Wahoo Memorial Torpedo Returns Home

From Omahanewsstand.com: Wednesday, August 18, 2010

By Lisa Brichacek

There are still a few scars from its battle with a falling tree, but the torpedo that memorializes the USS Wahoo is back home.

The torpedo monument on the Saunders County Courthouse lawn in Wahoo was underneath the top of a nearby tree after a windstorm howled through Wahoo earlier this year.

The torpedo was removed for repairs, but was returned last Friday morning.

Nebraska Base of United States Submarine Veterans Inc. Member Pat Hancock and a group of volunteers helped to guide the torpedo back onto its base.

Hancock said they have been working with the county’s insurance carrier to get the necessary repairs taken care of. The main thing, he said, was to seal up any cracks in the torpedo’s surface so further damage from weather didn’t occur.

The Wahoo Chapter of World War II Submarine Veterans was responsible for starting the memorial and maintained it for many years. Members of the Nebraska Base of United States Submarine Veterans Inc. started helping with maintenance in recent years due to the age of the World War II veterans.

According to Hancock, the World War II chapter will fold into the Nebraska Base chapter after this year. Any money left in the treasury of the World War II chapter will be put into a repair fund for the torpedo monument.

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Wahoo, Nebraska Memorial Update

SubVet Service to Honor Sailors, New Memorial

By Lisa Brichacek of wahoonewspaper.com
10/08/2008

WAHOO, NB - Submarine veterans from across the state will once again be gathering in Wahoo this Sunday.

The annual memorial service sponsored by the Wahoo Chapter of World War II Submarine Veterans and the Nebraska Base of United States Submarine Veterans Inc. will be held at 1 p.m. on the lawn of the Saunders County Courthouse in Wahoo. Activities will once again take place near the Torpedo Monument of the USS Wahoo. The public is invited to attend the ceremony.

This year's ceremony will include a special dedication of the new monument near the torpedo. This past spring, the torpedo and plaque were removed for refurbishing. They were put back into place in late summer looking polished and nearly new.

Last month, a memorial marker was placed near the monument. The engraved piece of granite honors all U.S. Navy submarine sailors. It also proclaims that it is "in memory of all submarines and crews on eternal patrol."

The approximately $10,000 bill for the new memorial as well as the monument refurbishing is being picked up primarily by the World War II Submarine Veterans. The Nebraska Base of United States Submarine Veterans has also lent some assistance to the project.

In addition to the dedication portion of Sunday's activities, ceremony will also include an address from Electronics Technician Senior Chief Monty C. Clawson. Clawson is the submarine communications subject mater expert at the United States Strategic Command, Offutt Air Force Base.

He is responsible for directing the efforts of Strategic Submarine communications and continuing evaluation program management. He has served on many submarines prior to coming to the air base near Omaha and has been awarded the Navy Commendation Medal, the Navy Marine Corps Achievement Medal and various other unit and service awards.

This is the 46th year for the submarine memorial service. The World War II Submarine Veterans started holding the ceremony in 1962 to recognize the ships and crew who served this country. The ceremony is always held as close as possible to Oct. 11, the date that the USS Wahoo went to her watery grave.

U.S.S. Wahoo is arguably the most famous of the Navy's World War II vessels. During her seven patrols, she is reported to have sunk a total of 20 ships totaling 60,038 tons. Wahoo was commissioned on May 15, 1942 and sunk in the La Perouse (Soya) Strait on Oct. 11. 1943.

On board that fateful day was a young man from Wahoo. Robert Lee Jasa was a Machinist's Mate, Third Class aboard the Wahoo. He and the 79 others serving on board went down with the Wahoo and remain on eternal patrol.

For many years, the exact resting place of the Wahoo was unknown. A group of Russian divers found the remains of a submarine in the waters between the Japanese island of Hokkaido and the Russian island of Sakhalin. In October of 2006, the U.S. Navy confirmed that it was in fact the wreckage of the Wahoo.

Following Sunday's ceremony, a lunch is planned at the Fifth Street Bar and Grill in downtown Wahoo.

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October 12th Memorial Service in Wahoo, Nebraska

On Sunday, October 12th, the Wahoo base of U.S. SubVets WWII will re-dedicate the USS Wahoo (SS-238) Memorial in Wahoo, Nebraska. The Ceremony will be at the Saunders County Courthouse and will begin at 1300 (1:00 PM). Wahoo is about 35 west of Omaha. Howard Mace, World War II Submarine Commander for the Wahoo Chapter, reports it will be the 46th year the Memorial has been in Wahoo.

The memorial display recently underwent refurbishment including removal of the torpedo for repair and painting. The display will be in place in time for the ceremony. Below are some images from the restoration:

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