Finding Aid: USS CASSIN YOUNG Operational Records

 

Introduction

When the Operational Records were removed from the ship, Boston National Historical Park staff created a handwritten inventory of each item or group of items and the locations from which they were removed. These inventories are part of the accession records still kept by the park.

Following accession, the records were partially arranged by Ed Hanson, [museum technician] for the Boston National Historical Park. Apparently Hanson found some of the records in original folders that were labeled with filing codes. These filing codes seemed to correspond to the outline put forth in Disposal of Navy Marine Records: USN and USNS Vessels, Part I and III. Hanson took the records out of original order and arranged them according to the Disposal Schedule outline. In order to distinguish between the material that came with a file code and the material that was assigned a code during preliminary processing, Hanson used an asterisk (*) before the filing code number to indicate that he had assigned the number. Three drawers of material remained uncoded and were labeled “Miscellaneous.”1

Because this preliminary reorganization had already occurred, the Northeast Museum Services Center and Boston National Historical Park staffs agreed to continue on with the project and refine the organization so that it more closely conformed to the outline set forth in the Disposal of Navy Marine Records: USN and USNS Vessels, Part I and III. Researchers should note, therefore, that the USS Cassin Young Operational Records are not in the original order as they existed on the ship. Boston National Historical Park’s accession records can still be used, however, to reconstruct from where particular items were removed. Unless the collection listing indicates otherwise, the materials are assumed to be from accession BOSTC-26.

SPNEA and NMSC staff rehoused the collection into acid free folders and boxes. Hanson’s folder titles were maintained except where the filing code appeared entirely inappropriate. In these cases, the code was changed. The “miscellaneous” material was sorted according to the Disposal of Navy Marine Records: USN and USNS Vessels, Part I and III, and filing codes were designated for each folder. The folder titles created during this project are designated with a cross (†) preceding the numeric code.

The collection listing includes those headings and subheadings from the Disposal of Navy Marine Records: USN and USNS Vessels, Part I and III for which it contains materials. Headings that are not used in the collection are not listed. The applicable excerpts from the Disposal of Navy Marine Records: USN and USNS Vessels, Part I and III are included as Appendix A to this section of the finding aid. In addition to the headings, the excerpts supply short scope notes regarding their use.

1. Ed Hanson created a Guide to Cassin Young Records, which describes, to some extent, the work that he did with the collection.

 

Part 1: Collection Description

Scope and Content Note

USS Cassin Young Operational Records, 1941-1978 (bulk dates 1957-1960)

Catalog number: BOSTC 1678.

Quantity: 95 linear feet (approximately 152,000 items).

Storage: 104 legal size archives boxes, 5 index card boxes, and 25 flat boxes.

Location: Boston National Historical Park, Charlestown Navy Yard, Charlestown, Massachusetts 02129, (617)242-5620.

Description: The USS Cassin Young Operational Records consist of correspondence and memoranda, reports, forms, requisitions, blueprints and other plans, quartermaster notebooks, log books, and various other documentation regarding daily activity on the USS Cassin Young. The records primarily reflect the ships activities from 1955-1959, during which Cassin Young performed routine duties in Atlantic and Caribbean waters with four Mediterranean deployments. The collection also contains records regarding some of the overhauls the ship underwent at the Boston Naval Shipyard during that same period. In addition, there is a small amount of documentation regarding Cassin Young’s deactivation in 1960.

Organization: USS Cassin Young Records, 1941-1978 (bulk dates 1957-1960)

A. 1000-1999 Military Personnel Records
B. 2000-2999 Communications
C. 3000-3999 Operations and Readiness
D. 4000-4999 Logistics
E. 5000-5999 General Administration and Management
F. 6000-6999 Medicine and Dentistry
G. 7000-7999 Financial Management
H. 8000-8999 Ordnance Material
I. 9000-9999 Ship Design and Material
J. 10000-10999 General Material
K. 12000-12999 Civilian (Marine) Personnel Records
L. 13000-13999Aeronautical and Astronautical Records
M. Personal Materials Found Onboard
N. Oil Damaged Materials
O. Restricted Materials
P. Oversize Materials

1. Oversize Box Storage
2. Map Case Storage
3. Loose Storage

Q. Original Housing Materials
R. Extra Copies of Forms

 

Series Description

Series A. 1000-1999 Military Personnel Records

These records relate to shipboard supervision and administration of military personnel and military personnel matters. Among the records represented here are personnel records, muster cards, officer rosters, and records of instructional courses.

Series B. 2000-2999 Communication Records

These records involve the performance of communication functions aboard ship. The majority of records represented here are visual messages, sent directly ship-to-ship. Also included are courier transfer receipts and publication listings.

Series C. 3000-3999 Operations and Readiness Records

These records relate to the navigation and operation of the ship and to the performance of assigned missions and tasks. Included here are various check-off lists, sailing sheets, engineering logs and bell books, quartermaster’s notebooks, docking repair records, and reefer logs.

Series D. 4000-4999 Logistics Records

These records address the performance of logistic, or supply, functions, including supply management, procurement, inventory control, property disposal, transportation and shipping, and the maintenance, repair, and conversion of the ship. Included here are records of the ship's store and supply department, shipping documents, repair and work requests or orders, stowage plans, inventories, records of overhauls, and inspection reports.

Series E. 5000-5999 General Administration and Management

This series contains blank forms, instructions, files and publications necessary to the operation of the USS Cassin Young. The blank forms are for the purpose of reporting events on the ship, inspections of equipment and armaments, and requests for repair work. Examples of this include Reports of Equipment Failure, Engineer's Bell Book, Tender Work Requests, Storage Battery Records, Fireroom Check-Off List, Top Secret Message Reporting, and Engineroom Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly Tests and Inspections. Materials relating to instructions include Plans of the Day, Preparation for Overseas Movement, Wardroom Mess Regulations, Hull Reports and Crypto Board Training Program records. The publications mainly consist of instructions on the use and testing of equipment. These include a series of temporary corrections to existing instruction publications, such as: Temporary Correction to Instruction Book for Range Azimuth Indicator. Also included in this sub-series are several files of inspections and safety certificates.

Series F. 6000-6999 Medicine and Dentistry

This series contains medical and dental reports, requisitions, instructions and inventories pertaining to the operation of the health services aboard the USS Cassin Young. There is also a small group of Medical Department memoranda, dispatches and orders. Examples of reports generated during the course of medical procedures include the Monthly Morbidity Report, Report of Outpatient Treatment, and Quarantine Report. Also included are requisitions for medical and dental supplies and equipment. One instruction file pertaining to the treatment of VD is contained in the sub-series. Inventories and assessments include Status Cards, Stock Tally Forms and Narcotics Inventory. A portion of this series has been separated from the bulk of the collection due to privacy restrictions, see Series N below.

Series G. 7000-7999 Financial Management Records

These records were accumulated in connection with the performance of fiscal, accounting, and disbursing functions of the ship. Included in this collection are public supply vouchers, documents relating to the custody of procurement funds, and the ship's expenditure file for the fiscal year 1960.

Series H. 8000-8999 Ordnance Material

These records were generally accumulated by the Gunnery Department or Officer of the ship in connection with the performance of his functions relating to the supervision and direction of the employment of ordnance equipment. The largest portion of this series is made up of Ordnance Design Alternations (ORDALTS), which included blueprints and drawings of equipment. There are also a fair number of other ordnance plans and drawings, as well as a small amount of correspondence and other reports.

Series I. 9000-9999 Ship Design and Ships Material Records

These records were compiled in connection with the operation, care, and maintenance of the hull, electrical or power and other engineering equipment, boat machinery, fuels and lubricants, underwater fittings, and other equipment and stores not assigned to other departments. Included in this collection are instruction booklets, data on displacement, night orders, daily tests and inspections data, information on ship alterations, inspection reports, reports on the hull structure and on the boilers and electrical systems.

Series J. 10000-10999 General Material Records

These are general records relating to general materials. In this collection, this series consists of eight folders of reports on fuel, diesel, oil, and water stores.

Series K. 12000-12999 Civilian (Marine) Personnel Records

This series contains records of civilian marine personnel aboard ship. This collection includes only two folders containing a blank Navy pay receipt and a motion picture list of transfer.

Series L. 13000-13999 Aeronautical and Astronautical Records

This series would contain records accumulated with the performance of aircraft launching and landing operations. As the USS Cassin Young did not have an Air Department, this collection has only one item in this series, and Area Identification map of Puerto Rico.

Series M. Personal Materials Found Onboard

This series contains a variety of collected materials and personal correspondence that was found on board the USS Cassin Young after it was acquired by the National Park Service.

Series N. Restricted Access Material

This series contains material that was removed from the bulk of the collection due to privacy concerns. Most of the material was removed from Series F. 6000-6999 Medicine and Dentistry, and is related back to the collection through separation sheets.

Series O. Oil Damaged Material

This series contains material that was removed from the bulk of the collection because it is severely stained with an oily substance. These items are stored in separate containers so that they will not damage any other material. They are related back to the main collection through separation sheets.

Series P. Oversize Material

Oversize items found among regular legal size material have been removed to oversize storage. They are stored in one of three locations: oversize flat boxes, in the map case, or loose in a cabinet. Each item is related back to the collection through separation sheets.

Series Q. Original Housing Materials

These are examples of the original binders and folders that the collection was stored in. The Boston National Historical Park may wish to use this material in furnishing the USS Cassin Young.

Series R. Extra Copies of Forms

This series contains extra copies of forms that were removed from the collection. Typically, no more than fifteen copies of a particular blank form were left in the collection. The remainder were removed to this series in order to save space; they can be used for interpretation purposes or may be discarded in the future.

 

Part 2: Historical Note

USS Cassin Young (DD 793)

USS Cassin Young is a 2050-ton Fletcher-Class destroyer that was constructed by Bethlehem Steel Corporation at San Pedro, California. She was commissioned on 31 December 1941. One of the best destroyers of the period, she handled a variety of duties such as picket ship, escorting larger ships and convoys, shore bombardment, rescuing pilots who were forced down at sea, and even acting as mailman for the fleet.

USS Cassin Young bears the name of Captain Cassin Young, USN, who was in command of the repair ship Vestal which was moored by the battleship Arizona at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. When the Japanese attacked, Arizona blew up, taking Young and many members of his crew overboard. Vestal was hit several times and quickly began taking on water. Young was able to stop his crew from abandoning ship, rescue survivors from Arizona, and beach Vestal for later salvage. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Young was promoted to captain and awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions. He was then given command of the heavy cruiser San Fransisco, on which he met his death during the night Battle of Guadalcanal on November 13, 1942. A year later, the USS Cassin Young (DD793) was commissioned in honor of this courageous officer.

Beginning in January 1944, Cassin Young was assigned to Task Group 58 in the Pacific for raids on Japanese strongholds in the Caroline Islands. In June, Cassin Young joined Task Group 52 for the invasion of the of the Marianas, and she spent the next three months escorting various carriers providing air support for amphibious troops landing on Saipan, Guam, and Tinian.

Back with Task Group 58 in September 1944, Cassin Young participated in air strikes on the Palaus and Mindanao in the Southern Philippines. In October, the fleet was attacked by fifteen Japanese torpedo planes. Four of the enemy planes were splashed with Cassin Young’s 5-inch and machine gun batteries, but the ship’s after smoke stack received several souvenir punctures on the starboard side of the stack. Shortly following that incident, during the Battle of Leyte Gulf, Cassin Young aided Princeton, an aircraft carrier fatally struck by an enemy dive bomber. Cassin Young was honored with a letter of commendation from the Princeton’s Commanding Officer and an inscribed plaque from her crew.

As a unit of Task Groups 38 and 58 from November 1944 to February 1945, Cassin Young took part in a series of blows against Luzon, Formasa, and Iwo Jima. In March she participated in the invasion of Okinawa as a member of Task Group 54. April 1, 1945 was D-Day at Okinawa, and Cassin Young took up the duties of radar picket ship, warning the fleet of impending air attacks. The ships assigned to picket duty bore the brunt of over fifteen hundred Kamikaze attacks in the upcoming weeks and months. On April 6 the Japanese launched the first of ten massed attacks comprised of 355 Kamikazes and 341 bombers. Cassin Young downed three enemy planes and picked up survivors from other destroyers who were downed during the battles. On April 12, Cassin Young again came under a massive attack during which a Japanese Val aircraft dove into and carried away Cassin Young’s port yardarm, the upper section of her foremast, and all of her radio and radar antennae. One man was killed and sixty were wounded during the attack.

Following repairs, Cassin Young returned to the Okinawa area and resumed duties as a radar picket ship. The ship’s most severe test came when, on the early morning of July 30, a single Kamikaze crashed the starboard side of the main deck near the forward smokestack. She lost all power and burned fiercely after the attack. Her crew, however, was able to contain the damage and restart one engine within 20 minutes. Twenty-two men were killed and over fifty wounded during the engagement. Cassin Young was awarded the Navy Unit Commendation for her determined service and gallantry on the Okinawa picket line. She was the last ship hit by Kamikazes in the vicinity of Okinawa. Following repairs, Cassin Young was decommissioned on May 28, 1946 and placed in the reserve fleet at San Diego, California.

Cassin Young was recommissioned on September 7, 1951 due to the outbreak of hostilities in Korea. During the Korean Conflict, she served as a member of the Destroyer Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, operating primarily in North Atlantic and Caribbean waters. In 1952, Cassin Young underwent a major overhaul at the Charlestown Facility of the Boston Naval Shipyard.

From September to December 1953, Cassin Young operated with the U.S. Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean, visiting ports in England, Algeria, Italy, Greece, and Turkey. In May 1954, the ship began a round-the-world cruise, during which she spent three weeks patrolling Korean waters as a unit of the U.S. Seventh Fleet.

From 1955-1959 Cassin Young performed routine duties in Atlantic and Caribbean waters. During those years, the ship returned to the Boston Naval Shipyard five times for more overhauls. She received the Battle Efficiency “E” for overall excellent performances in all exercises in 1959. On April 29, 1960, Cassin Young was again decommissioned, and she was mothballed at Norfolk Navy Shipyard, Virginia.

Cassin Young was acquired by the National Park Service in 1978. Restored to her 1950’s condition, she has been open to the public at Boston National Historical Park since 1981.

Sources:

USS Cassin Young (DD 793), USS Cassin Young Operational Records, box 81 folder 1.

Roberts, Bruce and Ray Jones. Steel Ships and Iron Men: A Tribute to World War II Fighting Ships and the Men Who Served on Them. Chester CT: Globe Pequot Press, 1991.

USS Cassin Young DD-793: World War II Destroyer. Boston National Historical Park, n.d.

 

Part 3: Collection Listing

 

A. 1000-1999 MILITARY PERSONNEL RECORDS, 1955-1966

 

B. 2000-2999  COMMUNICATIONS RECORDS, 1953-1960

 

C. 3000-3999  OPERATIONS AND READINESS RECORDS, 1944-1961

 

D. LOGISTICS RECORDS, 1943-1978

 

E.  5000-5999 GENERAL ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT RECORDS, 1944-1977

 

F.  6000-6999 MEDICINE AND DENTISTRY RECORDS, 1951-1961

 

G.  7000-7999  FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT RECORDS, 1950-1962

 

H. 8000-8999 ORDNANCE MATERIAL RECORDS, 1930-1960

 

I. 9000-9999  SHIP DESIGN AND SHIPS MATERIAL RECORDS, 1941-1968

 

J. 10000-10999 GENERAL MATERIAL RECORDS, 1957-1960

 

K. 12000-12999 CIVILIAN (MARINE) PERSONNEL RECORDS, 1959

 

L. 13000-13999  AERONAUTICAL AND ASTRONAUTICAL RECORDS, 1952

 

M. PERSONAL MATERIALS FOUND ONBOARD, 1952-1960

 

N. RESTRICTED ACCESS MATERIAL

 

O. OIL DAMAGED MATERIAL

 

P. OVERSIZE STORAGE

 

Q. ORIGINAL HOUSING

 

R. EXTRA COPIES OF FORMS [can be used for interpretation, etc.]

Three record center cartons of forms removed from 5000-5999 [15 copies of each form remain in the collection along with a processor's note indicating that additional copies of each form were removed from the collection.]

APPENDIX A: Excerpts From Disposal of Navy and Marine Records

(SECNAVINST P5212.5B), 21 JUNE 1961

Last updated: March 20, 2025

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617 242-5601

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