320 Souls and 75 Years of Remembrance
By: Nate Gartrell
The vast open space that sits between the Contra Costa County cities of Concord and Pittsburg will probably forever be known as the Concord Naval Weapons Station because of the tragic Port Chicago disaster that occurred there in 1944. The site, however, now known as the Military Ocean Terminal Concord, will be undergoing some drastic changes over the next several years.
For the first time since the land was designated for naval and military operations in 1942, large sections of it will be broken off for various purposes; the East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD) will turn the bulk of it into a new open space park, some will be used for development, and some will remain in the hands of the U.S. Army, which still uses the site for the same purpose as that fateful day 75 years ago when more than 300 people were killed in a massive explosion.
In July, the stewards of much of the land—the National Parks Service—will be holding two special events to honor Port Chicago’s history, giving the public a rare look inside the base. One, a July 17 commemoration, is a rare, exclusive event—anyone who wants to go must plan far ahead, and give the park at least two weeks’ notice.
“Because of access restrictions to the base, everyone who goes has to tell us two weeks in advance and we have to clear them through a background check,” said Tom Leatherman, the park’s superintendent. “It is still a military base, after all … it is always harder to get people out there because people don’t plan ahead.”
During that event, which is expected to last about an hour, speakers will recount the sacrifice made by not only the 320 sailors, seamen, and civilians who lost their lives in the explosion but the hundreds of African-American servicemen who refused to continue loading ammunition until conditions improved. Fifty of them were tried and convicted in the largest mutiny case in the Navy’s history. Nowadays, the incident is looked on as a layered tragedy, a moment when we failed to recognize institutionalized racial discrimination that should have been obvious.
“We usually do a short, solemn ceremony where we honor the people who lost their lives, talk about the significance in history, play taps and throw a reef into the water to commemorate them,” Leatherman said. “It’s important to keep the history of Port Chicago alive.”
The second event, will be free and open to the public, with less of a hassle to get inside. It is being planned with the EBRPD, Leatherman said and will include a tour and an in-depth look at the area’s past, present, and future.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor in late 1941 and the United States’ entry into World War II, military bases and bunkers popped up all over California, and the Bay Area was no exception. The Concord Naval Weapons Station opened in 1942 after it became clear that the Mare Island base in Vallejo wouldn’t be able to accommodate the Navy’s needs on its own. The base’s primary function was loading ammunition onto boats that were on their way into the Pacific Ocean theater. Most of the units tasked with this were segregated African-American units, who worked in unsafe conditions. Many of the men weren’t properly trained beforehand and were expected to keep up with a demanding pace of work.
“We want to remember the people who lost their lives, but the story of Port Chicago starts with the explosion and becomes more complex,” Leatherman said. “It helps raise awareness of segregation and unfair treatment of people of color in the military.”
All this came to a head on the evening July 17, 1944—75 years ago this year—when two merchant ships—the SS Quinault Victory and SS E.A. Bryan—were being loaded with more than 4,600 tons of ammo and explosives, like bombs and depth charges. A little before 10:20 p.m. there was a series of massive explosions; two rail cars containing another 4,000 tons of ammunition were also caught in the hellfire.
The results were devastating. Everyone nearby—320 people in all—were killed. Dozens of buildings—essentially the entire base—were destroyed. Buildings were damaged all around the Bay Area, as far away as San Francisco, and the blast itself was felt in Nevada.
Most of the men who survived—and helped clean up in the aftermath—were immediately transferred to Mare Island. Within less than a month, they were ordered to continue loading munitions, with no new safety features nor additional training in place. In a rare, shocking move, 258 of them refused orders. Fifty of them were court-martialed, convicted at trial, and sentenced to between eight and 15 years hard labor, but granted clemency after two years. But their sacrifice had a rippling effect throughout the United States, one that continues to be felt today; there was mass outrage, and many were inspired by their sacrifice. Future Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall attended the trial, for instance, and declared, “This is not 50 men on trial for mutiny. This is the Navy on trial for its whole vicious policy toward negroes.”
“The seeds of the Civil Rights movement were right at Port Chicago, these events that were in the news helped raise awareness that these sailors were asked to do very dangerous work without any training. That’s not the way we should be treating our citizens,” Leatherman said. “The outrage led to the immediate desegregation of the Navy and expanded out to entire armed forces.”
Leatherman added, “That still has resonance today because I think race relations in this country haven’t gotten much better than they were in World War II.”
Over the next several years, the land surrounding Port Chicago and the unincorporated town of Clyde will undergo a transition. About 2,500 acres will be turned over to the EBRPD, a process that Leatherman said is being “fast-tracked” and is expected to be completed in April. Other land will be used for development, and a tiny sliver will remain a military base, ironically performing the same function as that fateful day nearly 75 years ago.
“The conditions are a lot safer today,” Leatherman said.
There are also plans in the works to build a museum or interpretive center at Port Chicago, though that could take a decade or more to come to fruition. In the meantime, this branch of the NPS, despite its tiny staff, is working to keep Port Chicago’s history alive.
The NPS goes out to local schools and other community events to teach Port Chicago’s history and has contributed to an exhibit about it at the nearby North Concord BART station. Other national parks—like the John Muir Park in Martinez and Rosie the Riveter Center in Richmond—show films about Port Chicago as well.
“We still make an effort to do what we can to make sure that story is told, to connect people to the history through outreach,” Leatherman said.
If you want to visit the park outside of the July events, it is best to call or email and make a reservation. For additional history about the park, to view films or listen to podcasts about its history, and to join the Friends of Port Chicago, visit nps.gov/poch. You can also call (925) 228-8860 or send a letter to the local NPS mailing address at 4202 Alhambra Ave., Martinez, CA 94553.
Nate Gartrell grew up in Benicia, studied journalism in college, and has written for a handful of media outlets since age 15. He aspires to visit all 30 Major League Baseball stadiums and to hit the trifecta at the horse track.
