WW2 Era American Death/Memorial Card of Carl F. Zeidler

Carl was born on January 4th 1908. He would eventually get into politics and would become the 33rd Mayor of Milwaukee in 1940. Carl would soon start to see more and more of the war as it progressed and decided the best way he could help the war effort would be to enlist. He resigned his position as Mayor and accepted a Navel Reserve Commission on April 8th 1942. He asked for the most dangerous job on ship and became officer in charge of a gun battery on board the merchant ship SS La Salle.
At 22.50 hours on 7 Nov 1942 the unescorted La Salle was hit by one torpedo from U-159 about 350 miles southeast of the Cape of Good Hope. The U-boat had followed the ship for five hours and already missed with a stern torpedo at 21.19 hours. The torpedo ignited the cargo of ammunition and the ship exploded, creating a fireball hundred meters high and completely destroyed the vessel. Bits of wreckage fell around the ship for several minutes afterwards and slightly wounded three men on watch in the conning tower of the U-boat. It is reported that the explosion was heard clearly at Cape Point Lighthouse over 300 miles away. None of the eight officers, 32 crewmen and 20 armed guards (the ship was armed with one 4in, four 20mm and two .30cal guns) survived.

 

Respectfully, the ship photo you have provided is not the SS LA SALLE that was sunk in 1942.

The photo is of the post-war SS LA SALLE. Originally laid down as SS ANTINOUS, she was completed, and immediately taken over by the US Navy for conversion to an Attack Transport. The ship was renamed USS BAXTER(APA-94). After the war ended, she was sold to the Waterman Steamship Corporation and renamed SS LA SALLE.

 

Thank you for the clarification

 

This is you ship, under her original name, GEORGE PEIRCE.

 

Thanks so much!

 

Any time.