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This site was created in memory of John Patrick Whiteman,
Signalman Third Class (SM3c), and in honor of the crew of the USS YMS-346 for their role in American history.
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Where the Fleet Goes, We've Been.
My Dad, John Patrick Whiteman, served in the US Navy from November 21, 1942 until March 4, 1946. He earned the rank of signalman and...
marywh346
Nov 16, 20222 min read
287 views


“We Can’t Let This Happen Again”-Ensign Francis Tatem, YMS-346
“We can’t let this happen again .” During World War II, Ensign Francis Tatem wrote these words in a letter while on board the YMS-346. ...
marywh346
22 hours ago3 min read
34 views


For God and Country - In Honor of Four Chaplains Day
In 1988, Congress established February 3rd of each year as Four Chaplains Day. This day commemorates the anniversary of the sinking of a...
marywh346
Feb 28 min read
88 views


Diary of the Normandy Invasion Aboard USN Minesweeper YMS-346
At the start of the Normandy Invasion aboard the YMS-346, Signalman Neal Smith kept a day-to-day, hour-to-hour diary, written in pencil...
marywh346
Aug 23, 20246 min read
266 views


Navy and Marine Corps Medal Recipient Neal Smith YMS-346
"For heroism on December 24, 1944, in the English Channel while serving as a member of the crew of the U.S.S. YMS-346." as stated in...
marywh346
Aug 19, 20244 min read
38 views


"Well, Here We Go !"
So begins the handwritten diary of Neal Smith, Signalman First Class, aboard the minesweeper YMS-346, at the start of the Normandy...
marywh346
Aug 13, 20244 min read
85 views


Any Ship Can Be a Minesweeper...Once.
There is an old military saying, "Any ship can be a minesweeper...once." I had never heard that phrase before connecting with the family...
marywh346
Jul 28, 20247 min read
96 views


"Sampson Sailors"
In the same location that transformed "Young Boots" into able-bodied sailors for the United States Navy at the onset of WWII, now stands...
marywh346
Sep 14, 20234 min read
73 views


A Call to Action and an Action Report
Before the YMS-346 was called to action in WWII, the ship was being built in Jacksonville, Florida by the Gibbs Gas Engine Company. A...
marywh346
Sep 7, 20237 min read
48 views


YMS-346 - Photographs of the Crew and Stories - Part 3
I have been corresponding with the daughter of Meyer H. Leavitt, the Yeoman who wrote the 1st Anniversary Celebration of the ship. She...
marywh346
Aug 28, 20234 min read
83 views


A Veterans Day Story for the Anniversary of D-Day
Although Veterans Day is officially celebrated on November 11th every year, I thought I would tell this particular Veterans Day story...
marywh346
Jun 5, 20234 min read
195 views


The Realities of War
"I have seen the whole world, except at the time I saw it, they were blowing it up." I remember my father saying those words. Not...
marywh346
May 26, 20236 min read
93 views


A Sailor Goes Home and a Ship is Decommissioned
On March 4, 1946, Signalman John P. Whiteman was officially discharged from the U.S. Navy. The YMS-346 was decommissioned two months...
marywh346
May 18, 20234 min read
46 views


YMS-44 - Headed to Japan
Even with the end of the war, for the minesweepers, there was still much work to be done. The brave men who served on minesweepers...
marywh346
May 12, 202310 min read
51 views


News of the End of the War
News of the end of the war reached the crew of the YMS-346 in 1945 while they were still underway. There are two dates that commemorate...
marywh346
May 5, 20237 min read
31 views


Signalman Third Class (SM3c)
In the early part of 1945 the YMS-346 was headed back to the US and by mid year was headed to the Pacific. After assisting with the...
marywh346
Apr 28, 20236 min read
80 views


The Sinking of the SS Leopoldville -Christmas Eve 1944
On Christmas Eve 1944, the Belgian troopship Leopoldville crossed the English Channel with over 2000 American soldiers onboard and was...
marywh346
Apr 19, 20236 min read
121 views


YMS-346 - Photographs of the Crew and Stories - Part 2
Seaman Jack Whiteman kept an album on the ship with photographs of the crew and his family. The photographs below are of his shipmates...
marywh346
Apr 11, 20233 min read
64 views


YMS-346 - Photographs of the Crew and Stories - Part 1
Seaman Jack Whiteman kept an album on the ship with photographs of the crew and his family. In a letter dated October 15, 1944 Jack...
marywh346
Apr 11, 20233 min read
73 views


YMS-346 - One Year in Commission - August 20, 1944
August 20, 1943 found a group of officers and men leaving Jacksonville, Florida - starting on new careers and missions......................
marywh346
Apr 5, 20237 min read
64 views
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