Show notes
It was the evening of Feb. 2, 1943, and the U.S.A.T. Dorchester was crowded to capacity, carrying 902 servicemen, merchant seamen, and civilian workers. Once a luxury coastal liner, the 5,649-ton vessel had been converted into an Army transport ship. The Dorchester, one of three ships in the SG-19 convoy, was moving steadily across the icy waters from Newfoundland toward an American base in Greenland. SG-19 was escorted by Coast Guard Cutters Tampa, Escanaba, and Comanche. On Feb. 3, at 12:55 a.m., a periscope broke the chilly Atlantic waters. Through the crosshairs, an officer aboard the German submarine U-223 spotted the Dorchester. The U-223 approached the convoy on the surface, and after identifying and targeting the ship, he gave orders to fire the torpedoes, a fan of three were fired. The one that hit was decisive–and deadly–striking the starboard side, amidship, far below the waterline.
Those chaplains were Lt. George L. Fox, Methodist; Lt. Alexander D. Goode, Jewish; Lt. John P. Washington, Roman Catholic; and Lt. Clark V. Poling, Dutch Reformed. Quickly and quietly, the four chaplains spread out among the soldiers. There they tried to calm the frightened, tend the wounded and guide the disoriented toward safety. "Witnesses of that terrible night remember hearing the four men offer prayers for the dying and encouragement for those who would live," says Wyatt R. Fox, son of Reverend Fox.
Of the 902 men aboard the U.S.A.T. Dorchester, 672 died, leaving 230 survivors. When the news reached American shores, the nation was stunned by the magnitude of the tragedy and heroic conduct of the four chaplains. "Valor is a gift," Carl Sandburg once said. "Those having it never know for sure whether they have it until the test comes." That night Reverend Fox, Rabbi Goode, Reverend Poling, and Father Washington passed life's ultimate test. In doing so, they became an enduring example of extraordinary faith, courage, and selflessness. The Distinguished Service Cross and Purple Heart were awarded posthumously December 19, 1944, to the next of kin by Lt. Gen. Brehon B. Somervell, Commanding General of the Army Service Forces, in a ceremony at the post chapel at Fort Myer, VA. A one-time-only posthumous Special Medal for Heroism was authorized by Congress and awarded by President Eisenhower on January 18, 1961. Congress attempted to confer the Medal of Honor but was blocked by the stringent requirements that required heroism performed under fire. The special medal was intended to have the same weight and importance as the Medal of Honor.
Thanks to:
Information for this episode retrieved from The Four Chaplains Memorial Foundation website at http://fourchaplains.org/four-chaplains/ retired Air Force Chaplain, Dr. Dondi Costin https://www.linkedin.com/in/dondi-e-costin-ph-d-major-general-retired-97119b46/ Army_Chaplain (COL) Khallid Shabazz Ph.D, DMin https://www.linkedin.com/in/chaplain-col-khallid-shabazz-ph-d-dmin-701074a6/
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