World War II Linemen – The 75^th Seabees Today the working conditions for linemen consist of – rain storms, high winds, and ice storms. And at times, linemen feel as if these conditions could not get any worse. In World War II the linemen had a whole different set of conditions they were working under – conditions that often had them fearing for their lives. This article tells the story of one lineman, George W. Stewart, and his war experiences. The Story of the Seabees Seabees — their simple motto tells the story: "We build, we fight". From the island hopping of World War II and the cold of Korea, to the jungles of Vietnam and the mountains of Bosnia, the Seabees have built entire bases, bulldozed and paved thousands of miles of roadway and airstrips, and accomplished a myriad of construction projects. In December 1941, with an eye on the developing storm clouds across both oceans, Rear Admiral Ben Moreell, Chief of the Navy's Bureau of Yards and Docks, recommended establishing Naval Construction Battalions. With the attack on Pearl Harbor and the U.S. entrance into the war, he was given the go-ahead. The earliest Seabees were recruited from the civilian construction trades and were placed under the leadership of the Navy's Civil Engineer Corps. Because of the emphasis on experience and skill rather than on physical standards, the average age of Seabees during the early days of the war was 37. More than 325,000 men served with the Seabees in World War II, fighting and building on six continents and more than 300 islands. In the Pacific, where most of the construction work was needed, the Seabees landed soon after the Marines and built major airstrips, bridges, roads, warehouses, hospitals, gasoline storage tanks and housing. The Seabees are trained in military tactics and were to engage in combat should the occasion arise. A Lineman’s Experience as a Seabee In 1943, a group of linemen called the 75th Seabees were attached to the 3rd Marines and landed with them at Guadalcanal where they helped take, defend and rebuild Henderson Field. They moved on to Bougainville where they landed in the initial assault, performing their duty to assist in the taking of the beach and then setting up hardwired communications and power generation, moving forward with the Marines. George W. Stewart, a member of the 75^th Seabees, performed mostly line work, stringing communications and power cables through the jungle on coconut trees. The Seabees worked under enemy fire more often than not, with many men lost to Japanese snipers. They were also on the beaches and in various jungle actions where the Seabees frequently worked at their construction tasks in the daytime and then lived in foxholes on the defensive perimeter at night. This group assisted in the construction of Torkino Fighter Base on Bougainville under enemy fire. This base was cut out of a swampy jungle in 30 days from the initial assault and allowed the P47's and other fighter planes to be refueled and repaired so they could support bombing of Japanese strongholds and defend our Naval forces, allowing the United States to hopscotch to the Philippines, and also helped establish forward bomber bases for the final assault on the Japanese home islands. The 75th Seabees went back to Guadalcanal for a time and then participated in the initial assault at Leyte, being in the first group to return to The Philippines. After the liberation of Tacloban (the capital of Leyte), they fell back into a support role on the Island of Samar where they constructed and maintained air and naval facilities to assist in the balance of the retaking of The Philippines. The 75^th Seabees never had an R&R break from the time they left the U.S. until the end of WWII. We all owe a debt of gratitude to the people who served our country so well and applied their trades and skills to the defense of our country and our very lives. Back to: Articles Index
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