Memories of World War II were on Clare Earl Johnson's mind when he visited Ballard recently from his home in Poulsbo. With his fading news clippings in his hand, he stopped by the News-Tribune office to see if anyone would be would be interested in his story.

Johnson, who is now 87 years old, left Spokane and came to Ballard to seek work in the maritime industry back in 1941. He found a job at Seattle Shipbuilding and was assigned to a crew building minesweepers for the U.S. Navy.

He supervised all the joiner work on 12 minesweepers from 1941 to 1944. "I was responsible for all the joiner work. I machined all the wooden parts, all the bunks, cabinets, tables for the galley, lockers and all the finishing work," Johnson said.

One of the minesweepers was the YMS 341. He described the YMS 341 as a tough ship with a round bottom to keep it from rolling around too much in big waves.

"That kept them more stable. It had 20 mm guns for ship to ship defense," said Johnson.

Building a minesweeper was labor intensive. "There were oak frames that had to be steamed and bent with two layers of planking," said Johnson.

A crew of 14 was required to build the minesweepers. Johnson was the youngest at the age of 23.

He was promoted to foreman because he was the only crew member who could read blue prints.

The YMS 341 was christened with a big ceremony. A bottle of campaign was broken across its bow.

Johnson was drafted into the U.S. Navy in 1944 and was sent to the Marianas Islands in Guam, home to a navy operating base with a ship repair yard.

"I wrote up job orders for repair crews. They (boats) came in all shot to heck," said Johnson.

He saw boats that had been torpedoed. The battleship U.S.S. Pennsylvania was one of them. "It was a very big battleship. It had a big hole in it," recalled Johnson.

"I said to myself, I'm not going to kill anyone. I was not in any fighting at all. I did not have to," said Johnson.

During the war and old friend visited the base when the YMS 341 came through. Johnson boarded the minesweeper he had helped build. The ship had come in for minor repairs before leaving for Okinawa, Japan.

Later Johnson heard the news of the YMS 341 getting caught in a typhoon and sinking.

Johnson pulls out an old newspaper clipping with a picture of Lowell J. Bemis smiling and eating a sandwich. The table was covered with boxes of Rico Ice Cream. Bemis was the lone survivor out of 33 men aboard the YMS 341. Bemis was from Port Angeles, WA. He was with two other sailors in the water who never made it to shore.

The headline read "Sharks Attack Sailor Adrift 56 hours after Oki Typhoon." The story was printed in the Stars and Stripes newspaper.

According to the story written by Stars and Stripes reporter T/4 Joseph C. Gusky, sixty-foot waves hit the YMS 341 on Sept. 17, 1945, fifteen days after the Japanese surrendered. The big waves tossed the minesweeper around the sea like a matchstick.

After being swept overboard in Buckner Bay, Okinawa, Bemis fought off sharks and finally swam to shore despite a slash in his arm.

While in the water, the sharks appeared. "Most of them were small and we could scare them away by kicking our feet, but they were a constant threat. On the morning of the 18th we sighted land and started swimming toward it. But the man who had given me his belt was overcome and lay motionless on the water," Bemis told the Stars and Stripes.

"As we swam on, I felt a strike at my lifebelt. A shark had ripped it to shreds. Then he hit my arm. I didn't feel any pain at first, but was plenty scared. I lay on my back and threshed water. The shark went away," said Bemis.

Some Japanese children found Bemis on the beach and called their parents. The parents brought medical help.

"I was sorry to hear it (Stars and Stripes ) got beached. Lowell was the lone survivor. All the others drowned or got eaten by sharks," said Johnson.

"It was quite a loss, all the lives but one," Johnson said.

The U.S.S. Missouri came through Johnson's base after the peace ceremony was held between the U.S. and Japan, ending the war. "I was on that (ship) trading souvenirs with guys," Johnson said.

"You bet I was happy to hear the war was over. I came back to Ballard and Seattle Shipbuilding," said Johnson.

With the war over, Johnson built and repaired fishing boats.

Then he got into the general contracting business, building homes in Ballard and Sunset Hill. "It was much quieter than it is today. Everyone seemed to know everyone else. It was a small time city," Johnson said.

He met his wife Lucile Larsen at Seattle Shipbuilding. She was the head office girl.

"She was good on shorthand writing," said Johnson. Larsen's parents had immigrated from Norway in 1900 and settled in Ballard. Her father was a machinist in Ballard.

In 1975 the Johnson's moved to Poulsbo. He retired in 1981 and the couple live in a recreational cabin on Hood Canal close to Poulsbo.

The Johnsons make the one-hour trip to Ballard once or twice a year.

"The coffee shop at Sons of Norway (Leif Erikson Hall). That's what brings me here. It's Scandinavian, serves open face sandwiches and Kaffe Stua. It's a get together luncheon," said Johnson.

Johnson waited 61 years to share his wartime experience with the Ballard community. "I think it will make a good story since the boat was built here. I was on it in Guam. I knew the boat inside out," said Johnson.

When the YMS 341 was in for repairs, Johnson said he talked to most of its crew but could not specifically remember which one was Bemis.

Bemis moved to Poulsbo after the war. Johnson tried to connect with him a few years ago without success. Johnson heard Bemis died a month ago in Port Angeles.