The USS Grunion submarine sank during World War II with 70 men on board off the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. Searchers have been looking for the submarine's wreckage, and now they may have found it. Quoting from the search team's web site, "We found a submarine tonight. ... But we have now lost it, despite documenting location. Nevertheless we have photographic documentation showing prop guard of Grunion style. It imploded dramatically and is a tangle of pipes."
The search team is also searching for living relatives of the men lost on the USS Grunion on July 30, 1942, and have found most of the families. One that is conspicuously absent is the family of Navy Seaman Second Class Byron A. Traviss of Detroit. Genealogists are skilled at locating families, so the search team is appealing to genealogists and others who may be able to help.
Traviss' record at the Navy listed his father's name as Russell Traviss and the family's address in 1942 was the 4300 block of Tireman in Detroit, Michigan. The address is now a vacant lot. The submarine was commanded by Lieutenant Commander Mannert L. Abele. A letter from Lt. Cmdr. Abele's wife also was sent to that address in 1942.
The Abele family began its search for the ship in August 2006. Brothers Bruce and John Abele financed a search that included consultants and a search ship.
Launched from Groton, Connecticut, in 1941, the Grunion set sail from Hawaii in June 1942 to patrol routes between the Aleutian Islands and Japan, according to the Department of the Navy. In July 1942, the submarine was reassigned to Kiska Island.
After the Grunion's final transmission on July 30, the ship was officially reported lost.
The Abeles also created a Web site detailing the search at http://www.ussgrunion.com.
Anyone related to Byron Allen Traviss, or who knew him, is asked to contact aa.par@hotmail.com. You can learn more about the search for the Grunion at: http://www.ussgrunion.com.
A full list of all the men lost on board the U.S.S. Grunion is online at http://www.csp.navy.mil/ww2boats/grunion.htm.
