LETTER TO STANSFIELD TURNER FROM JOHN F. BLAKE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP05T00644R000601810009-0
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 19
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 23, 2009
• Sequence Number: 9
• Publication Date: August 22, 1980
• Content Type: LETTER

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Association of
Former
6723 WHITTIER AVENUE, SUITE 30:9
IoW LLr11~, YrrlVnvrr%& rVr
Intelligence PHONE [phone]
,,Officers
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
David Atlee Phillips (Chairman)
LTG Marshall S. Carter, USA Rot.
George L. Cary
William J. Casey
Gen Robert E. Cushrren, Jr., USMC Rot.
VADM Frederick J. Harlfinger, II, USN Rat.
Donald G. Huefner
Derek A. Lee
The Honorable Clare Boothe Luce
The Honorable John M. Maury
LTG W. Ray Peers, USA Rat.
Donald W. Perry
Stanton V. Phillips
Walter Pforzhelmer
Mrs. Anita A. Potocki
GEN Richard G. Stilwell, USA Rat.
Dr. Louis Tordelle
John S. Warner
MajGen Harold E. Watson, USAF Rat.
LTG Samuel V. Wilson, USA Rat.
ADVISORY COUNCIL
COL Robert C. Roth, USA Rat. (Chairman)
Joseph L. Burke
Ma) Harold H. Callahan
Col James F. Clark, Jr., USAF Pet.
J. William Grady
Samuel Halpern
Robert G. Kunkel
Col Benjamin B. Manchester, III, USMC Rot.
OFFICERS
John F. Blake
President
CAPT Richard W. Bates, USN Rat.
Vice President
Mrs. Charlotte P. Engrav
Secretary
Robert J. Novak
Treasurer
John S. Warner
Legal Advisor
Mrs. Susan G. Barton
Executive Assistant
COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN
VADM F. J. Harifinger, 11, USN Rot.
Membership
Angus M. Thuermer
Public Affairs
John S. Warner
Legislation
Douglas S. Blaufarb
Publication
Robert J. Novak
Finance
LTG John J. Davis, USA Rot.
National Convention
REGIONAL COORDINATORS
Col George R. Weinbrenner, USAF Bet.
Central
Stanton V. Phillips
Southeast
COL Carl F. Eifler, AUS Rat.
West
STATE CHAIRMEN
Lee E. Echols
California
Gerald W. Davis
Florida
22 August 1980
Admiral Stansfield Turner, USN Rtd.
Director of Central Intelligence
Washington, D. C. 20505
From time to time AFIO members will send us various
kinds of material which, in light of our mission, is not very
relevant. The enclosure represents a document meeting the
above definition.
In closing, many thanks for your kind letter of 19 August
As I read through it one night the thought crossed my
mind that you might enjoy having it for your personal library.
You may be quite familiar with the incident but it was new to
me and I found it quite fascinating.
There is one particular episode to which I would draw your
attention and I have marked the appropriate page with a
I paperclip. All I can deduce from it is that the U. S. Navy was
involved in clandestinity about a century and a half before the
CIA was a fact of life. You may have a vignette here worthy of
being worked into a speech before an appropriate group.
Sincerely,
John F. Blake
resident
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vs o
Sergeant Clendenon Newell
American Legion Post Number One
399 Broad Ave. ; Leonia; New Jersey 07605:
FIRST I
IN NEW JE
CHARTE
JULY 14,
CREW OF THE U.S.S. INTREPID
SEPTE14 ER 4, 1804
OFFICERS
CAPTIAN RICHARD SOMERS
LIEUTENANT HENRY WADSWORTH
LIEUTENANT JOSEPH ISREAL
From U.S.S. Constitution
William Harrison
,Robert Clark
Hugh McCormick
Jacob Williams
Peter Penner
Isaac Downs
From U.S.S. Nautilus
James Simmons
Thomas Toapline
James Harris
William Keith
SOURCE: Commander Spear
Historian U.S.S. Constitution
U. S. Navy Museum
Washington, D.C.
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Sergeant Clendenon Newell
American Legion Post Number One
399 Broad Ave.* Leonia, New Jersey 07605
FIRST PO
IN NEW JERS
CHARTERI
JULY 14. 19
In 1785 our Navy was disbanded. From 1785 to 1794 we had no
Navy at all. Congress authorized the building of six Frigates in
1794, but work was stopped for lack of funds, until 1797 when they
and our most famous ship was lau: Yches, the U.S.S.
CONSTITUTION. At this time in history the United.States had a
treaty with the Government of Tripoli for safe passage through the
Meditterannean Sea. Not happy with the small tribute being paid
by the United States, and the luMe of unprotected American commerce
the Pasha of Tripoli in :C1 d clareu war on the United States.
In answer to this challenge Con odore EDWARD PRESLE in the U.S.S.
CONSTITUTIO& was seat to tl:a M.editterannean in co>Wmand of squadron.
THIS WAS OUR FIRST FOREIGN WART t t
The most daring act cf those days, was the cutting out of
the PHILADELPHIA. This Frigate had gone aground off Tripoli on an
uncharted reef and had been boarded and captured by the Tripoli
Pir*tes. Preble appointed a young Lieutenant' STEPHEN DECATMin
command of the hatch INTREPID to sneak in under the guns of
Tripoli and burn the Philadelphia so that she could not be used
by the Pirates. This Decatur did, against great odds,-'burning
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the hulk and escaping almost untouched under the blazing guns
of the-fort-in the-harbor. Also on board with Decatur was James
Lawrence and Thomas Mcnough.
Further along in the war the INTREPID was chosen again,
because of her shallow draft, to sneak into Tripoli harbor again,
and became a floating mine, a fire ship, to destroy and damage
as much of the enemy shipping and gunboats as possible.
Captain Somers volunteered to take the INTREPID in with
Lieutenant WADSWORTH volunteering as second in command. They
asked for volunteers among the men and in an overwhelming response,
ten men were chosen to go with them. Their escape was to be made
in two long boats.
They decided to go in on the night of September 4, 1804,
Conditions were favorable, as it was a dark night, they were to
enter from the Western entrance of the harbor and had an Easterly
breeze. Moments before they left a Lieutenant Joseph ISRAEL went
on board the INTREPID with a message from Commodore Preble, while
on board, he begged to go on the mission, and permission was
granted. This gives 13.men all volunteers, who went into Tripoli
harbor aboard the INTREPID. There was three enemy gunboats guarding
the harbor. This did not stop these men, they went in anyway. The
moment they entered the harbor, they were spotted by the Pirates
and were immediately fired upon.
From here on in weep on theory.
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We do know that at 9:47 p.m. the INTREPID blew up. We
do have eyewitness reports that a light was seen racing across
the deck, like someone carrying a torch running across the deck
seconds before she blew up. It is unlikely the Pirates boarded
the ship and blew her up, because they were badly in need of
ammunition and would have captured the vessel. The most accepted
theory is, that escape became impossible and that the magazine
was intentionally exploded rather than allow the vessel to be
captured. It has always been believed that Somers and his
t, )
companions were capable of this act -- they expressed the
determination not to allow the capture of themselves or the vessel.
All 13 bodies were recovered two days later so mangled
as to make identification impossible...
From the American Legion Magazine we do know that five
graves are duly marked.
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ovisroa in Tripoli, Northki'rica,1?r. near.ty a centurg and a half
I have been
t ieutenant J.C.) ARTH'JT, P. KILLER, ?, U. S. Naval Reserve
sof five American Naval heroes of +h_
e o
was o gun bpr the State Department in 1938. r ter a painstaking search
--??--~ ~-~- ~? -Lrcumstantial evidence collected through hundreds of
rs-iews of descendants of inhabitants ,of the town in 1804, and from other sources
to to the fadt that the bodies xere five f
Sirs were a?ot thine. ff
n
iaers
INTREPID and men who were killed in the explosion. of
?tah 0.8.8. Sep
o tember 4, 1804.
l~ in The graves were found by the A+neriean
ipoli with the help of an Arab harbormaat
f
htvi waahsd ashore ,after thq to i i possibly six which were mentioned
S
g
am,..,
on a one to th-e ait,~,e,vaher?e--t,,e rte, ere
eeovered:'.
V TUTS PROCEED NGS
TRIPOLI CRAVES DISCOVERED
The five bodies were reinterred in the spot where they were di
led cemetery. on the outskirts of Tripoli scovered, a high-
o,-erlook
.Tripoli where her officers and`
lafrom the
1
r
s
men
paid
fi
thi
err arespet these heroes of
7t0rday's Navy before they were lowered into the grounds forthe o
last times their
00.0 now plainly marked.
} location of the five bodies after all these years recalls to mind one
; std tic and heri
f th
h
o
oe c
e
i tars of Ai
mercan nays- hi?tor_,,,yr. officers
h' am The
thirteen
e a ve o - - -
the en sae are is
--~ not known--had bravely met their
atb on a mission which was a calculated i k
ied castle might have been seriously amd the bottom and even the heavily
enraged.
harbor to a Set off amongst the enemy ships.~'Had the dangerous plan worked,,- maireofih to
!!W ships ' would undoubtedly have been t of the
The Tripolitan fleet on that fateful night in 1804. had been anchored close together
the seawall.' The Bashaw' a vastly atom
'ham half .the Ttipolitan flaeta a ano ih4ch, had it been successful,
MW scheme, was a perilous mission in the finest tradition of tae U. S. Navy.
Sodore Edward Preble, who at tha?; time was in
command of th A
em
the !editerranesn, knew the risk as did the gallant man who took part in theon
i re. In addition, there was at lea t
?ntal],y, they had an excellent view of tom. thr~,n into prison, from There,
ound on some unchartered
rrhi],e chasing a smaller ene- ship some months refoae a
capThe tured intact by the enerr and Banbridge and his crew had frllenFinto the
Of f the Tripolitans. They were hence" th
a been captured by the Tripolitan pirates
his ship, the frigate U.S.S. PHIT.1 LPHL
abridge and his officer's and men h d
outside., e the plan and amm ogled his idea to Preble
?tas in Tripoli, a prisoner of the eneone other man r.-ho' knew, a man who at the
ipdore Tilliam Bainbridge who cone 4---A in the Bashstr a castle. He was
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n
==*? in prison, IKinbridgs ..
h ? ee le secret
Drt~'lsh consul in Tripoli. Through Vissen,r Bainbridge sable
in reeulr~r ink and
able to get the confidence of Nicholas Nissen,
d b
r'# 'ouz of prison, ?k 6 4 YG1 D .?aa+ ... ..-- - // //.
IY///
er.socret message written between the lines, in lime juice which was invisible
under the paper by Preble, the message
'
a match was run
hen
naked eqe. '
tely showed up.
e_bad been able to get a message to Preble
id
b
i
B
g
r
s
n
en that
,'+~'sats through Niss the lam of sending a fireship into the harbor laden with high explosives,
plan
ens shi inB. According to the plan, the volunteer
eels to be exploded among ~- pP
c3 which was to man the fire ship should escape out of the harbor in small boats
r~ applying the match to the Train.
nd-run tactic be!cre, and it had paid off
f hit-a
Preble had tried this tape o
? "handsomely in that case. That had been several months previously when another
. 11V%,ntee.? c had sneaked into the harbor in a ketch and burned the PklILAI)E,P1IIA,
th
e ?j+ro--
ndering her useless to
!~tny of the officers and men who lost their lives :hen the Ii T9.EPID exploded
s who had entered the harbor that night to board
t
l
eer
un
rew of vo
brad been a+~ong the c rn the PHILADELPHIA. In a fierce battle, they had climbed over the raillsse
Itt ship, killed most of her enemy crew and burned her to the ^aterline.
leader of that earlier encounter was another early A;nericsn ?'aval Hero, Stephen
Dacatur.
10ow, Preble decided to try these tactics once more, tactics similar to some used
Cy the British and American commandos and raiders in - orld tear II. He put
,kinbridge's?idea into action.
He chbee'athe ketch INTREPID for the mission. The INTP ID had been captured
originally from the Tripolitans in a runnirg engagement in the open sea and had been
converted to an American man-of-r.?ar. Perh.ps Preble thought that'by using a ship
those lines would be familiar to the Tripolitans and by sending her into the harbor
Ott a black night as
ea nftrihedchoserther~I Tan-r~ID and ordered her toe b~i'ittedoout ~,athe
he
fireship. In Get events
incendiary bomb.
A special compartment was built into the hold of the ketch just forward of her
One hundred barrels (i ppro .imr.tely 15,000 pounds of powder in bulk) were
Mlinaast.
placed in the hold. On top of this lethal load, 100 thirteen-inch and nine-inch
*sells were stacked, loaded and fuzed, and ready for action.
A tube .was run from the powder and shells to another comp.:rtncnt aft in the ship.
Inside the tube was laid a train calculated to burn for fiftoen minutes--time for
'the volunteer crew to escape from the doomed ship. The compartment aft.was filled
;.+ combustibles which were to be set afire', in turn setting afire the train.
as thought that the fire in the after compartment would keep any boarders off the
,.ship until it was too late.
. Dieutenant William Somers, captain of the brig USS NAUTILUS, was chosen as the man
!;o guide this fireship or "inferno," as it was then called, into the harbor. Somers
had acquitted fSowitll mersi was buttle
mission, nthetentire crew of the NAUTILUS
V ,'hen they board d that
asked to accompany their captain.
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Somers, however, chose only'^four from his own crew. They were Thomas Topline,
lea Harris, William Xeith and James Simms, all seamen. From the USS CONSTITUTION
! ?chose William Harrison, Robert Clark, Hubh McCormick, Jacob Williams) lPeter
panne and Isaac Coxnea, all seamen.
9 iginally, one other officer besides Somers was to undertake the mission. He was
Li tenant Henry Wadsworth of the CONSTITUTION. At the last minute, however,
Yidahipman Joseph Israel of the CO"STIIUTION came aboard the INTREPID with a message
dare Preble. He pleaded v:ith.Somers to take him along, and Somers finally
ab ai ed. he consent.of the Commodore to allow Israel to join the band as its
t'rteenth member.
Somers impressed upon his crew the seriousness and heavy risk of the venture and
-gave to each and every man the chance to stay behind if he wished. But each of the
teen seamen voiced his determination to go and left their respective ships ?AUTILUS
a CONSTITUTION with a joke on their lips.
"Ijnd bops =," one said according to the diary of a shipmate, "give a good account
=ot us when you get homel"
All 'was now in readiness. A light breeze came up on the evening of September 4
.nd Somers and Preble decided that now was the time to go. At 2000 the INTR ID
weighed anchor and got underway. Two of the fastest rowing boats in the squadron
accompanied her to take off the crew after they had guided the ship into the harbor
and had lighted the combustibles.
Tae ketch as convoyed to the harbor entrance by the brigs USS ARGUS, USS VIXE14
and the NAUTILUS. These vessels then turned back but remained near at hand to watch
,the result and to pick up the rowing boats upon their return.
Fversrthing seemed favorable for the success of the mission except that three
'ripolitan gunboats were seen hovering about the harbor entrance. But the enemy
hips disappeared, and the INTREPID approached in the manner of a friendly merchant-
i bound for an anchorage in the harbor.
It was a dark night, according to the eye-r,itresses, and the INT.=..?ID was soon
lost to sight to most of those who stood :zatching on the eec_-s of the A:::erican ships
outside the harbor. The fireship entered the harbor and drifted slonly tor:ard the
archored ships of var of the Bashaw' s fleet. Several minutes elapsed with no more
no :se than the lap of the waves.
Suddenly, the sound of guns firing could be heard by the men watching from the
;hips outside. Almost instantly a jarring explosi,n reverberated through the
.Harbor and the town and a great blaze of light outlined the INTREPID and the other
Ships in the harbor.
Lieutenant Charles G. Ridgely was intently w aching the spectacle fifth night
glr nses from his vantage point on the deck of the nautilus. Her is his 6escriptton
o. the explosion:
?"For a moment, the flash illumined the whole heavens around, :hile the terrific
oneussion shook everything far and near. .-Then all was hushed again and every object
ailed in a darkness of double gloom. On board the i%*UTILUS, the silence of death
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seemed to pervade the whole 'crew; but, quickly the din of kettle drums', beating to
arms, with the noise of confusion and alarm was heard from the inhabitants on
shore. To aid the escape of the boats, an order was given...to show a light, upon
the a
ppearance of which hundreds of shot, from an equal number of guns,, of heavy
calibre, from the batteries near, came rattling over and around us. But we heeded
them not; one thought and one feeling alone had possession of our souls--the
reservation of Somers and his crew.
"As moment.after moment passel by without bringing with it ther
sd
signal from the boat, the anxiety on board became intense; and themennwith
lighted lanterns hung themselves over the sides of the vessel until their heads
almost touched the Ovate:-- ?~~ t
b'O -31
position in which an object on the surface of the water can be seen
farthest on a dark night--with the.hope of discovering something which could give
us assurance of its (the boat's) safety. still no boat carne, and no signal was
given; and the unwelcome conclusion was at last forced upon us... We lingered on
the spot until broad daylight--though we lingered in vain--in the hope that someone
at least of the number might yet be rescued by us from a floating plant or spar
to tell the-tale of his companions' fate. "'
That the explosion of the Intrepid, described in this vivid passage from
Lieutenant Ridgely's notebook, was premature is certain. There was no blaze of
combustibles preceding the explosion. It was also evident to those waiting out-
side the harbor that there had not been enough time to have allowed the 1-etch
to have reacted her t; rget and exploded on schedule,
The exact manner of the ' erploeion, however, retrains a mystery and will probably
never be ascertained for certain. The sound of the firing is said to have come
from the enemy shore guns. The most widely accepted theor;. Is that one of these
shots from the shore batteries passed through the magazine of the fireship,
the concentration of powder and shells and deton`ti the _ opinion gniting
that the Tri-olit~ tle them. another opiniholds
r aans sighted the American-ship, boarded, her, and that Zomere and
his crew set fire to the train and blew their ship up rather than let it fall into
,the hands of the cnery.
BaSnbridge records that all thirteen of the bodies were recovered following the
explosion, but he gives an account which varies somewhat from the bodies that
were recently found. 3ainbridge,.incidentally, had a_peale3 to the Bashaw to
allow him to view the bodies as soon as he realized that the explosion he heard had
been that of the Intrepid. The Bashaw reluctantly granted permission for Bainbridge
and two of his lieutenants to see the bodies after they had been washed up on
shore.
'Bainbridge states in his dairy that two of the bodies were found in the bottom
of the ketch itself which grounded on the~rochgj at the'-north aide of the western
entrance to the harbor. Another body was found in one of the two boats that had
accompanied the Intrepid anThad later'3rIfted .shore to the westward.
:bur others were discovered floating near the harbor and the six remaining
bodies were found on Xis~baac?to 'tip 'southeast of the town. Thera mould place the
latter group near the site of the present h gF-ira1'~ed~cemet`ery where they were
found.
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abas become of the sixth body or whether Bainbridge actually saw six and not
is sketchy
i
ves
'des lying on the beach is hard to say. The account he g
mentions the number but once.
rautilatpc t>nat it~v ~?83~~~~!._to
ll +s,. b
dies wereso
_
o
d notes dawn that a
dds that the six were taken to the top of the bluff overlooking
x
th
e a
em.
identify
re found and were provided with graves and that "they were
w
h
e
ey
the beach where t
laid to rest with all small honors that could be given them," including a funeral
'service which Bainbridge himself read over the graves.
These facts, except)for the exact number ofthe bodies, which awere
rset downn by
3ainbridge'neariy a, century and a half ago, have been borne
haustive investigation initiated by the Arab harbormaster of Tripoli, Mustafa
ex
.3utchis, and, the American consul in, that city, 14r. 4rray Taft, Jr.
The invest~_____ tito mot mot its start in 1? when, in response to an inquiry
from the American embassy in some concerning the fate of the men of the Intrepid,
Mr. Burchis undertook a meticulous examination of old Jewish records, private Arab
collection of letters, papers, and diaries, and interviewed innumerable descendants
of residents of Tripoli at the-time of the disaster.
The harbormaster set down in detail the results of his investig tions and wrote
a complete report of the matter which was then transmitted to the American embassy
in ?.ome. Unfortunately, however, this report was among ~.mericmn state papers which
were burned by embassy officials in 1041 upon the outbreak of war. The investiga-
tion was revived last year when Mr. Burchis retraced his findings from his original
Totes. Together with Mr. Taft, he was able once more to piece together the story
of the five graves.
"The Intrepid had exploded in a pass located about half way down the length of
the present north breakwater and all the pertinent stories he (Mr. 3urchis) has
heard say that five bodies had drifted up on the beach in front of a cliff," Consul
T `t relatei in s. report to the State Department concerning his research. "From
this beach they were unceremoniously dragged to the cliff and interred in a rough'
pattern. I questioned Mr. Burchis at length as to his belief in the reliability
of his information and could find no flaw in his pattern of investigation,"
Mr. Taft adds.
Mr. Taft and Mr. Burchis, together with the American vice consul, went to the
cemetery , Waned the old Protestant Ceme tw te, r- on the outskirts of the tow ; and
directly above the cliff where Mr.w3urchis sad the bo tes haad. been dragged. Mr.
3urehis then without hesitation picked out five graves located in the northeast
corner.
Subsequent to the burial of the bodies in l804, 11r. 3urchis explained, it
became necessary to establish the old Protestant Cemetery for the burial of
foreigners. Since five Americ'..ns were aire:..dy known to be interred there., a wall
was erected around the plot and the whole ceni--tery was dedicated in a ceremony
which was attended by the then present diplomatic and consular officials, including
those of the United States.
Upon this idantification of the five bodies as being those of five men from
the Intrepid, Mr. Taft sent a telegram to Vice Admiral Forrest P. Sherman, USN,
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~o:..mS,rding the L. S. J?editeranean fleet, stating that he had substantial evides
that thra ~,?~~-^~ :,f five lmerican sailors lost on the Intrepid in 1804 had been
isco,erad. Admiral Sherman irnediatel,- arranged for a visit to Tripoli of z es
idssi
l
ra
a. si. Cruzen, Commanier, Cruiser Division Two. and the Spokane.
Ee five un}rnown sailors who had died so valiantly fighting for their count=
were given final honors in a, colorful cwreranv rttended by many high diplo vatic
military, and government officials.. A band of scottish Camerons planed martial
music as the detachment from the Spok&=e as well as a unit of the 3ritish Lrry
stationed at Tripoli marched the half a mile from the two to the ,grans site.
In short addresses, Bear tdniral Cr=en spoke of the eesly hi.storr of .the ra
and of its exploits during the Barbary `arrs, Cap sin W. s , US co=a
officer of the Spokane, =asrated the Intrepid mission, an Consul Taft told of
research ona ~o 2Gea a graves anc unveiled, the memorial Plaque to the 1 *1
heroesA Lieutenant Z. J. Sheridan, USIA, chaplain of the. po a re3 a &5-F4 :raver, and an honor a'z:,=rd of Marines fired several voleys over the new craves
~u c~ reatin lv enough, Joseph r =? i , the present mayor of Tripoli and
direct descendant of the Joseph a.-gran' i who was 3asht of Tripoli at the tinz
the .arbary wars, attended the ceremony with approximately 50 other guests.
The ;lac ue honoring the five hen wps ple.ce3 in the cemetery on the cliff by
the officers and men of the Spokane. The m ney for the markers was collected
through voluntary contributions. Individual plaques, wn c w e replaced at
a a er 51 a n, Eanen marEers, were ;laced near each crave.
On each of these individual plaques is w. itten: "Here Lies An Un}xown bm_ric
Sailor Lost Tram USS Intrepid in Trinoll Harbor 1304"--a worthy tribute to the
courageous sailors of the lay of yestar*.ar from the sailors of the Davy of
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JCL 13))
Saturday 2 April
tons tore ae.w
00-04 Anchored in Tripoli, Tripolitanii In 23 tathazu of water, sand bottat, with 75 fatt
of chain to-the starboard anchor on following anchorage bearings: Spanish part 214?tj Breakwat
Light 164?t. Bemoan 136?t-j Beacon 092?t. Bailer number 2 is *tesmin for aux=701 some
A is Ream Admiral CRUZ U8Y, CamCruDiw TIC in the U.B.S. SIUMB. 0213 the
orders of the Ccmmanding 0t iosr dated 1 April 1949, serial OLl3J/QL, authorit l U.S. Navy Rai
lations 1920, CODERRS, sI; ALL
798 35 62 10(2 USN; HAGY J.A. 570.9219 BT2 t$SN; PIMP A.L. 258 08 96 8t1 UBN; LUlB o.w. 6~'S
BT3 USN; LOTTS, C.W. 266 81 47 03 09111 P B, J.B.- 216 02 76 1193 USN; HERB, J.E. 610 17 9 CS
SPAULDD G, R.H. 3088339 PFQ U3(C; NENTPR, FJH. 316 8311(2 11814. 0215 Pursuant to the orders
Cam*nding Officer dated 1 April 1949, Seri+l :CL120/QL, authority U.S. Navy Regulations 1948,
0625, LTJG C.R. STARR USN, returned aboard hating completed temporary additional dutyas Shore
Officer at the local and military Police Hsddquartere,,Tripoli. 0315 Pursuant to the orders c
0omsnding Officer dated 1 April 1949, serI4]. CL120/QL, authority U.S. Navy Regulations 1948,
0625 LT R.H. ffi'LBY USN returned aboard having completed tmporary additional duty as the sent
shore patrol officer, pali.
A.Y. HAAZEN, ??
LTJG, U.8.N.
Al as r
A.N. HAZJ, ~1~a?--
LTJG, U.S.N.
""'-12 Anchored as before. 0800 Nustere4 crew at quarters absenteest none. 1000 -The
ceremonial party left the ship for ceremony to honor five American sailors lost in 1804 from t
U.S.B. INTREPID. 1015 Made daily Inspection of magazines and smokeless powder samples; pandit
normal. .
L2..36 Anchored as before. 1225 Ceremonial party-returned-aboard. 1300?Received fresh
provisions for general sees from H. MOHAMMED BEN SAID, Tripolis Tripolitaniaj In ot
ano as to
iuantity by HATARA?, S.H. C80 USN and as to quality by?CROWICX, S. HUZ 714 41 02 14; peas 100
Lettuce 620 lbs, 001 "7 200 lbs, spring Asians 200 lbs, radishes 290 lbs, Irapefrnit 300 lbs,
tarsloy 10 lbs; all fresh articles.
IA-;D Anchored as before.
Anchored as before.
Anchored as before.
We J. MARSHALL. CAPTAIN.
COMMANDING.
EN
If'
TO ?C PORWAROCO OIRCCT TO THE ?RUNCAU OP NAVAL PINOONNCL AT THE END OP EACH MONTH
~i ! 0.1lNN .14 101 GPM I W11-40- on
WTL,t1,
S., 13.8.N.R.
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Nustapha Burchis'_;
Account of His Research Concerning Burial
Place of the American Sailors of th S.S. Intrepid'
(Translated from' Arabic by Shaf4 Ibrahim
(..
A. brat heard In -May 1935 or the five graves of the American sailors rho'
died in the explosion of the "Intrepid."
At the time, Italy ruled MY country and Z wss a "marshal" working .vtth the ', ?? ?r
Tripoli Port Authorities. The rank of "marshal" was-equivalent to 'Sergeant
H.ajor and it was the highest rank a Libyan could get in the Italian Armed
Forces. As head of all Libyans employed at the Port, I had a great deal of
influence and the Italians often used my services in collecting and finding
information.
One day Colonel Carlo Pumo, Port CcrLmander, .called me to his office-
Port Captain 14.ario Battaglieri was also there. The Colonel showed me a message-
No. 13625--received from the Civil and Political Affairs Office of the Tripolitanian
Government informing Colonel Pumo of a telepress ecmmunication No. 212844, dated
April 9, 1938, from the American Embassy in Rome, requesting any available,in-
formation that might lead to the discovery of the whereabouts of the graves of
the American sailors killed in the explosion of the "Intrepid" in 1804. Even
if no information were available, the Embassy agreed to pay for any search made.
? It. seemed to me that the Italian a tbcr ties were not very interested in
the subject, as they V
eat any informatics available making
it clear. . t at.if. any ,work.me~"w3t auecesa tie Italian Port Authorities `an`"li i *
not ensure a gompeneation and that whatever work I did would have to be
_. ~.. ,. .
rep ed to Rome fir at,. and on-n, of n responsibilities.
That day I went.home with big dreams and great ideas. I thought of myself
as the discoverer of a hidden secret, a aecret'of,heroic death. I dreamed that
the American Government wonid tak3 me to America and I would be a great man.
America was a dream to me, a dream of wealth and freedom and now I had my big
chance of having it come true.
I discussed the problem with my family, relatives and friends. They all
thought that I was crazy and sounded the same question, "How can you find'graves
of people who died and were buried in 1804?!' "Yea, bow?" I asked myself and I
had no answer. -'Hoa?aver, ' against everyone's advice I decided to take a chance
and try..-".In this decision, : my wife stood by me and. gave me all encouragement and
help.?For.me this was a chance to make a-dream come true.
The 'driving force behind my decision goes back to the way of life I lived
and was living :at .tlie time 'when I started my search. I ' come from an old Moslem
family that fought Italian colonization' and kept fighting. One of my uncles
vas the present.Kiag Idris' private telephonisw - when the King was our Prince,
that was in 1914. Even-now my uncle's family is known in Cyrenaica as.the
Ali Al-Telephone family. Aging one of the many battles with the Italians,
I was taken prisoner at the age of 12. The Italians took me from Derna to
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Tripoli and put me to work. Ever since December 16, 1914, I have been working
at the Port. I grew up among sailors - Arabs, Italians and.many other nationali-
ties. I could.not get any formal education, I only learned to read and write .
Italian and Arabic - and my Italian, owing to more practice and usell is stronger
than my Arabic. I got my promotions at the Port till I became "mat"ahal". This
gave me authority over Libyans but not Italians - they were the rulers. I
enjoyed my work as harbormaster and I loved the sea and sailors. From sailors
I first heard of a new world, America, where people are free and can become rich
overnight. } mind exaggerated those stories and I imagined myself there; and
that dream grew up with me. It would be exactly what I would do one day, go to
America, become free..and rich.
It was that dream, perhaps my familiarity with the see, that decided me to
find out more about the dead American sailors.-
Besides the fact that those sailors were killed in 1804, in the explosion
of the "Intrepid" in Tripoli harbor, I knew nothing of the subject. Thus my
first logical step was to read about its history in order that my steps might
be guided in finding the secret that bad been hidden for almost one hundred and
fifty years.
The Italian Authorities in Tripoli had many libraries which I visited day
after day, after my work, to read the history of the Barbary Pirates. They all
told almost the same story in few paragraphs. I found that the American
"Intrepid" was ate s nag at co". The
Amer cans used this sailboat for dangerous missions because it c d be easily
mistaken for a Tripolitanian sailboat. As such it was used successfully in
1803, -under the captaincy of Stephen Decatur to enter Tripoli harbor and blow
up the American "Philadelphia" before it could be used by the Pirates. In
1804, the "Intrepid" was sent on a more dangerous mission to'blow up the Tripoli
pirate fleet anchored in the harbor. The "Intrepid", with 13 sailors on board-
exploded for reasons unknown, and what became of its sailors, no book mentioned.
Having saturated myself with the history, I turned my attention to the
problem of getting information about the dead sailors. This took me to the
following possible sources. The first was Suleiman Bey Karamanly who gave as
permission to use his private collection of books, publications and manuscripts.
This collection yielded no information to me because a large number of the publi-
cations were-in Turkish which language I do not know. I was forced to"get
translators who could help me.
The Castle library was of-great interest but yielded no new information.
However, my constant trips to the Castle aroused the interest of an old guard
who in his quiet manner daily inquired about my health and my studies; and in a
longer conversation be accidentally mentioned municipality records and-the
Moslem Property Department records,. saying that tf I wanted any information of
my missing relatives I could find something in those places, not here.
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Follc-4ng U.r. o..d man' a wisdom, I carried my search to those two places.
At the municipality met another Kernmanli who was head and mayor of the Moslem
coo uiity in Libya. He gave me all assistance I needed, but there were no
records that went as far back as 1804. At the offices of the Moslem Property
Department I met the Director Ilmail 1emel, a Libyan historian well informed of
Libyan history and evence, but he knew nothing of the fate of the American sailors.
At this point, I found it interesting -.'' compare the Karamanli family that
I met -,all respectable law-sbiding citizens and leading figures of the.Moalem
eanmunity. They,were great graldrons of Youssef Karamarlixxwho in 1800 ruled
Tripoli with on from hL:nd and di' ect--,l its piracy and the Barbary liars with
ruthlessness and intrigue.
Next, I vinitcd t1.e "Judge of Judges," President of the Moslem Coins,
N,aheaamed Burkhis, an c1d learned m:?n and one who gave the impression of never
having'lost his tcich r ?'-h o1r: customs and habits of Bedouins. The stories be
knew and herd herd of rbout the naval battles between Americans and Tripoli
Pirates were nx' e:%nas, er.d he told re of -' he many ships that sank in Tripoli.
harbor and the ran.,'- d, .d that were alwayri found on the Eastern shores of the city.
The story abcat the Eastern shore la:c--- turned out to be a fact, later, but at
that point, it bcd no eivnificarra tome. The Judge, however, indicated in his
conversation t1i"t 1.be Christian ch'Fr:.hes in Tripoli might know something of the
fate of the Christian erilors.
Seeing the wi~i*do of his suggeetion, I got in touch with Monsignore
Facchinetti who gage me permission to look at the{r registers of the dead. Two
Catholic Brothers h:.lped mr curing my short sear cha of the Cathedral's archives.
Darivv t?Ae time the Broters told me about Christianity and its greatness and
way of life, trying to aer vert r to th i z- religion. It was the first time I
had heard t:.a: ir. 'a : .igion acid I admired it and saw how near it is
to ours becsucv %-j ll. Ii v in C:.,- Gd Brad a moral life. The differences,
I tho?.zgh1, were ra;:;t irrpcrtr.rt end I r e.:.a_-ned a food Moslem. The Brcthere, before
leaving them, presented r..- -,i th two o,roke,,one a history of Libya written by a
Padu of ':, ., Apcw?ea a.s Yi?jsio: , tine ct;cond bock was a history of "Catholic
Papacy' at:1r',. I rrwu-.d carp-sly ;:nd which enlightened me greatly.
fr
I t tk li .d e o ;;a?' e e~ c~.t thr,: nonths; it got me no nearer to my goal
but I ben fito A fror t ~: ti c t: -. I also became so interested that I resolved
never to give tr. Ths mire I pu.rctuea, the greater my interest became.
I resorted ne .t to the abic. ccnd Italian newspapers. Sheik Mohananed Al-
Hisurati was Editor oc' tLn Arabic paper End also a teacher of the Koran. The
Sheik was a well 'graveled man and wsll read. Ye told me of a story he had read
while in Egypt in ens of the E;, ptian publicaL.ons (whose name he did not
remember) - a story of the 1804 Naval Battle in Tripoli; the story mentioned
that "many" American s??il.ors were killed during the Karanenli liars and that
those sail'*s were baricd rn the Eostern shore of Tripoli. The Sheik then
added his log:.col conclusion 'a maybe that is why the English cemetery started
there." As a last word, on departing from the office the Sheik said to me,
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"Wby don'-t-you try the Old City; the elder Sheiks might remember things, but you
must be careful how you approach them." .....~"'"'
I departed from the Press Office in high spirits, and made my way to the
British Counsul e, Y x. Maclelan, who in the presence of his Maltese secretary,
Robert Ghirlando, received me with open smile; I told them of my mission and
asked them directly of any information that they could give me. My manner was
perhaps too forceful, for I thought that those people bad the secret I had been
after and that they should give it to me. I was impatient. Their manner changed
and they answered very coldly that a quest like that was not in their line,
they knew nothing of it and that they had already written an answer to the
American Embassy in Rome in response to its request, saying that they knew
nothing of the sailors.
Thus rebuffed, I went home as usual and felt like giving up all hope. By
now all my friends and relatives thought I was foolish and unstable. M- wife,
as ever, was by my side and I talked to her at great length of my work so far.
I did not and was not expecting my wife to be helpful because women, to us,
are busy at home and not, interested in men's problems. Suddenly she suggested
that I go to Benghazi and then to Egypt to check on the story and talk to
Libyan historians in Benghazi. Maybe acme one of them would know.
Why I accepted the suggestion, I don't know, maybe because I was tired and
wanted to go away. I cheered up and made reedy to leave, taking time off from
my work. Then came the problem of finance. 1,Iy wife even sold her jewels to
help pay expenses. Icy stay in the East proved only one point, that any in-
formation leading to definite facts had to be taken-from old related stories
and that meant back to Tripoli.
Back in Tripoli I was at my work again in my office waiting for some
opportune time to go out and start getting information as to the best sources
from which to hear the ancient stories.
Finally, I got an afternoon off and I was at the I?:aritime Agent's Office,
Signor. Andrea Farrugia. Signor 1ndrea told ras of the many stories he bad
heardA.}stories told by the elders among the Jewish Cormunity still living in
the Ol8 City. These stories told of the bodies that were buried on the East
Coast of the harbor. -
These constant references to the Eastern Coast convinced me that I should
follow this line of research. Life in the Old City and the ancient traditions
made approach to the people difficult. A direct approach would get me nowhere,
.so I started getting friendly with people, spending afternoons sipping tea and
smoking and exchanging stories. One of these old men was "Kawoto Eatuma,"
almost one hundred years old at the time; he remembered his father telling him
of great explosions in Tripoli Harbor in the year 1804, and great fires that
kept the city excited for days. Those were of ships that burned in the harbor
and resulted in many, many American sailors being killed. Those sailors were
buried where they were found on the Eastern Coast of Tripoli. Eatuma then
tool: as to the house of the aged Here Shaloum Akubjwho took me around and saw to
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-5-
that I became a friend of the elder Jewish Community. The stated purpose of
visits wai to 1aave my fortune told. Over cups of tea and smokes my fortune
was told time and time again. A great friendship developed between us and
stories were exchanged till the "Intrepid" hi-tory cane up/and here ;?interest
was at its greatest. Most of-the people had heard stories from their fathers
and grandfathers ofew bodies of American sailors that 'were buried on the
Eistern shores of t1'e harbor exactly where the English cemetery is now. A
Maltese seaman of about eighty-five remembered his father and cous a telling
the same stories and said that there ware five bodies that were bu~ied where
the Protestant cemetery is now. Thir was further confirmed by "Bakker," which
means in literary translation "bedbug"; Bakka was an astrologer and a fortune
teller (he died directly after the British occupation of Tripoli). He was
fairly sure that tie British or Portestant cemetery was started because of the
five' unknown grave u.
That next dayo after work, I decided to make another visit to the British
Consulate. During the morning in my office Mohammed Zentutt, Port Pilot, was
asking' me whether I had learned anything in my questt and we talked about the
"Intrepid"; during that eonsersatioz I learned that currents in the port area
are directed often to t-.: aLtern :more. Since the present aeawa2,1s did not.
exist at the time'of the ". rbary Wars, that could explain exactly how the bodies
of sailors could be ?was1. 3 to that lo^ition. In my mind, I became iti? ?
that the five urk._:o graves in the no~.r Prote3 can cerxe ry~y
wars" Tbo L-in g or .
This I returned to the British Cons,:ir.te. This time 1 was calm, quiet and
sure of myself. I t-lksd differently than on the occasion of 'my first visit.
I was after facts.
My first question f,ns wh.^r ari how did th3 British cemetery start. It
tut'ned a.?~ trot ir. l C. the t.: xe of the BAiti.sh Consul in Tripoli, Mrs,
Warington, dio 1 an6? t + r -:)t is c os w a forburial. Why was that particular
place chosen? After all, r.6 ~ the tine .t was a e crted, lonely place. The
answer arms, } 3cvur..k f, ive?Aravea h ... lieved to be of
~
Christi a r t:~ri~t in b:9 i:ari'1? c2' the r',. When tha a of`
a oneul
ais~tu~ ed, tl:3 Flo a ?, _. ; wall.17 o ,s r extant Cemetery. I was
extremely excited by then and said to the British Consul, "these five graves
are the ones I an lookir for. 7'c3,.re the five American sailors killed in
the "Intrepid" explosion."
I then inspccted the cemetery az~d the graves, and some additional questioning.
confirmed to me the fa ts. I wrote ry report in Italian. The report had
original maps of the Old Fort area.erd the location and other illustrations
drawn of the site of the-graves. The Port Com-aDder, Colonel Pumo, in the
presence of Captain H,errib.Battaheri, receiv.:d my work to be forwarded to the
American Embassy in Rore. That was in 1939, a year after I first started my
work; the war wed alrocd; started. My hopes fell soon after ry report had been
sent. Italy was an enemy of the United States in the war. What happened to my
work, I don't, know. Jllncrt ten yEa -s of war passed by and I forgot that work.
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However, my friends and relatives were convinced of the fact that, after all,
Hustafa Burchie was not a fool, and he did discover the secret and had reached
his goal.
It was after the war on the sixth day of June, 1948, I was having a drink
with some friends and reading the local Arabic paper, "Tarablus Al-Gharb" when
I came across a notice saying that the American Government was going to open a
Consulate in Tripoli and that hr. Taft will be first Consul. This notice re-
vived a dead hope and I said to myself, here is a chance again. This time.I
will deal directly with the representatives of the United States Government.
The American Consulate opened on the 19th of October, 1948. On December 2Cth,
I sent my first letter to Consul Taft, reviewing my story and ending the letter
thus, "I am at the disposal of the United States Government in order: to let you
know the fate of these heroic sailors."
On the 26th of January, Mr. Crray Taft, Jr.)sent me a message informing me
that my lette had been forwarded to Rome. This was followed on Larch lid, by a
letter fraer+ 1 . Taft, saying "...this office would appreciate information? on
the location f the graves..."
The day ss a memorable day to me when an Monday, 21st of March 1945, I
went to the U ited States Consulate and gave them my information. On the 23rd,
two Gas ater, I was requested to meet As.Taft ur ently, and was informe
forration has eon accepted as correct and tha t e Unite~tes N.w.A. evv_..
hgd
..~.rr~... w..awr~.....,..,.,~. w.......wi..~?.. a-..+w.. . ... ....
ec ed? on a special ceremony on the 2nd of Apr~1"-to co:,memorate the death and
burial of those brave sailors.
Thus it took place that through hard continuous work I discovered the graves
of the five unknown United States sailors who bravely came to their death in the
explosion of the "Intrepid" and whose graves are now a symbol of a ?eriod of
history when the United States was at war with Tripoli. These graves are known
now to all .4xrericans who visit these -here!1anc a -memorial ce: s~mon;? is hold
every year.
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