Papers of U.S. Navy officer, USNA class of 1941, including squadron history for Air Force Bombing Squadron Ten (1944-1945); reports on "Operation High Jump," manpower, and command leadership; and a chart.
Malcolm Edward Wolfe was born on July 17, 1917, in Nacogdoches, Texas. At the age of 17, he joined the United States Navy in 1934 and was a part of the United States Naval Academy Class of 1941. He was present during the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. Following World War II, he served as a Navigator on the U.S.S. Pine Island during Operation HIGHJUMP. In 1951, he married his wife and they had three children. Wolfe finished his service in 1965 and passed away on September 3, 2004, in San Diego, California.
Operation HIGHJUMP was a military operation done by the United States Navy with the intention of establishing an exploration and research base on Antarctica. The operation, which took place between August of 1946 and February of 1947, resulted in the planting of the Little America IV research base. The ships set out in August and reached the Antarctic area in December. On December 30, the George 1 crashed onto Thurston Island off the coast of Antarctica, resulting in the death of three men. The major ships later reached the planned location on January 15, 1947, and the construction of Little America IV began. In late February, the ships were recalled and the expedition ended due to an early winter.
The USS Pine Island was a Currituck-class seaplane tender named after Pine Island Sound off the coast of Florida. Construction on the ship began in November of 1942 in San Pedro, California. The ship was officially launched in February of 1944 and later was commissioned in April of 1945. During World War II, the Pine Island left California in June of 1945 and relocated to Okinawa, Japan, where it tended to seaplanes during rescue operations. Following the war, the ship moved to the Tokyo Bay and assisted seaplanes during the occupation of Japan. In 1946, the ship left the Pacific and sailed to Norfolk, Virginia. In December, the Pine Island was used during Operation HIGHJUMP, where she assisted with the aerial exploration of Antarctica and saved several aviators who had crashed. A bay in Antarctica and a glacier on Thurston Island were named after the ship. After leaving the Antarctic Circle in March, the ship was overhauled and later served in the Korean and Vietnam Wars before being decommissioned in 1967.
Written April 2024
This collection consists of the papers of U.S. Navy Officer, Malcolm E. Wolfe. Included are a photocopy typescript narrative (1947) of Operation HIGHJUMP, a military operation to establish a research base in Antarctica and a track chart (undated) of the U.S.S. Pine Island used during the operation; a typescript squadron history (1945) of the United States Pacific Fleet, Air Force, Bombing Squadron Ten commanded by Lieutenant Commander Robert Boone Buchan, U.S. Navy; a typescript narrative (undated) on the manpower crisis caused by the Military Pay Bill of 1965; and a typescript narrative (undated) on command leadership.
Gift of Malcolm E. Wolfe
Encoded by Apex Data Services
Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.