ANSWERS to Questions of the Week: 2-18-2011

February was Black History Month in the U.S. and Canada (October is for the U.K.).

For background to last week's mystery questions, go here. In 1995, the ship's surviving crew received letters of commendation for meritorious service.

On 20 August 1945 DE-529 arrived in New London to be outfitted for long-range underwater signal testing in the Bermuda area into September. Commissioned 20 March 1944, USS Mason DE-529 was Decommissioned 12 October 1945, less than 18 months later. more

Over 150,000 blacks served in the US Navy during WWII.

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Questions of the Week with Answers

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1) - What were the name and hull number of this ship? ANS - USS Mason (DE-529).

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2) - What was the ship nicknamed and who was her CO at commisssioning? ANS - The Mason was called Eleanor's Folly, in deference to First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, who advocated for desegregation of the armed services. Lt. Commander William M. Blackford, USNR her commissioning CO, who was white, was also the great grandson of abolitionist Mary Berkeley Minor Blackford.

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3) - By the time this ship was decommissioned, what did all of her CPOs have in common? ANS -The Mason had served with 6 officers, and 150 black enlisted men. By the time the Mason was decommissioned, all of its chief petty officers were black.

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4) - What was the title of the book written about this ship? ANS - One of the books was Proudly We Served : The Men of the USS Mason by Mary Pat Kelly.

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5) - What was the name of the corresponding movie, and when was it released? ANS - The movie was Proud, and it was released in 2004.

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6) - Another navy vessel, referred to as a "boat" shared an historical first with her. What were the name and hull number of that second vessel. ANS - Submarine chaser PC-1264 was commissioned during WWII with an all black crew, including the Navy's first black officer, who captained the vessel.

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Submarines are always silent and strange.