81st Anniversary of Pearl Harbor: Herbert Jacobson-- Part 3: His Parents Married on December 7, 1919

"My grandmother [Mabel], who lived to be 84-years old, never really could get a handle on her son being identified as MIA and presumed dead," Brad McDonald [nephew] said.

"It was really hard on her.  ...The day, Dec. 7, and the name Bert were kind of lost to her forever.  It was a double whammy for her.  The final irony is we are burying Bert on September 13, which was my grandmother's birthday."

Brad McDonald's mother, Norma, was very close to her brother Bert.  In fact, it was Bert who introduced Norma to her husband and Brad's father, Orville "Mac" McDonald, also a member of the U.S. Navy.  The two sailors had met while training together at Naval Station Great Lakes, and Bert brought Orville home for a visit.

"Without Bert, I wouldn't be here, Brad McDonald said.  "He played Cupid."

Bert Jacobson arrived at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, at the age of 21, only 57 days after finishing his training at Great Lakes.  He was on duty the night before the attack and believed to be sleeping aboard the ship when the attack took place.

"He may have died before he even knew there was a war going on," McDonald said.  "Of course, there's no way to know that."

Continued in my Down Da Road I Go blog.

Identifying USS Oklahoma Unknowns: Francis Bud Hannon

Since this is Veterans Day, I am writing about veterans in all but one of my blogs.

From the November 9, 2022, KHON Channel 2 Hawaii "Project Oklahoma identifies Pearl Harbor  casualties" by Kristine Uyeno.

There has been a touching tribute after eighty years for the family of Francis Bud Hannon.

"My dad was waiting in California.  He was in the Army," explained  Hannon's second cousin Vanessa Helming.  "And he and Bud were to take their R&R together.  And Bud was at Pearl Harbor, and Dad said as soon as he heard that Pearl Harbor had been hit, he knew that Bud was no longer with us."

Hannon was one of  more than  400 sailors killed aboard the USS Oklahoma.  He was just 20 years old and in the service just two years.

"It was an extreme loss to the family, extreme loss to his parents, my grandparents," Helming said.  "It was just overwhelming.

Some of Bud Hannon's remaining relatives traveled recently to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific on at the Punchbowl in Oahu where he had been buried for decades as an unknown.  But now, his remains have been identified.

A Wonderful Thing Our Government Is Doing.  

101-Year Old Pearl Harbor USS Oklahoma Survivor to Return Today: David Russell

Today, I will be posting about the 80th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor in all but one of my blogs.

From the December 6, 2021, CBS News  "101-year-old  Pearl Harbor veteran  recalls dramatic escape from attack on  the USS Oklahoma."

When the bombs began falling, U.S. Navy Seaman 1st Class, David  Russell first sought refuge below deck of his ship, the USS Oklahoma . but a split-second change of mind likely saved his life.

"They started to close the hatch.  And I decided to get out of there," said Russell, now 101.

Within 12 minutes, his battleship capsized and 429 sailors and Marines perished.  The greatest death toll other than the USS Arizona which lost 1,177 men that day.

Russell plans to return to Pearl Harbor today, the 80th anniversary of the attack.

About 30 survivors of the attack and another 100 World War II veterans are expected to observe a moment of silence at 7:55 am, the moment the attack began.

Last year, everyone stayed home because of the coronavirus.

Continued in my Running the Blockade:  Civil War Navy blog.

--Old Secesh

The Sons and Daughters of Pearl Harbor Survivors on the 79th Anniversary of the Attack

Every December 7 I devote all eight blogs to the story of Pearl Harbor.  I also put up my U.S. flags.  Right now I am thinking of ordering a 48-star flag for future use because that is the flag that flew at Pearl Harbor and during World War II.

The original Pearl Harbor Survivors organization is no more.  Age and deaths are taking its toll on those members of the Greatest Generation.  I am glad to see an active group of their children involved in carrying on their story, the Sons and Daughters of Pearl Harbor Survivors.

Kathleen Farley, California Chairwoman of the Sons and Daughters of Pearl Harbor Survivors said that many of the actual survivors ate already talking about going to Pearl Harbor for the 80th anniversary if it's safe by then.

Farley, whose father, now deceased, was on the USS California and spent three days after the attack picking up bodies, has attended the Pearl Harbor ceremonies for the past twenty years.

"I know deep down in my heart that one of these days, we're not going to have any survivors left," she said.  "I honor them while we still have them and I can thank them in person."

--Pearl Harbor

And a Big Thank You to All American Veterans: A WW II Sailor on the USS Oklahoma Laid to Rest Under His Own Name

Today marks a day that we give our thanks to those who put their lives on the line to keep us living as we do.

As such, all my blogs are devoted to thanks today.

From the Channel 10 Tampa Bay News  "Navy sailor from Florida killed in Pearl Harbor comes home nearly 80 years later."

Petty Officer 2nd Class James  M. Flanagan was killed  on board the USS Oklahoma on December 7, 1941, during the Japanese attack on the base.  He was 22 years old at the time.

The ship turned over after being hit with several torpedoes and many of the crew trapped.  It took the Navy until 1944 to upright the ship and recover the remains, which by that time were fairly disintegrated.  His body was one of those and he was buried on Oahu as an Oklahoma Unknown until recent DNA testing found his remains.

He was reburied under his name at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.

His family in Jacksonville was unable to attend because of the virus, but will receive the flag that covered his casket.

Again, a Big Thank You to All American Veterans.

Wisconsin Pearl Harbor Survivor Will Lehner Writes a Book About It

From December 6, 2019, WXOW 19, ABC News "Wisconsin Pearl Harbor survivor to release book detailing  his life story" by Kevin Millard.

Will Lehner, 98, a prominent central Wisconsin World War II veteran planes to release his book "Legacy of a Pearl Harbor Survivor" on Saturday.  A good day to do the release.  He had help writing it from Patty Drier over 8 months.

He joined the Navy at age 17 and was later stationed at Pearl Harbor.  "I was at Pearl when the war started."  And, you could say he was there for the first shot of the war for the United States.  Aboard the destroyer USS Ward, his ship attacked a Japanese submarine attempting to enter the harbor.

The confrontation took place several hours before the Japanese planes attacked.   That submarine was found in 2002 by deep sea diver Terry Kirby and Lehner went to Pearl Harbor to go down 1200 feet to view it.  "When I saw that submarine, the hair on the back of my neck stood up," said Lehner.
After Pearl Harbor, he took part in many Pacific Campaigns and battles until diagnosed with battle fatigue between 1944 and 1945.

--GreGen

Some Pearl Harbor Survivors Return to Day of Infamy Commemoration, Some Don't

From the December 6, 2019, CNN International "Just 1 of 3 living Pearl Harbor survivors will be able to attend a ceremony  marking the attack's 78th anniversary" by Leah Asmelash.

Lou Conter, 98, is in Pearl Harbor today.  He is one of just three survivors of the USS Arizona still living.  The USS Arizona had the single biggest loss of life in the attack, Just 334 men survived the attack.  1,177 died that day.  Now, there are just three of those 334 still alive.

The other two survivors, Donald Stratton (97) and Ken Potts (99) were not well enough to attend.

Two Arizona survivors died in 2019:  Lonnie Cook in July and Lauren Bruner in September.

--GreGen

Yesterday, A Big Part of American History Died, the Last Doolittle Raider, Richard Cole

From the October 10, Chicago Tribune.

Richard Cole, 103, lived in Comfort, Texas, had been the last member of the famed group for several years and had stayed active even in recent years, attending air shows and participating in commemorative events including April 18, 2017, ceremonies for the Raid's 75th anniversary at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force near Dayton, Ohio.

Cole was mission commander Jimmy Doolittle's co-pilot in the attack which came less than five months after the disastrous December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor by Japanese planes.

Not Forgetting, Pearl Harbor: Survivor Hiram "Pete" Carter Turns 95

I put my United States flags out today (well, actually I had them out since Wednesday because of the funeral of George H.K. Bush).

From the Augusta (Ga.) Chronicle  "Pearl Harbor vet celebrates his 95th birthday in Arizona."

Hiram "Pete" Carter celebrated his 18th birthday in Pearl Harbor back in 1941, seven weeks before the attack.

He was a native of Metter, Georgia, and enlisted in the Navy in Orlando, Florida, as his friends were being drafted.

Pete is one of Augusta's last Pearl Harbor survivors

The brother of his future wife was on the USS Arizona.

In 1945, he was on the USS Stembel (DD-644)

--Old Secesh

A Pearl Harbor Timeline-- Part 2: Airfields and Battleship Row Under Attack

All posts in all blogs today commemorate the anniversary of Pearl Harbor.

All times a.m..

7:15:  Japanese carriers turn east and launch the second wave of the attack planes.

7:48:  Japanese planes begin bombing aircraft at the Naval Air Station Kaneohe Bay.

7:50:  Japanese planes bomb Hickam Field.

7:55  Japanese planes bomb Ewa Field and ships in the harbor, including the battleship USS West Virginia.

7:57:  Japanese planes bomb aircraft on Ford Island.  Others attack ships along Battleship Row.

Continued in today's Running the Blockade Civil War Naval blog.

--Old Secesh

A Pearl Harbor Timeline-- Part 1: Flying In

All of my blogs today commemorate Pearl Harbor

From the December 7, 2016, USA Today  "How Japan Struck in Two Waves."

Timeline of the First Wave:

December 7, 1941.  FIRST WAVE:  AIRFIELDS  All times a.m..

6:05  The Japanese launch a wave of 183 aircraft -- fighters, bombers and bomber-torpedo planes -- from their carriers and divide into groups.  Their targets are planes on airfields and ships at anchor in the harbor.
The attack starts at 7:48.

7:02:  U.S. radar operators at Opana mobile radar site on the northernmost point of Oahu, report a large number of incoming aircraft.

The planes are believed to be a group of 11 U.S. B-17 bombers flying in from California.

--Old Secesh

Events From the War in December-- Part 1: 13th Amendment Passed

From Mort Kunstler's Civil War 2017 Calendar.

Dec. 3, 1826:  Gen. George B. McClellan, US, born.

Dec. 5, 1839:  Gen. George Custer, US, born.

Dec. 6,  1833:  Col. John S. Mosby, CS, born.

Dec. 6, 1865:  The 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery, passed.

Dec. 7, 1941:  Pearl Harbor

Dec. 8, 1863:  Lincoln makes Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction.

--Old Secesh

Pearl Harbor's 75th Anniversary Reminded Me of the Battle of Gettysburg 75th in 1938

From Wikipedia.

Twenty-five veterans of the battle attended, along with 1,359 Union and 486 Confederate veterans still living.  This was out of an estimated 8,000 still living.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt spoke at the event which lasted from July 1-4, 1938.

The average age of attendees was 94.

Real History There As Is the Pearl Harbor 75th.

--Old Secesh

It Was 75 Years Ago: Pearl Harbor "Almost on the USS Arizona"

A date I commemorate in all of my blogs, regardless of what they are about.

From the Youngstown Ohio Pearl Harbor Survivors Profiles.

ANTONE T. "CAL' CALDERONE  Jackson Township near Massillon.

Played tuba and string bass on the USS West Virginia.  In combat he was on communications and damage control.

"I almost got killed on the Arizona. On December 6, there was a battle of the bands but the USS West Virginia did not participate because we were on guard duty.  But the Tennessee band played, and they picked me up.  After playing, the Tennessee band officer asked me to say and my officer said no.

"The Arizona band took me to the West Virginia and as they pulled alongside I wished them a merry Christmas.  If my officer had not denied me permission to stay, I would have been in the Arizona band compartment on December 7.   It took a direct hit and they lost everybody.  To this day, I can't forget it."

Not Forgetting One Bit.

The Day of Infamy-- Part 2: Western Michigan Man Killed Later in the World War II

Commemorating the Day of Infamy in all my seven blogs today.

This Western Michigan men were killed later in the war:

JOSEPH A. BUTOR--  From Hesperia, USN Torpedoman's Mate Chief Petty Officer, lost with all hands on submarine USS Golet off Japan on June 14, 1944.

--GreGen

The Day of Infamy: Muskegon Men Killed on USS Arizona

Every year, all my blogs are devoted to the story of Pearl Harbor on this date.

From M Live!, 12-3-12.  Michigan.

Western Michigan area men killed in action at Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941:

HOMER HOPKINS--  20, of Muskegon, Seaman 1st Class on USS Arizona.

STANLEY MALINKOWSKI--  17, of Muskegon, USN Signalman on USS Arizona.

--GreGen

73 Years Ago This Morning, Surprise Attack

Bob Stroud just mentioned on his Rock and Roll Roots Show on WDRV, "December 7, 1941, A Day That Will Live in Infamy."  Had Harry Chapin still been alive, he would have been having a birthday today and played "Cat's in the Cradle."  He was born the year after Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1942.

I don't usually post on Sunday, but this is one of the days that I do if it falls on a Sunday.

PART 1

Today, Gayle Vyskocil will be sharing her late husband James' speech he gave a few years ago at a Pearl Harbor Remembrance in Whidbey, Washington.  On December 7, 1941, he was a signalman third class on a 90-foot tower as he watched the events unfold.

This story will be continued on my Saw the Elephant and Roadlog blogs.

Day of Infamy 72 Years Ago

December 7, 1941, Japanese plabnes and minisubs attacked US military objectives on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. This caused the United States to enter World War II.

 I am listing the name of one American who died there on that day in every one of my seven blogs.

 WILLIAM M. FINNEGAN of Bessemer and Dollar Bay, Michigan, was on the USS Oklahoma. He left behind a wife and five children. Later in the war, a Navy ship was named for him.

--Greatest Generation

Pearl Harbor Plus 71 Years

I am making mention of the anniversary of this U.S. defeat on all my blogs today.

And, on my World War II blog, I had five entries today on the subject.

Not Forgetting.  --Old Secesh

Pearl Harbor During the Civil War-- Part 2

During the 1820s and 1830s, many American warships stopped in Hawaii.

In 1843, a British ship commander took it upon himself to take the islands in the name of Britain in what became known as the Paulet Affair, but the British government disavowed it. Britain and France later recognized the independence of Hawaii, but the US did not.

In 1849, the French invaded. Hawaiian King Kamehamcha II, under American influence drew up a deal of cessation to the US which was dropped after the French withdrew.

After the conclusion of the Civil War and the acquisition of Alaska and a big increase in Pacific trade, control of Hawaii became more and more important to the US.

One warship was assigned to constantly patrol Hawaiian waters. For awhile, it was the USS Lackawanna, which had been at the Battle of Mobile Bay in August 1864 where it had rammed the Confederate ironclad CSS Tennessee.

It Is Also the 150th Anniversary of the Civil War and Tenth of 9-11. --Old B-R'er