Framingham's Michael Sarkin, USCG -- WW1 Unsung Heroes (Part 2)

                   

                                  

            

Current US Coast Guard Cutter (USCGC) TAMPA

 Image:Public Domain

The Coast Guard (CG) has a dynamic and rich organizational history.It currently consists of approximately 41,000 active duty and 6,000 reserve component men and women.As one of the six Armed Services of the United States (under law),it must keep itself prepared to defend the nation in any conflict or war.In WWI,in addition to its peacetime roles (e.g.,maritime law enforcement and Search and Rescue)and coastal defence,the CG participated in convoy escort,and port security operations. Approximately 9,000 CG men and women served in this war. 

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USCG Captain of the Port, New York during WWI

Image: USCG Historian's Office

During WWII,the service added maritime reconnaissance,troop transport and amphibious operations to its repertoire.As a temporary US Navy active force,the CG reached its all time high of 170,000 personnel.A total of 250,000 men and women served over the course of WWII.One thousand nine hundred and seventeen (1,917) of its members did not return.In fact,the CG’s only Medal of Honor winner,Signalman First Class (SM1/E-6),was posthumously awarded the nation’s highest award for valor at Guadalcanal in 1942.The CG also participated in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq.

Signalman First Class Douglas A. Munro

Image: CMOH Society

https://www.cmohs.org/recipients/douglas-a-munro

SM1 Munro Covers the Withdrawal of the 7th Marines at Guadalcanal

Painting by Bernard D'Andrea/USCG Collection

A CG Landing Craft;Infantry (LCI) disembarks troops at Omaha Beach,D-Day, 6 June 1944 

Image: USCG Historian’s Office

 

Coast Guardsman on Vietnam Riverine Patrol

Image: Vietnam Veterans of America

USCGC TAMPA in WWI

TAMPA anchored off Gibraltar

Image: USCG Historian’s Office

Crew of the USCGC TAMPA

Image: USCG Historian’s Office

**Note:While under the operational control of the Navy,the USCGC TAMPA was known as the U.S.S.TAMPA**

During WWI,Squadron 3 of Division 6 of the Atlantic Fleet Patrol Forces was based in Gibraltar.The Squadron consisted of USCG cutters TAMPA, SENECA, YAMACRAW, OSSIPEE, ALGONQUIN and MANNING.Their job was to protect convoys from German submarine attacks while they transited to the United Kingdom (UK) from Gibraltar.

On 26 September 1918,having just completed its 19th convoy escort,the TAMPA sailed alone through the Bristol Channel toward the Welsh port of Milford Haven to replenish and resupply.On this date (that evening),the cutter had the misfortune of being located by German U-Boat UB-91.The sub fired a torpedo from 1,800 feet,hitting the TAMPA amidships.The ship sank in 3 minutes.There were no survivors.A total of 131 men lost their lives – 111 Coast Guardsmen, 4 US Navy men, 11 members of the Royal Navy,and five civil employees.A post-attack search noted only finding a few pieces of wreckage and two unidentifiable bodies in Naval uniforms.Only two additional bodies eventually washed ashore.

Painting by John D. Wisinski, USCG of the sinking of USS TAMPA

Image: US Coast Guard Collection

Framingham’s Seaman Michael Sarkin and CGC TAMPA

 

At the time of its sinking,Seaman Michael Sarkin of Framingham (Morton Street) was aboard the ship.He is believed to have been born in Russia around 1892,making him 25 years old at the time of his death.His name is on the Tablet of the Missing in Brookwood American Cemetery in Brookwood,England.It is also on the USCG TAMPA Memorial in Arlington National Cemetery. 

USCG Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery

Image: Public Domain

Image: American Battle Monuments Commission

On November 11, 1999,the Secretary of Transportation and Commandant of the Coast Guard presented the Purple Heart Medal to the Officers and Crew of the Coast Guard Cutter TAMPA,who accepted the medal on behalf of their fallen comrades.The same year,the CG Historian’s Office started a project designed to ensure all crewmembers of the cutter received their Purple Heart.Approximately 50 medals have been awarded;84 remain unclaimed.CG HQ is still working to find a living relative of Michael Sarkin.He is believed to have had a sister who also lived in Framingham and was employed by R.H. Long Manufacturing. 

This placard is the only verified artifact from the TAMPA

Image:National Coast Guard Museum

Sources and Additional Information

“Report of the Commission on Massachusetts' Part in the World War” by the Commission on Massachusetts' Part in the World War,Jesse F. Stevens, 1929

The CG Historian’s Office (https://www.history.uscg.mil)

The National CG Museum (https://nationalcoastguardmuseum.org/)

“The Fighting Coast Guard, America’s Maritime Guardians at War in the Twentieth Century,” edited by Mark A. Snell, 2022

Video

The USCG in the Great War;USCGC TAMPA https://youtu.be/sfohWGHj0XY?feature=shared

The Vogel Family; Shining a Light on Compelling History

 

Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer, France 

Source:  obamawhitehouse.archives.gov 

World War II was the cataclysmic event of our times. Fortunately,it clearly demonstrated that people will unite to defeat evil.Unfortunately,the level of violence experienced was beyond comparison.The number of world-wide deaths and scope of destruction was staggering.The US National World War II Museum estimates the following:

Worldwide Casualties*

Battle Deaths:  15,000,000

Battle Wounded:  25,000,000

Civilian Deaths: 45,000,000

*Worldwide casualty estimates vary widely in several sources. The number of civilian deaths in China alone might well be more than 50,000,000.

Source: “Research Starters: Worldwide Deaths in World War II,” US National World War II Museum

 

As we move towards the 80th Anniversary of the End of World War II in Europe (May 8, 2025),we will again be reminded of Allied Forces beginning to uncover the scale of the Holocaust as they liberated concentration and slave labor camps during early 1945.The Nuremberg Trials (November 1945-October 1946) comprehensively documented the genocidal program which resulted in the killing of 6 million of the world’s Jewish community.As we discussed in our blog post “Why did the German Military fight so hard in a losing cause?”,the systematic "all of government" approach to executing the Final Solution,and the culpability of "ordinary" and highly educated German citizens in this genocide are undeniable.Additionally,fully documented 1944 and 1945 atrocities committed by fanatical German military forces (mostly SS) in France and Belgium set the stage for savage fighting as the Western Allies approached Germany from the west and Soviets charged towards Berlin from the east.

 

 

Battle of the Bulge 

Source: Library of Congress, AFC2001/001/67422 

 

As we saw in “Hitler’s Last Gamble and Framingham’s Battle of the Bulge Veterans,” three of the town’s citizens had starkly different battlefield experiences.Technical Sergeant Al Briggs won a Silver Star for Valor, Private First Class (PFC) Alfred John Antul was Killed in Action, and PFC Ross Harold Supnik was taken prisoner.Ross was assigned to the 423rd Infantry Regiment, 106th Infantry Division (the “Golden Lions”). Unfortunately for Ross,the 106th was one of the inexperienced divisions assigned to the Ardennes -- right in the path of the 16 December German onslaught.On that day, most of the division was located on the tactically important Schnee Eifel Ridge.The Germans very quickly enveloped (encircled) two (of three) of the Division’s Regiments, the 422nd and 423rd.By nightfall on the 17th,the Germans had bottled up 8,000-9,000 US soldiers west of the ridge.Of that total,at least 7,000 were taken prisoner.Ross was included in the mass surrender.He was processed and sent to Stalag IX-B POW Camp at Bad Orb,Germany. This was not a pleasant experience,particularly for a Jewish-American GI. As noted by the US National Holocaust Memorial Museum: 

 

"For British and American prisoners, Stalag IX B was one of the worst camps in Germany.Conditions were appalling from the start and continued to deteriorate as the war progressed.The first transport of American prisoners arrived in late December 1944. By January 24,the camp had 4,075 Americans,held in 16 barracks." 

 

106th Infantry Division Patch 

Image: Public Domain 

 

Ross Supnik, 106th Infantry Division

Image: Supnik Family 

 

Vogel Family circa 1943 

Martin, Harry (father) Jack, and Jean 

Source: US Holocaust Memorial Museum (Charles Vogel Papers) 

 

PFC Bernard “Jack” Vogel (from Brooklyn, NY) of the 106th Division’s 422nd Infantry Regiment was among those captured. Like Ross,he was also loaded into freezing railroad cars and taken to the overcrowded Stalag IX-B. On or about 8 February 1945,Jack was further transferred,along with 349 other US soldiers who were identified as Jewish-American,believed to be Jewish,were considered “troublemakers” or simply picked at random, o a slave labor camp called Berga an der Elster.Berga was a sub-camp of the infamous Buchenwald concentration camp. It was a nightmare;dozens of soldiers were beaten,starved and killed.The Americans,along with concentration camp inmates, were forced to work 10-12 hours a day,7 days a week in 17 tunnels being built to serve as an underground factory. Survivor statements and diaries indicate daily rations consisted of ¼ loaf of bread (believed to be made of 50% sawdust) and 1 liter of watery turnip soup.Less than half of the GIs survived captivity. On 09 April 1945,Jack passed away (in the camp) after egregious mistreatment following a failed escape attempt.  

 

 

PFC Bernard “Jack” Vogel 

 

A Berga Tunnel Entrance

 

 

Berga Survivors and US Army Medics 

I 

Metropolitan Star Article (July 1945)  

Images: US Holocaust Memorial Museum (Charles Vogel Papers) 

Stalag IX-B was liberated by American troops on 30 March 1945. Around 05 April,as the Allies approached,Berga was closed,and the prisoners were forced to march away from the American advance.Fifty (50) more American prisoners would die during the 18-day trek.The remainder would be liberated by American troops on 23 April 1945.In total, 150 of the 350 Berga Americans would die.In contrast, 99% of US personnel captive in German POW camps survived the war.  

 

In 1944,Jack’s brother Martin L. Vogel enlisted in the Army.He served in Europe as a member of the 372nd Engineers,which was an engineering general support regiment.These regiments consisted of soldiers who received specialized training in various engineering and construction tasks,including road building and maintenance, bridge reconstruction,and the building of field hospitals and POW enclosures.He also guarded German POWs in the Allied POW camp in Bad Kreuznach.After the war,Martin would graduate from Amherst College (BA and MA),and the Boston University School of Medicine (1953).Following his residency,he settled in Framingham where he established a successful, private Gastroenterology/Internal Medicine practice until his retirement in 2017. While the family knew Jack died in captivity the circumstances surrounding his death remained a mystery – for 63 years. 

 

Now, for the rest of the story. What remains to be discussed is sad,frustrating and compelling.It speaks to brotherly love, bravery and camaraderie among soldiers and family perseverance. Rather than reinvent the wheel,it is better to provide you with a link to a very well written, 2009 article by Katherine Duke of Amherst Magazine.It is a must read,particularly as we reflect on 1945 and the Holocaust during a time of rising anti-Semitism, growing ethnic nationalism and global unrest.It also highlights the relentless work of Brooklyn lawyer Charles Vogel and US Army Medic Anthony “Tony” Acevedo.Without their tenacity,this story may never have seen the light of day.  

 

https://www.amherst.edu/news/magazine/issue-archive/2009fall/vogel 

 

 

 

 

    PFC Daniel D. Steckler, US Army  

 Image: Montreal Gazette Obituary 

 

In the article,mention is made of Berga survivor Daniel David Steckler.Martin Vogel and his wife met Steckler at a 1990’s presentation by a Nuremberg prosecuting attorney held at Amherst College.Steckler knew Jack Vogel at Berga.In an interesting quirk of fate, Steckler also lived in Framingham.A Brooklyn native,he had lived in Florida and New Hampshire before settling in Framingham in the late 1980’s.He would remain here until his death in 2004 at 79 years old.Daniel was a member of the 28th Infantry Division’s 110th Infantry Regiment.He was a machine gunner.PFC Steckler was liberated on 21 April 1945.He was reported to weigh 82 pounds at liberation. 

 

"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." 

 Martin Luther King, Jr. 

 

Recommended Additional Reading 

US Holocaust Memorial Museum 

https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn42225?rsc=203990&cv=0&x=972&y=2896&z=7.9e-5 

CNN 

https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/08/health/world-war-ii-medic-anthony-acevedo-obit/index.html#:~:text=Join%20the%20conversation,A%20true%20national%20treasure 

National Museum of the United States Army 

https://www.thenmusa.org/biographies/anthony-c-acevedo/ 

National WWII Museum 

https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/anthony-acevedo-pow-survivor