Submarine battle flag joins museum display of World War I and II artifacts

By Judy Nachazel

An interesting piece of World War II naval history has come to the Ramona Pioneer Historical Society and the Guy B. Woodward Museum at 645 Main Street.

A battle flag from the submarine Sturgeon has been donated to the museum in honor of the late Seaman Robert Keehan, brother-in-law of Corrine Woodward, wife of museum director Ken Woodward.

The Sturgeon was active in the South Pacific immediately after Pearl Harbor. The battle flag tells the story of a valiant sub. It has 22 torpedoes displayed signifying 22 “kills” during its active duty.

A number of enemy ships were sent to their watery graves by the Sturgeon, which participated in seven war patrols and received 10 battle stars for her World War II service. She subsequently operated as a training ship and was decommissioned at the Boston Navy Yard on Nov. 15, 1945.

The battle flag is now part of the military display in the museum’s basement, joining various artifacts from

World Wars I and II, including canteens, field desks, and various rationing coupon books that are part of a display Woodward arranged.