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Thanks to the support and contributions of the crew of the USS Bergall

This Bergall site was created to honor the men who served on the USS Bergall.   Both the diesel and nuclear boats served our nation with pride, dedication and perseverance.   Through the contributions of the crew members, to date, this site has grown and many dates and memories of her times are coming together.  I wish to extend my most heartfelt thanks to the crew and others that have aided in the gathering of photos, memories and support.

My efforts are dedicated to those men and my father, Maynard 'Arlie' Brood, ET3, '46-'48, USS Bergall, SS 320.  My dad had explained that the new "Navy" wasn't like when he was in and the nukes didn't have all of the port liberties of the old diesel's.  I flipped a coin and joined the Air Farce.  Good training but I still wonder about the coin toss!  After his death, I decided to build a desk model of the Bergall in her '46 trim.  After lots of research and not being able to find the correct info, I started bugging the crew that I could find, that served on her.   As the information and support came in, I soon found that there was enough info to save somewhere.   But where?   I decided a web site would be a nice place to share the info with the crew and family. There aren't all the bells and whistles of some other sites but the information is as accurate as I can show.

In '48 she went down on a trim dive with her induction hatch open... My father was on her... not all that knowledgeable in real emergency situations, I guess... it scared the heck out of him... He wrote his mom and dad a letter saying how close to death it REALLY was...   The induction hatch is a 36" hatch (3 foot!), behind the sail that is opened on the surface to get air to the engines and ventilate the boat.   You don't want your boat going down with a 3 foot hull opening unsecured!  Later he found out that it wasn't a REAL problem, boats are designed to have enough safety measures to take care of it and survive... J. J. Ott remembered the event and said it was 'the duty' of qualified sailors to put a look of horror on their face and whisper..."We're gonna die!"  I guess it was always the duty as a qualified submariner to "ping" the newbies..... and still is!

Arlie learned to play the guitar on the Bergall, along with a sub buddy, by watching a Burl Ives movie, "Smokey".  They would play along Burl as he sang and played, rewind it and play along again.   At one point he said the COB (Frank Vodopich) mentioned, "If I hear that movie and those guitars one more time I'm going to shove those guitars up your ass!!!   I don't think the COB would have done it though, 'cause Arlie said they played that film until it darned near self-destructed.   Arlie continued to play and later made friends with "Montana Slim" (Wilf Carter), the famous country music musician.   While some homes had a piano... we had dad and his guitar to listen to and sing along with.   Dad stretched the limits when he took up the violin... mom said she never knew an instrument could hold so many sour notes!   He stayed with the guitar.

Maynard Arlie (Smokey) Brood, 11/19/1927 - 6/8/1991
(Sailor, rest your oars and thanks for being my dad.)

And thanks for showing us... um... er... submariner humility... hee...hee..hee...
(This is "classic" Arlie and part of why we loved him!)


A Dad's Lesson And A Son's Memory
by Steve Brood, youngest son, from 1999

When we had dad's funeral, we went to a place above Mack's Inn in Island Park (Henry's Fork of the Snake River in eastern Idaho).    Mack's Inn was a lovely, extremely LARGE log cabin style Inn.   It's gone now, it burned to the ground about 6 yrs ago (1993).  Anyway, it was in this area of the river that dad taught me to Fly Fish in 1980.

On the day he taught me to fly fish, I caught more fish then dad did. (for the one and only time in my life) I couldn't figure out why, he was getting more hits then I was but he just kept losing them. I fell in love with fly fishing on that day.

Later, as I was putting away the equipment (Dad's rule was, "He who catches the most must put away the stuff and clean the fish.") (this rule changed the next time to, "The one who caught the least...", and it stayed that way) (Go figure), I noticed something was wrong.   I couldn't figure out what it was but I knew there was something.   I never fished again with dad and caught more fish than he did.   Nor, do I think, did any of his other kids.   As you know, he was damn good at a lot of things and he was very good at catching fish, too.

Have you ever seen something that seems so unimportant at the time, but it seems to burn the image into your mind?  And later, you wonder why that image seems so clear?   I told everyone at the funeral that dad had said we would return to that river and we would spend another day together, and this time he would beat me in fishing that piece of water. (We never did fish there again.)

About three years ago (1996) I was fishing a little lake in Montana, with my girls.   They were bait fishing and I was fly fishing.   As a fish would rise I would cast a little Black Ant into the dimple mark and I would get a strike.   Within a few seconds one of the girls would get a strike, so then I would have to try to fight my fish and help them reel in their fish.   It was pretty frustrating for them because they were losing quite a few fish.

After about 4 fish being hooked and lost I thought if my getting a hit would cause a fish to strike the girls hooks I would cut the hook end off of the fly I was using and just not hook my fish, and be able to help the girls in the effort.  I would cast as before, near where my girls bait was laying and be able to help the girls catch and land their fish.   We spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening fishing in this manner.   Each of the girls caught their limits of fish even though we let a lot go.   We all had a great time.

Then, later, as I was putting away the equipment I saw a fly with no hook and thought I need to change that fly, and then it hit me. This wasn't the 'Black Ant'... this was a 'Black Fly'. Dad had cut the hook off of the black fly he was using on that day 16 years earlier.   I guess what goes around does come around.

I've never replaced that 'Black Fly' and it always goes fishin' with me.
 

 

A poem for the Bergall in my own small way (Mike Brood)

 

Brief Navy career of Arlie Brood...

11-19-1927...Born in White River, South Dakota to Gilbert F. Brood and Mabel L. Walker.

07-31-1945...Preliminary application into the Class V-5 Naval Aviation Preparatory Program of the US Naval Reserve as apprentice Seaman accepted. Was to report on 08-09-1945 in Portland, Ore. Letter was dated 07-31-1945. Unknown if received before enlistment USN.   (Arlie joined to be an aviator and kick some enemy butt!)

08-01-1945... Travel papers signed for transportation from Medford to Portland USNR Station.

08-02-1945...Application accepted by the U S Navy.

08-08-1945...Signed papers enlisting in the U.S. Naval Air Corps at age of 17yrs 9mos.

08-14-1945...V-J DAY Japan surrenders !!!   (The Japanese must have heard that Arlie was going to be an aviator!)

08-18-1945...Pre-enlistment and final physical examination, Medford Or.

08-20-1945...Left Medford for Portland Recruiting Station to complete enlistment.

08-22-1945...Entry into active service # 784 90 95 NRS Medford Rating: AS
(The Navy no longer needed aviators and Arlie took the next demanding job available, he requested sub duty.)

11-05-1945...Navy Training Center, San Diego Rating: S2 ETM

12-01-1946... Assigned to USS Bergall Rating: S1 ETM

05-??-1947...Received letter of appreciation for all that served, signed by Harry S. Truman.

05-29-1947...A letter from J. F. Jones Executive Officer USS Bergall.
To whom it may Concern: M.A. Brood was allowed to send home the following souvenirs: 1. Japanese rifle ser # 22997, 1. Japanese bayonet Ser # 557560 (disposition of souvenirs unknown).

04-02-1948...USS Bergall...Rating: ETSN

06-30-1948...USS Bergall...Rating: ET3

10-31-1948...Ordered to inactive duty

11-01-1948...Honorable Discharge

Rate: Electronics Technician 3rd class (ET3), USN

Rank: E-3

Ratings: AS,S2,S1,ETSN,ET3

Net Service 3 yrs 2 mos 10 days

Service Schools:
EM. School...8 weeks
S/M School...8 weeks

Vessels and Stations of Service:
USNTC (United States Naval Training Center), San Diego Calif.
Submarine Base New London Conn.
U.S.S. Bergall, SS 320, F.T.C. Pearl Harbor T.H.

Medals:
World War II Victory Medal
American Theater Medal
Good Conduct Medal

12-28-1950...Ordered back to active duty. Ordered to report to US Naval Receiving Station, Treasure Island, San Francisco on 02-15-1951. (The Korean Conflict was developing.)

01-13-1951... Orders to report cancelled. Reason: Dependency - W3DC (persons with 3 or more dependents are exempt)

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