Class 2 | ON-THE-ROOF GANG

On-The-Roof Gang

Class #2

Class #2 convened on 15 May 1929 and graduated on 10 September 1929. Chief Radioman Harry Kidder, who designed the curriculum and helped to design and build the rooftop classroom, was the instructor.

Radioman First Class Donovan Straus Broughton

Donovan Broughton graduated from OTRG Class #2 and transferred to Station CAST. In 1934, he was removed from the OP-20-G rolls and was listed as “qualified but not performing RI duties” through 1936. He served through World War II and retired as a Lieutenant.

Donovan Broughton in Olongapo, Philippines, circa 1931

Broughton was identified at the following locations on the OP-20-G Annual Reports of Radio Intelligence Personnel:

23 Feb 1932: Olongapo, P.I.

03 Jan 1933: Airons, VT-5A (not performing radio intelligence duty)

06 Jan 1934: Airons, VT-5A (not performing radio intelligence duty)

17 Jan 1935: (not performing radio intelligence duty)

13 Jan 1936: USS Trenton (not performing radio intelligence duty)

06 Jan 1937: NAS Pensacola (not performing radio intelligence duty)

12 Jan 1938: NAS Pensacola (not performing radio intelligence duty)

09 Jan 1939: NAS Pensacola (not performing radio intelligence duty)

14 Feb 1940: NAS Pensacola (not performing radio intelligence duty)

24 Feb 1941: NAS Pensacola (not performing radio intelligence duty)

Pertinent data:

Born: 16 December 1902

Location: North Carolina

Died: 17 May 1957

Location: California

Interment Location: Golden Gate National Cemetery, San Bruno, California

Radioman Second Class Earnest Edward “E. E.” Dailey

E. E. Dailey attended OTRG Class #2 but did not complete the class. Near the end, he believed he was promised an automatic advancement to Petty Officer First Class, which was not the case. When given the choice of completing the class and remaining with the radio intelligence organization as a Second Class or returning to General Service, he chose the latter. In 1935, while stationed on board the airship USS Macon, he heroically stood by his transmitter as the ship suffered a malfunction and began to drop toward the sea. The Macon crashed heavily off the coast of Point Sur, California, and Dailey was one of only two Sailors to die in the mishap. When interviewed after the crash, the ship’s Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commander Herbert Wiley, reported that Dailey’s repeated calls for help and position reports were the reason only two Sailors perished.

USS Macon over San Francisco Bay, circa 1934

You can read about E. E. Dailey in On-the-Roof Gang, Volume I – Prelude to War.

Pertinent data:

Born: 1907

Location: California

Died: 12 February 1935

Location: California

Radioman First Class Charles Edward “Charlie” Daniels

Charlie Daniels attended OTRG Class #2 May-Sep 1929 and was assigned to Station CAST. He was promoted to Chief Radioman and completed assignments at Station HYPO in Hawaii and Station BAKER in Guam before transferring to Washington, DC to work in OP-20-G. At the beginning of the war, he was commissioned and eventually retired as a Lieutenant Commander.

Charlie Daniels in Olongapo, Philippines in 1931, and two photos in Guam, circa 1937.

You can read about Charlie Daniels in On-the-Roof Gang, Volume I – Prelude to War.

Daniels was identified at the following locations on the OP-20-G Annual Reports of Radio Intelligence Personnel:

23 Feb 1932: Station CAST, Olongapo, P. I.

03 Jan 1933: Station CAST, Olongapo, P. I.

06 Jan 1934: Washington, DC

17 Jan 1935: En route Station HYPO, Heeia

13 Jan 1936: Station HYPO, Heeia

06 Jan 1937: Station BAKER, Guam

12 Jan 1938: Station BAKER, Guam

09 Jan 1939: Navy Department

14 Feb 1940: Navy Department

24 Feb 1941: Navy Department

Radioman First Class Oliver Wendell Grew

Oliver Wendell Grew attended OTRG Class #2 - May-September 1929 and assigned to Station CAST. Sometime in 1932, he was removed from RI duty and sent back to general service radioman duties. He served during World War II, rising to the rank of Lieutenant before his retirement.

Oliver Grew in Olongapo, Philippines, circa 1931

Grew was identified at the following locations on the OP-20-G Annual Reports of Radio Intelligence Personnel:

23 Feb 1932: Olongapo, P.I.

03 Jan 1933: ComBatDiv (not performing radio intelligence duties)

06 Jan 1934: USS Colorado (not performing radio intelligence duties)

Pertinent data:

Born: 6 May 1901

Location: Manchester, New Hampshire

Died: 15 January 1961

Location: Riverside, California

Interment Location: Desert Memorial Park, Riverside, California

Chief Radioman Maximillian Clellan “Max” Gunn

At the age of fifteen, Max ran away from his home in Indiana by lying about his age and enlisted in the US Navy. When the Navy figured out about his age, he was sent back home. When he turned 18, he enlisted again and became a radioman. He was selected for OTRG Class #2 as a Chief Radioman and was assigned to Station ABLE in Peiping, China. After his initial assignment, he transferred to Bar Harbor, Maine before heading back out to the Far East. He completed tours at Station CAST at Cavite, Philippines and Station ABLE at Shanghai, China and then returned to Maine. He was the Chief Radioman in Charge of Station W at Winter Harbor, Maine when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. After having been commissioned, he transferred to Alaska to become the Officer in Charge of Station AX in Adak, in 1944. After the war, he retired as a Lieutenant Commander, continuing to consult for the US Navy while living in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Max Gunn as a Chief Petty Officer in Shanghai, China, circa 1939 and as a Lieutenant Commander in an undated photo

You can read about Max Gunn in On-the-Roof Gang, Volume I – Prelude to War.

Gunn was identified at the following locations on the OP-20-G Annual Reports of Radio Intelligence Personnel:

23 Feb 1932: Peiping, China

03 Jan 1933: Peiping, China

06 Jan 1934: Bar Harbor, ME

17 Jan 1935: Bar Harbor, ME

13 Jan 1936: Navy Yard, Cavite, P.I.

06 Jan 1937: Navy Yard, Cavite, P.I.

12 Jan 1938: Shanghai, China

09 Jan 1939: Fourth Marines

14 Feb 1940: 1st Naval District

24 Feb 1941: 1st Naval District

Max Gunn's obituary was published in the Boston Globe on 12 February 1968:

Pertinent data:

Born: 27 February 1902

Location: Fort Wayne, Indiana

Died: 10 February 1968

Location: Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Interment Location: Mount Height Cemetery, Southwest Harbor, Maine

Chief Radioman Clarence E. “Harry” Reynolds

Harry Reynolds attended OTRG Class #2 May-Sep 1929 and was assigned to Station ABLE. After a single tour as an intercept operator, he retired, remaining on the Naval Reserve list in California until the beginning of the war.

Harry Reynolds in Peiping, circa 1931

Reynolds was identified at the following locations on the OP-20-G Annual Reports of Radio Intelligence Personnel:

23 Feb 1932: Naval Reserve (F-4)

03 Jan 1933: Naval Reserve 12 ND (F-4)

06 Jan 1934: Naval Reserve 12 ND (F4D)

17 Jan 1935: Naval Reserve 12 ND (F4D)

13 Jan 1936: Naval Reserve 12 ND (F4D)

06 Jan 1937: Naval Reserve 12 ND (F4D)

12 Jan 1938: [not accounted for]

09 Jan 1939: Naval Reserve 12 ND (F4D)

14 Feb 1940: Naval Reserve 12 ND (F4D)

24 Feb 1941: Naval Reserve 12 ND (F4D)

Radioman First Class Murrel Delver Wood

Wood graduated from Class #2 and was assigned to Station CAST and then Station BAKER as Chief Radioman in Charge. Sometime in 1936, he was removed from RI duty for unknown reasons. He retired from the navy as a Chief Electronics Technician.