Sparta Navy veteran had front row seats to history

SPARTA — Hundreds of Honor Guards lined the pier off Tokyo Bay in 1945 to greet dignitaries from the United States and Japan, who would be putting pen to paper to mark a critical turning point in World War II. With the USS Teton tied to the pier, Navy veteran and Sparta resident Art Williams had front row seats to view history in the making.
Williams — a veteran Navy seaman first class, third division — served for three years and three months during World War II.
"I knew at that moment that this would be the most historic moment of my life," said Williams, 87. "I knew that there would be nothing bigger than this that ever occurred. And I was right, nothing ever did."
September 2 marks the 67th Anniversary of V-J Day or Victory over Japan Day, representing the official Surrender of Japan in World War II. The unconditional surrender came after two atomic bombs were dropped on Japan by the U.S., a few weeks earlier, leaving the country in rubble.
The formal surrender ceremony, which drew thousands of military officials and members of the press, was held aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. Japanese and American dignitaries were escorted through the pier in Tokyo Bay where they boarded a destroyer that ferried them back and forth from the USS Missouri to sign the Japanese Instrument of Surrender.
Many ships were anchored at sea, but the USS Teton — which Williams served aboard — was the only ship tied to the pier. "I saw the whole thing at ring side seats," he said.
Filled with high spirits that World War II was coming to an end, Williams noted that servicemen from all around the world shared one common feeling.
"For the first time in maybe years, you knew you would not be killed in the war," Williams said. "And that was a big relief for everybody."

Sneaking out into Tokyo

Surrounded by naval memorabilia in his quaint home in Sparta, Williams, recalled the anniversary of V-J Day as not only historic but as a time of mischief for himself.
His adventure began Aug. 29, 1945, when the USS Teton docked at Tokyo Bay.
Williams, who was 20 at the time, recalled the Naval crew being in very high spirits due to the impending surrender of Japan. Many of the crewmen were hanging out by the railing of the ship looking at the sights. Not many people were on the pier except a couple of fisherman.
Along came two young Japanese boys on bicycles, one of whom spoke English and was very friendly. Williams and the boy — whose name is unknown — talked quite a bit and came up with the idea to sneak ashore later that night and have a guided tour of Tokyo.
"It was a stupid idea really, because the peace wasn’t even signed yet," Williams said. "But we didn’t think of that as youths… the adventure was the big thing."
At about 10 p.m. when things were all quiet, Williams and two other crewmen filled their pockets with cigarettes and candy bars. To camouflage, the crewmen put on dark work clothes and slid down the lines of the stern of the ship onto the pier.
The Japanese kid was waiting and took the crew into Tokyo through a subway.
Even though the surrender was not official, Williams recalls seeing hoards of Japanese all around that were dazed since the Emperor told them to lay down. So the Americans had no problem walking among them.
The young kid took the Americans to friends' homes to drink tea, smoke cigarettes and snack on candy. When the group was aware it would be dawn in about two hours, the boys rushed back to the ship.
Unfortunately, the tide had come in overnight and the ship was much higher — too high to shimmy up the lines.
The boys scurried around the pier trying to figure a way back on the ship, because if caught they would have been thrown into the brig.
"At that moment which I thought was an ironic twist of fate, a work party came off the ship, about 10 to 15 men, and they were picking up boxes on the pier and bringing them back," Williams recalls. "So we perceived that as an opportunity and blended in with them. Grabbed a box and went up the gang plank with them, all very neat and we thought we were the smartest guys in the world and we got back unscathed."
Williams and his friends thought they were very slick until 50 years later, when the crew held a reunion in Florida.
At the table, crewmen recalled stories of the war. When it was Williams' turn he recited his tale of the night in Tokyo and how clever he was to get back aboard.
"Wait a minute, I was the officer of the deck that day," said another man at the table, after hearing Williams' story. "We saw you walking around trying to figure something out on the pier. We knew you couldn’t get back. I arranged that phoney work detail with the cooperation of the officers on deck and sent the men down there to pick up something, hoping you would blend in with them. And you did. But you didn’t think of that, we did. It wasn’t just fate."
Williams laughed and responded, "Holy macro! All these years I thought it was us. I knew it was too good to be true."
"And that was the real story," Williams concluded in his living room.