In the summer of 2020, after the COVID lockdown had relaxed, I was eager to get out of the house and went to the old Quincy Shipyard just south of Boston, only a few miles from my home. I visited the museum ship berthed there, the USS Salem (CA-139), the only preserved heavy cruiser in the world. While walking through the ship’s model room, I was surprised to find a plaque dedicated to the USS Franklin (CV-13), placed “in remembrance of the 921 men who did not return and in recognition of all those who served on board during the war against the Japanese empire.”
The USS Salem was built at the Quincy Shipyard by Bethlehem Steel and commissioned at the Boston Navy Yard on 14 May 1949. Because she did not enter service until after World War II, I was curious about her connection to the USS Franklin, and what might explain the presence of the plaque. I initially wondered whether that connection was through the two cruisers that figure significantly in the Franklin’s story: the heavy cruiser USS Pittsburgh (CA-72) and the light cruiser USS Santa Fe (CL-60).
I posted a couple photos of the plaque on one of the USS Franklin Facebook pages and asked whether anyone knew its history. Steven Hall responded, “My father and several other shipmates in the Quincy area had that done in 1996. There’s no connection between the Franklin and the Salem, just some sailors wanting to commemorate their shipmates.”
Fast forward to mid-October 2025 when I was making plans to film in Massachusetts for the documentary. I went to visit the Salem to speak with the staff about possibly including the ship in our production schedule. While I was there, I was treated to the unexpected pleasure of a concert aboard the ship by The Johnson Girls, an a capella group singing sea chanteys and maritime songs.
After the concert, I met Margaret Laforest, the president of the board of directors of the United States Naval Shipbuilding Museum, the nonprofit organization that operates and maintains the Salem. She introduced me to JD Williams, a U.S. Marine veteran and volunteer with the ship. Given his deep knowledge of the Salem and the Quincy Shipyard, along with his experience leading guided tours, he was an ideal candidate to participate in the filming.
I met JD in early November for a walk-through on the Salem, during which we mapped out the areas where we would focus our filming beyond the Franklin plaque. I also was put in touch with Steven Hall to ask whether he might be interested in participating, though at the time he wasn’t sure about his availability.
One week later, on the day of filming, the weather was overcast and cold, with a harsh wind coming off the Fore River. The crew used a cart to move the gear down the dock, but once there, everything had to be carried by hand, up the gangway, across the deck and down a narrow hatch to the deck below.
For the four days of filming in Massachusetts, Caleb McLaughlin served as Director of Photography, Zach Noblitt as Sound Mixer, and Scott Ryan as Production Assistant.
Once we were set up, we were very happy when Steven arrived with his brother Kenneth and both agreed to be interviewed for the film.
Their father, the late Everett Hall, enlisted in the Navy in January 1943 in Boston. After basic training, he received specialized training in Virginia and Pennsylvania before joining the crew of the USS Franklin as a Motor Machinist’s Mate (MoMM) in January 1944, making him a plank owner.
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The Hall brothers told us that their father served as an engine man on a motor whaleboat, and that his battle station was at one of the auxiliary diesel generators that powered the ship’s 5-inch anti-aircraft guns. When their father was at his battle station, he could witness the war unfolding in front of him. Everett was at his battle station when the kamikaze struck the Franklin on 30 October 1944.
Everett told his sons that on 19 March 1945, however, he was below decks in a mess hall when the bombs hit the ship. After being trapped there for hours, he and the other crewmen in the compartment were eventually led out of the mess area and up to the flight deck. He said that he left the Franklin by crossing over to the Santa Fe “without getting wet.” Some weeks later, while in Pearl Harbor, he was assigned to another ship, and then was discharged from the Navy in February 1946.
| The brothers explained how their father, along with other local Franklin shipmates, raised the funds to have the memorial plaque created at a stoneworks business in Quincy, Massachusetts. The plaque was donated to the United States Naval Shipbuilding Museum and USS Salem in 1996 and formally dedicated during a ceremony on the fantail of the cruiser, attended by the mayor of Quincy and approximately forty people. |
The Hall brothers stayed after their interview to watch JD’s segment, interested in the history he was about to share. JD was excellent on camera, offering clear and informative commentary about the Salem and the work of the United States Naval Shipbuilding Museum.
After the interviews, we packed up most of the gear and moved to the main deck to film JD around the exterior of the Salem, where he spoke about notable features of the ship. JD and the crew were troopers, standing out in the biting cold wind.
I’m grateful to JD Williams and to Steven and Kenneth Hall for their generosity with their time and their willingness to share their knowledge and family history. Our filming on the Salem was a success because of their participation.
Once we wrapped on the Salem, we packed up quickly and drove to Worcester, sixty-two miles away. There, we met with Sarah Campbell, Archivist at the College of the Holy Cross Archives and Distinctive Collections, who gave us an interview about the Jesuit cemetery on the campus grounds.
Sarah discussed notable Jesuits interred in the cemetery, drawing on the research she conducted for her book, Beneath the Cross: A Historical Tour of the Holy Cross Jesuit Cemetery. Of particular relevance to the documentary was the grave of Father Joseph T. O’Callahan — chaplain of the USS Franklin and Medal of Honor recipient — which is distinguished by one of the more prominent grave markers in the cemetery.
This update captures the relatively full third day of the four that we spent filming in Massachusetts. The next and final update in this series will cover another demanding day of filming at the College of the Holy Cross, as we continued to document the legacy of Father Joseph O’Callahan.