1 00:00:01,200 --> 00:00:04,160 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:04,240 --> 00:00:13,880 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot Com. Hello and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,920 --> 00:00:17,159 Speaker 1: I'm Tracy V. Wilson and I'm Holly Fry. It is 4 00:00:17,200 --> 00:00:20,639 Speaker 1: time to kick off Unearthed season on the show. A 5 00:00:20,680 --> 00:00:23,600 Speaker 1: lot of people's favorite season, the things people tell us 6 00:00:23,600 --> 00:00:26,840 Speaker 1: are their favorites are pretty much Halloween and Unearthed, So 7 00:00:27,200 --> 00:00:29,920 Speaker 1: as is as we do every year and now also 8 00:00:30,040 --> 00:00:32,040 Speaker 1: once in the summer, we're going to spend a couple 9 00:00:32,080 --> 00:00:35,960 Speaker 1: of upcoming episodes recapping things that were either literally or 10 00:00:36,080 --> 00:00:41,080 Speaker 1: figuratively unearthed in but as has also happened a few 11 00:00:41,080 --> 00:00:43,640 Speaker 1: times in the past, we've got a big one that's 12 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:46,200 Speaker 1: related to a historical event that we have not covered 13 00:00:46,240 --> 00:00:48,960 Speaker 1: on the show before. Over the last few years, we've 14 00:00:48,960 --> 00:00:54,920 Speaker 1: gotten requests to talk about the USS Indianapolis from Margaret Brandy, Sarah, Shawn, Heidi, 15 00:00:55,040 --> 00:00:58,520 Speaker 1: and Craig among I am sure other people. If you 16 00:00:58,640 --> 00:01:02,840 Speaker 1: have ever seen jaw Oz, you have heard of this. 17 00:01:04,640 --> 00:01:07,800 Speaker 1: So this is part of our Unearthed series this year 18 00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:11,160 Speaker 1: because a team led by Microsoft co founder Paul Allen 19 00:01:11,280 --> 00:01:16,119 Speaker 1: actually located the wreckage of the Indianapolis this year, after 20 00:01:16,160 --> 00:01:19,160 Speaker 1: which point we got so many media emails about it 21 00:01:19,160 --> 00:01:24,039 Speaker 1: there were a lot people, huh. So. Today, the U S. 22 00:01:24,040 --> 00:01:28,160 Speaker 1: S Indianapolis is most known for its cruise horrifying wait 23 00:01:28,200 --> 00:01:32,080 Speaker 1: for rescue after being torpedoed following a secret mission at 24 00:01:32,120 --> 00:01:35,360 Speaker 1: the end of World War Two, but the ship's history 25 00:01:35,480 --> 00:01:38,440 Speaker 1: goes back much farther than that. It started out as 26 00:01:38,440 --> 00:01:41,679 Speaker 1: a peacetime vessel before being active in the Pacific for 27 00:01:41,840 --> 00:01:45,399 Speaker 1: much of the war, participating in multiple combat engagements and 28 00:01:45,440 --> 00:01:49,480 Speaker 1: earning ten Battle Stars before its destruction. All the way 29 00:01:49,480 --> 00:01:53,000 Speaker 1: back in the U. S. Department of the Navy decided 30 00:01:53,040 --> 00:01:56,960 Speaker 1: that it's thirty five cruiser would be named the USS Indianapolis. 31 00:01:57,440 --> 00:02:00,400 Speaker 1: The New York Ship Building Company laid its keel and Camden, 32 00:02:00,440 --> 00:02:04,720 Speaker 1: New Jersey, on marcht one, ninety then construction of the 33 00:02:04,760 --> 00:02:08,959 Speaker 1: Portland class heavy cruiser continued into ninety one. It was 34 00:02:09,080 --> 00:02:12,080 Speaker 1: launched on November seven of that year and then officially 35 00:02:12,120 --> 00:02:16,760 Speaker 1: commissioned at Philadelphia Navy Yard on November fifteenth, nineteen thirty two. 36 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:21,320 Speaker 1: During its years of peacetime service, the USS Indianapolis was 37 00:02:21,360 --> 00:02:24,680 Speaker 1: an important ship in the U. S. Naval Fleet. President 38 00:02:24,680 --> 00:02:27,720 Speaker 1: Franklin D. Roosevelt selected it as his Ship of State 39 00:02:27,760 --> 00:02:31,200 Speaker 1: in nineteen thirty three, using it for maritime travel and 40 00:02:31,240 --> 00:02:35,360 Speaker 1: diplomatic visits throughout his time in office, including his nineteen 41 00:02:35,360 --> 00:02:39,320 Speaker 1: thirty six Good Neighbor cruise to South America. In addition 42 00:02:39,320 --> 00:02:43,280 Speaker 1: to the President, the ship was frequently host to dignitaries, royalty, 43 00:02:43,360 --> 00:02:46,800 Speaker 1: and other high profile visitors, and it became the flagship 44 00:02:46,919 --> 00:02:51,320 Speaker 1: of the scouting force. When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on 45 00:02:51,360 --> 00:02:55,960 Speaker 1: December seven one, the Indianapolis was at Johnson Atoll also 46 00:02:56,080 --> 00:03:00,720 Speaker 1: known as Kalama at All conducting bombarding exercises, so it 47 00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:03,120 Speaker 1: escaped the destruction of so much of the rest of 48 00:03:03,160 --> 00:03:06,359 Speaker 1: the fleet at Pearl Harbor and then joined the unsuccessful 49 00:03:06,360 --> 00:03:09,040 Speaker 1: effort to try to hunt down the Japanese attack force. 50 00:03:09,639 --> 00:03:13,200 Speaker 1: With the US at war, the Indianapolis continued to operate 51 00:03:13,200 --> 00:03:16,160 Speaker 1: in the Pacific, starting in the frigid waters off the 52 00:03:16,200 --> 00:03:19,160 Speaker 1: coast of Alaska as part of the Aleutian Islands Campaign. 53 00:03:19,919 --> 00:03:23,560 Speaker 1: Apart from returns to port for overhauls and refitting, the 54 00:03:23,639 --> 00:03:26,519 Speaker 1: Indianapolis spent most of its time in the North Pacific 55 00:03:26,639 --> 00:03:30,880 Speaker 1: and saw combat several times, including sinking the Japanese transport 56 00:03:30,960 --> 00:03:37,080 Speaker 1: okagan Na Maru on February nineteenth ninety three. After another refitting. 57 00:03:37,280 --> 00:03:40,840 Speaker 1: Later in nineteen forty three, the Indianapolis was named flagship 58 00:03:40,920 --> 00:03:44,120 Speaker 1: of the Fifth Fleet and moved to Hawaii. The ship 59 00:03:44,200 --> 00:03:47,440 Speaker 1: again saw reputed combat in the Pacific, now in the 60 00:03:47,520 --> 00:03:50,800 Speaker 1: much warmer waters of the South Pacific, headed towards Japan. 61 00:03:51,600 --> 00:03:54,400 Speaker 1: This included being part of the Battle of the Philippine 62 00:03:54,400 --> 00:03:57,400 Speaker 1: Sea in nineteen forty four, which was nicknamed the Marianas 63 00:03:57,480 --> 00:04:00,440 Speaker 1: Turkey Shoot because of the number of Japanese playings that 64 00:04:00,480 --> 00:04:03,760 Speaker 1: were shot down around the Marianna's islands during that time. 65 00:04:04,320 --> 00:04:07,400 Speaker 1: At the beginning of nineteen forty five, the Indianapolis became 66 00:04:07,440 --> 00:04:10,920 Speaker 1: part of the task force that attacked Japan's outlying islands, 67 00:04:11,360 --> 00:04:16,040 Speaker 1: participating in numerous assaults from January through March, including providing 68 00:04:16,080 --> 00:04:20,280 Speaker 1: support and cover for strikes on Iwajima, qu Shu, Hanshu, 69 00:04:20,440 --> 00:04:25,360 Speaker 1: and Okinowa. On March thirty one, ninety five, the Indianapolis 70 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:28,279 Speaker 1: was hit by a Kama Kazi plane and heavily damaged. 71 00:04:28,839 --> 00:04:31,880 Speaker 1: Nine men were killed and about thirty injured in the attack, 72 00:04:31,960 --> 00:04:34,240 Speaker 1: but the ship was able to return to Mayor Island 73 00:04:34,320 --> 00:04:38,120 Speaker 1: Naval Shipyard northeast of San Francisco under its own power. 74 00:04:38,600 --> 00:04:42,000 Speaker 1: That arrived at the shipyard in late April while in 75 00:04:42,200 --> 00:04:45,839 Speaker 1: dry dock at Mayor Island, the Indianapolis again, in addition 76 00:04:45,880 --> 00:04:50,120 Speaker 1: to the repairs, underwent refitting and updates. At this point, 77 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:53,200 Speaker 1: the United States was nearing completion of the atomic bombs 78 00:04:53,240 --> 00:04:55,920 Speaker 1: that would be dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima 79 00:04:55,960 --> 00:05:00,480 Speaker 1: and Nagasaki. A crew of scientists and researchers were already 80 00:05:00,520 --> 00:05:04,080 Speaker 1: on Tinnian Island in the Northern Mariana Islands doing the 81 00:05:04,120 --> 00:05:07,599 Speaker 1: final work. There's more on the development of the atomic 82 00:05:07,640 --> 00:05:10,240 Speaker 1: bomb in our past two parter on Luis Alvarez, who 83 00:05:10,279 --> 00:05:12,839 Speaker 1: was on board one of the aircraft escorting the Inola 84 00:05:12,880 --> 00:05:15,480 Speaker 1: Gay when the bomb was dropped and was at this 85 00:05:15,560 --> 00:05:19,760 Speaker 1: point on Tinnian Island. There were still bomb components on 86 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:23,039 Speaker 1: the US mainland that needed to be taken to Tinnian Island. 87 00:05:23,440 --> 00:05:26,960 Speaker 1: This included the firing mechanism and nuclear material for the 88 00:05:26,960 --> 00:05:29,240 Speaker 1: bomb code named Little Boy, which would be dropped on 89 00:05:29,279 --> 00:05:34,159 Speaker 1: the Japanese city of Hiroshiva on August. This made the 90 00:05:34,200 --> 00:05:38,600 Speaker 1: Indianapolis is time in dry docks somewhat conveniently timed. With 91 00:05:38,640 --> 00:05:42,039 Speaker 1: an accelerated repair schedule, the Indianapolis could pick up the 92 00:05:42,040 --> 00:05:45,559 Speaker 1: components as cargo and deliver them to Tinnyan Island without 93 00:05:45,640 --> 00:05:48,839 Speaker 1: the Navy needing to recall another ship from combat to 94 00:05:48,960 --> 00:05:52,599 Speaker 1: make that trip. The firing mechanism was packed in a 95 00:05:52,640 --> 00:05:55,159 Speaker 1: fifteen foot or four and a half meter crate, which 96 00:05:55,240 --> 00:05:59,000 Speaker 1: was bolted to the hangar deck and transit. The uranium 97 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:01,960 Speaker 1: two thirty five new lear material was packed into two 98 00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:06,600 Speaker 1: separate leadline containers weighing hundreds of pounds. These were secured 99 00:06:06,640 --> 00:06:10,120 Speaker 1: to the deck and the admiral's quarters. Two scientists also 100 00:06:10,160 --> 00:06:14,400 Speaker 1: came aboard for the mission, disguised as artillery officers. The Captain, 101 00:06:14,800 --> 00:06:17,640 Speaker 1: Charles B. McVeigh the third knew they were on a 102 00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:20,280 Speaker 1: secret mission that was critical to the war effort, but 103 00:06:20,560 --> 00:06:22,880 Speaker 1: he did not know what was actually in those containers. 104 00:06:23,600 --> 00:06:26,040 Speaker 1: The same was true of the ship's crew, and this 105 00:06:26,120 --> 00:06:28,640 Speaker 1: led to a lot of ridiculous rumors about what they 106 00:06:28,640 --> 00:06:32,800 Speaker 1: were carrying in those large, heavy containers with expensive luxuries 107 00:06:32,839 --> 00:06:36,320 Speaker 1: for General MacArthur, including a crate of scented toilet paper 108 00:06:36,880 --> 00:06:41,080 Speaker 1: as one of the running themes Or series. The Indianapolis 109 00:06:41,080 --> 00:06:44,159 Speaker 1: stayed close to its maximum speed of thirty two knots 110 00:06:44,160 --> 00:06:47,120 Speaker 1: while on this delivery mission, it actually broke a speed 111 00:06:47,160 --> 00:06:50,040 Speaker 1: record that still stands for a ship of its type today. 112 00:06:50,640 --> 00:06:53,320 Speaker 1: In the process of doing that, they arrived at Tennian 113 00:06:53,360 --> 00:06:57,719 Speaker 1: Island on July, delivered that critical cargo, and then headed 114 00:06:57,760 --> 00:07:01,520 Speaker 1: south to Guam to receive new orders. Two days later, 115 00:07:01,680 --> 00:07:04,800 Speaker 1: the Indianapolis left Guam headed to the Late Gulf to 116 00:07:04,920 --> 00:07:07,600 Speaker 1: rendezvous with the U. S. S Idaho, where the two 117 00:07:07,680 --> 00:07:11,000 Speaker 1: ships were to undergo gun to repractice. And while there 118 00:07:11,040 --> 00:07:13,240 Speaker 1: were men on board the Indianapolis who had been with 119 00:07:13,280 --> 00:07:15,600 Speaker 1: the ship for most of the war, more than a 120 00:07:15,680 --> 00:07:18,000 Speaker 1: quarter of the crew had turned over while in dry 121 00:07:18,080 --> 00:07:23,160 Speaker 1: dock at Mayor Island. Overwhelmingly these were inexperienced new recruits 122 00:07:23,160 --> 00:07:26,440 Speaker 1: in their late teens, and because of the ship's accelerated 123 00:07:26,520 --> 00:07:30,360 Speaker 1: repair schedule, their training time in San Francisco had also 124 00:07:30,440 --> 00:07:34,760 Speaker 1: been cut short. So Captain McVeigh was really focused on 125 00:07:34,800 --> 00:07:37,960 Speaker 1: getting to Laity quickly and efficiently to give his crew 126 00:07:38,000 --> 00:07:41,480 Speaker 1: as much as much training time as possible. After all, 127 00:07:41,520 --> 00:07:44,680 Speaker 1: they had no idea that they had just delivered necessary 128 00:07:44,720 --> 00:07:47,000 Speaker 1: components for one of the two bombs that would be 129 00:07:47,000 --> 00:07:51,080 Speaker 1: credited with ending the war. Everyone aboard the Indianapolis was 130 00:07:51,160 --> 00:07:53,760 Speaker 1: working under the understanding that they were getting ready for 131 00:07:53,880 --> 00:07:58,640 Speaker 1: a full scale land invasion of Japan. McVeigh wanted them 132 00:07:58,640 --> 00:08:01,200 Speaker 1: to have enough training to be able to succeed at 133 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:05,280 Speaker 1: that invasion. There's a lack of consensus about whether McVeigh 134 00:08:05,360 --> 00:08:09,040 Speaker 1: asked for a destroyer escort when he left Guam. According 135 00:08:09,040 --> 00:08:11,520 Speaker 1: to some accounts, he did, but was denied because the 136 00:08:11,560 --> 00:08:14,440 Speaker 1: Navy didn't think there were Japanese threats along that route. 137 00:08:14,800 --> 00:08:17,920 Speaker 1: But according to others, McVeigh himself didn't believe there was 138 00:08:17,920 --> 00:08:20,960 Speaker 1: a threat, so he did not request an escort. But 139 00:08:21,040 --> 00:08:26,120 Speaker 1: either way, the Indianapolis proceeded toward late alone. There was 140 00:08:26,360 --> 00:08:29,880 Speaker 1: a Japanese submarine along the route that the Indianapolis was taking, 141 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:32,280 Speaker 1: the I fifty eight, which fired a spread of six 142 00:08:32,320 --> 00:08:35,920 Speaker 1: torpedoes at the Indianapolis just after midnight on July nine. 143 00:08:37,559 --> 00:08:41,000 Speaker 1: At least two of them hit, it's commonly reported as too, 144 00:08:41,000 --> 00:08:43,640 Speaker 1: but it is possible that there were other hits, and 145 00:08:43,640 --> 00:08:45,960 Speaker 1: we'll talk more about what happened after the ship was 146 00:08:46,000 --> 00:08:55,000 Speaker 1: torpedoed after a quick sponsor break, when two torpedoes struck 147 00:08:55,040 --> 00:09:00,440 Speaker 1: the USS Indianapolis on July the result was immediate and stating, 148 00:09:00,760 --> 00:09:03,800 Speaker 1: and the words of Captain McVeigh quote at approximately five 149 00:09:03,840 --> 00:09:07,120 Speaker 1: minutes after midnight, I was thrown from my emergency cabin 150 00:09:07,160 --> 00:09:10,720 Speaker 1: bunk on the bridge by a very violent explosion, followed 151 00:09:10,760 --> 00:09:14,280 Speaker 1: shortly thereafter by another explosion. I went to the bridge 152 00:09:14,280 --> 00:09:16,720 Speaker 1: and noticed in my emergency cabin and chart house that 153 00:09:16,760 --> 00:09:19,600 Speaker 1: there was quite a bit of accurate white smoke. I 154 00:09:19,640 --> 00:09:23,439 Speaker 1: couldn't see anything for just a few moments. The captain 155 00:09:23,480 --> 00:09:26,920 Speaker 1: thought they might stay afloat from his position on the bridge, 156 00:09:27,000 --> 00:09:29,880 Speaker 1: they had only a slight list, and it seemed reasonably 157 00:09:29,920 --> 00:09:33,720 Speaker 1: similar to what they'd survived with the kamikaze attack. But 158 00:09:33,760 --> 00:09:37,600 Speaker 1: the executive officer, Commander Joseph Flynn, surveyed the scene and 159 00:09:37,679 --> 00:09:40,959 Speaker 1: told the captain it was clear the ship was going down. 160 00:09:42,800 --> 00:09:45,760 Speaker 1: One of the torpedoes had destroyed part of the ship's bow, 161 00:09:46,200 --> 00:09:49,199 Speaker 1: the other had hit near a powder magazine and bunkers 162 00:09:49,200 --> 00:09:53,240 Speaker 1: that held fuel oil. Apart from this colossal damage, the 163 00:09:53,240 --> 00:09:56,720 Speaker 1: ship's power and communication systems were down. There was no 164 00:09:56,760 --> 00:10:00,200 Speaker 1: way to broadcast an announcement to abandoned ship or to 165 00:10:00,200 --> 00:10:02,880 Speaker 1: reach the engine room with an order to stop the engines. 166 00:10:03,400 --> 00:10:05,840 Speaker 1: So the captain gave the order to pass the word 167 00:10:05,880 --> 00:10:08,360 Speaker 1: to abandon ship, which had to be done from man 168 00:10:08,440 --> 00:10:12,439 Speaker 1: to man. McVeigh had also asked the navigator to confirm 169 00:10:12,520 --> 00:10:15,840 Speaker 1: that a distress signal had been sent. Having not heard 170 00:10:15,880 --> 00:10:17,800 Speaker 1: back from him, the captain tried to go to the 171 00:10:17,920 --> 00:10:21,360 Speaker 1: radio room to double check personally, but as he did, 172 00:10:21,640 --> 00:10:24,720 Speaker 1: the ship suddenly listed to ninety degrees and began to 173 00:10:24,760 --> 00:10:27,720 Speaker 1: sink so rapidly that there was no possible way to 174 00:10:27,720 --> 00:10:31,840 Speaker 1: get there. It's still unclear exactly what happened with that 175 00:10:31,920 --> 00:10:35,560 Speaker 1: distress signal. Survivors who were in the radio room have 176 00:10:35,679 --> 00:10:39,160 Speaker 1: insisted that according to their gauges, a signal did leave 177 00:10:39,240 --> 00:10:43,599 Speaker 1: the ship, but no message was ever received. One hypothesis 178 00:10:43,720 --> 00:10:45,680 Speaker 1: is that an s OS did go out, but that 179 00:10:45,720 --> 00:10:49,280 Speaker 1: the signal was so short before communication failed that anyone 180 00:10:49,400 --> 00:10:51,520 Speaker 1: hearing it concluded that it was just some kind of 181 00:10:51,559 --> 00:10:56,520 Speaker 1: interference or an errant transmission. About twelve minutes after being hit, 182 00:10:56,800 --> 00:11:00,760 Speaker 1: the USS Indianapolis sunk. About three dread men had been 183 00:11:00,800 --> 00:11:04,200 Speaker 1: killed immediately or otherwise went down with the ship, but 184 00:11:04,280 --> 00:11:07,640 Speaker 1: of the one thousand, one nine sailors and marines on board, 185 00:11:07,679 --> 00:11:11,199 Speaker 1: the vast majority, between eight and nine hundred were able 186 00:11:11,240 --> 00:11:14,600 Speaker 1: to evacuate before the ship went down, since the ship 187 00:11:14,720 --> 00:11:17,280 Speaker 1: was still moving as it sank and men were still 188 00:11:17,400 --> 00:11:20,640 Speaker 1: escaping the whole time it was going down. Survivors were 189 00:11:20,679 --> 00:11:25,840 Speaker 1: spread over miles and miles of water. The ship's destruction 190 00:11:25,920 --> 00:11:28,839 Speaker 1: left a slick of fuel oil on the water. It 191 00:11:28,920 --> 00:11:31,240 Speaker 1: burned the eyes of the men who landed in it 192 00:11:31,360 --> 00:11:33,760 Speaker 1: or came up through it, and it caused vomiting and 193 00:11:33,800 --> 00:11:37,320 Speaker 1: anyone who swallowed it. And because it spread so far 194 00:11:37,440 --> 00:11:40,559 Speaker 1: across the surface of the water, it was nearly impossible 195 00:11:40,600 --> 00:11:42,920 Speaker 1: to get away from for anybody who was caught in it. 196 00:11:43,800 --> 00:11:47,400 Speaker 1: Captain McVeigh and a handful of other men were relatively fortunate. 197 00:11:47,840 --> 00:11:49,880 Speaker 1: They wound up in the water close to a few 198 00:11:49,920 --> 00:11:53,319 Speaker 1: life rafts, some of them capsized that they were able 199 00:11:53,320 --> 00:11:57,080 Speaker 1: to use, but most of the emergency supplies above aboard 200 00:11:57,120 --> 00:12:00,240 Speaker 1: the rafts were gone or ruined, so match is and 201 00:12:00,280 --> 00:12:03,280 Speaker 1: first aid kits had been packed in paraffin infused cardboard 202 00:12:03,720 --> 00:12:06,920 Speaker 1: that disintegrated, and most of the drinking water was no 203 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:10,440 Speaker 1: longer podible because the containers were leaky and seawater had 204 00:12:10,480 --> 00:12:13,920 Speaker 1: gotten in. The men did, however, have a few cans 205 00:12:13,960 --> 00:12:18,040 Speaker 1: of spam, a couple of signal mirrors, and some signaling flares. 206 00:12:19,280 --> 00:12:21,760 Speaker 1: Most of the other men, though, were in a much 207 00:12:21,800 --> 00:12:25,520 Speaker 1: worse situation. They had virtually no food or water, apart 208 00:12:25,559 --> 00:12:28,600 Speaker 1: from a few supply cans and emergency rations that were 209 00:12:28,600 --> 00:12:31,200 Speaker 1: either taken off the ship or found among the very 210 00:12:31,240 --> 00:12:34,240 Speaker 1: few life rafts that had deployed. They had no way 211 00:12:34,280 --> 00:12:37,240 Speaker 1: to protect themselves from the heat or the sun. There 212 00:12:37,280 --> 00:12:39,319 Speaker 1: was little to nothing that could be done to treat 213 00:12:39,400 --> 00:12:42,240 Speaker 1: injuries that were incurred in the blast or the evacuation. 214 00:12:43,440 --> 00:12:45,760 Speaker 1: Many of the men had no life jackets or belts, 215 00:12:46,000 --> 00:12:48,040 Speaker 1: and even for those who did, nearly all of them 216 00:12:48,040 --> 00:12:51,160 Speaker 1: were kapok jackets that were only really designed to work 217 00:12:51,200 --> 00:12:54,360 Speaker 1: for about forty eight hours, and after that they became 218 00:12:54,400 --> 00:12:56,920 Speaker 1: water logged and they didn't have enough buoyancy to keep 219 00:12:56,960 --> 00:13:00,400 Speaker 1: a person's head above water. The belts were new a matic, 220 00:13:00,520 --> 00:13:03,400 Speaker 1: so they didn't have that issue, but they had another problem. 221 00:13:03,440 --> 00:13:06,319 Speaker 1: If they slipped too far down on a person's body, 222 00:13:06,360 --> 00:13:08,800 Speaker 1: they could basically force them to flip over with their 223 00:13:08,840 --> 00:13:12,160 Speaker 1: head under water, and it became a constant effort simply 224 00:13:12,200 --> 00:13:15,120 Speaker 1: to stay afloat. For the first couple of days, the 225 00:13:15,120 --> 00:13:17,600 Speaker 1: men tried to work together and protect each other as 226 00:13:17,679 --> 00:13:21,160 Speaker 1: best they could, forming groups trying to rescue whether survivors 227 00:13:21,160 --> 00:13:24,120 Speaker 1: they saw and using things like cargo netting and rope 228 00:13:24,160 --> 00:13:27,840 Speaker 1: to try to group themselves together, but as time went on, 229 00:13:28,200 --> 00:13:32,319 Speaker 1: conditions got progressively worse. Eight to ten foot swells meant 230 00:13:32,360 --> 00:13:35,560 Speaker 1: that the various groups of survivors couldn't see or reach 231 00:13:35,600 --> 00:13:39,520 Speaker 1: one another. People by themselves often didn't know there was 232 00:13:39,559 --> 00:13:41,640 Speaker 1: someone else not far away in the swells, and it 233 00:13:41,720 --> 00:13:45,040 Speaker 1: was physically exhausting to be in all of that. Men 234 00:13:45,080 --> 00:13:48,120 Speaker 1: who became desperate from thirst drink sea water, which made 235 00:13:48,120 --> 00:13:53,800 Speaker 1: their dehydration rapidly worse. Hundreds of men died due to dehydration, 236 00:13:53,960 --> 00:14:00,280 Speaker 1: salt poisoning, injury, exposure, and drowning. Dehydrated, exhausted, traumatize men 237 00:14:00,480 --> 00:14:05,360 Speaker 1: also started experiencing hallucinations, swimming away from the group because 238 00:14:05,360 --> 00:14:08,319 Speaker 1: they believed that they saw an island, or attacking their 239 00:14:08,320 --> 00:14:11,720 Speaker 1: fellows because they thought they were enemy combatants. And the 240 00:14:11,840 --> 00:14:16,400 Speaker 1: thing that has become most anonymous with the USS Indianapolis sharks. 241 00:14:17,360 --> 00:14:20,160 Speaker 1: For McVeigh and his group in the life raft, these 242 00:14:20,160 --> 00:14:23,760 Speaker 1: were mainly a nuisance. They had an undamaged fishing kit, 243 00:14:23,880 --> 00:14:26,360 Speaker 1: but a large shark kept scaring away any fish that 244 00:14:26,360 --> 00:14:29,240 Speaker 1: they might catch with it. For the men in life 245 00:14:29,280 --> 00:14:32,280 Speaker 1: jackets who were floating in the water. The sharks became 246 00:14:32,360 --> 00:14:36,160 Speaker 1: both a threat and a terror. The sharks mainly fed 247 00:14:36,240 --> 00:14:39,200 Speaker 1: on the dead and dying, but they were easily visible 248 00:14:39,240 --> 00:14:42,160 Speaker 1: through the clear water by day, and then they brushed 249 00:14:42,200 --> 00:14:46,360 Speaker 1: past the submerged parts of men's bodies by night. Survivors 250 00:14:46,400 --> 00:14:49,240 Speaker 1: would go on to describe being surrounded by fins in 251 00:14:49,280 --> 00:14:53,360 Speaker 1: the water, or seeing other men's life jackets suddenly submerged, 252 00:14:53,520 --> 00:14:57,720 Speaker 1: with parts of their bodies resurfacing later, or of hearing sudden, 253 00:14:57,920 --> 00:15:03,560 Speaker 1: blood curdling screams nearby or in the distance. Captain Lewis L. Haines, 254 00:15:03,640 --> 00:15:06,600 Speaker 1: chief medical officer, was with one of the larger groups 255 00:15:06,680 --> 00:15:09,080 Speaker 1: who were floating in the water and tried to render 256 00:15:09,200 --> 00:15:11,440 Speaker 1: aid to the other men, even though he had no 257 00:15:11,560 --> 00:15:15,240 Speaker 1: supplies or medicines to do it with. At first, he 258 00:15:15,320 --> 00:15:17,840 Speaker 1: also collected the dog tags of all the men who died, 259 00:15:18,120 --> 00:15:20,280 Speaker 1: but eventually he just had more of them than he 260 00:15:20,320 --> 00:15:24,240 Speaker 1: could possibly hold. When the U. S s. Indianapolis didn't 261 00:15:24,320 --> 00:15:27,800 Speaker 1: arrive at late he is scheduled on July one, it 262 00:15:27,880 --> 00:15:31,320 Speaker 1: wasn't noted as missing. Its name was removed from the 263 00:15:31,440 --> 00:15:34,840 Speaker 1: arrivals board, and the next shift didn't realize that it 264 00:15:34,920 --> 00:15:39,760 Speaker 1: hadn't actually arrived. Meanwhile, the surviving men spent days in 265 00:15:39,800 --> 00:15:43,240 Speaker 1: the water, at first praying and holding onto hope that 266 00:15:43,280 --> 00:15:46,240 Speaker 1: their s O S had been received, and then thinking 267 00:15:46,400 --> 00:15:48,760 Speaker 1: surely the Navy would come looking for them when they 268 00:15:48,800 --> 00:15:52,400 Speaker 1: didn't show up at late on time. But since no 269 00:15:52,440 --> 00:15:56,280 Speaker 1: one realized the Indianapolis was missing, no one was searching. 270 00:15:56,760 --> 00:15:59,560 Speaker 1: The survivors of the U. S S. Indianapolis were spotted 271 00:15:59,600 --> 00:16:04,600 Speaker 1: only by coincidence. On August two, nineteen, well over a 272 00:16:04,680 --> 00:16:08,240 Speaker 1: hundred hours after the ship had gone down. By chance, 273 00:16:08,360 --> 00:16:12,120 Speaker 1: Lieutenant Wilbert Chuck Gwyn, flying on a routine patrol, looked 274 00:16:12,160 --> 00:16:15,440 Speaker 1: down from his plane and spotted something unusual in the water. 275 00:16:16,080 --> 00:16:19,359 Speaker 1: He flew lower to investigate and saw wreckage and survivors 276 00:16:19,400 --> 00:16:24,000 Speaker 1: scattered along a huge stretch of ocean. Gwyn radioed back 277 00:16:24,040 --> 00:16:27,200 Speaker 1: to base and Lieutenant Adrian Marks was dispatched aboard a 278 00:16:27,240 --> 00:16:31,040 Speaker 1: p By flying boat, a seaplane capable of landing on water. 279 00:16:32,200 --> 00:16:34,520 Speaker 1: He wasn't supposed to land a plane in the open sea, 280 00:16:34,640 --> 00:16:36,600 Speaker 1: but when he saw the men in the water, he did, 281 00:16:36,960 --> 00:16:40,640 Speaker 1: ultimately pulling fifty six men aboard, including loading them onto 282 00:16:40,640 --> 00:16:42,960 Speaker 1: the wings to get as many out of the water 283 00:16:43,040 --> 00:16:47,120 Speaker 1: as possible. Sadly, there were men so desperate to get 284 00:16:47,120 --> 00:16:49,560 Speaker 1: to the plane that they exhausted themselves on the way 285 00:16:49,640 --> 00:16:54,640 Speaker 1: and drowned. Marx had also flown over the U. S. 286 00:16:54,640 --> 00:16:56,880 Speaker 1: S Cecil Jade Doyle on the way to where Gwen 287 00:16:57,000 --> 00:17:00,440 Speaker 1: had reported spotting these survivors, and he radioed the Stroyer 288 00:17:00,560 --> 00:17:03,440 Speaker 1: to notify them of what he was doing. The Doyle 289 00:17:03,520 --> 00:17:06,399 Speaker 1: came to the survivor's aid, becoming the first of eleven 290 00:17:06,600 --> 00:17:09,600 Speaker 1: ships to be part of the searchain rescue effort. The 291 00:17:09,680 --> 00:17:12,440 Speaker 1: captain and his group were picked up by the USS 292 00:17:12,680 --> 00:17:15,800 Speaker 1: Ringness Because of the swells in the sea, they had 293 00:17:15,880 --> 00:17:19,199 Speaker 1: no idea there were any other survivors until later. They 294 00:17:19,240 --> 00:17:22,399 Speaker 1: didn't know anything about Gwin's spotting them or the flying 295 00:17:22,440 --> 00:17:27,000 Speaker 1: boat rescue. The ships that came to the rescue deployed 296 00:17:27,080 --> 00:17:29,640 Speaker 1: landing craft to pull men out of the water. Those 297 00:17:29,680 --> 00:17:32,280 Speaker 1: who were able also clung to rope ladders on the 298 00:17:32,320 --> 00:17:36,159 Speaker 1: sides of ships and were pulled aboard. Overwhelmingly, due the 299 00:17:36,240 --> 00:17:40,359 Speaker 1: combination of hunger, dehydration, and all that time in the water, 300 00:17:40,560 --> 00:17:43,960 Speaker 1: they just could not stand. Those who had to be 301 00:17:44,040 --> 00:17:46,880 Speaker 1: lifted aboard had to be pulled by their life jackets 302 00:17:46,920 --> 00:17:51,119 Speaker 1: because their skin and flesh were so damaged. At that 303 00:17:51,200 --> 00:17:53,359 Speaker 1: point the men being rescued had been in the water 304 00:17:53,440 --> 00:17:56,800 Speaker 1: for four and a half days. Fuel oil had to 305 00:17:56,800 --> 00:17:59,879 Speaker 1: be carefully removed from their skin and hair, and for 306 00:18:00,119 --> 00:18:03,200 Speaker 1: many of them, their oil soaked and salt laden clothes 307 00:18:03,240 --> 00:18:06,120 Speaker 1: had to be cut off of them. And the end 308 00:18:06,359 --> 00:18:08,960 Speaker 1: of the roughly eight hundred fifty men who went into 309 00:18:09,000 --> 00:18:12,480 Speaker 1: the water when the Indianapolis when the Indianapolis sank, only 310 00:18:12,640 --> 00:18:16,560 Speaker 1: three hundred seventeen survived. You'll also see this number as 311 00:18:16,600 --> 00:18:19,800 Speaker 1: three hundred six team including in official Navy records. This 312 00:18:19,920 --> 00:18:23,200 Speaker 1: is apparently a discrepancy that has gone on for decades. 313 00:18:23,920 --> 00:18:27,879 Speaker 1: The reason is reportedly that radio Technicians second Class Clarence 314 00:18:27,920 --> 00:18:33,080 Speaker 1: William Donner was incorrectly reported as deceased, but survived survivors 315 00:18:33,080 --> 00:18:35,720 Speaker 1: were taken to bases in the Philippines before being sent 316 00:18:35,760 --> 00:18:40,040 Speaker 1: on to Guam by plane and aboard the hospital ship Tranquility. 317 00:18:40,280 --> 00:18:43,600 Speaker 1: More ships returned to the area on August four, but 318 00:18:43,680 --> 00:18:46,760 Speaker 1: no one else was found alive. The few bodies that 319 00:18:46,840 --> 00:18:50,520 Speaker 1: were recovered were buried at sea. We'll talk more about 320 00:18:50,520 --> 00:18:53,240 Speaker 1: the aftermath of this disaster and the discovery of the 321 00:18:53,280 --> 00:19:02,600 Speaker 1: wreckage this year. After one more quick sponsor break. The 322 00:19:02,680 --> 00:19:05,639 Speaker 1: survivors of the U. S. S. Indianapolis were allowed to 323 00:19:05,640 --> 00:19:08,560 Speaker 1: write letters home from blom, although, as is the usual 324 00:19:08,600 --> 00:19:12,600 Speaker 1: case in wartime correspondence, their letters were censored. They were 325 00:19:12,640 --> 00:19:15,760 Speaker 1: also told to write as though nothing had happened to 326 00:19:15,800 --> 00:19:19,000 Speaker 1: the Indianapolis. There was no announcement that the ship had 327 00:19:19,000 --> 00:19:22,400 Speaker 1: been destroyed or notification of the families of the deceased 328 00:19:22,680 --> 00:19:26,399 Speaker 1: for weeks. On August six, the Anola Gate dropped the 329 00:19:26,440 --> 00:19:31,359 Speaker 1: atomic bomb assembled using the components delivered by the U. S. S. Indianapolis, 330 00:19:31,400 --> 00:19:35,240 Speaker 1: on Hiroshima, Japan. On August nine, the US dropped a 331 00:19:35,280 --> 00:19:38,920 Speaker 1: second bomb on the city of Nagasaki. Japan announced its 332 00:19:38,960 --> 00:19:44,040 Speaker 1: unconditional surrender on August fourteen. Only then was the destruction 333 00:19:44,080 --> 00:19:47,840 Speaker 1: of the Indianapolis made public, and families were finally notified 334 00:19:47,880 --> 00:19:52,159 Speaker 1: of their loved ones deaths. By that point, an inquiry 335 00:19:52,240 --> 00:19:54,399 Speaker 1: and to the cause of the disaster, which was the 336 00:19:54,440 --> 00:19:57,280 Speaker 1: greatest loss of life at sea in US naval history, 337 00:19:57,520 --> 00:20:01,399 Speaker 1: had already begun. Captain Charles Butler McVeigh the third was 338 00:20:01,480 --> 00:20:04,720 Speaker 1: court martialed. He was acquitted of a charge of failing 339 00:20:04,760 --> 00:20:07,840 Speaker 1: to issue a timely order to abandon ship but he 340 00:20:08,040 --> 00:20:11,280 Speaker 1: was found guilty of failing to zigzag. It was a 341 00:20:11,320 --> 00:20:14,600 Speaker 1: standard procedure to steer the ship in an evasive zigzag 342 00:20:14,640 --> 00:20:18,960 Speaker 1: course in waters where a submarine attack was likely. McVeigh 343 00:20:19,040 --> 00:20:21,200 Speaker 1: had done so during the day, but he had stopped 344 00:20:21,200 --> 00:20:24,000 Speaker 1: at night due to weather conditions because he needed to 345 00:20:24,040 --> 00:20:27,840 Speaker 1: conserve fuel to reach late he on schedule while also 346 00:20:27,960 --> 00:20:30,560 Speaker 1: zig zagging, he would have needed to travel at a 347 00:20:30,600 --> 00:20:34,880 Speaker 1: faster speed that just wasn't fuel efficient. He basically had 348 00:20:35,280 --> 00:20:40,840 Speaker 1: contradictory orders here to simultaneously zigzag and conserve fuel, and 349 00:20:40,840 --> 00:20:43,280 Speaker 1: it like it wasn't possible to do both of those 350 00:20:43,320 --> 00:20:47,800 Speaker 1: things at the same time. This court martial was highly publicized, 351 00:20:48,240 --> 00:20:52,399 Speaker 1: and it included the testimony of Motasura Hashimoto, captain of 352 00:20:52,440 --> 00:20:55,439 Speaker 1: the who said that it would not have mattered if 353 00:20:55,480 --> 00:20:59,160 Speaker 1: the Indianapolis had zigzagged, he would have hit the ship anyway. 354 00:20:59,359 --> 00:21:04,119 Speaker 1: This court martial all was and continues to be highly controversial. Overwhelmingly, 355 00:21:04,280 --> 00:21:07,520 Speaker 1: survivors of the U s s Indianapolis have maintained that 356 00:21:07,640 --> 00:21:10,119 Speaker 1: McVeigh was a good man and a good captain and 357 00:21:10,160 --> 00:21:13,240 Speaker 1: that he had done nothing wrong, arguing that it was 358 00:21:13,280 --> 00:21:17,199 Speaker 1: within his discretion not to zigzag, that night, McVeigh had 359 00:21:17,240 --> 00:21:19,800 Speaker 1: also continued to act as captain for the handful of 360 00:21:19,800 --> 00:21:22,600 Speaker 1: men that were with him in the life rafts, bolstering 361 00:21:22,640 --> 00:21:26,320 Speaker 1: their morale, rationing their food, and signaling any planes that 362 00:21:26,400 --> 00:21:29,920 Speaker 1: they saw with mirrors and flares. He also sent letters 363 00:21:29,920 --> 00:21:33,000 Speaker 1: to the families of his eight hundred seventy nine deceased crew. 364 00:21:33,160 --> 00:21:38,159 Speaker 1: In September of n and other circumstances, McVeigh might have 365 00:21:38,200 --> 00:21:40,959 Speaker 1: faced a letter of reprimand, and it's still not fully 366 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:45,360 Speaker 1: clear why the Navy instead pursued a widely covered court martial. 367 00:21:45,960 --> 00:21:48,920 Speaker 1: One of the hypotheses that it came down to someone's 368 00:21:48,960 --> 00:21:53,720 Speaker 1: personal grudge against mcveigh's father, who was also career military. 369 00:21:53,920 --> 00:21:57,560 Speaker 1: Regardless though, even though McVeigh was not punished, the fact 370 00:21:57,600 --> 00:21:59,960 Speaker 1: that he was found guilty meant that in the eye 371 00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:03,160 Speaker 1: as of many people, especially the family members of men 372 00:22:03,200 --> 00:22:06,119 Speaker 1: who did not survive, it was his fault and he 373 00:22:06,160 --> 00:22:09,760 Speaker 1: should carry all of the blame. To be clear, Captain 374 00:22:09,840 --> 00:22:13,160 Speaker 1: McVeigh was ultimately responsible for the safety of this ship. 375 00:22:13,400 --> 00:22:16,639 Speaker 1: This was his job. He knew this and accepted it, 376 00:22:16,680 --> 00:22:18,840 Speaker 1: and he didn't try to deflect the blame or pass 377 00:22:18,920 --> 00:22:22,399 Speaker 1: the buck. He took full responsibility. For the decision not 378 00:22:22,520 --> 00:22:26,600 Speaker 1: to zigzag, but simultaneously, the Navy didn't show that same 379 00:22:26,720 --> 00:22:30,520 Speaker 1: level of accountability in return, for many years pinning the 380 00:22:30,720 --> 00:22:34,360 Speaker 1: entire disaster on the failure to zigzag, even though that 381 00:22:34,400 --> 00:22:37,160 Speaker 1: did not at all explain the more than four days 382 00:22:37,200 --> 00:22:41,679 Speaker 1: that survivors were left waiting in the water. There's also 383 00:22:41,800 --> 00:22:45,560 Speaker 1: been ongoing speculation about whether the Navy did or did 384 00:22:45,600 --> 00:22:47,920 Speaker 1: not know that there was likely to be a Japanese 385 00:22:47,920 --> 00:22:51,919 Speaker 1: sub between Quam and Laity, whether they withheld that information 386 00:22:52,000 --> 00:22:55,200 Speaker 1: from McVeigh if they did know, and whether the secrecy 387 00:22:55,280 --> 00:22:58,959 Speaker 1: of their mission contributed to the breakdown in communication in 388 00:22:58,960 --> 00:23:03,399 Speaker 1: reporting the ship missing. Captain Charles B. McVeigh retired in 389 00:23:03,520 --> 00:23:06,960 Speaker 1: nineteen forty nine and was promoted to rear admiral, although 390 00:23:06,960 --> 00:23:10,440 Speaker 1: he was never given command of another ship. On November six, 391 00:23:10,640 --> 00:23:14,280 Speaker 1: nineteen sixty eight, he took his own life. In October 392 00:23:14,320 --> 00:23:17,760 Speaker 1: of two thousand, Congress passed a resolution that McVeigh should 393 00:23:17,760 --> 00:23:20,800 Speaker 1: be exonerated for the loss of the Indianapolis, which was 394 00:23:20,840 --> 00:23:23,960 Speaker 1: signed by President Bill Clinton, and two thousand one a 395 00:23:24,080 --> 00:23:27,199 Speaker 1: memo was placed in his personnel file absolving him of blame. 396 00:23:28,040 --> 00:23:31,439 Speaker 1: This action by Congress took place After years of advocacy 397 00:23:31,480 --> 00:23:35,479 Speaker 1: by survivors of the Indianapolis and their families, then thirteen 398 00:23:35,560 --> 00:23:38,400 Speaker 1: year old Hunter Scott came to the public's attention after 399 00:23:38,440 --> 00:23:42,560 Speaker 1: doing a school history project on the Indianapolis, which became 400 00:23:42,720 --> 00:23:46,560 Speaker 1: something of a viral news story. Also involved was Commander 401 00:23:46,600 --> 00:23:51,280 Speaker 1: William J. Tody, who commanded a submarine called the USS Indianapolis. 402 00:23:51,680 --> 00:23:56,560 Speaker 1: When the submarine Indianapolis was decommissioned, Tody invited the survivors 403 00:23:56,560 --> 00:23:59,840 Speaker 1: of the cruiser Indianapolis to attend the ceremony, since they 404 00:23:59,840 --> 00:24:03,200 Speaker 1: had not been able to decommission their own ship. Tody 405 00:24:03,320 --> 00:24:08,040 Speaker 1: became an advocate for clearing mcveigh's name. Commander Muchit. Sara 406 00:24:08,080 --> 00:24:10,880 Speaker 1: Hashimoto also wrote to the head of the Senate Armed 407 00:24:10,920 --> 00:24:14,040 Speaker 1: Services Committee during all of this, saying, quote, our people's 408 00:24:14,080 --> 00:24:17,639 Speaker 1: have forgiven each other for that terrible war. Perhaps it 409 00:24:17,760 --> 00:24:21,320 Speaker 1: is time your people's forgave Captain McVeigh for the humiliation 410 00:24:21,520 --> 00:24:25,480 Speaker 1: of his unjust conviction. Although there are still questions and 411 00:24:25,520 --> 00:24:28,520 Speaker 1: criticisms of how the Navy handled the aftermath of the 412 00:24:28,520 --> 00:24:33,720 Speaker 1: Indianapolis is Sinking, especially in regard to Captain McVeigh. After 413 00:24:33,760 --> 00:24:36,800 Speaker 1: the ship's lass, it did adjust procedures for ship escorts, 414 00:24:37,160 --> 00:24:41,159 Speaker 1: life saving equipment and reporting procedures to try to prevent 415 00:24:41,240 --> 00:24:45,359 Speaker 1: something similar from ever happening again, which brings us to 416 00:24:45,440 --> 00:24:49,919 Speaker 1: why this is in our Unearthed series. On augusteen, it 417 00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:53,040 Speaker 1: was announced but a civilian research team had located the 418 00:24:53,080 --> 00:24:56,119 Speaker 1: wreck of the U S S Indianapolis. Although this is 419 00:24:56,160 --> 00:24:59,879 Speaker 1: a civilian project, historians from the Naval History and Heritage Command, 420 00:25:00,040 --> 00:25:03,399 Speaker 1: Washington d C were involved as well. Leading, as we 421 00:25:03,440 --> 00:25:05,960 Speaker 1: said at the top of the show, was Paul G. Allen, 422 00:25:06,000 --> 00:25:08,600 Speaker 1: who co founded Microsoft with Bill Gates and has put 423 00:25:08,600 --> 00:25:12,560 Speaker 1: a chunk of his resulting wealth into various philanthropic efforts. 424 00:25:13,080 --> 00:25:17,160 Speaker 1: The discovery was made from Allen's research vessel, the RV Petrol. 425 00:25:17,720 --> 00:25:19,880 Speaker 1: It's a two hundred and fifty foot that's seventy six 426 00:25:20,480 --> 00:25:24,240 Speaker 1: vessel capable of diving to a depth of six thousand meters. 427 00:25:24,240 --> 00:25:26,919 Speaker 1: It's a little more than nineteen thousand feet, and the 428 00:25:26,960 --> 00:25:30,720 Speaker 1: researchers aboard the Petrol found the ship in water about 429 00:25:30,720 --> 00:25:36,720 Speaker 1: five thousand, five or eighteen thousand feet deep. Often the 430 00:25:36,760 --> 00:25:40,000 Speaker 1: discovery of wreckage like this takes some time to authenticate, 431 00:25:40,600 --> 00:25:43,160 Speaker 1: but in this case, the wreckage has been protected from 432 00:25:43,200 --> 00:25:45,639 Speaker 1: sunlight and it's in a spot on the seafloor that 433 00:25:45,680 --> 00:25:48,600 Speaker 1: doesn't have a lot of current, so it is incredibly 434 00:25:48,720 --> 00:25:52,719 Speaker 1: well preserved. There is very little marine growth or corrosion 435 00:25:52,840 --> 00:25:55,720 Speaker 1: on the surface of the ship. The number thirty five, 436 00:25:56,000 --> 00:25:59,200 Speaker 1: remember this was the thirty fifth cruiser, is clearly visible 437 00:25:59,240 --> 00:26:02,959 Speaker 1: on the hull, and supply boxes are still legible and 438 00:26:03,080 --> 00:26:07,959 Speaker 1: visibly marked with the USS Indianapolis. Paul Allen's team wasn't 439 00:26:08,040 --> 00:26:10,880 Speaker 1: at all the first to look for the ship. One 440 00:26:10,920 --> 00:26:13,600 Speaker 1: reason that earlier efforts had failed was that they were 441 00:26:13,600 --> 00:26:17,800 Speaker 1: looking in the wrong place. Although Allied intelligence did recover 442 00:26:17,880 --> 00:26:21,440 Speaker 1: a transmission from the Japanese submarine I fifty eight confirming 443 00:26:21,440 --> 00:26:25,560 Speaker 1: the kill, that message didn't specify what ship had been sunk, 444 00:26:25,960 --> 00:26:30,800 Speaker 1: and the Allies didn't recover information saying exactly where. Commander 445 00:26:30,880 --> 00:26:35,080 Speaker 1: Mochusura Hashimoto also destroyed his records before surrendering at the 446 00:26:35,160 --> 00:26:39,080 Speaker 1: end of the war. So initial searches for the wreckage 447 00:26:39,080 --> 00:26:42,320 Speaker 1: we're working off the idea of where the ship would 448 00:26:42,320 --> 00:26:45,840 Speaker 1: have been along Convoy Root Petty if it was traveling 449 00:26:45,960 --> 00:26:48,760 Speaker 1: exactly on that route, which was what it was following 450 00:26:48,800 --> 00:26:52,919 Speaker 1: from Guam to Laity, and also exactly on schedule, but 451 00:26:52,960 --> 00:26:55,360 Speaker 1: as it turns out it wasn't. It was slightly off 452 00:26:55,400 --> 00:26:58,520 Speaker 1: the convoy route and slightly ahead of schedule. Both of 453 00:26:58,560 --> 00:27:01,639 Speaker 1: these were well within the captin's discretion, and as we 454 00:27:01,680 --> 00:27:04,280 Speaker 1: discussed earlier, he was trying to make good time for 455 00:27:04,400 --> 00:27:08,639 Speaker 1: Laity for training purposes for his crew. This new information 456 00:27:08,680 --> 00:27:13,600 Speaker 1: about the Indianapolis position is a recent discovery in the 457 00:27:13,720 --> 00:27:16,680 Speaker 1: Naval History and Heritage Command decided to review the case 458 00:27:16,720 --> 00:27:19,440 Speaker 1: of the Indianapolis to see if any new information came 459 00:27:19,480 --> 00:27:21,920 Speaker 1: to light and to make sure the Navy's and the 460 00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:26,359 Speaker 1: public's understanding of the disaster was accurate. This review uncovered 461 00:27:26,359 --> 00:27:30,879 Speaker 1: a Memorial Day blog post John Murdick did about his father, 462 00:27:31,400 --> 00:27:35,040 Speaker 1: Francis G. Murdick. John Murdick told the story of his 463 00:27:35,119 --> 00:27:38,399 Speaker 1: father having been stationed on a tank landing ship or 464 00:27:38,560 --> 00:27:42,240 Speaker 1: LST that passed by the Indianapolis before it was sunk, 465 00:27:42,560 --> 00:27:45,240 Speaker 1: and how thankful he was that his father's ship hadn't 466 00:27:45,280 --> 00:27:48,919 Speaker 1: met the same fate. Historians followed the bread crumb from 467 00:27:49,000 --> 00:27:52,040 Speaker 1: Francis G. Murdick to the LST he was stationed on 468 00:27:52,359 --> 00:27:54,920 Speaker 1: to the l S. T. S Log, and although the 469 00:27:55,000 --> 00:27:59,120 Speaker 1: log did not mention the Indianapolis directly, it did include 470 00:27:59,119 --> 00:28:01,119 Speaker 1: a lot of other day to about where it was 471 00:28:01,280 --> 00:28:04,520 Speaker 1: and what it was doing, along with weather and sea conditions, 472 00:28:05,119 --> 00:28:07,760 Speaker 1: and so they cross referenced this with an oral history 473 00:28:07,840 --> 00:28:10,840 Speaker 1: from Captain Charles B. McVeigh which was already on the 474 00:28:10,880 --> 00:28:14,520 Speaker 1: record in which he mentioned communicating with an LST in 475 00:28:14,560 --> 00:28:18,960 Speaker 1: the hours before the torpedo attack. So by cross referencing 476 00:28:18,960 --> 00:28:21,640 Speaker 1: this data and the LST log and the LST's log 477 00:28:21,760 --> 00:28:25,960 Speaker 1: with mcveigh's description, historians figured out a more precise location 478 00:28:26,040 --> 00:28:29,360 Speaker 1: for where the ship had probably gone down. Allen and 479 00:28:29,480 --> 00:28:32,320 Speaker 1: others then put that information to use in their searches 480 00:28:32,680 --> 00:28:36,280 Speaker 1: and the press releases about this discovery. They actually alluded 481 00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:39,920 Speaker 1: to a project by National Geographic when it turned out 482 00:28:39,920 --> 00:28:43,400 Speaker 1: to be Paul Allen who found it. UH twenty two 483 00:28:43,440 --> 00:28:46,520 Speaker 1: survivors of the Indianapolis were still living as of August 484 00:28:46,840 --> 00:28:50,520 Speaker 1: when that discovery was announced. Reactions from survivors and their 485 00:28:50,520 --> 00:28:54,760 Speaker 1: families were really pretty mixed. Captain William J. Tody, speaking 486 00:28:54,760 --> 00:28:57,480 Speaker 1: for the survivors, said, quote to a man, they have 487 00:28:57,640 --> 00:28:59,640 Speaker 1: longed for the day when their ship would be found, 488 00:29:00,000 --> 00:29:03,800 Speaker 1: solving their final mystery. But there are family members of 489 00:29:03,840 --> 00:29:06,200 Speaker 1: men who died who were also quoted as saying that 490 00:29:06,280 --> 00:29:09,240 Speaker 1: this discovery was quite painful and they had actually hoped 491 00:29:09,240 --> 00:29:12,640 Speaker 1: it would never be found. At this point, the side 492 00:29:12,640 --> 00:29:15,800 Speaker 1: of the wreck is considered to be a military grave site, 493 00:29:15,920 --> 00:29:19,360 Speaker 1: so its exact location was reported only to the Navy, 494 00:29:19,440 --> 00:29:22,120 Speaker 1: and any exploration and survey of the site has to 495 00:29:22,120 --> 00:29:25,040 Speaker 1: be done without disturbing it. There is a lot of 496 00:29:25,040 --> 00:29:27,760 Speaker 1: footage from the wreckage that you can watch online, including 497 00:29:27,760 --> 00:29:31,560 Speaker 1: a PBS special called USS Indianapolis Live from the Deep, 498 00:29:31,640 --> 00:29:33,520 Speaker 1: and we will link to that in our show notes. 499 00:29:34,600 --> 00:29:39,600 Speaker 1: There's also a documentary called USS Indianapolis The Legacy that's 500 00:29:39,640 --> 00:29:43,560 Speaker 1: pretty much all interviews with survivors and their families and 501 00:29:43,640 --> 00:29:46,840 Speaker 1: the family members of the deceased. If you are interested 502 00:29:46,880 --> 00:29:50,000 Speaker 1: in this, it is highly worth watching, and I will 503 00:29:50,040 --> 00:29:54,480 Speaker 1: say parts of it are devastating. Uh So watching this 504 00:29:54,760 --> 00:29:57,800 Speaker 1: with your handkerchief and just be ready for the emotional 505 00:29:59,040 --> 00:30:02,760 Speaker 1: bring tissues. I watched it at my desk. UM, do 506 00:30:02,840 --> 00:30:05,320 Speaker 1: you have listener meal that maybe won't make people cry? 507 00:30:06,240 --> 00:30:08,200 Speaker 1: I mean, I have listener mail, but it is about 508 00:30:08,360 --> 00:30:11,080 Speaker 1: um one of the disasters that we've talked about recently, 509 00:30:11,720 --> 00:30:15,120 Speaker 1: which is the abber Van disaster. It's a clarification though, 510 00:30:15,160 --> 00:30:18,560 Speaker 1: and not additional sadness about that disaster. This is from Alison, 511 00:30:18,640 --> 00:30:21,240 Speaker 1: and Allison said, Hi, Tracy and Holly. Thanks, thank you 512 00:30:21,280 --> 00:30:24,080 Speaker 1: for your podcasts. I always enjoyed listening, whether the topic 513 00:30:24,160 --> 00:30:26,640 Speaker 1: is completely new to me or something I knew about already. 514 00:30:27,120 --> 00:30:29,720 Speaker 1: I just listened to your podcast on the abber Van disaster. 515 00:30:30,280 --> 00:30:32,720 Speaker 1: I appreciate you making this known to a wide audience, 516 00:30:32,760 --> 00:30:35,240 Speaker 1: as it seems not that well known even in the UK. 517 00:30:35,680 --> 00:30:38,280 Speaker 1: I hadn't heard of it until last year's anniversary, and 518 00:30:38,320 --> 00:30:40,560 Speaker 1: I grew up in the Midlands and visited South Wales 519 00:30:40,600 --> 00:30:43,560 Speaker 1: often as a kid. I just wanted to clarify something 520 00:30:43,600 --> 00:30:46,240 Speaker 1: from the episode this. It is probably phrasing and something 521 00:30:46,280 --> 00:30:48,320 Speaker 1: you already knew, but at the beginning of the episode 522 00:30:48,360 --> 00:30:50,760 Speaker 1: you spoke about the history of coal mining in Wales 523 00:30:50,840 --> 00:30:53,120 Speaker 1: and sort of implied that the Welsh government was doing 524 00:30:53,160 --> 00:30:56,640 Speaker 1: things nationalizing the industry, et cetera. In fact, there was 525 00:30:56,680 --> 00:30:59,200 Speaker 1: no Welsh government at the time. Wales was and is 526 00:30:59,280 --> 00:31:01,760 Speaker 1: part of the UK A and was then completely governed 527 00:31:01,800 --> 00:31:04,400 Speaker 1: by the UK or England, depending on your point of view. 528 00:31:04,800 --> 00:31:08,080 Speaker 1: Welsh MP's were elected but took their seats in Parliament 529 00:31:08,080 --> 00:31:11,280 Speaker 1: in London. The process of devolution of powers didn't start 530 00:31:11,320 --> 00:31:14,920 Speaker 1: properly until the nineties. That's probably added to the general 531 00:31:14,960 --> 00:31:18,720 Speaker 1: distrust communities had for the government and organizations like the 532 00:31:18,800 --> 00:31:22,040 Speaker 1: National Coal Board, which were all English. Writing this email 533 00:31:22,040 --> 00:31:24,440 Speaker 1: as an english person who thinks of herself as British 534 00:31:24,440 --> 00:31:26,920 Speaker 1: makes me think about national identities and stuff that I 535 00:31:26,960 --> 00:31:30,160 Speaker 1: can't really articulate. A Welsh person would know better than me, 536 00:31:30,320 --> 00:31:32,160 Speaker 1: but I think this is an important distinction to make. 537 00:31:32,200 --> 00:31:35,240 Speaker 1: Thanks again for all your work, Allison. Thank you, Alison. 538 00:31:35,400 --> 00:31:37,800 Speaker 1: I absolutely could have been more clear with that than 539 00:31:37,840 --> 00:31:41,040 Speaker 1: I was. UM. So much of the research that I 540 00:31:41,120 --> 00:31:45,160 Speaker 1: was looking at was focused so specifically on the uh, 541 00:31:45,200 --> 00:31:50,200 Speaker 1: the coal industry in Wales and not elsewhere in Britain 542 00:31:50,320 --> 00:31:53,160 Speaker 1: that uh, it did not occur to me to clarify 543 00:31:53,240 --> 00:31:57,040 Speaker 1: that for fix who might not realize. So thank you again, Allison. 544 00:31:57,400 --> 00:31:58,920 Speaker 1: If you would like to write to us about this 545 00:31:59,000 --> 00:32:01,720 Speaker 1: or any other podcast, history podcast at how stuff Works 546 00:32:01,720 --> 00:32:03,600 Speaker 1: dot com and then we are at miss in History. 547 00:32:03,680 --> 00:32:09,080 Speaker 1: All over social media that's Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, all 548 00:32:09,120 --> 00:32:11,680 Speaker 1: of that, uh, you can find our podcast. This is 549 00:32:11,720 --> 00:32:13,800 Speaker 1: the first time you've ever listened. You can find it 550 00:32:14,280 --> 00:32:18,080 Speaker 1: basically anywhere you find podcasts. Apple podcasts, Google Play all 551 00:32:18,120 --> 00:32:20,760 Speaker 1: that stuff. Uh So, come visit us in our website, 552 00:32:20,760 --> 00:32:22,920 Speaker 1: which is missing history dot com, where you will also 553 00:32:22,960 --> 00:32:25,640 Speaker 1: find show notes to all the episodes Holly and I 554 00:32:25,640 --> 00:32:27,760 Speaker 1: have done, and as we said, we'll have some links 555 00:32:27,800 --> 00:32:31,760 Speaker 1: to documentaries and things for this episode. You'll also find 556 00:32:31,800 --> 00:32:35,560 Speaker 1: a searchable archive every episode. Ever, so come pay us 557 00:32:35,600 --> 00:32:42,600 Speaker 1: a visit at miss in history dot com. For more 558 00:32:42,640 --> 00:32:45,240 Speaker 1: on this and thousands of other topics, visit how stop 559 00:32:45,240 --> 00:32:54,320 Speaker 1: works dot com