqua was killed, but Radioman Second

Class Harrison D. Miller was able to make an emergency

landing and was rescued by a U.S minesweeper.

The New Mexico conrinued to shell rargets on various

islands making up the Marshalls. Next were objectrves in the

Mariana lslands. Stationed off Tinian, June t4 and 15, 1944,

the New Mexico. bombarded the island in support of a U.S.

Marine landing on nearby Salpan. The New Mexico also was

credited with the desrrucrion of Japanese airflelds on Guam

onJune L6,1944, and for rhe successful protecrion of other

U.S. Naly vessels in the area. That accomplished, the nextphase of the invasion of the Mariana Islands was to retake

Cuam. and the Neu Mexico.;oined orher barrleships and

destroyers to hit shore defenses. After an intensive shelling,

the Marines were landed. That same nlght rhe USS New

tl Palacio 13

USs NEW MEXICO

Mexico was requested to fire star shells to illuminate the

beachhead so that the Marines could prepare for Japanese

counter attacks. It drd, and the next day a ranking officer

contacted the New Mexico, stailng that the battleship had

"saved the day" by lighting the night.

Thirteen days and 6,500 shells later, the Marianas were

rn U.S. control, and the USS New Mexico returned to Puget

Sound for repairs and new guns. After several months in the

shipyard, the battleship was back in Pearl Harbor, ready

agarn for duty. On November 21 and 22 rhe New Mexico, a

light cruiser, and four destroyers provided support during

the battles for Leyte and Samar, in the Phihppine

Archipelago, and then the same battle team of ships screened

and supported the December l5 landings on Mindoro. The

final operation of consequence in rhe Southwest Pacific was

the invasion of Luzon, the largest and most-prized of the

Philippine Islands, and the USS New Mexico was there, too.

The USS New Mexico arrived on the scene at Luzon on

January 6, Ig+5, and began a systematlc bombardment of

the island. Japanese resistance was fierce, with repeated arr

attacks on the battleship formation by the newly formed

Special Attack Corps of the Imperial Alr Force. In its debut

the Special Attack Corps sent every available plane-except

for a few held back to evacuate the senior staff-on a suicide

mission against the battle group of ships.

USS New Mexico seamen, including Robert Drinan,

fought off the sulcide planes while continuing the bombard-

ment of targets on shore.

Jan. 6, 1945: "V)ou)e're/hittod'"a,y W s4^ir;"det

pl"a,^p,: What a/ wLe*v.. A l,ot of gnnyv I k^oil)u)e)'aWf,k'dr."

At noon a suicide plane with a 500-pound bomb

smashed into the navrgation bridge, blew up, kr11ed thrrty,

including the commanding officer who was a British lieu-

tenant general serving as liaison, and a TIME Magazine cor-

respondent, and wounded eighty-seven more men. Even

with two of the ships iarge guns knocked out by the suicide

plane, the seamen managed to continue sending salvos

against Japanese positions on Luzon. Among the many tar-

gets the New Mexico was directed to fire on were [wo bridges

that were seven miles inland and only 16 feet across. Though

a direct hit was impossible, the ships gunnery crew came

close enough to render both targets unusable before the ship

had to reiurn again to Pearl Harbor for battle-damage repair'

Then it was on to play a part in the capture of Okinawa,

the most difficult operation in the Paclfic Theater to date,

14 tl Palacir

rnvoiving more than 1,200 ships, 600 carrier-based atrcraft,

and 500,000 ground lroops. The USS New Mexico was the

flagshrp of the Fifth Fleet and its 3ob was to provlde support

for underwater demolition teams and minesweeping opera-

tions, as well as shell targets on the island, and silence every

enemy coastal battery in the sector assigned to the battle-

shrp. The job was made tougher by suicide planes sent in

earnesf, begrnning on April 6,1945, and continuing.

During the sixty-four days the ship spent at Oklnawa,

the crew was ordered to General Quarters eighty-two times

and to Arr Defense eighty-stx times. New Mexico gunners

aboard were credited with downing eight enemy aircraft,

brlnging their total of aircraft shot down to twenty-one,

including four suicide planes downed wlthin a sixteen-

minute period on April 12, L945. The crew also averted a

torpedo attack at Lhe same rtme.

A month later, an enemy plane dlving for the ship was

taken out by a direct hit irom anti-aircrafl fire and narrowly

missed the ship, but a second plane hit the ship, crashing on

the gun deck and tearing into the funnel, leaving a 3O-foot

wide hole in the side. Then the plane's bombs exploded.

Aprif 12, 1945: "tsLg< ai'r attar*'. tso14,41ry. Ju,rt,ni464n" u'y Ro&oA/ thip. Te'wvw*e*t l+it' 5

pla'n e*, 7 l>ad' N e'w Mw(no- hit."Steel armor was peeled back, shrapnel sprayed the deck,

aviation gas in the tanks exploded sending flames 200 feet

high and converting the stack into a blowtorch, and ammu-

nition from below decks began exploding. Meanwhrle, as the

inlured were being removed from deck, the ship was sLill

under attack and all gunners were sti11 fighting off other

enemy planes. Damage control parties put out all fires with-

in fifteen minutes. Casualties were 177 men, including fift;--

five dead and three missing. By the next day, the New

Mexico's anti-aircraft batteries were ready for action again.

April 13, 1945: "Sta'rt ttuwba'ra,Lrtg, ag'o"ixu

AUr attatk"The U.S. invasion of Okinawa was the last great

amphibious engagement rn the Pacific in WWTI and the

costliest campaign tn terms of men and ships. On the U S.

side: 12,500 ki11ed; 36,000 wounded; eighty-eight naval

craft destroyed or disabled through darnage. The Japanese

lost 103,000 o[ a total populatron of 125,000 on the is]and

sltuated between Formosa and Japan.

For rts part in the invasion, the USS New Mexico had

expended more rounds, both in weight and in number, than

at any previous engagement: 2I ,876 rounds for a total of

4,708,5L7 pounds. Afterwards, she was ordered to Guam,

then to Leyte where repairs were made from June 7 ro

August 8, 1945. Following rhat aromic bombing ofHiroshima and Nagasaki, the New Mexico was ordered first toSaipan, arriving on August 16, \9+5, then Okinawa, arrivingon August 19. On August 26 the bauleship joined other

US$ NEW MEXICO

ship was stricken from the U.S. Naval registry and sent tothe auction block, where the USS New Mexico was sold to a

New York company for scrap on Ocrober 13, 1947. She

was only 30.

Whether in pieces, like the ships bel1 (one is at theManuel Lujan Building in Santa Fe, another, on rhe

units of the Third Fleet at the mouth of Tokyo Bay. Afrer a

U.S. minesweeper cleared lhe harbor. l8q U.S ships. Lhe

USS New Mexico among them, entered the bay to be present

for the unconditionai surrender of the Japanese army onSeptember 2,1945.

After the ceremony and a flyover of U.S. Nar,y planes, onSeptember 6, \9+5, the New Mexico srarted home, with hun-dreds of high-point, Pacific Theater vers on board. The New

Mexico stopped for five days at Pearl Harbor and then con-

tinued on, passing through the Panama Canal and arriving inBoston on September 18, 1945.

A new command took over in mid-November, prepara-tions were made for the well-deserved decommissioning ofthe USS New Mexico, and, onJuly f 9, 1946, "The Queen"was placed out of commission. On February 25,1947, the

I er rnnhinn nt

the USS ,A/eu

Mexico, Brooklyn

Navy yard, New

York, April 23,

191i MNIV Neg

No. 87327

University of New Mexico campus), or whole, as she can be

seen in photographs and paintings in the palace of the

Governors collection, the battle-scarred USS New Mexico isremembered for decades of distinguished service. Hers is a

spectacular success story marked by six battle stars for out-standing action 1n assaults on Luzon, Okinawa, the GrlbertIslands, the Marshall Islands, the Mariana Islands, and theAleutian Islands. As namesakes go, the State New Mexico

could not be better represented. I

Author's note: The pimary source maLerial t'or this article came Jrom the C. A.

Wancowizc Collectton (AC 335-p) and the Robert T. Drinan Diary (AC 319,p),

in co|\€ctions at the Fray Angelica Chdt,ez History Library, palace oJ the

Governors, Museum oJ New Mexico, Santa Fe , New Mextco. Sources tn the New

Mexico State Records Center and Archiyes also were used.

El Palacin 15