HOME MOVIES: PALM BEACH FLORIDA DURING WWII Silent

Genre: home movie

Year Published: 1941

Format: 16mm

Description: This silent home movie shows Palm Beach, Florida in 1941, prior to the United States entering WWII but well into the U-boat campaign against British shipping. On the beach you'll see the wreckage of a destroyer or escort vessel that was likely the victim of a submarine attack. Also in this footage are scenes of the liner SS Manhattan, later known as the transport USS Wakefield. On January 11 of 1941, the Manhattan ran aground 300 yards off the beach roughly ten miles outside of Palm Beach. It was a drama that did not immediately threaten the vessel's 192 passengers and 482 crew members, and the ship's captain believed he could refloat the ship during the next high tide.But she was firmly fixed and it would take extensive salvage operations before the ship would be refloated. Three tugs (shown in the film) spent three weeks attempting to refloat the ship and eventually succeeded on February 4. Manhattan suffered considerable damage to its two propellers and starboard engine shaft. She was towed to Robins Dry Dock in Brooklyn, New York, for repairs and then redesignated USS Wakefield in June 1941.

Complete Record: This silent home movie shows Palm Beach, Florida in 1941, prior to the United States entering WWII but well into the U-boat campaign against British shipping. On the beach you'll see the wreckage of a destroyer or escort vessel that was likely the victim of a submarine attack. Also in this footage are scenes of the liner SS Manhattan, later known as the transport USS Wakefield. On January 11 of 1941, the Manhattan ran aground 300 yards off the beach roughly ten miles outside of Palm Beach. It was a drama that did not immediately threaten the vessel's 192 passengers and 482 crew members, and the ship's captain believed he could refloat the ship during the next high tide.But she was firmly fixed and it would take extensive salvage operations before the ship would be refloated. Three tugs (shown in the film) spent three weeks attempting to refloat the ship and eventually succeeded on February 4. Manhattan suffered considerable damage to its two propellers and starboard engine shaft. She was towed to Robins Dry Dock in Brooklyn, New York, for repairs and then redesignated USS Wakefield in June 1941.