The United States Navy Memorial Stories of Service Program is honored to announce the January 2022 story of the month has been selected to recognize the service of Fire Controlman Petty Officer 2nd Class Herbert D. Rosenbluth and Navy Wife Rosalind Rosenbluth. The United States Navy Memorial Stories of Service Program was privileged to interview Herbert and Rosalind Rosenbluth at the Tin Can Sailors Association of New Jersey DESRON 2 - Phoenix Squadron in the Summer of 2021.

This year marks the 9th Anniversary of the Navy Memorial Story of the Month publication. For the first time, the Stories of Service Program has selected a Navy husband and wife to be recognized together and celebrated as the first story of the month for 2022. Upon first meeting Herbert and Rosalind, their devotion to each other, our country, and continued involvement in Navy reunions, including the Tin Can Sailors Association of New Jersey DESRON 2 - Phoenix Squadron epitomizes the extraordinary character of the greatest generation. Both stories were intertwined with similar shared experiences of growing up in New York during the Great Depression and their impressions of the escalation of global conflict which led to the outbreak of World War Two. Herbert first met Rosalind as he was preparing to embark upon a life changing journey in the United States Navy in 1942.

With his entry into basic training at Great Lakes, Herbert remained in contact with Rosalind by sending letters of his experiences, learning the ways of the Navy, and preparing for his first ship. To this day, each of the letters from their war time correspondence have remained in their possession and symbolize a friendship that would lead to a loving marriage and life together following the war. Upon completing basic training, Herbert was assigned to a new Fletcher-class destroyer, the USS McGowan DD 678.

The USS McGowan DD 678 would be ordered into harm’s way and participate in critical island-hopping operations across the Pacific. These included, Operation Forager, the Battle of Saipan, the Battle of Guam, the Battle of Tinian, the Battle of Peleliu, Invasion of Lingayen Gulf, and more.

While on the Homefront, Rosalind spoke vividly about her memory of the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor and the efforts underway to support American service members fighting in the Atlantic and Pacific. Rosalind remarked, "we were well aware of the war...my mother volunteered in one of the hospitals as a nurses aid...on Saturday mornings I went downtown with my friends and we filled containers for the Red Cross..."

While at sea, Herberts letters home were limited, but he enjoyed hearing from Rosalind. During his interview, Herbert described key details about his experiences on the USS McGowan during the Pacific War and battling the Imperial Japanese Navy. At Saipan Herbert recalled, “they had spotters on the shore and they would tell us where to fire. We could not see the target. If the we fired, and it was off, he would tell us to adjust. We were credited with blowing up an ammunition dump and a fuel dump. We also fired star shells to keep the enemy awake and prevented them from attacking at night.”His service on the USS McGowan would come to an end after being selected for Fire Control School. Upon graduating first in his class, he selected to be a part of the new commissioning crew of the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt CV 42, which was named in honor of the late President.

The USS Franklin D. Roosevelt CV 42 was commissioned at the New York Naval Shipyard which also happened to be near the hometowns of both Herbert and Rosalind. The two dated and soon decided to embark upon a new adventure together and were married. Their stories are a treasure and illustrate memories from the Great Depression through the Second World War and we are so grateful they were willing to share their story with the Navy Memorial and future generations to come.

Listen to their stories side by side below to hear history come to life:

The United States Navy Memorial honors United States Navy Veteran, Fire Controlman Petty Officer 2nd Class Herbert D. Rosenbluth and Navy Wife Rosalind Rosenbluth, featured within this series titled, Tales from the Navy Log, Story of the Month. Each month, this series honors a Veteran’s story recorded by the Stories of Service Program at the Navy Memorial.

To learn more about this story and to explore the Navy Memorial archive, visit the Navy Memorial Stories of Service site at https://www.navymemorial.org/stories-of-service