2RHPZ
09-26-2004, 05:48 AM
Buffalo naval and military park has much to offer WWII buffs
Sunday, September 26, 2004
James F. Sweeney
Plain Dealer Reporter
Buffalo
The USS Cod, anchored in Cleveland, is nice to visit, but the submarine lacks companions.
Fans of World War II naval hardware can see a sub, cruiser and destroyer at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park, a three-hour drive to the east.
Set on the Buffalo River near where it empties into Lake Erie, the naval park is almost hidden beneath a freeway overpass downtown. A nonprofit educational organization operates it.
The tour starts in the museum, a two-story structure with displays on the U.S. military from World War II to the Gulf War. Glass cases display uniforms, weapons and other gear from the different conflicts. Buffalo veterans donated many of the items.
Displays feature such welcome and uncommon subjects as Gold Star Mothers, women and blacks in the military, and prisoners of war.
After allowing 45 minutes to an hour for the museum and the grab bag of military hardware parked in its back lot (a Bison Landing Ship Tank, an Air Force Airacobra jet, ship's bells), it's a short walk along the river's edge to the main attractions.
The three ships on display have distinguished histories.
The USS The Sullivans was launched in 1943. It was christened in honor of five Sullivan brothers who died the previous year when a Japanese submarine torpedoed their light cruiser. It is the only destroyer named after more than one person.
The ship has a shamrock painted on its forward stack and originally sailed with 23 crew members named Sullivan. After World War II, it also served in the Korean War and the Cuban blockade before being retired to Buffalo in 1977 and designated as a National Historic Landmark.
The USS Little Rock launched in 1944 as a light cruiser. In 1960, it was recommissioned as a guided missile cruiser and was the flagship for the 2nd (Atlantic) and 6th (Mediterranean) fleets before being decommissioned in 1976.
The USS Croaker, the same class submarine as the Cod, was commissioned in 1944 and sank 11 Japanese vessels in the Pacific. After the war, it was converted to a hunter/killer sub and served until 1968. It was a Naval Reserve trainer for several years and made its final berth in Buffalo in 1988.
Gangplanks connect the ships, and tours are self-guided, following yellow lines and white arrows up and down ladders and through narrow doorways and hatches into small rooms. People with bad knees, claustrophobia or a tendency to bang their heads on low ceilings might not enjoy this.
While it's true that the average World War II sailor was smaller than today's supersized American, visitors can't help but marvel at the cramped quarters in which the men lived and fought. Information plaques do a good job of filling in for the absent guides, though a visitor might wish for a tour from someone who had served on one of the vessels.
To make things more interesting, the park has scattered exhibits throughout the ships, on subjects as diverse as the Polish Navy during World War II and the Vietnam War.
Depending on the visitors' tolerance for close quarters, touring the ships can take another hour and a half. The naval park is close enough for military buffs to make it a one-day trip from Cleveland, but the average visitor might want to consider it a stop along the way to another destination, such as Toronto or Niagara Falls.
The USS Croaker, the same class submarine as the Cod, was commissioned in 1944 and sank 11 Japanese vessels in the Pacific. After the war, it was converted to a hunter/killer sub and served until 1968. It was a Naval Reserve trainer for several years and made its final berth in Buffalo in 1988.
I was aboard of USS Croaker in 1998 ... good to read such an article and get to know that it still serves for visitors. woot
Sunday, September 26, 2004
James F. Sweeney
Plain Dealer Reporter
Buffalo
The USS Cod, anchored in Cleveland, is nice to visit, but the submarine lacks companions.
Fans of World War II naval hardware can see a sub, cruiser and destroyer at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park, a three-hour drive to the east.
Set on the Buffalo River near where it empties into Lake Erie, the naval park is almost hidden beneath a freeway overpass downtown. A nonprofit educational organization operates it.
The tour starts in the museum, a two-story structure with displays on the U.S. military from World War II to the Gulf War. Glass cases display uniforms, weapons and other gear from the different conflicts. Buffalo veterans donated many of the items.
Displays feature such welcome and uncommon subjects as Gold Star Mothers, women and blacks in the military, and prisoners of war.
After allowing 45 minutes to an hour for the museum and the grab bag of military hardware parked in its back lot (a Bison Landing Ship Tank, an Air Force Airacobra jet, ship's bells), it's a short walk along the river's edge to the main attractions.
The three ships on display have distinguished histories.
The USS The Sullivans was launched in 1943. It was christened in honor of five Sullivan brothers who died the previous year when a Japanese submarine torpedoed their light cruiser. It is the only destroyer named after more than one person.
The ship has a shamrock painted on its forward stack and originally sailed with 23 crew members named Sullivan. After World War II, it also served in the Korean War and the Cuban blockade before being retired to Buffalo in 1977 and designated as a National Historic Landmark.
The USS Little Rock launched in 1944 as a light cruiser. In 1960, it was recommissioned as a guided missile cruiser and was the flagship for the 2nd (Atlantic) and 6th (Mediterranean) fleets before being decommissioned in 1976.
The USS Croaker, the same class submarine as the Cod, was commissioned in 1944 and sank 11 Japanese vessels in the Pacific. After the war, it was converted to a hunter/killer sub and served until 1968. It was a Naval Reserve trainer for several years and made its final berth in Buffalo in 1988.
Gangplanks connect the ships, and tours are self-guided, following yellow lines and white arrows up and down ladders and through narrow doorways and hatches into small rooms. People with bad knees, claustrophobia or a tendency to bang their heads on low ceilings might not enjoy this.
While it's true that the average World War II sailor was smaller than today's supersized American, visitors can't help but marvel at the cramped quarters in which the men lived and fought. Information plaques do a good job of filling in for the absent guides, though a visitor might wish for a tour from someone who had served on one of the vessels.
To make things more interesting, the park has scattered exhibits throughout the ships, on subjects as diverse as the Polish Navy during World War II and the Vietnam War.
Depending on the visitors' tolerance for close quarters, touring the ships can take another hour and a half. The naval park is close enough for military buffs to make it a one-day trip from Cleveland, but the average visitor might want to consider it a stop along the way to another destination, such as Toronto or Niagara Falls.
The USS Croaker, the same class submarine as the Cod, was commissioned in 1944 and sank 11 Japanese vessels in the Pacific. After the war, it was converted to a hunter/killer sub and served until 1968. It was a Naval Reserve trainer for several years and made its final berth in Buffalo in 1988.
I was aboard of USS Croaker in 1998 ... good to read such an article and get to know that it still serves for visitors. woot