Frank Paukstis, my dad is in the second row on the far right.
Bernie Kuta is in the 4th row, third from the left
Emile T. Walczyk is in the second row on the far left.

5th Division (Donated by Ira Leon "Lee" Gardner)

1st Gunnery/Deck Division (Transcribe handwritten ID notes)

2nd Division

Unidentified Division, Unknown Date (from album of Doc Rountree)

The 5th Division was plane handling detail along with Aviation Personnel.
Shipmate Krapish is 7th from left in 2nd row. He operated the crane for about 2 years 1940-41 (transcribed from handwritten notes)

The Philadelphia returned from North Africa in November 42.
The photos below (provided by George Coleman) document the ship in the Brooklyn Navy Yard in December 42.
The USS Iowa (BB62) is under construction in the background.
However the ship returned to North Africa during December so the caption on the above photo is probably correct.

The caption above is questionable since none of the men are wearing the wings of the "V" division (noted by George Coleman)
New information identifies the above group as "F" DIVISION

Members of “V” Division (or VCS-8) taken at North Field, Tunis in October 1943 following the Salerno invasion. The men are Blair (top left), Phil Lagatutta (ship’s photographer), Gideon (top right), Buzby (front left) and George Coleman (front right).
Provided by George Coleman Jr who received this from George Brucia at the 2008 reunion.

Lt MacPhail - A 70 year old mystery solved on Veterans' Day 2013..
Dad always thought that Lt. McPhail was part of the baseball MacPhail family. I could never confirm this.
However, shipmates have told me at reunions that Lt MacPhail once took them to a major league game while stateside
and introduced them to the players that he knew personally.
Thanks to David Raith who worked for William "Bill" MacPhail, we now know that Lt MacPhail was the son of Larry and brother of Lee, both elected to the baseball hall of fame. After the war Bill worked in the family business (baseball), but left for a career in Sports Broadcasting. As President of CBS Sports and founder of CNN Sports, he is responsible for many of the innovations we know today.
Details of his life are in his NY Times Obituary and additional pictures are here.

Shipmates also told how they played in the old uniforms of the teams from the city of Philadelphia (Phillies and the Athletics)
So for some games they were the Philadelphia Phillies and sometimes they were the Philadelphia Athletics.

Martha Rae was a popular entertainer onboard

"Shellbacks" (those who have crossed the equator before) conduct the traditional ceremony for the "pollywogs" (those who are about to cross the equator for the first time) are properly indoctrinated. All pollywogs, even the Commanding Officer if he has not crossed before, must participate.

The photos of Philadelphia's crossing were provided by Richard Whitehead.
His uncle T. R. (Rudolph) Whitehead became a "Trusty Son of Neptune" on July 24, 1940.

This piece of PThis piece of Philadelphia history was part of the estate of George G Crissman who was an Engineering Officer aboard the Philly and afterwards assigned to the USS Intrepid and USS Toledo.
He was a member of the Philadelphia Reunion Group

This photo was provided by Peter Crosby, son of Cdr. Gordon Josiah Crosby who was Exec. Officer of USS Philadelphia for much of 1942-44.
He also served as Commanding Officer for Aug. '43 when Capt. Hendren fell ill and was replaced by Capt. Ansel.

This 'smoker' aboard USS Phila. was sometime in 1942-43 when it was the flagship of Rear Admiral Lyal A. Davidson
who is identified in the photo along with Cdr. Crosby. The officer in the center is Captain Paul Hendren
(ID of Capt Hendren, thanks to George Coleman)
This photo appears on p 92 of "Joining the War at Sea" by Franklyn E Dailey Jr.

Unidentified - WHO, WHEN, WHERE?