Ernest Thompson

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Want me to -- you want me to hold that or something or --? Would that be good to your --?

DANIELLA ROMANO: That would be great, yeah, actually.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And if you want to just make sure that the -- [laughter] just make sure that those bars keep moving and that --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Okay, fine.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- the audio is -- is being recorded.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Um, so let's -- let's start just by introducing ourselves. I'm Daniella Romano, with the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Ernie Thompson, from Gardena, California.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And, Mike, in case your voice is on the --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Oh. Mike Weidenbach, curator at the Battleship Missouri.

DANIELLA ROMANO: So, Mr. Thompson, can you please give me the proper spelling of your name?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Ernest, E -- R -- N -- E -- S -- T, Thompson, T -- H -- O -- M -- P -- S -- O -- N.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Okay. And can you please tell me where and when you were born?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Uh, born in uh -- [date redacted for privacy] 1917, in Byronville, Georgia, B -- Y -- R -- O -- N -- V -- I -- double L -- E , on a 1:00farm right out of Byronville.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Okay. And can you tell me what is your family background?

ERNEST THOMPSON: My family background, my father was a -- a farmer for first five years of my life. And we moved about thirty miles from there to another, uh, town -- uh, city --- little town. And my dad worked in a lumber company, for a number of years. I grew up in Americus, Georgia, and went to school there, graduating in 1935. And I went in the Navy -- I mean -- I'm sorry. In May 1936, that I graduated. And in December of 1936, I went in the Navy. And the Navy training station at that time was in Norfolk, Virginia, here. And I went 2:00through, uh, boot camp here. And after boot camp I was placed on the USS Henderson, a transport ship, at that time, that sailed between Norfolk -- through the Canal, up the West Coast, across to Honolulu, and on out to Shanghai, China. And it made that trip roundtrip, going back and forth, dropping people off, picking people up.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Bu--

ERNEST THOMPSON: And I was just a kid. And I was placed on the Tennessee battleship, in Long Beach, California.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: How old were you then?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Uh, nineteen years old.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Oh.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Why did you enlist?

ERNEST THOMPSON: I enlisted because -- I guess because I'd had a, uh -- an uncle 3:00that was in the Navy, many years before that. And I guess, from some of his experiences, I always wanted to go in the Navy. And -- and the day that I grew up, uh, the latter part of my time in Americus, was during the worst Depression years we ever had. And it was hard getting in the Navy. Uh, their requirements in those days, you had to be a high school graduate. And, uh, so I -- I started trying to get in the Navy about two years before I got out of high school. Uh, they had lists you had to get on.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And, uh, I would hitchhike about thirty miles --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Hm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- and I walked that, uh, many a time, practically -- to the recruiting station. And finally, uh, they called me, and December, 1936. And 4:00they shipped me off to Norfolk, Virginia, the -- only the second time I'd ever left state of Georgia. And went through boot camp in Norfolk, yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Were you an only child? Or do you have brothers and sisters?

ERNEST THOMPSON: No, I have -- there -- I was the oldest of six.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Anybody else enlist? Or were you the only one who went into the military?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, I had, uh -- I was the only one at that time. But during World War II, uh, I had a younger brother that went in the Navy, was on an LSM landing ship. And then I had a brother that was in the medics, uh, in the Army. And, uh, the three of us was in the same time, during World War II.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: How did you come to the Brooklyn Navy Yard?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, as I say, I got -- I was on the Tennessee battleship 5:00before World War II. And, uh, I played baseball for the Tennessee and we won the all-Navy championship in 1938. And the captain of the ship gave us thirty days' leave and four days traveling time. And at the time, we were in Seattle, Washington. And I had some clothes in Long Beach, in a locker down there. And so, I took a train down the coast to Los Angeles, got off, and went to get my clothes and everything, and to going back home in Georgia. And I went on the train that evening and somewhere down in Texas I met a little girl, seventeen years old.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: [laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: And we started going together. And we went together for about two and a half years and -- which, I was married just before I left the service, in 1940. And it was hard getting a job. I pounded concrete in Los Angeles for 6:00several weeks. And I finally got a job in the Sub-Pacific Railroad, making forty-six cents an hour --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Hm-hm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- as a laborer. But I was an old country boy and I always figured, if you could get your foot in the door, you could go on from there. And it -- it was the greatest thing that happened to me, taking that job. But, uh, I did get my foot in the door. And there were just a couple of weeks that I was a laborer and I went right on up to boilermaker apprentice. And for two years I was there in the boiler shops, learned a lot about steelwork, ironwork, and what have you. And, uh, my wife saw, uh, on a bulletin board -- for the city of Los Angeles. I took the examination and went to work in a big electrical generating station there. And I -- I don't -- Uh, I was deferred out of the service for a 7:00short period of time, because they needed locomotives in that -- very -- very bad in those days for taking troops back and forth and what have you. But as soon as I went to work for the city, why they called me back in the service, and which is -- which was fine. I, uh, got paid off out of the service, uh, in '40 as a second class petty officer. And as soon as I went back in the service, because of my experience outside, they rated me to first class. And I had to go to San Diego, got my shots. And then they transferred me from there to Treasure Island, in San Francisco, for further orders. And I was there for a couple of weeks. And they sent -- gave me orders to go to Philadelphia to school. And in Philadelphia I was there for about six weeks, going to school, to catch up on the latest things on engineering spaces of -- of Navy ships. And there was a 8:00list came out and I had a choice of any ships that was being constructed. And, uh, as I told you, uh, I wanted an oil tanker, so I could get back and forth. I had a wife and baby at home, that I can see once in a while. But they didn't have any oil tankers. So, I saw the Missouri on the list, so I chose the Missouri and went aboard it in March 1944. And I was stationed in Flushing Avenue Barracks, right across the street from the Navy Yard. So, I inquired about, "Well, where -- how do I find the ship?" They said, "Well, you just go through main gate and go down a little ways, turn to the right and it's right under the hammerhead crane," said, "You can't miss it." So, I went down there and -- and there was a crane that moved along tracks, right next to the ship. Right across from the ship, right next to this train, was a two-story building there. And we had temporary engineering offices upstairs. And so, I reported 9:00there. And our engineering office, Commander Maxwell, was there and a couple of three other officers. And Commander Maxwell gave us a -- a lecture and told us to -- what we -- what our duties would be and what have you. And he says, "We're going to be leaving here soon for a war zone. And I want all of you to have a lot of fun. But don't get in trouble."

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Hm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: "And, uh, we -- our requirements are that you're to go aboard ship, make drawings of all the machinery spaces, where everything goes. And we want you to hand your drawings in every Friday afternoon. And then you can go ashore the weekend, whatever you want to do." And, uh, so I sent for my wife and baby. And, uh, they had to come in a compartment on a train, because all the 10:00other seats were taken by military people. So, I had her on a compartment on the train. And she came out. And I got a little place up on Adelphi Street, in Brooklyn --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- about two or three blocks, right next to Myrtle Avenue. [laughter] And she -- and uh so we had this little place up there, that she and my baby could be there while we was putting the ship in commission. And she was invited to the commissioning, as all the wives were, that was there. And, uh, we put it in commission in June. And, uh -- Do you have anything else? [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: What would you do on the weekends or when you had free time?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Oh. Uh, my wife had an uncle that, uh, lived over in New 11:00Jersey, right across from New York. And we'd go over there once in a while. And we -- we also had some friends around. Uh, my mother-in-law was from New Jersey originally. And, uh, we'd visit there. Or sometimes we'd go to parks or something like that. But, uh, not anything really exciting. Yeah. There wasn't a whole lot to do during war years, you know, uh, except -- Because everybody was so concentrated on the War. And uh there was always plenty to do, as far as getting around and what have you.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Would you go out dancing, go to dinner anywhere, any clubs and -- ?

ERNEST THOMPSON: We'd go to dinner once in a while, yeah. I never was a dancer. I was born with two left feet. [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: So, you would go to dinner. In Manhattan, mostly, if you went out --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, no. In Brooklyn --

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- or would you actually go out in Brooklyn?

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- around there, someplace. Yeah. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Like along Myrtle?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah, around there. There was places there 12:00that you -- you could take a streetcar to and whatever, that was reasonable. Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: There were a lot of restaurants on Sands Street.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Sands Street had --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- quite a reputation as a --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Oh, yeah. Sands Street runs right along --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Unh-huh.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- yeah, where the Navy Yard was there, yeah. Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah. Did you ever eat there, or did you ever hear much about --?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Uh, they, uh -- we had a little bitty old diner there, right by the, uh, Flushing Avenue Barracks. I don't know if they -- I'd -- I bet that building's not even there anymore. But there was a little old diner there. And, uh -- and I'd stop in there for lunch once in a while, rather than go in the barracks and --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- but, uh, I didn't have a whole lot of money, in those days. [laughter] Uh, my wife and baby was there --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- so we didn't have a whole lot to do.

DANIELLA ROMANO: When you say the main gate, was it a gate on Flushing? Or was it the Sands Street gate, uh which was around on the other side?

ERNEST THOMPSON: It was -- it was -- uh --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Was it Cumberland?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Adelphi Street ran right down --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- and went right into the Navy Yard.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Uh, is that Sands Street?

DANIELLA ROMANO: No. Sands Street is on --

ERNEST THOMPSON: That's Flushing --

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- the other side.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- Flushing Street or whatever?

DANIELLA ROMANO: There was an Adelphi Street, uh, like a -- a --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Uh, well, Adelphi runs right out of the -- right up the -- right up the street there.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And it went right in through the main gate there, yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: There was Clinton. There was a Clinton Avenue gate, Adelphi Street.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Gee, I wish I could tell you but uh --

DANIELLA ROMANO: That's Okay.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah, yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: That's okay. Um --

ERNEST THOMPSON: I know I used to -- I'd go down -- we'd go down Adelphi to the street run right along the -- the Navy Yard. And it was only down a block or two to the subway.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: We'd go into the subway right there.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm. Um, and you'll have to forgive me. I don't know too much about what -- what your time would have been like actually on board during that first tour, um, out in the Pacific. Can you tell me what you did on board and maybe give me a sense of what your --?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, when I -- when I went aboard, uh, I had -- I had a hash 14:00mark. I was the only first class that did. All the rest, uh, didn't, as far as I know. And that made me senior, just that hash mark. [laughter] And -- and, uh, so they put me, you know, the first class -- senior first class en -- No. 4 Boiler Room. So, I had No. 4 Boiler Room. And, uh, we only had just a couple of three guys. Uh, we had a machinist mate, uh, first class and a machinist mate second class and I think one other first class water tender in there, at that time, and pre-commissioning. And uh as I say, it was our -- our job to train ourselves to get underway. But uh other than that, yeah. [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: Uh, and during your -- during your time at sea, I know that 15:00there was -- uh, I know that there was -- the kamikaze plane had -- had hit the side of the Missouri.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Were you -- if you were down in the boiler room, how much of a sense did you have of what was going on?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, when you're in the engineering spaces like that, you're locked in.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And, uh, the armor plating, what were they, thirteen inches thick, something like that?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And those big hatches are closed down. And -- and anything happens, you're not going to get out. Uh, just -- that's just it. And I only -- our only way of knowing -- We had -- we had a man on the bridge. Uh, I don't -- He was probably from the engineering spaces. And we had JV phones that went to all of the different spaces. And you could talk back and forth to him. And any information we were getting down below was what he was observing from there. And 16:00that's all -- all we could do, is him -- would -- telling us what's going on. And uh there's no -- there's no PA system blasting what's going on or any-- just -- we'd just get, uh, through the JV phones.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And that -- uh, does the JV phone work like a PA? Like if he picks it up and makes a call, does everybody get the same message or --?

ERNEST THOMPSON: What -- what it is, uh, it's a -- it's a -- They're wearing earphones over the ears. And it goes around your neck, straps down. It's a -- You know, and you've got a little button on it. And -- and so, when he wants to relay any information he pushes that button and it goes out all over the engineering spaces. Uh, if he wants a particular space, he just mentions that. And somebody answers down below, the same way. Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm. Hm!

DANIELLA ROMANO: Uh, where was your wife -- where was your wife and baby --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- living while you were at sea? Did they stay in Brooklyn?

ERNEST THOMPSON: The -- what happened there, uh, when we -- when we went on a shakedown cruise, my wife went down and visited my family in Georgia while we were down there. And when we got back, uh, we were going in the Navy Yard over in Bayonne, New Jersey. And, uh, she left and went back home. And so, uh I'd given up the apartment then and I just stayed aboard ship, over in Bayonne, New Jersey. Mm-hmm.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm. Uh I -- I've never been anywhere near the -- either Brooklyn or Bayonne, New Jersey. What -- uh the Navy Yard, Brooklyn Navy Yard, what was that like?

ERNEST THOMPSON: That was sort of an annex.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah? What --?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Uh, the -- that was -- the Missouri -- those big ships like the Missouri or the big aircraft carriers, and that the, uh, masts now, on top, won't go under the Brooklyn Bridge.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And so they left that part off of the ship until we got over 18:00the -- We were transferred from, uh, Brooklyn Navy Yard over to Bayonne, New Jersey, to completely -- completing the fitting out of the ship, before we got under way for the shakedown cruise.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: So, it was --

ERNEST THOMPSON: So, I -- I would -- My wife was still in Brooklyn then, at that time, uh, when we first went over there. And, uh, I'd go down to the South Ferry. And there was a ferry that went over to the Navy Yard from there. And I'd take that back and forth.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Oh. And so when the ship was launched, it was in that condition, with the --

ERNEST THOMPSON: When the ship was launched, it was in -- in Brooklyn --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- uh, by -- by Flushing Avenue there. And, uh, when it was finished and completed, except for the mainmast --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Uh --

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- uh, then they got it under way and took it over to Bayonne 19:00to put the mast and everything on it and whatever little more work we had to do there. And we got under way for a shakedown cruise. And we went into Chesapeake Bay and for some maneuvering and that sort of thing, rather than be at sea. Because there's subs out there still, [laughter] so. And uh we almost -- In fact, we did run aground, in Chesapeake Bay, during the War!

MIKE WEIDENBACH: I didn't know --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Uh, our skipper, uh, Captain Callahan, it's in his memoirs and what have you, even. But uh in -- in Chesapeake Bay -- I don't know that much about navigation but they said the -- the sand is always shifting on the bottom there. And the draft on those ships is quite a bit. And, uh, so he -- he -- suspicion that we was in trouble. And he wanted flank speed. And we just -- fss! 20:00Uh, the ship -- the bow came up. The fantail went down. Then we just slid right -- You could feel it. Just slide right over a sandbar, like that.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: [laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: And so, they, uh -- they, uh, told us about it, in the engineering forces. And we had to go along -- Because our fire mains filled up with sand. Uh, we had to flush all our fire mains out, brake flanges, and wha -- that kind of stuff, [laughter] under way, flush -- flush all the sand out of our lines and, uh -- so -- But uh we'd have been in real trouble if we'd have run aground that time there. [laughter]

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: But then we left there and we went down, uh, around, uh -- where was it? Uh, it was the south Atlantic, for uh firing all of our guns and things like that, yeah, mm-hmm --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- checking everything out.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Uh, at the time of the launch, where were you?

ERNEST THOMPSON: When it was launched, uh, I was uh probably just starting school or just before school in Philadelphia.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Okay.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah. Mm-hmm.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: So, by the time -- it had already occurred by the time you got to --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Oh, yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Right.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Oh, yeah. Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah, yeah. Yeah, it was, uh -- it was uh launched in January and I didn't go on it until March. Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Mm-hmm.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm! What was -- um, I mean, just uh the neighborhood and around uh, the --? You know, you -- you said you went to a diner and so forth. Were there any particular places that you remember or people or --?

ERNEST THOMPSON: No, I don't, really.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah.

ERNEST THOMPSON: No. [laughter] It has been a lot of years. Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And -- and, uh, it's -- it's changed a lot since then too.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah. Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: What was your apartment like?

ERNEST THOMPSON: It was -- well, uh, apartments were cramped in those days. We 22:00had a -- uh, a one-bedroom place with a little stove in the bedroom and a -- and like -- and a bathroom down the hallway for all of those that was on that floor. [laughter] So it was -- yeah, yeah. That was quite common in those days. Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: The -- was your -- your wife happy there? Or what was that --?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, we were happy to be together, yeah. You was happy to be on -- uh, anyplace in those days. [laughter] Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Uh --

DANIELLA ROMANO: How about during the commissioning ceremony? Where were you during the commissioning? And did that actually take place --?

ERNEST THOMPSON: We was on the fantail. The whole crew was on the fantail. And up on the first deck there is where the captain and that was -- sort of looking toward the back -- the fantail.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And, uh, the captain, and -- and when they were turning it over to him and all of that, was there. And, uh, we and our families were just all on 23:00the fantail. Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Was the ship by --

ERNEST THOMPSON: There's a pic --

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- the hammerhead?

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- there's a picture of that someplace.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Where is that?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Uh, there's a little booklet of some kind. I don't know if I still have that or not.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Like a ceremony, like commissioning --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- ceremony?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah. Yeah, there is. I'll look up some stuff --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Uh --

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- when I get home.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Okay.

ERNEST THOMPSON: I don't know what I've got.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Thanks.

ERNEST THOMPSON: My wife was --

DANIELLA ROMANO: That'd be great.

ERNEST THOMPSON: My wife was pretty good at saving things, so. [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: Of course.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Was the -- would the ceremony have taken place by the -- by the hammerhead?

ERNEST THOMPSON: W -- yeah, yeah. That's where the -- yeah, right under the hammerhead crane. Yeah. Uh, it was amazing to me. Uh, the day before commissioning, that ship still had hoses all over it. Electrical cables all over it. It wasn't completely painted or anything. And how in the world they ever 24:00done it, I don't know. But the shipyard workers stripped that thing out, painted it out, had our bunks all ready, overnight. I don't know how [laughter] they done it. But they did. Yeah, they were -- they must have been climbing all over each other. Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Was there much of a sense -- when you're on board, I -- I suppose you were probably pretty busy -- but actually about the work that the -- that the ship-workers had -- had done on board, constructing the ship and fitting her out? Was -- would a crew be very kind of mindful of -- of the people who had -- who had built the ship?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, sure, yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah. We -- As, uh -- as I was saying a little earlier, we had our duties in the daytime. But, uh, we'd -- we'd go back over to the barracks. And then at night, midnight or so or eleven 25:00o'clock or whatever, we'd go back over to the ship. And, uh, the Navy Yard workers would be starting up the boiler rooms, the engine rooms, testing stuff out, flushing lines, and all that kind of stuff. And we'd go and stay -- stay on -- on watch with them for a couple hours, to familiarize ourselves with the machinery actually running and, uh, that sort of thing. And they're real nice, uh, people to work with and what have you. And, uh, it was -- it was a -- a big help to us. Yeah, they -- the Navy Yard workers were terrific. Yeah. And, uh, I was always one of those -- all my life, I've always wanted to be prepared for anything. And so the, uh -- I guess you'd call him the chief Navy Yard mechanic, I guess, was over all of these guys. Uh, I was talking to him one day, just before, uh, commissioning. And I was saying to him -- I said, "You know, when we 26:00get under way, they've got a lot of supplies to bring aboard ship and what have you," and I says, "You've been outfitting all of these machinery spaces with equipment, everything," I said, "Do you have anything left over in your place down there that I could take aboard?" He said, "Yeah. Come on down!" Do I took -- I took little gauge glasses for our heaters and -- and gauges and things and -- so I had a kid that was pretty good at welding, so I -- I made a little locker like on the side of the boiler room and locked this stuff all up. And it was -- it was there. And we got way out in the Pacific and, one of the other boiler room, uh, one of the glasses blew out or something or other. And they went to the stores and didn't have any. And somebody said, "Hey, check with Ernie. He might have some." Uh, I had a whole boxful of them. [laughter]

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: So, they were tickled to death that I'd -- and I'd just gotten them from this guy here, you know, that -- before we got under way. So, it's a 27:00-- it's good to keep a lot of stuff, yeah --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- when you have to.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Can you tell me about the surrender? And -- and were you on --? Uh, where were you on deck during the ce -- the ceremony?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, during the surrender ceremony, uh -- I've told this story a lot of times too. I'd been on the four to eight watch. I'd just gotten off, uh, the -- the morning of the surrender. Uh well, four to eight -- you always say four to eight but you actually get relieved a little bit earlier, right after chow, you know. And, uh, the man relieving me was a little bit late relieving me. And I got up the chow hall and -- and I was sitting there. I got my chow and I was sitting there at this table. And, uh, right next to me was the 28:00table there and, uh, the, uh, mess cook were cleaning it all up. And I asked them, uh, "What are you cleaning that table for?" Says, "They're going to sign the surrender on this table." And I said, "Oh, you're kidding me." [laughter] I said -- "Oh, and -- oh, yeah." They were scrubbing it all down. And so pretty soon they folded it up. They had legs that folded up, on them. And they folded it up and went away with it. And -- and I know, right after the surrender, it came out on our newspapers all over, you know, about this fancy table they'd brought aboard ship for signing the surrenders and what have you. And -- and it was kind of funny. They had this big fancy cover over it. And in this picture you can see the legs of this chow table. And that's uh -- [laughter] there's no way in the world it was a fancy table they brought. That was a chow table! So.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: So anyway, uh, I started telling people, you know. And it wasn't long before they changed their mind about this table. Because the one 29:00they brought aboard, they were going to do it, was too small, I understand. But, uh, then afterwards, soon as it was over with, they tell me that they took it back down below. And everybody wanted this table, to send back to the Naval Academy or something. They were trying to figure out which one it was! [laughter] I don't know if they got the right one or not.

DANIELLA ROMANO: [laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: But they claimed they did but --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: So, you were having breakfast.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah. Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: [laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah, I was having chow --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: During the surrender.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- and the best breakfast I ever had aboard ship. I was late getting relieved in the morning. And I got up and they'd already closed the chow line down and everything.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And I had a friend that worked there in -- in the galley -- I mean in the, uh, food place. So, I said, "Hey, Cookie, I missed out on breakfast." He said, "Come on in here. I'll fix you break-- What do you want?" 30:00And I said, "Oh, just fix me breakfast." So, he starts fixing me hotcakes and bacon and eggs and everything and -- And just as he got it finished for me to sit down, general quarters sounded. So, uh, I never did get a chance to eat it! [laughter] I had to leave and go back down to the boiler room. Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: No to-go containers?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah. No. Uh --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And how did you feel at the end of the -- at the end of the War, when you heard about the surrender?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, I've been asked that question many times. Uh, when it was announced that the War was over -- at least we thought it was, at that time -- we'd gotten word from the bridge, like I said, through the, uh, man up there that passed it over the uh JV speaker, uh, thing -- phones. And, uh, the kid that was wearing that said, "Hey, the War's over with, guys!" And the guys all 31:00couldn't believe it. I had a bunch of these kids in there. And they were just swinging from piping to piping, almost like a bunch of monkeys, screaming their heads off that the War was over with. And we still couldn't believe it until a little bit later. But, uh, a -- a lot of people have said to me, uh, how great it was to be there. Well, we realize now, later, how great it was. But at that time, our primary concern was to get back home and see our families. The surrender, that was secondary, to us -- at least was to me and I think most of the guys. Uh, we'd been out there a long time. And it was just good to be going home.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Were you aware of the -- uh, the use of the atom bomb? And were you aware of --?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Oh, yeah. We were aware of that. Uh, when they dropped the first one, in fact, we were operating right off the coast of Japan. And we left and went to sea. And we'd been doing that about every four or five days. We'd go in. And, uh, we were going almost full speed all the time, and, uh, doing a lot of bombing and, uh -- and that sort of thing. And, uh, we would need supplies and whatever and we'd go back to sea every four or five days or so and -- and refuel. Because we were fueling destroyers on the way too. And supplies and that 33:00sort of thing. And we'd go back in again. And we'd have four, or five, six more days of heavy fighting and go back out again. So, it wasn't time for us to go and all of a sudden, we went out. And we said, "What in the world's going on?" And nobody knew, of course. And then we heard they had dropped this first bomb. And I guess, because of the first time for something that great, they didn't know what effect it might have on us too. Uh, it -- and, on atomic energy, it depends on which way the b -- wind is blowing, anyway. I mean, you can be several hundred miles at sea and this cloud of energy could go over the top of you and affect you. But I guess they didn't realize at the time how much it would affect it. Uh, we -- we went to sea -- how far, I don't know. And then later they dropped the -- the second one. But I'm trying to remember all of 34:00these things. And my old brain don't [laughter] function like it used to.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Were -- ?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Uh, that's great.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Were you aware, um, of the ship's commander -- when he made the decision to give last rites to the kamikaze pilot and to give him a sea burial?

ERNEST THOMPSON: I'm -- I'm not familiar with any of that -- any of that. I -- I've heard a story on time and it -- it was absolutely untrue. Because if it did, they'd have been a bunch of unhappy people. But where they ordered people to go up and, uh, attend this sort of thing, you know. And --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Hm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And that just didn't happen. That just didn't happen. And I understand that -- that, uh, when they had the Marines up there or something and other, that they fired their rifles or something and one or two of them refused to fire their rifles.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Hm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: So, I don't know. I don't know -- no, I don't remember anything at all about that. Down in engineering spaces we didn't know a whole lot anyway, [laughter] that was going on. Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: You had smoke down in the boilers or something or the -- didn't you, when it -- when it struck?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, when that fire -- yeah, they -- uh, it didn't affect us too much, in No. 4 Boiler Room. It was -- this plane hit aft. And they did -- I understand that, uh, some of the flames went down through -- into the No. 4 Engine Room. And they weren't hurt or anything. They could just s-- they just -- scented them a little bit or something --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- I understand. So, I don't know.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm. Mm-hmm. Were -- were you on board -- I mean, after the surrender, were you back in -- in New York for Navy Day?

ERNEST THOMPSON: No. No.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: You were off --

ERNEST THOMPSON: No. Uh see, I had four years in before World War II, as I said. And, uh, that was -- The war actually started for us in 1939. So, I had 36:00fifteen, sixteen months -- you know, before World War II, in --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- in wartime service. And with the time that I had, I had more than enough -- They, uh, had -- they had a point system. As soon as the War was over with, I had more than enough points to get out of the service. And I had a job back home waiting for me, my family, and everything. So, when the ship got back to, uh, Honolulu, uh, I left the ship. Because, uh, it wasn't stopping on the West Coast. And any of those that lived on the West Coast that was eligible to get off, uh, they put them off in Honolulu, because the ship wasn't stopping on the West Coast. It was going from there on through the Canal and on to Brooklyn --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- or on to New York. And so, I left it in Honolulu. And, uh, I was transferred over, uh, to the, uh, navy yard there and the barracks there. 37:00And I think I only stayed overnight or maybe two nights there. And I went on the Saratoga aircraft carrier back to San Francisco. They had converted it over to a sort of a transport. In fact, I was reading the other day it left -- as soon as the War was over with, it left Honolulu, the 9th of October, with, I think, 3,500, 3,800 service people, to come back to the States. And as soon as it got to Frisco it turned around, went back out there. And I took the second trip on it, from there back into San Francisco.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And then I had to, uh, get on a train from there to come down to Southern California to get paid off. As soon as I got into L.A., why they let me have two days off to go home -- and, uh, told them they were -- returned to 38:00be separated from the service. So that's what happened to me. But it was hectic, real hectic. [laughter]

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Uh, I left Honolulu on the, uh, Saratoga and -- the -- the -- they had c -- uh, they had, uh, converted the hangar deck, you know, with bunks. Those bunks were five or six high, down there on the hangar deck. If a guy fell out of the top bunk, it'd kill him. [laughter] But, uh -- but we had -- uh, we had Army, Navy, Marines, sailors. I was in the chief quarters. They put me in a chief quarters. So, I was fine. And gambling going on all over everywhere.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Hm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: We had a couple of guys that had pet monkeys -- they'd bring it back -- and that kind of stuff, with them. [laughter] Yeah. Yeah. And, uh, it was a lot of -- well, it wasn't a whole lot of fun.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: [laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: But, uh, we managed to, you know --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Hm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: But, uh, we got -- [laughter] we got into Honolulu and three or 39:00four of us, when -- as soon as we got there, three or four of us went ashore. We went to a restaurant there. And we all got a -- uh, a triple order of salad.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: That's all we wanted. Because we hadn't seen anything green for almost a year. [laughter] So that's all we wanted, was salad. So [laughter] got into Honolulu and got that. And then I got aboard ship and went back to Frisco, and as I say. And -- and they transferred me from the ship -- no, no. They -- they transferred us over to a base there first. And then it came -- a while they sent 400 of us and put 400 of us on a train in Oakland and, uh, we were going to transfer us on down to Long Beach. We want on this train a little bit after noon 40:00and we sat there all afternoon on that train. And I was so tired, I went to sleep. I woke up about eight or nine o'clock that night. This fellow and I were sitting in this seat. And I looked outside and I punched my buddy and I said, "You know, we haven't even left here yet." We were still sitting there! [laughter] And they had the train but no -- no locomotives to pull it.

DANIELLA ROMANO: [laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: And so, somebody got ahold of the admiral of the district and they -- after a while they brought some sandwiches over for all of us.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: It was close to midnight before we ever left there. They would -- they would sidetrack -- all along the way, going down to L.A. Anyway, it was midnight the next night before we got into L.A. And, uh, then we got -- they got down. They took us down to the Navy base, around one o'clock in the morning. And the yeomen were all mad, because they got them out of bed to check us in. And 41:00there was a long line of guys there. Because my name is Thompson. I'm way down the end of the line. And so, I could see way up there, about a block away. [laughter] And I -- I said to this guy -- I said, "Hey, you see that desk way up there?" "Yeah." "Uh, when you get up there," I said, "would you wake me up?" And I went up there and climbed up on top of that desk and went to sleep.

DANIELLA ROMANO: [laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: And about six or seven o'clock in the morning, he woke me up. And I got up and checked in. And I left and went home for a couple of days. [laughter] Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah. There was a lot of experiences in those days.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Must have been -- felt good to be out.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, yeah, yeah. I -- of course, you -- you have a lot of friends that you connect with in the service. And, uh, it's -- it's good to be with a group of fellows -- we've got here, you know. But for some reason another, there's not too many from engineering forces. I don't know why. These 42:00-- these guys -- guys were all gunner's mates and -- and boatswain's mates and deck crews and -- You know, uh, there's very few. The -- you don't run into too much, uh, that's in the engineering spaces. But, you know, during the War I run into kids that, uh -- it's surprising, you know, when you go through boot camp and everything -- and on the Tennessee -- And, uh, I run into -- I run into guys that went through boot camp with me and, uh, was on the Tennessee with me -- I run into them and they were lieutenants! I couldn't believe it. I said, "How -- uh, how did you ever do that?" "Uh, I don't know. They needed people." So, they're -- experienced people. And I -- I was getting on the elevator in Brooklyn there and --

[Interview interrupted.]

DANIELLA ROMANO: Oh, gosh. Excuse me.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: That's unexpected. Uh --

ERNEST THOMPSON: And this -- this kid came on. He was a lieutenant, J.G. And he and I was --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Oh, hi, there.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- went through boot camp together. I said, "What in the world are you doing?" He says -- he said, "Hey, what -- what are you doing?"

DANIELLA ROMANO: [inaudible]

ERNEST THOMPSON: And I says -- I tell him. He says --

DANIELLA ROMANO: [inaudible]

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- "Why don't I pull strings to get you on the ship with me?" And I said, "No, no, no, no. Uh, that wouldn't be good for me to be on there, the best buddies, and you're a lieutenant and me an enlisted guy." So. [laughter] And then uh I ran into, uh, a couple other guys on the Tennessee with me. The -- the engineering officer on the Missouri, in fact, uh in the E Division --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- he was an electrician's mate on the Tennessee with me. He was the engineering officer on there. And, uh, then another -- I'll tell you some -- some funny -- uh, there's a lot of funny things happen, you know. But, uh, there -- there was a -- What was his name now? Zimmer. Zimmer was his name 44:00-- last name. He was light heavyweight champion boxer on the Tennessee. And, uh, he was a chief machinist's mate on the Missouri. And when we were in Bayonne, we'd take that South Ferry over to Brooklyn. And Bob Zimmer was his name. And he -- he didn't have any family or anything there and he was out all night long, drinking all night, every night. And, uh, so I met him down at the South Ferry one morning, going back over there. And, uh, we sat down next to each other. And, uh, we got over, uh -- the -- the -- we didn't have a way -- the -- we didn't have the -- We just went in, uh, alongside of a dock, you know, uh, where they threw a little gangway over. Uh, you know, and you didn't have to put guides or ropes or anything, because sailors know better than to [laughter] fool around much. But so, I punched Bob. He was sitting next to me. I said, "Bob, 45:00it's time to -- you know?" And, uh, right upstairs there was the captain of the yard. And he was looking out. And, uh, so we're -- Which, uh, I didn't know. He was walking alongside of me and he was sleepwalking.

DANIELLA ROMANO: [laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: And I got on this little old gangway, uh, and he walked on and walked right off the end of the end of that thing, in the water, in the wintertime. The captain up there's watching all of this. Some Marine stood -- was standing there. He took a boat hook and reached down and -- And that captain put -- raised a runner said, "Bring that man up here!" So later on, I saw Bob and he said, "They gave me rubber hammer test today, [laughter] see if I was all there." And he told the captain he'd been out monkeying around all night. And he told him -- he said, "You stay aboard ship tonight. Don't you go ashore." [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: Ah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Hm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: What's the --?

ERNEST THOMPSON: And --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Uh, what's the rubber hammer test?

ERNEST THOMPSON: [laughter] That's where they hit you to see if you're all there, all your mind is --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Oh.

DANIELLA ROMANO: [laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- is okay. We called it a rubber hammer test.

DANIELLA ROMANO: That's your daughter.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm. Hey! How are you doing?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Uh I brought my dog with me.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Hey!

DANIELLA ROMANO: I had no choice. [inaudible]

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: You're not done yet, are you?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Say again?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Are you done, or not?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Hey!

DANIELLA ROMANO: Um --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: How are you doing?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Almost.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Okay.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Whatever. You --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We just wanted to --

ERNEST THOMPSON: You've got more --?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- [inaudible] -- We can get out of here.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: That's your new cleaner. We tried it out on the way over.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Oh, good! Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It works.

ERNEST THOMPSON: I need that.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It works.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Good!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay. And we can leave.

ERNEST THOMPSON: That looks like it's the right length, too.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: You can stay and listen too, if you like.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We have to keep our mouths shut, right?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We will.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Have a seat.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: See --

ERNEST THOMPSON: She -- she had two little dogs. She just lost one a while back. And she's got another one.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Mm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Hey!

ERNEST THOMPSON: She got this one out of the pound, hon --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Oh!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: What --?

DANIELLA ROMANO: You ought to --

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- your rescued doggie. [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: You can't tell, the looks of him.

ERNEST THOMPSON: But then another one, you know, uh the -- uh, it's unbelievable. Sometimes things happen. But, uh, you have to realize that, in wartimes, there's a lot of -- there's a shortage of everything. And sailors are pretty good at coming up with things to use and what have you, in that kind of condition. But the kids in our boiler room, they wanted a hotplate. You couldn't buy them. And so, somehow another, through the, uh, ship fillers, and, uh, aboard ship, they got a little stainless steel plate. And they went up to the, uh, medics and got some plaster of Paris. And they made a mold and -- and formed 48:00this stuff for coils. Then they got some stainless wire from the electricians and wound some coils to put in there. They put this stainless [laughter] plate over it. And they made them a little hotplate! And they would -- they would bum bacon and eggs. And, uh, when we would bring supplies aboard ship, we always had to furnish kids to the working party to bring supplies aboard ship. And, uh, these kids would always make sure we'd get a crate of eggs down in the boiler room, things we weren't supposed to have. And they wouldn't allow you to have things like that in a boiler room. So, what they'd do is they'd take the rag can, take all the rags out, put the eggs in there, put the rags over the top, so, if they'd pull the lid up, they'd just see nothing but rags. So, they would put those down there in the boiler room. And, uh, so at night they would make sandwiches.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm!

ERNEST THOMPSON: And one night they were frying some bacon and making these -- these egg -- egg and bacon sandwiches. And Commander Maxwell, our engineering officer, had the watch, about two or three o'clock in the morning. And the first thing I know, he was standing right alongside of me. And he called me Thompson. He said, "Thompson, I'd like to have a sandwich." I said, "Commander, we're not allowed to have any of that in a boiler room." And he said, "Thompson, that woke me up up in my room up there," and he said, "I followed it all the way down here." [laughter] I said, "Well, okay, you've caught us." So, I told the kid to go down and make him a sandwich. And he made him a sandwich and brought him a cup of coffee. And he stood there and ate it. And when he left he said, "You guys have got to be a little bit more careful than this." I said, "Yes, sir." He went on. But Commander Maxwell had came up through the ranks, so he understood, 50:00you know. He -- If he'd have been from the Academy, they'd have hung us higher than a kite! But he was from the ranks, so he was okay.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And he ca -- he went on and he made captain and went to the Bureau of Ships in uh Washington, D.C. And later I understand he made rear admiral and they sent him to Russia or someplace for, uh, ambassador or something --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- Commander Maxwell, very, very nice man, wonderful man, yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm. Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: What was the job waiting for you after you completed your service?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well, as I say, I was working for the city of L.A., in electrical generation.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And, uh, so I went back to that. And we were expanding very fast, in those days. And, uh, I took examination or promoted up. And I became a shift supervisor over the whole plant, in, uh, ten years. And, uh, I had that 51:00for six years. And they were starting on the other plant. And the, uh, head of our plant there, the manager, said he was going down to this other plant. And because of my experience in the Navy and as well as in the boiler shops, he wanted me to become maintenance supervisor of this other station. And, uh, I was happy where I was. And so, they were giving an examination for it. I said, "Well, I'll take the exam. I won't even study for it." So, I took the exam. And I came out number three on the list.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Wow!

ERNEST THOMPSON: And the number one man was uh a good friend of mine that was on the superintendent's list. So, they called him for that. So that left two of us. And when they interviewed us, they took me instead of the other guy. And, uh, 52:00they didn't want him anyway. But they did -- they did, uh, promote him to shift supervisor. And -- and I became maintenance supervisor. And I was there for twenty-three years. I had all of the crafts and, uh, about thirty-five men. And, uh, I did that for twenty-three years. And I was there thirty-eight and a half years when I retired. Been a real good retirement too.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm.

ERNEST THOMPSON: I've been able to travel all over everywhere with my family and everything. And, uh, I got a good deal. Uh, my nephew over there is here, first -- What is it, about the second time you've been here, David? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, he was in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, with us. Three or four years ago? Yeah. And I have a daughter and two grandchildren. And now I've got a -- three -- three -- 53:00There's only two here.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Right.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Huh?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Two grandchildren and three great, uh, grandchildren.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And you live in Gardena now?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Can I take your contact information, your address and phone number?

ERNEST THOMPSON: Oh.

DANIELLA ROMANO: It won't be shared. But that's just for my records.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah, okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah.

ERNEST THOMPSON: I live at [address redacted for privacy]

DANIELLA ROMANO: We're going to make a transcript of this recording and I'll send that to you.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Okay.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And I didn't bring any release forms.

ERNEST THOMPSON: [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: I forgot to bring release forms. So, I'll send along a release form too. And you can vet the interview. Do you feel like we missed anything?

ERNEST THOMPSON: No. No. There -- there's a lot of things that went on but --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Like what?

ERNEST THOMPSON: [laughter] I can't remember all of them. Uh, there was a lot went on. But, uh, I had a very good friend -- he was just a kid -- that came to me as a fireman in the boiler room. He lives up there in Pennsylvania. He, uh -- he and his wife were going to come but his wife just had a knee replacement. So, I talked to him. He said, "Ernie, I can't make it." Armino Salvalone [phonetic] is his name. Yeah. Lives right up Pennsylvania, up here. And I had another good -- Donald Anderson, lives in, uh, Minnesota. And -- and I don't know if he's even living anymore. But he -- he belonged to our association for a while but -- But I -- I haven't been in contact with hardly any of them. We -- we had several from North Carolina that was down there with me. But, uh, when we got ready to 55:00get under way on the ship, uh, we just kind of readied them by our bootstraps. Uh, we -- as I say, we were very short of per -- first personnel, of the training and everything. We just sat down and rated them, right across the board, the second class, third class, and what have you -- and, uh, fortunate it worked out all right, yeah. Mm-hmm. That's about it. [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: Any more questions, Mike?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Uh, I just love you to keep talking but --

[laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: Well --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Uh --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Thank you, so much.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Thank you.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah, Okay. I hope --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Thank you, so much.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Good luck to you. And, uh -- Now, I don't have your, uh -- Do you have a card?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yes. [laughter]

ERNEST THOMPSON: You better give me one then, yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: I have to prove --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Because --

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- my authenticity. Uh wh --

ERNEST THOMPSON: I'll try to get this Navy Yard paper to you, if uh --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Okay.

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- if I can f -- I think I've got it. I'm not sure.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Thank you, very much.

ERNEST THOMPSON: And Mike has something --

DANIELLA ROMANO: And --

ERNEST THOMPSON: -- he'll send you a copy of too.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: I'll be sending you the transcript. So, I'll be following up on that --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- as well.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah --

DANIELLA ROMANO: And Mike and I are --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: -- we've got stuff.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- in touch.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: I would also like to take a photograph of you.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Okay!

DANIELLA ROMANO: Got to have a visual document with the audio. Uh, where are my cards? Excuse --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Thank you for this, hon.

DANIELLA ROMANO: [laughter]

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We had to walk about six blocks to get it, in the heat and the humidity and [laughter] --

ERNEST THOMPSON: It's not humid is it?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We had to walk past --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Here's a pen.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm. There's --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- the Wisconsin to get it.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Did you?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Just about.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We saw the Wisconsin while we were on our way there.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We saw it, yeah.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Oh. Okay. Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: So, what is this --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Thank you!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- this interview for, just out of curiosity?

DANIELLA ROMANO: We're opening -- Well, I run --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh! OK.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- uh, I'm the director of the archive at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: It's -- was decommissioned in '66 --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah?

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- and so we purchased the site.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: It's been operated --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Uh-huh.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- as an industrial park ever since by a not-for-profit --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Right.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- development corporation. Um, and I run the archive, which is 57:00the --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Most of the materials are maps and plans --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- of the physical site. But we're also collecting --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- [inaudible] postcards --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah!

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- stereoscope cards --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- illustrated newspapers. The Brooklyn Navy Yard dates back to 1801.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And before that, even, it was the site of the British prison ships during the Revolutionary War.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Really?

DANIELLA ROMANO: So, we're collecting an incredible amount of historical documentation.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Hm!

DANIELLA ROMANO: And we're opening up an exhibition and visitor center. We break ground on it later, this October.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And that'll open and --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: I read about your place in the Navy History -- Naval History magazine --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- at one point.

DANIELLA ROMANO: In the --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Because I read that mag. And -- and, uh, that was interesting.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Well, I'm going to have to send an update.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: I can't remember which issue it was.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Was it the Historic Naval Ships Association --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: I think it was.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- Eco Watch?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: But they -- they have --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: There's -- or there's a -- a naval -- there -- on the very last page of the History magazine there's a -- a museum -- uh, present in every -- every issue. And that's where I think I read about it.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Okay.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Well --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Well, I've got to send out a lot of updates, [laughter] 58:00actually. We've come a long way --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: You should.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- since that article.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: I mean, I like to see that --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- in there.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Two years. Yeah. The Navy's donated us the anchor of the USS Austin, which was one of the last ships built at the Yard. That's on its way up soon --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh, that's cool!

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- from Texas. We're actually going to incorporate it into the building.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: So that's -- so we want to write an article about that, because it's pretty --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Well -- when did the yard close, again?

DANIELLA ROMANO: '66.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: '66.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Now did they just build a cruise terminal around that area?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Red Hook.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Red Hook!

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah!

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- Red Hook.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It's --

DANIELLA ROMANO: It's down -- down a little ways --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Down a little ways?

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- towards the Verrazano Bridge.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: That's where Princess goes into now.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Is that right?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Mm-hmm.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah. My hus --

DANIELLA ROMANO: The QM2. Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: My husband and I are going to be coming through there, the end of October.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Well, call me.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Uh well --

ERNEST THOMPSON: In Brooklyn?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Come out --

ERNEST THOMPSON: In Brooklyn?

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- to the Navy Yard.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: I would love to do that.

DANIELLA ROMANO: I'd love to give you a tour --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We'd love to see it.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- show you what's going on now.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Because we have --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- nothing to do in New York, right now.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Uh --

DANIELLA ROMANO: It's a whole -- we're in a real period of revitalization at the Yard, actually.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh, that -- Oh.

DANIELLA ROMANO: We're um expanding, ten new buildings. We have 240 tenants --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- who lease space from --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- the development corporation, all industrial businesses and light manufacturing.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And we're building ten new buildings, because there's a real demand for industrial space --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- in New York City, right now.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: We've lost so much industrial zoning --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- to commercial and residential.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Right.

DANIELLA ROMANO: So, people are really coming into the Navy Yard. And all of our buildings going up are LEED certified.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: So, LEED stands for --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- Leadership in Environmental and uh --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah. It'd be Silver or Gold or Platinum.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Exactly!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: And LEED. Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Exactly.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Know what that is.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah. So, we're --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- we're becoming a model for sustainable industrial parks.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: That's good!

DANIELLA ROMANO: And now here's our photogra -- uh, photo op.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Hello?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Oh.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Are you still recording?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yes!

DANIELLA ROMANO: That's great. [laughter]

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Um, [inaudible] a hotel on the fourth floor. Uh --

ERNEST THOMPSON: You want me up or down?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: [inaudible] kind of thing has --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Stay there.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- an interview with Roddy McCain. So, we're working on -- no, we're done -- we're just about finished.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah, we're on the tenth floor.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- one more, close up. Thank you, so much. This is great. I'm 60:00trying to get the sun out of the shot, though.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: We need a picture --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh, okay.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: -- of your boat too.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah, okay. Good. Here, let's see.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: All right. I'm sorry to [laughter] keep moving around.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Uh --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh, yeah?

DANIELLA ROMANO: I'm trying to get the sun out.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: And where is he now?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Would you, please? Oh, thanks.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It's going --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh, okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Going to be both of us?

DANIELLA ROMANO: It's a big wide angle.

ERNEST THOMPSON: [laughter]

MIKE WEIDENBACH: You need to get --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Is that good?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: -- closer.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Closer.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: That's good. And ready? Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Good?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Let me do one too.

DANIELLA ROMANO: OK. [laughter]

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We're going to have to --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Actually, could you --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- do that today.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- do one of all three of us? Oh, okay.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Are you doing those calls now? Oh, okay.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yours?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Okay. Uh --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yours -- you've got --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: All right.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- a professional camera. I've got a really nice consumer camera.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Well, uh, I just can't see those little windows. So, I had to get one that's like an old fashioned camera.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Uh -- [laughter] What's your name?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Like Steve said, he --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Louis. Louis.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Louis?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Louis.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Hi, Louis!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: We can come in too?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Oh, sure!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Mm-hmm.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Okay.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Howe are you, Louis? Did you fly or did you drive?

DANIELLA ROMANO: He flew!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Under the seat, behind you?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: I can --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It's the sun.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah. Uh --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Uh here. How are you?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It's the sun.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Are you a good boy, Louis?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay. Say cheese!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Good doggie-wog.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Cheese!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: And we get another one --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yes, a doggie-wog.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- of this angle.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: You're with Mommy. You go everywhere with Mommy!

DANIELLA ROMANO: [laughter] Uh-huh-huh. Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: See, I can get Mommy to smile for a picture.

DANIELLA ROMANO: I need him! Yeah, I love --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Want me to take one of you?

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- this dog!

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah, take one of me.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: [laughter]

DANIELLA ROMANO: So much. He's my buddy.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Okay.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Simple?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Uh --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Hi, Louis! Louie, Louie. Hi, Louie, Louie.

[laughter]

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Uh, probably not doing it right.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Love the ears.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: You should hear it.

DANIELLA ROMANO: I know! [laughter]

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Have to get --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Mm!

DANIELLA ROMANO: And he makes great sound.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: And I'm not --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Is he okay to be picked up?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- pushing this.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah. You push that little thing --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: -- and it should focus.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Now, if you're not --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Oh, is it on?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Aren't you --? Oh!

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Might not be on.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: What a body!

ERNEST THOMPSON: [laughter]

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: This is showing.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: You've got a good body on you, Louis.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Uh yeah. Hold on.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah. You?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: You've got a good body on you.

DANIELLA ROMANO: [laughter]

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: You like your belly pa--?

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Oh, uh you can't --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Oh, yes, that's -- nice.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: There you go.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: And, yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: You can just grab him --

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Turn it on.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- and pick him up. [laughter]

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Okay, he's okay with being picked up --?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh, yeah, now it's good.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Sure.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It's on.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Aww. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: There you go.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Great.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: You look like -- uh, smaller than my dog.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It's good.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Thank you, so much.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Sure thing.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Okay.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Do you have a card?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Thank you, so much.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Thank you. Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: This is --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Thank you.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- wonderful!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Can I get your card, just --?

DANIELLA ROMANO: Yes, yes!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Hey, you.

DANIELLA ROMANO: S--

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Louie, Louie.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Hey! How you doing?

ERNEST THOMPSON: There -- there's -- Doesn't it --? Uh, what's going on in the Navy Yard now?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Thank you.

ERNEST THOMPSON: I know they done away with the Navy yard but --

DANIELLA ROMANO: Right. A lot of industrial businesses. We do have, um, two tenants who actually still do work for the military. One is Crye Associates.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Okay. Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: They develop, um, customized armament --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: I left him a personal packet for the --

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- for the Special Forces --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah, yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- so Navy SEALs --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- and the Marines, the FBI.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We could meet in the lobby. Or if you want, we can --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: And now we've got a new tenant --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: [inaudible] Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- coming in, Atair.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah. [inaudible] --

DANIELLA ROMANO: And they do --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Got it.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- parachutes, out of some --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Use the -- use the restroom, get the --

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- material that'll make a military --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- get the water bottle -- and breaking up --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Yeah.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- develop [laughter] --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah. She said something about, uh, the hotel.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Uh, but otherwise we've got, uh --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: They were over at the Wisconsin.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- food manufacturing --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: How many --?

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- Sweet'N'Low --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Unh-huh.

MIKE WEIDENBACH: Okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- Sugar in the Raw.

ERNEST THOMPSON: Oh, okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Butter Buds --

ERNEST THOMPSON: Okay, okay. okay.

DANIELLA ROMANO: -- manufactured in New York.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Well, you could call right back.

DANIELLA ROMANO: Film studios, lots of small artisans, craftspeople, woodworkers, metal fabricators, what else? Ship repair, there are three of the dry docks are still in active use. The two World War II dry docks and our dry dock one which is the third oldest in the [inaudible] it's been in continuous use since it was completed in 1851.