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J. B. Miller FT3, served on the USS Daly DD519 from 1952-1954. He presently resides in North Dakota. In the summer of 1967, I bought a new pop-up camper, hitched it to my new "67 Chevy. The wife and I packed up the kids and then left Grand Forks, North Dakota for Richmond, VA. We were on our way to visit with my old Navy buddies, Tiff "Gaylord" Graham. We arrived safely in Richmond and set up camp in the front yard of Tiff’s residence. The neighbours welcomed us and did not seem to mind. During our stay we did the usual tourist things such as a visit to Washington, DC, a trip to the Eastern Shore. These attractions were a far cry from the frozen tundra of our home state. On our trip to Virginia Beach, we went by way of the Norfolk Naval Base. As we crossed a bridge near the base I could see a fleet of Tin Cans in mothballs. After our crossing we pulled into a parking area and stopped. Tiff had a pair of binoculars and scanned the ships. Suddenly there was a “whoop and a holler’ from Tiff. “Look JB”, he said. There she is the, 519 !” We were both excited and could not believe that we just happened upon the Daly as we did. We drove around the area, which was fenced in until we found a gate opening and a sailor on guard. There was a sign clearly posted, ”NO Trespassing”. We asked if we could walk through and look at the ships in mothballs. We were refused entry of course. Tiff, forward as always would not accept that reply and asked the sailor to call his boss. A few minutes later a chief drove up to the gate in a jeep. We told him that we were on the Daly in Korea and sailed her around the world. Tiff in his polite southern drawl told the chief we had come all the way from North Dakota to see the ship. The Chief politely said, “hop in” and we piled into the jeep. It was a tight fit but it was only a short ride. The chief escorted us directly to the ship and we were able to walk on board. The entire ship was sealed and we had no access to any of the compartments but there we were on the deck of the old 519. What a thrill as the memories returned. Although the ship was not decommissioned until late 1960, many others had served on her after our tour, but we were probably the last crew members to walk her decks. The ship was eventually sold for scrap. She is now only a memory to the many who served on her. JB Miller & Tiff Graham |
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