The events of August 31, 1942until December 11, 1942

After finishing Fire Control School in Washington, D.C., Adrian was told to report “to the receiving station” at the Norfolk, Virginia Navy yard and then from there to the Navy yard in New York to get his new assignment. To the right is the record of being received by the Navy yard in New York on August 31, 1942. He was placed with the USS Melville (AD-2).

The Melville was a destroyer tender. It was launched in 1915. By the time World War II began, the ship was almost 30 years old. After being stationed for two years on the brand new USS Helena, Adrian always referred to it as “a bucket of bolts.”

At the time of Adrian’s assignment, the Melville was based in Hafnarfjordur, Iceland. An obvious question would be - why was a destroyer tender in Iceland? Convoys of ships were used to carry supplies and personnel among the Allied countries, and Iceland was conveniently placed along North Atlantic shipping lanes. But the waters they were crossing through were full of German submarines. The convoys were protected by a type of fast, agile ship called a destroyer. Consequently, Iceland was an ideal place for a destroyer tender to be based in order to help maintain the destroyers.

Destroyer tenders were well-named. They did just that; they "tended," serviced, repaired, and supplied destroyers and other ships. Destroyers were small, fast ships, jammed full of machinery and weapons, with necessarily small crews. Destroyer tenders, like the Melville, serviced the ships at sea, so they did not have to return to land for most repairs. Their work was not limited to destroyers but included any ship in their location that needed help they could provide.

If he was a fire controlman, why was Adrian placed on a tender instead of a “fighting ship?”

Adrian became a fire controlman while on the USS Helena. His rating included additional knowledge beyond fire control. He began as FC(M)3c, not the general designation of FC3c, and continued to move up in rank with this extra designation of “Maintenance.” This meant that he had the additional knowledge necessary to take apart, trouble shoot, and repair the complex machinery needed to fire the guns. This gave him abilities that would be valuable well beyond a single ship. By placing him on a tender, the Navy was providing this knowledge to many ships. A plus for his family was that, though he was not completely out of danger, he was no longer on a ship specifically designed to go into battle.

Notice the differences between the Melville and the Helena. If you look carefully, one can see that the Melville had only a couple of antiaircraft guns. The Helena, being a battle ready, light cruiser, was armed to the teeth. Everything in the forward part of the ship are large guns. A similar arrangement of guns was in the back, and antiaircraft guns were on the port and starboard sides. It is also obvious that the Helena was built for speed.

USS Helena

After waiting in New York for a few weeks, the Navy decided to send Adrian to Iceland to join the Melville by way of ships moving in that direction. Adrian was sent to Casco Bay in Portland, Maine and on October 12, 1942 boarded his first ship toward joining the Melville in Iceland. Here he joined the enlisted passengers on board the USS Prairie (AD 15).

To the left are the records from the Prairie showing Adrian’s being received on board. The lower, highlighted line says that he was received (Rec.) from receiving station (From R/S) Casco Bay, Portland Me.

Original document cropped to fit.

The USS Prairie was also a destroyer tender but much newer than the Melville. As the war began, this ship was normally stationed in Argentia, Newfoundland. In May of 1942, a fire broke out in a ship that was alongside the Prairie, which was tied to it having repairs made. The fire spread to the Prairie. The ship was sent from Newfoundland to Boston for repairs. The USS Vulcan (AR-5) was sent to Newfoundland to take its place.

One would think that being on a ship off the coast of Maine and Newfoundland would be a relatively safe place to be. Such was not the case. Six months after the war started, 171 American vessels had been torpedoed off the east coast of the Unites States, mostly in the Northeast.

USS Prairie AD-15

Between October 15 and 19, the repaired Prairie made its way from Maine back to Newfoundland to resume its duties there. The record to the left shows Adrian’s being transferred (Tran.) from the Prairie to the USS Vulcan (AR 5) on October 19, 1942. This transfer occurred in Argentia, Newfoundland. FFT means For Further Transfer.

Original document cropped to fit.

In the tense months before America's entry into World War II, a series of agreements with Great Britain gave the United States a set of bases located strategically with respect to the North Atlantic shipping lanes. In 1940, as a part of the “Destroyers for Bases” agreement, an area at Argentia, Newfoundland, was set aside for the development of an American naval base.

This photo was taken some time in 1942. The view is from the island of Argentia, across the Little Placentia Sound toward Newfoundland. The US Naval base and air station were just being constructed. As can be seen from the photo, seaplanes played a major role in this area. Adrian was here from October 20, 1942 until November 10, 1942 waiting on the next transfer toward the Melville in Iceland.

Argentia,Newfoundland

The Vulcan (AR 5) was based in the Northern Atlantic Ocean. Its designation as AR means it too was a repair ship but not built specifically to repair destroyers. This photo was taken four months before Adrian went on board. It probably still had its camouflage paint when he was on it.

Adrian arrived on board the Vulcan the same day he left the Prairie. The record shows him being received (REC) on October 19, 1942. The Vulcan remained in Newfoundland until November 14, 1942. On this date, she left to relieve the USS Melville from her repair assignment in Iceland. It seems ironic to us today that Adrian spent a month in route to join his ship in Iceland just to turn around and leave again!

As one works with these old records, they draw you into the “bigger story.” This page was not edited so that the reader could see the duties of the other men on this page (which only covers men with last names beginning with D, E, and F). Notice that most of the men were being assigned to PatRon 84. This was the Naval Air Patrol Squadron 84 which was an Anti-Submarine Patrol Squadron that would quickly be known for sinking six German submarines in the North Atlantic Ocean.

This USS Melville “Report of Changes” done on November 23, 1942 from Reykjavik, Iceland show that Adrian was received from the USS Vulcan on November 21, 1942. Adrian was now officially part of the Melville’s crew.

The Vulcan was now in port to take over for the Melville which was scheduled to go to New York!

By November 27, 1942, after only a few days in Iceland, Adrian began a return trip across the Atlantic. Being a skinny gentleman from southern Mississippi, that was probably just fine with him. Also, he was heading back to the New York Navy yard which was less than 2 miles from where his wife, Wanda was living.

What was going on in Iceland?

During this time period, Iceland was a sovereign kingdom united with Denmark. In the late 1930s, Hitler was very interested in finding a way to secure a location in the North Atlantic. Though Denmark and Iceland declared themselves neutral, Germany invaded Demark in April of 1940. Britain offered Iceland assistance but they declined. Due to the strategic placement of Iceland in the North Atlantic, Britain felt compelled to take action.

Winston Churchill knew the country would not be able to stay out of the reach of Germany for very long. He put a plan into action the same day he became prime minister of England. On May 10, 1940, the people of Reykjavik awoke to see four British warships in their harbor; they had been invaded. On July 1, 1941, Britain asked the USA (then neutral) to take over responsibility for Iceland. Once the US military arrived, the 40,000 marines outnumbered the Icelandic adult male population! Our military presence proved critical to keeping the shipping lanes open and supplies flowing.

Another view of the USS Melville

These two beneficiary forms for Wanda give us addresses for her during 1942. The first one, dated February 27, 1942 was filled out when Adrian had recently arrived in California after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He gave his wife’s full maiden name – Wanda Maria Werbicki. That was obviously not what they wanted as seen from the request below!

By November, 1942, the family had moved to 146 North 4th Street, Brooklyn. The Werbicki family would remain at this address until the end of the war.

There were several required registrations related to World War 2. The Fourth Registration, often referred to as the "old man's registration," was conducted on 27 April 1942. As can been seen on this card, men born on or between 28 April 1877 and 16 February 1897 (between 45 and 64 years old) and not already in the military had to provide information to the government. This is Wanda’s father’s registration information. It shows he was born on January 29, 1892 in Lomza, Poland and was living at 152 North 9th Street in Brooklyn, NY. This provides an address for Wanda Fortenberry as of April 27, 1942.

An interesting side story

Wanda and her father, Raymond Werbicki1942

Adrian received his assignment to the USS Melville on August 31, 1942. It was three months before he was actually on board. This is the Navy record of his official transfers on board the three ships.

Adrian’s log shows dates that are little off from the official Naval records. It does show that he left Iceland soon after arriving and returned to New York by December 11, 1942. He would have just turned 24 years old the week before!

Since no photos have been located that were taken during this specific time period, several images with unknown dates have been added here.

This picture taken of Wanda shows off one of her outfits that she made. It was probably copied from a design she saw in a store window! There is a good chance that she decorated the hat too.

Interesting Side Story: She is wearing a pearl necklace that Adrian gave her when he returned from Pearl Harbor. Her daughters remember this necklace well. It was the only piece of jewelry she owned that she truly loved and treasured. They were not cultured pearls as is common today but natural pearls. Sadly, no one has seen them in many, many years.

Though the picture to the right cannot be dated, Wanda is wearing her pearl necklace. This photograph came from a small album Adrian kept with him throughout his time in the Navy.

The photo on the left was taken on April 4, 1964 at Raymond’s wedding. If you look closely enough, you can see that Wanda has on her pearl necklace.

One of Wanda’s favorite places to visit in New York City was the American Museum of Natural History. She and a friend, Anne Riley, are standing on the steps in front of the museum. Visiting this specific museum was instrumental in developing Wanda’s passion for the natural world.

Evidently her mother, Pauline Werbicki, went to the museum with them. That is probably a picture of Wanda’s finger in front of the lens!

Wanda and Anne Riley visiting the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens in Prospect Park.

At this point, Adrian had just turned 24 (December 7, 1942) and Wanda would soon be 22 (January 24, 1943). Adrian had just finished his fifth year in the Navy and the war was really having an impact on the world. While Adrian was doing his part to keep the guns on the Navy’s ships in order, Wanda was also helping the war effort from home. More about that next time!