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Personal Recollections of |
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The following letter was written on 15 September 2025 by
Chief Signalman (Qualified in Submarines) Joe E. Dawson, USN, Retired.
CSM(SS) Dawson is the last surviving crew member of USS S-4 (SS-109). I am 90 years young with 44 years of naval service. As I am the last survivor of the ill-fated S-4, hit and sunk by Coast Guard Cutter CG-17 on 17 December 1927, I would like to relate my story. Returning from the War of Nicaragua on the S-4, I was transferred to USS Camden...for further transfer. Late in October, I was transferred to the S-4 as temporary signalman and quartermaster until my replacement arrived. In early December, my replacement arrived, and it happened to be my best buddy, Walter Tolson. The S-4 was scheduled to go to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, for some special equipment...and a refit. I was relieved of my duties on the 12th of December and reported back to USS Camden, preparing for my Christmas leave. When, on the 17th of December, word came over the loud speaker for me to report to the quarterdeck, and that the S-4 had been rammed by Coast Guard Cutter CG-17, formerly USS Paulding, off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, in approximately 100 feet of water. I reported aboard the S-8 and was told I would be Captain King's signalman and to aid in the salvage of the S-4. I arrived in Provincetown and went aboard USS Falcon. Captain King arrived later and we made our headquarters on USS Falcon. The weather was unbearable. The first diver to go down was Commander Ellsberg, who came up reporting the S-4 was on her keel with a large hole on her starboard side and forward of the control room...and no sign of life. The next morning, divers Edie and Carr heard tappings in the forward torpedo room. They found out there were six men living. Their message to Edie and Carr was, "Is there hope? Please hurry, please!" Edie and Carr reported to Captain King that there was life on the S-4. Captain King turned and looked up at me and said, "There is life on the S-4." I, in turn, thought Captain King wanted me to send that message. I alerted all ships present that there was life on the S-4. Captain King called me from the bridge to his quarters and gave me the worst bawling out I ever had...as he did not want that message sent at that time...until the information was certified. The divers were then ordered to connect oxygen hoses to the S-4. Three or four times the sea tore the hoses from the S-4, endangering the lives of the divers. They decided to wait until the weather subsided. The men could only live 72 hours without the oxygen we were trying to get to them. The last message sent by the submariners was hard to decipher. It said, "We understand"...and that was the last we heard from them. The Navy ordered the salvage halted until fair weather appeared...which was approximately one month later. I was ordered back to USS Camden by Captain King. That was the last time I saw Captain King until 1942...during the Second World War. In 1942, in Treasure Island, I got caught up in an Admiral's inspection. I had just purchased a new uniform and did not have all the markings on it. I was standing in line when the Admiral and the inspection party came down the line. Admiral King (formerly Captain King) looked at me and stared...then moved to the next man. Looking back, he stared again. He turned the inspection party around and came back and stood directly in front of me, staring; then, he asked me if I ever learned to send signals correctly. I answered in the affirmative. He said, "You're a submarine man, aren't you? Where are your Dolphins?" I explained that I did not have time to get the submarine insignia on before the inspection. He turned to the inspection party and said, "a good signalman." After the inspection was over, two Marines took me to the Admiral's quarters. I knocked on the door. He said, "come in." I opened the door and saluted him. He said, "forget the formality. Have a seat and make yourself comfortable." He had the mess boy bring coffee and cookies, and said, "Flags, it's been a long time since the S-4 salvage." I then said, "Admiral, I have a question I would like to have answered." He said, "Let's have it; I'll do my best to answer it." I told him I knew the fishing FLEET in Provincetown was honored for assisting the S-4 salvage fleet; but, I wondered, if the fishermen in their tiny boats who ventured out in that stormy weather to bring us goodies...were they honored? The Admiral replied, "Flags, I have only been back once and I do not know if they were or not." After two cups of coffee and cookies, It was time to leave. I walked to the door and the Admiral followed me. He said, "Flags, I have one message I would like you to send. If you are ever in Provincetown and the occasion arises, I would like for you to tell those fishermen and their wives that, I, Admiral Ernest King, send them the message of a job so well done. So, Flags, until we meet again, God bless you. I wish you safely back to your family after the war." Every year, on the Sunday nearest to the 17th of December, a memorial service to honor the men of the S-4 is held at the Church of Saint Mary of the Harbor in Provincetown, Massachusetts. My wife and I try to attend that service every year.
A shipmate of the United States Submarine Veterans,
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A REMEMBRANCE - U.S.S. S-4
As I sit in my studio a-dreaming, the Christmas wreath hangs on the door; My memory goes back to my buddies, who died on the U.S.S. S-4. Oh! I remember the terrible weather, the winds and the waves riding high. One moment you were on the ocean, and then you were high in the sky. Then from the sub came the dots and dashes, "Is there any hope?...Hurry, please." Six of the thirty-eight were living, the loved ones and the nation went down on its knees. Everyone prayed for deliverance, the divers worked without sleep. But the Master above thought different, he wanted those boys in his keep. But they shall never be forgotten, as long as the Sub Vets are there. A wreath will be placed on the water, a Chaplain will offer a prayer. |
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This page was updated on
November 11, 2025 |
