Attu is the western-most island of the Aleutian Island chain.  With Agattu, Shemya and a few smaller islands it makes up the Near Islands.  Attu is is approximately 40 miles east to west and 18 miles north to south. Of volcanic origin, It is made up of worn mountains that quickly rise and fall 1000 and 2000 feet. I believe the highest point is 2844 ft. Almost constantly buffeted by strong winds, it is treeless, with only the occasional woody bush growing in wind-protected ravines.   A short-lived summer explosion of wildflowers led a pre-war naturalist to name it the "Flower Garden of the Pacific" in a monograph he published. Otherwise the island is covered with an uninspiring coat of tundra grass covering several feet of usually mucky volcanic ash.  http://www.hlswilliwaw.com/aleutians/Attu/html/attu-theodorepoint.htmIn most places the shoreline is treacherous with steep bluffs rising maybe a couple hundred feet to a narrow rim plateau. Occasionally the land will come down to a blue-sand beach. The surrounding water keeps the temperature moderate for the latitude but the strong winds can make deadly wind chill temperatures. Rain in the warmer months and snow in the colder sometimes seem like daily occurrences.  40 to 70 mph winds are commonplace with strong winds occurring many times. Life lines along the walks on the unprotected Theodore Point were not for decorative purposes. Fast moving storms bring changes in the weather and wind direction without warning.  Everyone has their "wind" story; mine is about the day I couldn't crawl down the cliff to the pump house because of the force of the wind.

The Coast Guard constructed the loran station on Theodore Point, the southernmost tip of Attu in late 1943, and was on the air early in 1944.  Loran is a long range navigation tool.  Three stations (the other two were on Amchitka and Umnak) sent out synchronized, timed signals or pulses. Ships and aircraft with loran receivers can precisely pinpoint their location with these signals. Loran Operators stood continuous watch using an oscilloscope to monitor and adjust the synchronized pulses.

On my tour, their mission was backed up by an Electronic Technician  (to keep the electronic gear functioning), a Radioman (the only contact with with the outside world), a Machinist's Mate (the generators sustained the mission and life), a Hospitalman (even here the CG saw to it that we suffered through our shots), a Cook (the most or least popular man on board depending on what was on the mess table at the time), a Boatswain's Mate (kept the infrastructure from deteriorating under the constant battering of the Aleutian winds and handled the station's 16' dory), and the CO (because it was the military). After the last supply ship visit in '47, we had a complement of 9 or 10. Everyone except the cook, machinist mate and radioman stood regular loran watches. Over the winter months, this was one less as the CO went back to Kodiak for a physical in December and couldn't return until early in March due to the weather. 

The army and navy both had well developed facilities at Massacre Bay,  with a good harbor and airstrip.  Theodore Point was about 15 miles west of Massacre Bay, separated on land by soft tundra, ravines, a couple of ice-cold rivers and a mountain range. This route was impassable from the Fall to Spring months and a hard full-day trek in Summer. The beach at Theodore Point was narrow and treacherous allowing safe landing of men and supplies only in the best weather.  As Lorain transmitters became more efficient, the station was moved to, I believe, Murder Point at Massacre Bay around 1949 and to it's present facility in 1974. The current station's website. ( http://www.uscg.mil/d17/loranattu/ )

As for my arriving there, in the summer of 1947, as a Radioman 3rd Class, I was assigned as radio operator at Theodore Point. I was told that this was Isolated Duty, 1 year or more, no leave, no liberty, no excuses.  I arrived in Seattle too late to board the USCGC Unalga, a supply ship that did the yearly supplying of Coast Guard stations along the Alaskan coast and the islands.  A normal procedure was for replacement personnel to work their way to their station and relieved personnel to work their way back to Seattle. 

After a bumpy, but scenic plane ride along the snowy, volcano-ridden Alaskan Peninsula, I caught up with the buoy tender USCGC Clover in Adak.  It was my transportation to Attu, and while the ship worked its way towards the island, they worked me as a radioman.  As a temporary flunky, I inherited the night watch (and others) and spent many hours trying to decipher radio signals through the loud static that seems so prevalent in the northern Pacific and Bering Sea, and so different from the more pristine conditions I had experienced in the States.  To add to this, I had to try to keep my stomach right-side up as the 180-foot round bottom tender pitched and rolled about its buoy tending duties.

The generally bad weather finally broke long enough while the ship was in striking distance of Theodore Point, and I was put ashore on the fog shrouded rock beach of Baxter Cove.  Here I was met by the "Aleutian stare" as a half dozen or so men and a dog that came to see this new man from the outer-world and collect the infrequent mail delivery. I filled a slot as radioman in a three-man rotation and settled in to a rather easy going existence getting to know the barren part of the island that would be home for the next 13 or so months.

I arrived on August 18th. The Unalga had arrived on July 12, re-supplied the station and rotated part of the crew. Some weeks later, probably  September, more supplies were landed and the final rotation of crew members was completed.  I was left as the only radioman in a compliment of 9 enlisted men and one officer. However, except for continuously broken sleep as I maintained the radio watch for one man at sea, conveniently scheduled for Atlantic-based ships (meaning most of my watches fell during Attu's 10 pm and 4 am), being a radioman had its advantages as I could keep in contact with friends who were also radiomen.  Not prone to homesickness, I found I loved the place.  Hard work at times, but still plenty of opportunities to hike the mountains and river valleys. The CO was Lt. jg. Burton Weston, a RM before he went to the Academy, he would take my watches so I could have a full day off occasionally. With time on my hands, I had no difficulty making RM2 while up there.  The only adverse effect of my stay on Attu showed up when I decided to re-up as an RM1 when on duty at NMP Radio in Northbrook, Illinois.  I found that a high frequency hearing loss from the assault my eardrums took from the static-filled ether about Attu kept me from getting a green ticket, and I reluctantly opted for civilian life.

Below are links to photo pages. Unfortunately, I've long ago lost my notes and letters, and most names have slipped out of my memory.  I hope someone enjoys these photos. It is okay to copy any of interest.  If you find yourself, a friend or family member on one, and would like a better copy, I can probably provide a clearer restoration.

Probably the best photo I've seen of Theodore Point can be viewed on a web page put up by Ardon "Smitty"  Smith, who was stationed on Theodore Point during 1946-47.  It shows the buildings, "the mountain" and some of the inland terrain, all under deep snow cover. Go to   http://www.hlswilliwaw.com/aleutians/Attu/html/attu-theodorepoint.htm

A site devoted to Aleutian war history is at http://www.nps.gov/aleu/AleutInternmentAndRestitution.htm .

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