Audio
John Taheny
Transcript
Mr.Chin:
Okay, that means it's on. Yes, you are one of the fellows with Mario Paulini, and Frank Mahoney, and all the rest of them from USF, for the ROTC?
Mr. Taheny:
Yes, we were in the advanced ROTC classes at USF.
[00:00:30]
Mr.Chin:
Yes. So were you in their age group, in their class, or were you before or after?
Mr. Taheny:
We were all in the same class.
Mr.Chin:
Okay. And then that must have meant that you went to OCS at Fort Monroe together then?
Mr. Taheny:
Yes.
Mr.Chin:
Yeah.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:01:00]
Now in Fort Monroe, it's August 1943 until... Well I left there in, I guess, it was the very end of February or more likely the very beginning of March-
Mr.Chin:
So, when you-
Mr. Taheny:
-of 1944.
Mr.Chin:
Right and then they sent you back to San Francisco to be assigned somewhere in the Harbor Defenses, was that-?
Mr. Taheny:
Yes I was assigned to battery end of the Sixth Coast Artillery at Fort Scott in the Presidio of San Francisco, California.
[00:01:30]
Mr.Chin:
Yes and that was the searchlight battery for-
Mr. Taheny:
That was.
Mr.Chin:
-Seacoast searchlight.
Mr. Taheny:
Right.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
Seacoast searchlight.
Mr.Chin:
Yeah. Now at the school in Fort Monroe, did you specialize in searchlight or did everybody learn the same amount?
Mr. Taheny:
[00:02:00]
There was virtually no instruction with respect to searchlight. Very little of our training involved searchlights.
Mr.Chin:
I see. So you had to sort of learn what-
Mr. Taheny:
I did, I had to learn from scratch actually.
Mr.Chin:
Was there a particular light they assigned you to? Or how did that work out when you got your assignment to that battery?
[00:02:30]
Mr. Taheny:
Well, battery in had, as I recall it, we had about five or six searchlight sections north of the Golden Gate, and the same number south of the Golden Gate along the coast. I can't remember whether we had 10 or 12 searchlight sections.
Mr.Chin:
Right. By section, what does that mean? Is that a water area or is that amount of the points?
Mr. Taheny:
No. Well, a section was a group of men from our battery signed to a specific location where we had a searchlight mounted.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
[00:03:00]
Mr. Taheny:
It was like a detachment of men there.
Mr.Chin:
Okay. And I think you said there were about four men assigned to-
Mr. Taheny:
No I think, I believe, we had six men assigned to a section.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
[00:03:30]
Mr. Taheny:
And that would be with one man off each day. So there'd be actually five men on duty, assigned with one man off. And during the daytime naturally there'd be no mission for a searchlight.
Mr.Chin:
Right.
Mr. Taheny:
And so generally one man would be on duty at the station and the other four men would have to be there that night.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
During the day they would be free to leave.
[00:04:00]
Mr.Chin:
I see. Now I don't know too much about searchlights at this point, myself. So you are the one that's going to supply me with the most specific information that I think I may be able to get, unless I found an old technical manual or something like that.
So the lights were, I understand they had a controller that did the actual pointing of the lights from a remote distance. Is that how they worked?
[00:04:30]
Mr. Taheny:
No, the controller was a device that was used for aiming the anti-aircraft weapon.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
Because you would not point the weapon directly at the target or the plane, that would be for anti-aircraft I'm speaking of.
Mr.Chin:
Okay.
[00:05:00]
Mr. Taheny:
You had to take into account the speed of the plane, and the distance of the plane, and the angle of the direction of the plane. And that all would be factored in on a computer via controller. So in other words, you have to lead your target.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:05:30]
And you had to lead it in the right direction. Same as if you were shooting at a flight of ducks [inaudible 00:05:27] at a distance.
Mr.Chin:
Yes. Now, so how were the searchlights?
Mr. Taheny:
The searchlights would be... you can see where the beam of the searchlight is-
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
-going. Now as far as the location, I don't recall what controller. I think you'd have to aim it by you visually site your target.
Mr.Chin:
I see. So it would be controlled right where the light was then?
[00:06:00]
Mr. Taheny:
That's my recollection, yes.
Mr.Chin:
So all the men for that particular section would be right around the light somewhere?
Mr. Taheny:
No, because the power was provided by a mobile generator. So you had men assigned to operate the generator.
Mr.Chin:
Okay.
Mr. Taheny:
And you'd have men assigned to operate the light.
Mr.Chin:
Okay.
[00:06:30]
Mr. Taheny:
And as I mentioned when I first spoke with you, it's been a long time.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
And I was not very deeply steeped in the technical operations of the lights themselves.
Mr.Chin:
So you, as a, I guess, a second Lieutenant would be responsible for mainly what type of things other than the actual workings of the sections?
[00:07:00]
Mr. Taheny:
Yeah the men who operated the section were trained to carry out the technical operations [inaudible 00:07:12] at each section.
Mr.Chin:
I see. Okay, so they probably controlled the light right there. So I would imagine the generators were at little distance away from the actual light itself, maybe?
[00:07:30]
Mr. Taheny:
Yeah I can't figure, I guess, how far away they would've been situated.
Mr.Chin:
Okay.
Mr. Taheny:
They would've cables running. Record of cables running from the generators to the light.
Mr.Chin:
Yes. Now they were in phone or talking contact with-
Mr. Taheny:
Somebody had to tell us where to...
Mr.Chin:
Yeah.
Mr. Taheny:
If there was a target out there and where to aim that, to pick up the target.
[00:08:00]
Mr.Chin:
Yeah, so would they be hooked up-
Mr. Taheny:
There were radar, you see. They had radar in the Harbor Defense that would locate targets out there. We didn't just start scan. We didn't just scan the ocean-
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
-with the lights hoping to pick up something.
Mr.Chin:
Right. So there would be somebody higher up somewhere. They give an order they want a certain area illuminated and [inaudible 00:08:24] the light would go on.
Mr. Taheny:
Yeah.
[00:08:30]
Mr.Chin:
Were these lights, were they in placed in some protective like sandbagged in, or dug in, or camouflaged, or anything?
Mr. Taheny:
No, not really.
Mr.Chin:
[00:09:00]
Okay. Let's see, I've always wondered about these lights. I mean, in the darkness, once they turned it on, if there was a hostile vessel or somebody out there, what were the possibilities of them being able to zero in on the light source and knock it out after a couple of minutes or something? Was that-
Mr. Taheny:
Well, there would be lights coming at them from different directions.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:09:30]
I mean, these sectors illuminated would be overlapping sectors of illumination, you see. There was one light that could scan a certain number of degrees. And the next light would be able to scan so as to overlap the sector illuminated by the first light. And then we had our artillery in placements mounted on the coast too, which would be firing at these targets.
Mr.Chin:
Right. Do you happen to remember approximately how far a beam could reach out of it? Could it go into far out into the ocean?
Mr. Taheny:
[00:10:00]
Theoretically, I guess, it could reach the horizon from where it was mounted. And they were mounted at an elevation, which we're talking about... I mean, this question would involve fog and the clouds and all that sort.
Mr.Chin:
[00:10:30]
I see. Were the lights has to be turned on at any intervals for unidentified ships or boats that wouldn't respond to any signals or anything like that, do you remember of?
Mr. Taheny:
I don't recall. When I was there, and I was there for a period of about four months, I don't recall there ever being an instance where we had to turn on the lights because of the approach to some vessel that was not identified as properly being there.
[00:11:00]
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:11:30]
The only time I recall our ever turning the lights on was when we had an operation at night. It was involving a test of our minds where we had a boat towing a target. And when the mines were detonated along the course there to [inaudible 00:11:32] based on the sharpness of our mind and management.
Mr.Chin:
I see. Mr. Paulini had mentioned something that he thought that you maybe able to answer for me. He said, there's a difference between the regular searching type searchlights and barrier lights. Do you know anything of that nature? What barrier lights might have been?
[00:12:00]
Mr. Taheny:
No.
Mr.Chin:
Okay. Was there some sort of welcome or an indoctrination when you joined the Sixth Coast Artillery Regiment? Any ceremonial type of say, the reception, the General's house for all the new officers?
Mr. Taheny:
For a new second lieutenant, hell no.
Mr.Chin:
Well, I thought maybe at the end of the year or something, they might have done something-
Mr. Taheny:
We're the lowest of the low.
[00:12:30]
Mr.Chin:
Well, yes. It never hurts to ask these questions. I never know what may come of it. But was Paulini brought in at the same time you were? Was there-
Mr. Taheny:
No.
Mr.Chin:
That was a different time.
Mr. Taheny:
No, in fact I don't remember him being in the Sixth Coast Artillery when I was there. Did he tell you when he was there?
Mr.Chin:
Well it was in 1944, the approximate dates, I'm not sure of. I think he was there between 44 and 45.
[00:13:00]
Mr. Taheny:
I received the first assignment from Fort Monroe-
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
-in our graduating class and I had my choice. And I took this assignment to be Sixth Coast Artillery.
Mr.Chin:
I see. Was that because you were a native?
[00:13:30]
Mr. Taheny:
No, I'd gotten sick a couple of days before our scheduled graduation from OCS. And they let me out of the hospital only because the captain in charge of our class, raised hell with the doctors at the hospital. And they let me alone just to graduate and then I had to get back. And I was in the hospital for two more days.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:14:00]
And after graduation, we were granted 10 days delay, what they called 10 days delay on route, to our assignment which was to the officers group there at Fort Monroe.
[00:14:30]
So most of the fellows in the class, well everybody in the class except me was free to get home if they could manage to get transportation to go anywhere they wanted. And because of my loss of 4 out of those 10 days, I wasn't able to get home or even try to get home. So I guess the officer in charge of the group decided to let me have the first choice.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:15:00]
So there was several assignments open to the... there was four assignments open to the Sixth Coast Artillery. And there were a few more, I'm not sure of the number. I think it was about 19. It was an industry coast artillery unit that was, I think it was a battalion that was assigned to... or maybe it was a regiment. It was assigned to Fort Funston.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
But the group assigned to Fort Funston moved out shortly after that. I think they may have been converted to a field artillery unit.
[00:15:30]
Mr.Chin:
Yeah something like that. So your duty took you to both sides of the Golden Gate or were you-
Mr. Taheny:
Yeah.
Mr.Chin:
Okay. And were there any particular things you remember?
Mr. Taheny:
My duty was respect to the several sections required, that I make a weekly inspection tour for our sections, for our battery.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
[00:16:00]
Mr. Taheny:
That meant I had to hit each one of those at least once a week.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
And then in addition, I was assigned as a battalion inspection officer. I had to make an inspection once a month, not only of our searchlight sections, but also of our gun in placements, north and south of the Golden Gate.
Mr.Chin:
I see, the second battalion.
Mr. Taheny:
I don't remember what battalion number.
[00:16:30]
Mr.Chin:
Okay. Let's see, what type of guns that were in placements did this cover? It wasn't the big-
Mr. Taheny:
It was 16 inch.
Mr.Chin:
It was.
Mr. Taheny:
I guess, we had was a 16 inch.
Mr.Chin:
I see. So it must have been the long range gun battalion then I guess?
Mr. Taheny:
Yeah that was the biggest one we had. They've all been removed in our sense.
Mr.Chin:
[00:17:00]
Yes. Any memorable things that you or any anecdotes of any type that you remember of when you had to make these inspection tours? Anything funny happen, or dramatic, or just whatever might stick out in your mind that you've remembered all these years?
Mr. Taheny:
Nothing really memorable.
Mr.Chin:
These weren't surprise inspections or these were ones that they were expecting?
Mr. Taheny:
Well, I guess they knew they'd be inspected once a month, but they didn't know just when I was coming.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
[00:17:30]
Mr. Taheny:
I guess that's why one of these sections, it was a gun section. I remember finding the enlisted man that was supposed to be on guard duty while the rest of them were asleep. This was late at night when I went there. He was down on... This was down south, around Monterra, down there on the coast.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
[00:18:00]
Mr. Taheny:
And the enlisted man was not at his station. He was in his car or in a car with his girlfriend on the highway. He got a little hot water.
Mr.Chin:
I see. I didn't know they had any gun batteries that far south.
Mr. Taheny:
I'm trying to think of what that was now. I'm trying to think of what it was. I just can't remember.
Mr.Chin:
Maybe it was-
Mr. Taheny:
In the radar station.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
In the radar station.
[00:18:30]
Mr.Chin:
Yeah they had radar stations that far down there. Did you also have to inspect some base-end stations or that wasn't might have been part of it?
Mr. Taheny:
I just don't remember.
Mr.Chin:
Okay.
Mr. Taheny:
I could have.
Mr.Chin:
Now, you are a native San Franciscan or a bay area person, right?
Mr. Taheny:
San Francisco.
[00:19:00]
Mr.Chin:
My book is also trying to give a flavor of what the city was like during the war years, and things like night spots, stores, Chinatown, all that, any of those things like that. Did you go into the city much at the time that you were there or even before?
[00:19:30]
Mr. Taheny:
Well, of course I was living here in San Francisco up until my departure for Fort Monroe in August of '43. So I was here from Pearl Harbor Days up until ranch.
Mr.Chin:
Right.
Mr. Taheny:
I remember I was at the football game, I guess on December the 7th. I didn't even know about Pearl Harbor until I left to the game because I was here at the stadium.
Mr.Chin:
Alright. What were the blackouts like for you?
[00:20:00]
Mr. Taheny:
[00:20:30]
Well in addition to going to school, I also worked. I had a job and I had to pay my way. And at the time from Pearl Harbor and after that for several months, I guess, I was working as a doorman at the United Artist Theater at night. And I knew that we'd get an air raid siren now and then, signaling that we had to had a blackout. And it was my responsibility to make sure that all the exterior lights were out.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
And any lights that could be visible to the street were out.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
It was pretty good. Occasionally somebody would forget, and you'd see a light on in a hotel across the street or something like that.
Mr.Chin:
But inside the business could keep going.
[00:21:00]
Mr. Taheny:
Sure, that's about the only place you could go. We go inside a theater or you have to stand out in the street in the dark.
Mr.Chin:
I forget where the United Artist Theater was. Was that on one of the big theaters in Market Street?
Mr. Taheny:
It was at that time. I'm not sure what it's like now.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
For the first run theater, it was owned by United Artist. It was United Artist Theater.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
[00:21:30]
Mr. Taheny:
Actually it wasn't own by United Artist, it was known by Joe Blumenthal and another guy by name McNerney. And it was right on the south side of Market, facing up Jones Street.
Mr.Chin:
I see, okay.
Mr. Taheny:
Right opposite the intersection of McAllister and Jones.
Mr.Chin:
I see, yeah that's right. Right in that downtown. Let's see, did a lot of the servicemen go in and out of that particular theater?
Mr. Taheny:
Sure.
[00:22:00]
Mr.Chin:
Were there any times when there'd be some trouble where MP or SPs had to be called or anything?
Mr. Taheny:
I don't know. They never had... I never saw anything like that.
Mr.Chin:
Okay. Was Market Street, I mean during the daytime, I guess, it's fairly busy. But at night in those days, did people go out much at night or because of the blackouts and et cetera, the streets were rather quiet?
[00:22:30]
Mr. Taheny:
Well, we didn't have too many blackouts. People would go out. The municipal railway was still operating. So people, although there was gas rationing, and people who had cars didn't get much gas allowance unless they had some special allotment.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:23:00]
But the ordinary person, I guess, got what they call an A sticker and I'm not sure what that gave, two gallons a week or something like that. But quite people would be out at night.
Mr.Chin:
I see. You mentioned that you left the Harbor Defenses to get into an assignment that, I guess, you felt would be something that would be more exciting or would see more action in.
Mr. Taheny:
Yeah.
Mr.Chin:
Was that how you felt at the time?
[00:23:30]
Mr. Taheny:
[00:24:00]
When I was recruited, the impression I had was that I, well I was asked if I would be willing to be a fire shooter behind enemy lines. And the way the questioning went, I was expected, I was to be parachuted into Japan proper. But I figured, hell, they'd train me to do a mission and when that was accomplished, I assumed they had a provision made to get me out.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
I'm not so sure now that was the fact. I went blind to drop me behind Japanese lines in Japan proper, but anyway that was the situation.
Mr.Chin:
Is that when you were recruited to go in for a different type of job?
Mr. Taheny:
Into the OSC, yes.
Mr.Chin:
Yeah. Now when you-
Mr. Taheny:
[00:24:30]
Apparently when this fellow came out, he was an army officer recruiting for the OCS. When he came out to the Harbor Defenses, I think they must have warned everybody not to go see him. There was no command that we see him. They must have alerted all of the officers above the grade of second lieutenant.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
There were only a few of us that were actually interviewing.
Mr.Chin:
I see. And you did that on your own volition. I mean, you heard about this and you were interested enough to go and find out?
Mr. Taheny:
Apparently, I was the only one who bit. Nobody else did at that time.
[00:25:00]
Mr.Chin:
So your four months of being in the coast artillery in San Francisco, wasn't enough for you, you wanted to do something else?
Mr. Taheny:
No, I felt like I wasn't even in service. I wasn't in the service of my country.
Mr.Chin:
Okay.
Mr. Taheny:
I was able to get home every night.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
My home was down in the Richmond district.
Mr.Chin:
Right.
[00:25:30]
Mr. Taheny:
It was a little walk, a couple miles or so, but I could walk from battery in to my home, and I did that.
Mr.Chin:
Where was battery in? Where were the barracks?
Mr. Taheny:
It was at Fort Scott.
Mr.Chin:
Fort Scott, okay.
Mr. Taheny:
Right around the parade ground.
Mr.Chin:
I see. So you had a bachelor officer quarters there?
Mr. Taheny:
Yes.
Mr.Chin:
Yeah, I'm just assuming you were a bachelor then. And then you would just go home whenever you had a chance back to your parents?
[00:26:00]
Mr. Taheny:
It was every other night. And the only reason it was every other night is because one of the officers, as I mentioned the other night, he's away at some training program or school. And I was led to believe and believed that he was shortly scheduled to finish. And when that happened, we would be off two out of three nights.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
So, I mean like two out of three nights I could leave the post and walk on home to go wherever I wanted, do whatever I wanted. I'm free to do that.
[00:26:30]
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
And I didn't feel like it was really in service.
Mr.Chin:
Did you run across many other personnel enlisted or officers at HDSF that wanted to transfer into something that was more active?
Mr. Taheny:
The only one I know of was this classmate of mine who I mentioned the other night, George Albrush.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
[00:27:00]
Mr. Taheny:
And he was assigned to a unit that was scheduled to go overseas. And he was found to have an insufficient amount of time with the troops.
Mr.Chin:
Yeah.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:27:30]
And consequently, he was reassigned up to the Harbor Defenses. And he got a room in the bachelor office court. He shared the room with me. And then when I couldn't tell him where I was about. He didn't find out until the morning I was leaving to Washington DC, when I had come back to get my, whatever it was I had to get. Sunday morning, I know that. And he had to wake up and saw me and he didn't know what I was doing.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:28:00]
I told him I couldn't talk about it because we had been instructed that it was very hush-hush which deals was [inaudible 00:27:55]. And so I couldn't tell him, except to say that I had joined the OSS and that was it. And I guess later when he started asking questions and found out, I guess, about the recruiter that was out there. And the next thing I know while I'm overseas when he shows up a couple months after I got out there.
Mr.Chin:
[00:28:30]
I see. Now when they, [inaudible 00:28:20], yes. So when they recruited you, they said that they were going to be training you for the purpose of dropping behind enemy lines somewhere. Was that it?
Mr. Taheny:
I was asked if I would be willing to be dropped behind enemy lines.
Mr.Chin:
Okay.
Mr. Taheny:
I said there were various missions for the OSS.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:29:00]
They had intelligence. They had gorilla warfare. They sabotage and so on. And not knowing what I might be assigned to, he didn't say you're going to be doing this or you're going to be doing that. He got recruiting and he just want to know whether I would be willing to-
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
-have that done.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
So I would.
Mr.Chin:
I see. So then you had your training and then you went out to India?
Mr. Taheny:
Yes.
Mr.Chin:
So did you actually-
Mr. Taheny:
Our detachment was assigned... Our mission was in Burma.
[00:29:30]
Mr.Chin:
Did you have to have any... Did they put you through any language training for some languages of that particular area or did you have that?
Mr. Taheny:
Very little, actually. We would've had to rely upon interpreters.
Mr.Chin:
I see. Did you operate just as a unit amongst Americans or did you have to liaison with other forces of other countries?
Mr. Taheny:
Are you talking about me, specifically?
Mr.Chin:
Yeah, I guess so.
[00:30:00]
Mr. Taheny:
I did not get into Burma. I guess it was all these strange smells and whatever else was in the air over there. And I had the mother of all the hay fevers, that's what they called it. The doctor would not let me go.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
They would not let me go into the field.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:30:30]
He was afraid that I might let loose or run a horrible sneeze as we were waiting to ambush the Japanese patrol or something like that.
Mr.Chin:
Exactly.
Mr. Taheny:
So they won't let me go.
Mr.Chin:
Exactly, so you did some use-
Mr. Taheny:
Our unit was operating behind Japanese lines in Burma.
Mr.Chin:
So then you stayed in India then?
Mr. Taheny:
I did. I was assigned to supply.
Mr.Chin:
I see, okay.
Mr. Taheny:
I was assistant supply officer.
[00:31:00]
Mr.Chin:
I see, all right. I had heard, they mentioned that many of the troop used in the Harvard Defenses during that last or the later parts of the war, many of them were not your A1 physical specimens-
Mr. Taheny:
1A? I mean, there's a draft classification 1A.
Mr.Chin:
Well, no. I guess what they call them limited service troops or something. Maybe some people that would be older or people that may have not, maybe had hearing in one ear.
[00:31:30]
Mr. Taheny:
I know. But I know in my battery we had one man who had sight in only one eye, but that was no handicap.
Mr.Chin:
No. But I had just heard that they tended to put them in maybe units like Harbor Defense Units at that stage of the war when they wanted to move other people.
Mr. Taheny:
[00:32:00]
It's possible. I couldn't tell you. I do know though that we had men in our battery who would not be fit to, let's say, be assigned to the infantry-
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
-because of some physical disability.
Mr.Chin:
Right.
Mr. Taheny:
But they certainly were capable of serving in the armed forces in some other capacity.
Mr.Chin:
Yes, true. Okay. Well, I can't think of any-
[00:32:30]
Mr. Taheny:
I know one of the fellows that was in my class at USF. He was drafted and he served in the army. He had sight in only one eye.
Mr.Chin:
I see. Now, well I guess of course they probably only did that during, I mean, as far as the war situation went. I would imagine if it was peace time, they might not have accepted a lot of them that time.
Mr. Taheny:
That could be.
[00:33:00]
Mr.Chin:
Well I think that this runs the gamut of what questions I could think of to ask.
Mr. Taheny:
All right.
Mr.Chin:
If I have any more, I will certainly get in touch with you again. Should I send you a copy of whatever comes out when I write this material before it gets into publication so that you can... I mean, if your name just happens to be mentioned as part of a quote or something, you may...
Mr. Taheny:
Well, you have a tape of our conversation?
Mr.Chin:
Yes I do.
[00:33:30]
Mr. Taheny:
So I assume that whatever you write will be checked against the tape?
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
Okay, but I'm not concerned about what I said through then.
Mr.Chin:
Okay. Well, it'll be accurate to what you remember, I guess, is basically what we have there. All right, is Taheny, is that an Irish name?
Mr. Taheny:
It is.
Mr.Chin:
Okay, I'm amused that I've got-
Mr. Taheny:
How do you spell it?
[00:34:00]
Mr.Chin:
Well, I think they gave me T-A-H-E-N-Y.
Mr. Taheny:
That's correct.
Mr.Chin:
And I'm just amused because I have a whole listed. Maybe that's what the Harbor Defenses, it seemed like every one of them was an Irish person. I've got a whole list here.
Mr. Taheny:
I tell you, Paulini is not.
Mr.Chin:
[00:34:30]
Well he's the only one, believe me. But I guess being from USF, there's a lot of probably Catholic, Irish, Italian, et cetera, like that. I suppose that's how I have all these names. But yes, you're in good company in my list. What is your zip code by the way? I have the rest of your address in case I have to send you something.
Mr. Taheny:
9-4-1-2-7.
Mr.Chin:
[00:35:00]
Okay, 9-4-1-2-7. All right, Mr. Taheny, I appreciate very much your talking to me and telling me all this material that I really need for the book. This is the only time or the only searchlights source that I've found. So this fills in a nice gap in the material.
Mr. Taheny:
How do you spell your last name?
Mr.Chin:
C-H-I-N.
Mr. Taheny:
Chin.
Mr.Chin:
[00:35:30]
Yes, I'm also a San Franciscan too from the Chinese, from up on Russian Hill that's where I came from. And I've been down here in Los Angeles for about 10 years. It's just the type of work that they have down here that keeps me here. But one day I'm hoping to get back up to San Francisco to stay.
Mr. Taheny:
You say you grew up here or you...?
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
You were.
Mr.Chin:
[00:36:00]
Yeah I grew up, and went to school, and everything. And I moved down to Los Angeles about 10 years ago for work. And at that time I thought LA is great. It's sort of a nice suburb which I've never lived in before. And I thought it would be a good thing, but I'm sort of tired of that now. I'm beginning to like what I miss in San Francisco more and more.
Mr. Taheny:
So, how long has it been since you lived in San Francisco?
Mr.Chin:
10 years ago.
Mr. Taheny:
Well it's changed awful lot, I'll tell you.
Mr.Chin:
Yes, it has.
Mr. Taheny:
I don't think the change has been for the better, frankly.
Mr.Chin:
[00:36:30]
Well, curious you should say that, because there was a time that I didn't like the way that the city was back during, I don't know, maybe the seventies, I didn't care for that. It was a little too tumultuous for me even at that time.
But now it seems to be getting back. I noticed there's a lot more families around in certain places. And I don't know, it seems that businesses have come back to a great degree, maybe.
Mr. Taheny:
Too many of them are leaving, but let's hope that it does come back.
Mr.Chin:
Yes, well I hope so.
[00:37:00]
Mr. Taheny:
It was a great city. My parents were both born here also. And my grandparents came here back in the, I guess some of before 1890. They would not recognize this if they were back today, for sure.
Mr.Chin:
Well, yeah those big tall buildings that they've put out downtown there. It sort of-
Mr. Taheny:
One of my grandfathers was a motorman back in the days of the horse cars.
[00:37:30]
Mr.Chin:
Now, do you work in the city?
Mr. Taheny:
I retired. I was a chief trial attorney in the City Attorney's Office.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
I retired in 1984.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
There was a young fellow in our office. He left actually before I did. Dalford Chinn, but he had two Ns in his name.
Mr.Chin:
[00:38:00]
Well I guess that's another, it's just sort of a anglosize spelling of the name I suppose, it's what it is. Well then, if you were down in your job, in the city hall, the civic center area, you must know a little bit of what I mean when things seem to be a lot more tumultuous back at a certain time than it is now, I think, I don't know. But I don't live there at the current point, so I don't get to read the paper every day to see what's going on.
Mr. Taheny:
It was subsequent to the 70's when we... I don't know if you remember, the murder of George Moscone.
[00:38:30]
Mr.Chin:
That's exactly what I am thinking about at this very moment when I'm talking about this.
Mr. Taheny:
George was a good friend of mine. I knew him before he ever graduated from law school.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
In fact, he used to work at a playground across from where I lived. He offered to babysit my kids at the playground anytime my wife and I wanted to go out.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
Mr. Taheny:
That's kind of a guy he was.
Mr.Chin:
I see.
[00:39:00]
Mr. Taheny:
I liked George, but I mean, you talk about turn-out. I remember what happened when Dan White who killed them both was sentenced to a short sentence.
Mr.Chin:
I know.
Mr. Taheny:
This one, all hell broke loose.
Mr.Chin:
Yeah.
Mr. Taheny:
Well that was a turn-out, all right.
Mr.Chin:
Yeah I think it was just the week before that Jones-temple thing happened.
Mr. Taheny:
Yeah.
[00:39:30]
Mr.Chin:
I remember that particular week very well. I mean all that happening all at once it was quite a shock.
Mr. Taheny:
Yeah we've gotten our shares of turn-out here.
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
Mr. Taheny:
Remember when they had this house subcommittee and this house committee on an American activities. Held some hearings in the chambers of the board supervisors here. And the chairman, what's his name? Stennis from Mississippi?
Mr.Chin:
Yes.
[00:40:00]
Mr. Taheny:
I think so. And I don't remember what the riots that broke out there that was dragging people down the strips of city hall. They were disruptive. And the police were too damned restrained actually. They let it get out of hand. And so we always get our share of these things.
Mr.Chin:
[00:40:30]
Yes I know. Well, it's a colorful place. My father worked at the civil service commission. He was a personnel analyst there. So he spent quite a bit of time at city hall in those days. But, well it's still a great city.
[00:41:00]
I was rather sort of surprised the fact that Agnos was dumped in Jordan, who came in. I'm not sure what that signifies. I thought the city, I mean, the way that certain communities had organized a thing was that it was that Agnos would be around. Either that or those people didn't come out to vote for them. I don't know.
Mr. Taheny:
Well, I guess it's a little of each. There's no simple answer to these things.
Mr.Chin:
Yeah I guess not.
Mr. Taheny:
I mean, there's no one or inclusive answer.
Mr.Chin:
Well anyway, it's been nice talking to you.
Mr. Taheny:
Thank you. Good to talk with you.
Mr.Chin:
Well, yes, if I have any other questions.
Mr. Taheny:
I hope you will write a good book.
Mr.Chin:
I am trying my best.
Mr. Taheny:
I hope you find better sources than I, I think if you're going to do it though-
Mr.Chin:
Well-
Mr. Taheny:
-if you're going back quite a waste. And there's too many people have left the scene.
[00:41:30]
Mr.Chin:
Well, that's true. I'm trying to... Some of them figure this maybe sort of the last hurrah. But I'm talking to enough people where I'm getting different views, sort of paralyzing together and I'm getting a completed picture as I can.
Mr. Taheny:
It seemed hard to find out who the people were that were assigned there then.
[00:42:00]
Mr.Chin:
Yes, that's true. And I think my big break, as far as finding people came after I talked to Mr. Paulini because he's the one that is sort of opened the floodgate by introducing me to a few other people who have introduced me to some others.
[00:42:30]
And I'm finally getting a wider sampling at this point, so things are going better. There's more to write about. The book is going to be thicker, I think. So that's what'll happen, but I'll make sure that you do get the final results of this thing. And I appreciate it very much.
Mr. Taheny:
You're welcome.
Mr.Chin:
All right.
Mr. Taheny:
Well, good luck.
Mr.Chin:
I'll say good night. Okay, good bye.
Description
John Taheny discusses being part of the San Francisco Harbor Defenses at Fort Winfield Scott in the 1940's
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