The firing by Battery "I" 59th C.A. and Battery “D" 60th C.A. (A.A.) was the first firing of the Harbor Defenses on the enemy.

"IDAHO"
BATTERY "I", 59TH COAST ARTILLERY

by
Lt. Stockton D. Bruns

This history is written in a prisoner or war camp and is entirely from memory as all records have either been destroyed or lost and this report may contain certain omissions and be in error due to these conditions.

In accordance with orders from Harbor Defenses of Manila and Subic Bays, Corregidor, Philippines Islands, Battery "I" 59th C.A. was created at Ft. Mills, P.I. on or about June 1, 1941.  The organization of the Battery was as follows; Battery Commander, 1st. Lt. Stockton D. Bruns, Executive Officer 2nd Lt. Robert G. Cooper, 1st. Sgt. George Wilkins.  Cadre from Battery "A" 59th C.A. and enlisted men that had come to the Philippines on the boats Republic and Washington arriving on or about April 22nd, l94l and May 5, l94l respectively made up the rest of the battery.  Very few of these men off of these boats were previous service men and a very high percentage had not received their recruit training.  The strength of the battery as organized was two officers and ninety four enlisted men.

For training purposes "A" pit of Battery Geary (4-12" Mortars) was assigned to Battery "I" and M Day assignment was Battery Craighill (4-12" Mortars) at Ft. Hughes, P.I.

As quarters weren't available for Battery "I" at the time of organization, the top floor of the section of Topside Barracks normally assigned to Battery "A" 59th C.A. was turned over to Battery "I" and men were rationed with Battery "C" and "F" 59th C.A.

On or about October 20, l94l orders were received changing tactical assignment of Battery "I" to the A.A. Defenses for tactical employment.  The Battery was equipped with four three inch, mobile, M-3, Anti-Aircraft guns; one T8-E3 Director; one T-2 Height Finder and one power Plant.  The new location of Battery "I" was to be on the eastern end of Ft. Hughes and in accordance with this change, one officer and approximately thirty three enlisted men were moved to Ft. Hughes to load gun equipment and prepare gun, height finder and director positions.  On or about November 30, l94l the rest of the battery and battery equipment were moved to Ft. Hughes.  Guns, director, and height finder positions in the meantime had been surveyed and equipment moved in to these positions, set up, and checked.  Now training and preparation of positions was continued at a far more rapid rate.  All the battery was present except for two men left behind at Ft. Mills who were attending 60th C.A. (A.A.) Height Finder School.  Repairs on barracks at Ft. Hughes hadn't been completed and so men were rationed and quartered with Battery "G" 59th C.A.

Ft Hughes, Corregidor and Bataan (under cloud). 

Training and preparation of battery positions had reached a good stage on declaration of war by Japan on the United States on December 8, l94l.  On this afternoon about 1:18 p.m. Battery “I” fired on three enemy planes that were coming in towards Ft. Mills from the direction of Manila at an altitude of approximately eight thousand feet.  These planes were turned back with thirty four or thirty five rounds of ammunitions expended.  The firing by Battery "I" 59th C.A. and Battery “D" 60th C.A. (A.A.) was the first firing of the Harbor Defenses on the enemy.  This firing did much to relieve the tension and to make everyone realize the necessity of a still higher state of efficiency and training.     Though only one officer and one enlisted man had ever served with an A.A. Regiment, and only six weeks training had been realized, the batteries efficiency and morale was at a high point.

Much valuable time was spent at the beginning of the war on training, maintenance, and police of other armament as Battery "I" was also assigned by the Fort Commander to man Battery Craighill (4-l2" Mortars), Battery Leach (2-6" Disappearing Guns), Battery Fuger (2-3" Rapid Firing Guns), and the beach defense of the eastern end of the Island of Ft. Hughes in case of necessity.

Much valuable time was also spent on Fort duties such as unloading boats, moving powder and projectiles, tearing down buildings for wood and tin, and many other necessary duties.

The number of men on Ft. Hughes was limited and time or need of any or all armament unknown.  This situation was eventually relieved by the Marine, Navy, and Army personnel that arrived at Ft. Hughes.  On January 1, 1942 a detachment or U.S. Marines were sent to Ft. Hughes. One platoon of one officer and twenty-six enlisted men were attached to Battery "I".  This Marine platoon and their equipment (4-Navy, 5O Calibre water cooled, A.A. Machine gums) were used to replace men of Bat­tery "I”, and their equipment (4-30 Calibre water cooled machine guns) of the local defense of Ft. Hughes and Battery "I" against low flying planes. The rest of the Marine personnel not attached to Battery "I” were put in charge of the beach defenses of Ft. Hughes.  This relieved Battery “I” of the responsibilities for the beach defenses of the eastern end of Ft. Hughes.  During February, Navy personnel arrived at Ft. Hughes and assisted in the beach defense.  During January or February Battery "I” was relieved of all responsibility to seacoast armament assigned to it.  On or about April 13, 1942 one officer and about five enlisted men from the 5l5th C.A. and ten men from the 200th C.A. were attached to Battery "I". This helped out considerable in the operation and efficiency of Battery "I".

At the beginning of the war it wasn't uncommon at all for one half of Battery "I" to be on duty away from the Battery position.  When an air-raid was sounded, such men dropped their work and ran from two hundred to four hundred yards to their battery position.  After the alert they resumed their incidental occupations.

Though the added Fort duties and work at the beginning of the war detracted from the rapid strengthening of the gun, director, height-finder, and power plant positions, and the rations were out to one-half on January 6, 1942 and to three-eights on March 1, 1942, barricades around the guns, director, height finder, and power plant were constructed, trenches connecting all positions dug, wells for bathing and washing water dug, latrines constructed, gun cables buried, added communication lines laid, ammunition pits prepared over the battery area, a mess set up and operated, shelters for the coming rainy season built, dummy positions constructed, and the battery area camouflaged.  This was done at a very rapid rate and soon everything was functioning efficiently.

Ft Hughes from the south west

The first shelling of the battery position by the enemy was from the Cavite side on February 6, 1942, and then intermittently from this same side until the end of the war without any casualties or serious materiel damages.  The battery position was first bombed by the enemy on April 10, 1942 without any casualties or serious materiel damages. The first shelling of the battery positions from the Bataan side by the enemy was on April 12, 1942.  This shelling also brought about the first war casualties within Battery "I".  Sgt. Harry Fineman and Alfonso lgnacio (Civilian Filipino Barber) were obtaining drinking water from a lister bag and the first shell fired killed them both.  These were the only men of Battery "I" killed by enemy shell fire though the battery area was subjected to frequent artillery fire during the war.

Only three other men were killed by enemy action, and these by bombs; Pfc. Aubrey L. Collins on April 18, l942, Staff Sergeant John J. Grdgon and Orville Pruschner (200th C.A. attached) on May 6th, l942.  These men were buried on the West side of the parade ground at Ft. Hughes.

After December 8, 1942 the general picture of enemy aerial activities against Ft. Mills and Ft. Hughes was as follows: December 9-28, very little aerial activity and no attacks; December 29th, heavy attacks on Ft. Mills.  December 30- January 1, 1942, aerial activity but no attacks; January 2-6, aerial activity and attacks on Ft. Mills; January 7-13, aerial activity but no attacks; January 14 bombing of Ft. Mills; January 15-March 23 very little aerial activity and no attacks; March 24-April 2, general air reinforcement, aerial activity and attacks increase against Ft. Mills; April 3-9 aerial activity but few attacks against Ft. Mills; April 10-May 6, daily aerial attacks on Ft. Mills and frequent attacks on Ft. Hughes.

On December 29th enemy planes attacked Ft. Mills at an altitude under several thousands yards.  After this date all attacks by enemy bombers were conducted at a much higher altitude; usually from seven thousand eight hundred to eight thousand three hundred yards.  The highest altitude that the enemy bombed from was nine thousand three hundred yards. There were three hundred air-raid alarms sounded at Ft. Mills from December 8, 1941 to May 5, 1942 when the air-raid alarm was shot out.  On May 6, 1942 there were twenty-six bombings conducted by the enemy.

With equipment on hand the enemy planes were not always the target.  The powder train fuze could not reach the desired altitudes and the performance limitations of the old type T8-E3 director hampered quick response to targets, and its maximum altitude setting of eight thousand yards frequently rendered it useless.

After the "3" fixed A.A. Battery at Ft. Drum could no longer use their equipment in mid April 1942 due to heavy enemy aerial and art­illery activity their power plant and M-l Height Finder was sent to Battery "I". This did a great deal to increase the efficiency as the T-2 Height Finder was highly unsatisfactory and the one power plant on hand was the only source of alternating current on Ft. Hughes.

On the morning of May 6, 1942 enemy troops were landing on Ft. Mills and word was received from Col. Valentine P. Foster, the Fort Commander, to concentrate fire in the vicinity of North Point and the Air Field of Ft. Mills.  Two "3" A.A. guns were put in horizontal fire position and Battery “I” opened fire about 5:20 A.M. This firing continued until about 6:15 A.M. with approximately two hundred and ten rounds of ammunition (70 rounds of High explosive and 140 rounds of Shrapnel) expended.  It was reported by the Japanese after landing at Ft. Hughes that they suffered heavy damages and casualties.

Battery “I” was bombed and shelled intermittently the remainder of the day and part of the night.  At about 11:30 p.m. the night of May 6, 1942 Ft. Hughes was subjected to heavy artillery fire and about twelve o'clock midnight the Japanese troops landed and Ft. Hughes was surrendered.

Captain Stockton D. Bruns, the Battery Commander, was wounded by bomb fragments at approximately three p.m. on the afternoon of May 6, 1942 and was admitted to the Fort Hospital at Craighill.

Pfc. George R. Nilhardt,___,___,___,___,___,___, were also wounded by enemy aerial bombs and admitted to Fort Hospital.

Material damages were high the last day of the war; one "3" A.A. gun destroyed, one M-l Height Finder destroyed, telephone communication with Ft. Mills severed early in the morning, Battery communication lines destroyed, gun cables destroyed, and other losses of a minor nature.

Battery “I” was in action against all enemy targets except for three periods when the director was under repair and other times when targets were well above the limits of the director and powder train fuze.

Firing was conducted by carefully prepared precision fire. There was no barrage firing by this battery.  Fire was restricted to six rounds per gun at any one target and any one course as the supply of ammunition was limited.

During the war between two thousand five hundred and three thousand rounds of ammunition were expended with a number of enemy flights broken up and two or more planes downed.

Considering the limited facilities available, the hard tasks, discomforts, and hardships endured and overcome, this battery performed its tasks and missions in a willing and highly efficient manner.

Battery “I” 59th C.A. was surrendered to the Japanese Imperial Army on May 7, 1942 with the garrison of Ft. Hughes.

The following is a roster and the status of each officer and enlisted man of Btry “I” 59th Coast Artillery from December 8, 1941 to May 7, l942.

ADDENDA:

During the search for a missing page of the main history, Al McGrew located the following document which he transcribed "as writted". The document is signed with the initials R.C.H., whom Al believes is Private Richard C. Hanson

The Battery Histories which appear on this website are due to a long line of men,  many whose names will never be known.  These men, at the risk of their lives, wrote them from memory and created the original documents whilst incarcerated in Japanese POW Camps. They then concealed  the documents for the duration.   Not every battery history has survived the war, and their loss is part of the tragic story of Japanese indifference to human life in their custody.  

At the end of the line of these men who have preserved these histories, are George Munson and Al McGrew (himself a POW),  who have enabled us to put them into the public domain.

"The Battery was formed on June 1, 1941 at Ft. Mills. It was assigned too a 12" Mortar Battery "Geary" at Topside. It stay a Mortar Battery until Nov. 5, 1941 an it became a Anti-Aircraft Battery. Attached to the 60th C.A.C. (AA). An Part of the Btry went Ft. Hughes to set up an dig in the (AA) Battery. On Nov. 25, 1941 "I" Battery moved into the field at Ft. Hughes, an went on war time status. On Dec. 8, 1941, War was declared. On Dec. 9, 1941 Fired upon 3 bombers over Manila Bay. The first (AA) to down a plane in the Harbor Defense of Manila and Subic Bay. The war went on. The island was Shelled from the South Shore in the early part of 1942 (Date not known). The island was first bombed on April 9, 1942 by Heavy Bombers. The island was first Shelled from Bataan on April 10, 1942 the first round landed off the shore of "I" Battery area. The first round to land in "I" Battery area land by are water bay an  killed Sgt. Fineman, and the Battery barber. On May 6, 1942 "I" Battery fired horizontal fire at Ft. Mills at the Land field- the island was shelled and bombed till midnite. And at midnite the Nippon forces arrived on East Beach an made a landing on the shore of the Island. The Battery had went out of action at 12:00 noon May 6, 1942. "I" Battery fired the last battery to fire AA in the Harbor defenses of Manila Bay"

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