Date: Wed, 5 Oct 2005 12:59:08 -0700

Good afternoon, My name is CTI1(SW) Sean P. Aschoff and I'm stationed at Center for Information Dominance Detachment, Monterey, CA. I'm the Chairperson for this years Navy Ball and we are having Mr. Bob Chicca as our guest speaker. As I'm sure you are aware he was a Marine Korean linguist aboard the USS Pueblo. Mr Boucher was actually our guest speaker two years ago and that was quite an honor. His wife Rose will be attending our ball this year. We had made a video to honor all of the service members on the Pueblo to show our Sailors and at the end we listed all of members who have passed away. That video was made in 2002 though and we wanted to update it if any more members had passed away, god forbid. We obviously know that Mr. Boucher has passed, but if you could give us the names of the other members that have passed I would really appreciate it. I'm using someone else's e-mail right now so you can either just reply to this e-mail, send it tosean.aschoff@cnet.navy.mil, or call me at 831-242-4194. Thank you so much for you help and I look forward to hearing from you. V/r CTI1(SW) Aschoff

Date: Thu, 20 Oct 2005 11:12:59 -0400

Gentlemen- I was recently a member of a group of US citizens that were allowed to visit the DPRK. As part of our trip, we were able to board the USS Pueblo and have a short tour. I have a few current pictures from the ship, which I thought you might enjoy seeing. Please e-mail me at the following address: afdandrea@msn.com if you would be interested in hearing about the tour and seeing the pictures.

Sincerely, Anthony D'Andrea Washington DC

Date: Thu, 20 Oct 2005 15:29:29 -0600

USS Pueblo Photos from Pyongyang - Oh, believe me, they assigned us carefully selected minders. They were all good Communists (well, good Communist is a contradiction in terms but you know what I mean) and there were three of them to each group of 20 Americans. We had to ask for permission to take any photographs but even 3 die-hard Commies couldn't keep a group of red-blooded Americans from sneaking unauthorized pictures of the Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung Democratic People's Korean Worker's Paradise. And what a paradise it is, where oxen pull broken-down tractors and dilapidated carts filled with half-starved peasants amid their thin harvests. I did see a Nissan Pathfinder equipped with hydraulics blaring Kenny G in Pyongyang though, which reminded me a lot of the Cadillac you guys saw outside the prison. I must admit it would be fun to tear through the streets of Pyongyang in an Escalade listening to gangster rap, though. It wouldn't be my idea of fun anywhere else in the world but North Korea is a place where the surreal is the ordinary. I'll be writing more about my trip and will post my narrative online. When it's there, I'll be sure to drop you the address although it may be a week or so. And no trouble at all burning you a CD; I'll mail it tomorrow. It'll cost me less than a buck to make and send it, so there's no need to worry about reimbursing me.

Regards, Robert Walker

Date: Wed, 26 Oct 2005 15:23:41 -0400

My father passed away recently and I was going through his boxes of photos and found several photos of Rev. Paul Lindstrom and his committee and the attempts to meet with our Dept. of State personnel about the Pueblo incident. If memory serves me correctly, Rusk was Sec. of State and should have been tried as a traitor by his unwillingness to push for release. My dad accompanied Lindstrom several times as an independent press photographer as part of his involvement in the Save the Pueblo efforts that Lindstrom was trying to get to the public. Lindstrom was our pastor at the time in Milwaukee WI - a church plant from the IL church. I remember as a pre-teen the meetings we had in our home with Paul as this incident was discussed. I'd be happy to scan the pictures I can find (unfortunately I do not know all the people in the pictures) if you'd like to put a few up on your website.I still have a copy of the Remember the Pueblo 45rpm record although it's very scratchy from years of moving around it might be worth copying to an MP3 file if you'd post it. Pueblo Oh Pueblo will they ever set you free...Let you go, Set you free... Finally it they were set free!

Kind regards, Rob Hooper

Date: Wed, 26 Oct 2005 16:25:54 -0700

You have been sent a picture of the earth taken with Google Earth(http://earth.google.com).Google Earth streams the world over wired and wireless networks enabling users to virtually go anywhere on the planet and see placesin photographic detail. This is not like any map you have ever seen. This is a 3D model of the real world, based on real satellite images combined with maps, guides to restaurants, hotels, entertainment, businesses and more. You can zoom from space to street level instantly and then pan or jump from place to place, city to city, evencountry to country.

Mark GassGet Google Earth.

Date: Fri, 11 Nov 2005 12:21:52 EST

I became acquainted with then Lieutenant Junior Grade Edward R. Murphy in 1963 when he was the Information and Education Officer at the Subic Bay Naval Station in the Philippines. Lt. Murphy was a very serious, very thorough young officer who conducted a campaign to improve the education of young sailors, such as myself, an 18-year-old high school dropout, in the following manner: I was summoned to his office. He said, "Let me see your liberty card." I handed it to him. He opened the top drawer of his desk and dropped the card in, saying, "There's a high school GED test being held in two weeks. You can have your liberty card back if you pass." Who could fail with such an incentive? Not me. I passed with flying colors and resumed my other education in Olongapo, just outside the base, which had all the blandishments for a young sailor as the biblical fleshpots of Egypt. I left active duty in 1965. A year later I was working for a radio station in Eureka, California, on the state's north coast, when I spotted an article in the local paper about two naval officers being awarded the Navy Marine Corps Medal for lifesaving. The officers were stationed at nearby Centerville Beach. One of the officers was Lieutenant Murphy, by then a full lieutenant. The Centerville facility was not well known. In fact, it was secret, not even appearing on maps. Aviation charts listed the air space over the area as restricted, although locals knew the facility was a long range sonar listening post. The presence of the occasional uniformed sailor in a local bar, with a sonarman's crow on his sleeve, confirmed the listening post premise. Now, the waters along that stretch of the coast, where the Humboldt and Japanese Currents converge, are treacherous to small craft and warnings against swimming are posted all along the beach. One morning a fishing boat had gotten hung up on some rocks just offshore, and the crew was in very bad trouble. Lieutenant Murphy, and another officer whose name escapes me, witnessed the event and dove into the cold, swift water and brought the boat's occupants to safety. I think (memory is tricky) the distance from the beach was about 200 yards, which a quite a swim in those conditions. I covered the award ceremony for my radio station, held at the Ferndale fairgrounds in 1966, and got reacquainted with Mr. Murphy. I thanked him for his "encouragement" to get my GED in the Navy, which was a springboard for my later graduation from College of the Redwoods and Humboldt State. In the following year, I'd sometimes stop by the Centerville facility, or as close as I could get that the Cyclone fence permitted, to chat with Mr. Murphy. I learned that Mr. Murphy was originally from the north coast area. In 1967, Mr. Murphy said he was going back to sea, and would even be the XO of a ship, no less. When I asked what kind of ship, he said it was similar to the two coastal transports at Subic Bay, the USS Mark and USS Brule, both AKLs. I thought it odd, as both those ships were commanded by warrant officer boatswains, but I didn't press for more info, which would not have been forthcoming anyway. I lost track of him until the Pueblo's capture. I next saw him in Eureka the year following his release. His formerly black hair had turned silver in captivity, and he was in the company of Curtis Sitomer, an editor with the Christian Science Monitor. They were collaborating on a series of articles, to be entitled Last Man Across The Bridge, and later published in book form. The book was published by the Christian Science Monitor Press, but I don't see it listed on your site, and nor can I find it on Amazon. com. At any rate, today is Veteran's Day, and I offer a salute to the surviving crew and communications detachment of the USS Pueblo, and to the memory of those now on eternal patrol.

Mike Browne, Orangevale, California

Date: Fri, 11 Nov 2005 15:47:56 EST

Sorry to bother you, but did you have any luck finding Don E. Bailey. I haven't heard anything and my father Harvey Shaw was asking me the other day.

Thank you Stacey Shaw

Date: Mon, 14 Nov 2005 07:43:27 -0500

SIR: Yesterday Nov. 13, 2005 we had Mike Barrett as our guest speaker at our Veterans Day Dinner. His speech was very interesting and Mike is a real nice person. I was proud to have him there. I was an Army Grunt on my way to Vietnam when the Pueblo was captured and suddenly found myself headed for the Korean DMZ thinking we were going to head North and get you heroes out of that God forsaken place. Due to the Command of the Army, Navy and Washington we , after many weeks of freezing our butts off were told to stand down and wait. We were all very upset that they would allow this to happen. I appreciate Mike coming to our VFW post and telling the story the best he could given the time he had to speak. My salute to all of you for going through all you did and had to endure. My car proudly displays a Remember the Pueblo bumper sticker.

With all respect Beauford Toney US Army 7th Infantry Division, Korean DMZ 1968

Date: Wed, 16 Nov 2005 12:26:33 -0500

My name is Brendan McDonough and I am the son of the late captain James Gregory McDonough (Carbondale, PA). It is to my belief that he negotiated the release the Commander Bucher and I would like to know more information on this matter. He was a University of Pennsylvania law school graduate and supposedly took ransom (in a gym bag) across enemy lines. My father passed away in 1987 and I would like to get in touch with people who may know him or what he did for the people on board the Pueblo. Thank you for your assistance.

Sincerely, Brendan McDonough

Date: Mon, 21 Nov 2005 18:47:32 -0500

Sirs, For many years I have asked myself why didn't the U.S. government go in and rescue the men of the Pueblo. In my mind I thought the Navy should have gone in and showed some force to free the men and bring back the Pueblo. Did the government have an excuse for not doing so ? As a Navy veteran of WW2 and Korea I am very interested to know why.

R.W.Garrigan

Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 09:30:52 -0600

Hi, I just wanted someone to know that I have a beautiful print on sale on Ebay for the next five days. The print was made by L.M. Bucher and is signed by L.M. Bucher. I didn't realize how important Mr. Bucher was until after I listed the print. I was hoping someone from your organization would purchase it. Please understand that the reason I am letting you know, is not because I want to make a sale, but am hoping that it will go to someone that would appreciate it.

Virginia Ward

Date: Fri, 25 Nov 2005 01:51:53 -0500

Wanted to ask the fol: 1. a. What would have happened if Cdr Bucher steered the ship 090 true and upon attack, wouldn't "X" have marked the spot where NK did their dirty deed? b. Does anyone know why the U.S. recalled their air-attack rescue mission? c. Does anyone know WHY NK attacked Pueblo and what they wanted? 2. Does anyone know that the NK's disguised Pueblo by plating up her f'c'sle; taking down the forward mast; re-painting her white and steaming her from Wonsan south along the east coast of the peninsula, around the tip and north up the west coast of the peninsula to PYONYANG where she is now an American war crimes museum on the site of the slaughter of U.S. sailors from USS SHERMAN back in the 19th century? 3. Since USS Pueblo (AGER-2) is STILL a commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy - have any of the crew contacted their congressmen/congresswomen/Senators that we should try to get Pueblo returned? 4. Since we KNOW how the NK's really are, should you write your U.S. Representatives and Senators to have Pueblo taken from NK by force a. in defference to U.S. foreign policy b. in spite of U.S. foreign policy

Semper Fidelis,R. S. Rayfield, Jr.R. S. RAYFIELD, JR.MAJOR, USMC (RET)

Date: Sun, 27 Nov 2005 23:00:59 -0500

My father came within a blink of serving with you. He was trying to trade orders to avoid being stationed in Hawaii. (What a cosmic joke that was eh?)I don't know a whole lot about the circumstances, but due to his rating, there was only one fellow that he could trade orders with, and it ended up being a no-go. It's a pity that more people don't appreciate the things that guys like you did. A little is starting to come out now in novel form, but I know there's so much more that probably will never be told, and in some cases that's as it should be. I was curious though, you show a record on the web site. Has anyone put that into MP3 form? I'd love to hear it

David Van Horn

Date: Tue, 29 Nov 2005 14:40:46 -0500

While doing some research, I came across a current picture of the USS Pueblo which is apparently on display in North Korea.http://www.korea-dpr.com/gallery/view_photo.php?set_albumName=micheldprk&id=aasHope this is useful.

Tom Ro Pacific Division Analyst Naval Criminal Investigative Service, NCIS Multiple Threat Alert Center, MTAC

Date: Wed, 30 Nov 2005 11:32:11 -0500

I was on watch in Sabana Seca, Puerto Rico when the USS Pueblo was taken by North Korea. Saying I was in shock is putting it midly. I had just lived through dodging the jets of Israel as they tried to kill me/us on the USS LIBERTY. I survived the event, with leg and head wounds, but nevertheless, I was alive. During the USS LIBERTY event, my family and friends from all over the USA began saving newspaper clippings, editorials in magazines etc., of the event. At first it was difficult to come by because the media had been shut down so to speak. Eventually, things began to surface. I gathered all of it years later, and put it all in plastic inserts into 3 ring binders. I did the same thing for the USS PUEBLO. It has been a marvelous resource for me and anyone else who wanted to know about it. Now that we are 70+ years of age, and beginning to downsize, I have been sending most of my CT life trappings down to the Wenger Cryptographic Museum in Pensacola. They will accept the two 3-ring binders I have on the USS PUEBLO. I wanted to bring it up to date - and so I visited your web site. Not wanting to break any copyright laws or find myself being fined, I am requesting permission to print off the pictures of the USS PUEBLO as it is moored in North Korea. In addition, I'd like to print off the INTRODUCTION, and the SITE OVERVIEW, and add these to the binders so that those who read the material i.e., the news clippings from the Navy Times, Boston Globe, NY Times, Newsweek, Time, Life, San Juan Star, will also be guided to the web site. May I have that permission? By the way - the site is great. I've spent 3 hours this morning just going through a lot of it. My neighbor up the road from me, James Layton (USS PUEBLO crewmember) has guided me in the books I should be looking at when I want to buy one, understanding that most are out of print.

Looking forward to your favorable reply, I remain, a shipmate Dick Carlson CTR1USS Liberty survivorUSN (Retired)."We can't change the winds but we can adjust our sails."

Date: Saturday, December 03, 2005 21:00

My memory of the time is a little vague after all these years however I do remember that you were tied up in Yokosuka at the same time the ship that I was on was in port. It was the USS Providence (CLG-6). As I recall, we could see you from where we were tied up. You left and went North, we left and went South. We were the Flagship for the 7th Fleet. We were finishing up on the gunline getting ready for 9 days in Subic Bay, then 6 Days in Hong Kong. Our plans changed and we steamed for Subic to replenish and head north. I remember a message sent by the Admiral to Washington stating the Military available in the area. I also remember a line in the message "if no response received by ??am, will recover Pueblo at all cost." I don't remember the time but think it was like 0600. I worked in Radio Central and had a TS,Crypto clearance. I don't know if this has been declassified or not. The Pentagon overruled the Admiral and we played games with the Russian Navy in the Sea of Japan for about two weeks. Things were extremely tense all the while. I think we remained at condition 2 or GQ for the duration. It was not the fleets wish to leave you guys there, but civilians make the rules.

Ray Rudy

Date: Tue, 6 Dec 2005 15:09:41 -0800

There are two events that will stick with me for life. One being the JFK Assination and the other being the taking of the USS Pueblo. I was aboard the USS Grapple ( ARS-7) in Yokusuka Japan when the Pueblo was taken. I remember that we got underway almost immediately for Pusan S. Korea, where our armament was removed from the ship and we got underway for Wonsan. It was my understanding that the USS Enterprise was already on station and that our mission, as a rescue and salvage ship was to go in and tow the Pueblo out when the N. Koreas agreed to release her. After three or four days we were releases from station and sent back to Pusan.

Loren A. Frye

Date: Tue, 13 Dec 2005 21:58:04 +0800

Hello there, I'm Mr Leo Zaza from Fremantle in Western Australia and visit the BBC website on a daily basis to get my news etc. I write just to let you know that a photo of the USS Pueblo is currently showing on the BBC website and thought maybe somehow your veterans and members may also like to know of this. Here's the link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/05/asia_pac_unseen_north_korea/html/1.stm Amongst the other cheery photos of North Korea is a photo and short story on the Pueblo (photo 8). I enjoyed your comprehensive website and found the memorabilia ashtray to be quite dashing. My best wishes to the veterans. Don't forget the BBC link.

Regards, Leo Zaza, LLB, LLM

Date: Sat, 17 Dec 2005 22:38:05 EST

I was aboard the USS coral sea flight deck v-4 divisions when they sent us from the tonkin gulf to korea. The freezing weather was horrible and the cold weather gear we had did little to help. we thought for sure we would have a fight up there but nothing happened??? we left and that was that.Ja3McBri@aol.com

Date: Fri, 23 Dec 2005 10:37:41 -0500

I was with VF-21, an F4 Fighter Squadron attached to the USS Ranger CVA 61. After the capture of the Pueblo, our ship left the Tonkin Gulf off North Vietnam and cruised directly to the waters off North Korea. Those were cold winter days in early1968 with constant flight ops and GQ almost daily due to reports of mines and sorties by Korean MIGs. We were all with you guys wanting to attack the harbor where you were taken, but after about a month we left for Sasebo. We were sorry to leave our station without even a shot fired at your captors. One more comment. I found a site on Goggle Earth that claims to have a picture of the Pueblo in Pyongyang. Can you confirm this information? Thanks for your service.

Tom Coleman PN3 VF-21Fighting Panthers

Date: Wed, 28 Dec 2005 23:16:34 -0500

I have been asked by a web site I frequent to write a short history of the Pueblo incident. I'm trying to locate a book that Commander Bucher wrote. I think it’s out of print. I believe it was entitled simply My Story. Can you give me the titles and authors of any books about the Pueblo that are not biased. I'd like to be as accurate as possible.

Thanks, Bill Doherty