By Dale Welch
Even though crews on U.S. Naval vessels usually had a bunk to lay their head, and a warm meal, sometimes it was challenging during World War II. Holiday meals were even special on the open seas. Then, there was that not one but two Thanksgiving meals where sailors were thankful for just being alive to have a meal.
Robert King had joined the U.S. Navy a few months prior to the bombing of Pearl Habor. He had been home, visiting family in the Sand Springs area west of Monterey, on leave from Carpenter’s Mate School when the Japanese made their surprise attack. He left out hitchhiking back to bas the next day.
In November 1942, King was onboard the U.S.S. Electra, on the way across the Atlantic Ocean to the first invasion of North Africa. It had been almost a year since the United States had entered the war, and only after they had been provoked by Germany’s ally, the Empire of Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor.
On Nov. 8, the ship was a part of the West Africa Task Force Convoy and near the beaches of the French Morocco coastline. Several “red alerts” were signaled; and one enemy plane shot down.
“My job was to run a landing craft,” King said, “and put soldiers ashore.”
During that Nov. 8 landing, several of the landing crafts were damaged and left on the beaches. The wounded soldiers were brought back for medical treatment.
Every day at dawn and dusk, the U.S.S. Electra was on “battle stations,” manning guns or doing whatever they were assigned. At that time, the ship was most vulnerable because it was harder to see an incoming plane or the periscope of an enemy submarine.
On the evening of Nov. 14, the Electra was on its way to Fidela, French Morocco when a torpedo from a German U-Boat struck the ship on the starboard side, tearing a hole 40 ft.-long and 12 ft.-high.
“I was manning a 20 m.m. gun when the torpedo it,” King recalled. “Fire and water shot up as high as a light pole. It washed two or three soldiers overboard, and one soldier we were transporting was killed.”
The U.S.S. Cole and the U.S.S. Cherokee pulled alongside the damaged U.S.S. Electra. The order to “abandon ship” was given because they were afraid the ship would sink. It did not. The ship and crew were taken to Casablanca Harbor for repairs. While there, the men lived on and took their meals on the ship.
King never thought that he would be served his Thanksgiving 1942 meal in Casablanca. He still had a menu for the day. On the menu were items such as “TNT-Torpedo Tom Turkey” with Dynamite Brown Gray (probably burnt as usual); Fruit Salad (took the Army to do it); Vitamin Cocktail (Dangerous Red); Ice Cream (for boys only); and Cigarettes (for men only).
King stayed in Casablanca long enough to survive a German raid and was transferred to the U.S.S. James E. Craig just as he got back to the states. This time, he was sent into the Pacific Theater.
On Thanksgiving Day, 1944, the Craig was patrolling several miles from the convoy to keep from being in a surprise air attack. It was twilight, and King was at his normal battle stations. The ship was headed back to its normal position, when six enemy fighter planes were spotted.
The battle began when four of the planes were within two miles of the port side of the ship. One plane broke away but three launched their torpedoes around 1,000 ft. from the ship. The Craig swung a hard left, as the torpedoes missed. As the Captain shifted the rudder, another plane attacked from the starboard side. The plane took several hits from another ship, crashing a few seconds into the ocean but not before it released its torpedoes on the Craig. The ship had just begun swinging right when the torpedoes passed within five yards of them.
The infamous Japanese propagandist “Tokyo Rose” reported that Japanese planes took a light cruiser or a heavy destroyer in the attack, and that all planes returned safely. The men of the Craig knew the real story. They headed to port for a well-deserved Thanksgiving meal of Turkey and all the fixings.
“We always had turkey and all the trimmings one way or the other,” King concluded.
Robert King was thankful for many more Thanksgivings after the war. He married Betty Whittaker King, and was married for over 49 years, before he passed away in May 1999. Betty survived him, passing away in 2025. He loved music, and played a banjo professionally for several years, and owned operated King’s Grocery, in Monterey for several years. When he died, he and Bety had two children, Cathy, and Bobby; and grandkids.
