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"Honor And Brotherhood"
World War II



The five Sullivan brothers, Albert, Francis, George, Joseph and Madison, were born in Waterloo, Iowa, between 1914 and 1920. George and Francis enlisted in the Navy in 1937. Their three younger brothers joined the service in early 1942. All five were assigned to the commissioning crew of USS Juneau (CL-52) in February 1942. They remained with the ship through her Atlantic shakedown operations and subsequent combat actions in the Guadalcanal Campaign.


The USS Juneau was launched 1941.



The five Sullivan brothers served together as shipmates aboard the cruiser U.S.S. Juneau after requesting special permission from the Secretary of the Navy.

This is the letter George Sullivan wrote:





The USS Juneau as the Sullivans were assigned.



All five were lost when the Juneau was sunk on November 13, 1942, off the island of Guadalcanal, by Japanese submarine I-26.


The aged letter the Sullivan Family received from the US Government
informing them of the loss of their five sons.




Of a crew of over 600 sailors on board the Juneau, only 10 survived, when the light cruiser was torpedoed and destroyed, on 13 November 1942:

Seaman First Class Wyart Bertram Butterfield, USN
Seaman First Class Victor James Fitzgerald, USN
Seaman First Class Arthur Theodore Friend, USN
Machinist Mate Second Class Henry Jordan Gardner, USN
Signalman Second Class Joseph Patrick Francis Hartney, USN
Seaman Second Class Allen Clifton Heyn, USN
Seaman Second Class Frank Alfred Holmgren, USN
Chief Gunner's Mate George Imari Mantere, USN
Lieutenant Junior Grade Charles Wang, USNR
Signalman FIrst Class Lester Eugene Zook, USN

Four other crew members, who transferred to USS San Francisco, the morning of 13 November to assist with battle casualties also survived.

Pharmacist Mate First Class Orrel G. Cecil, USN
Pharmacist Mate Second Class Theodore D. Merchant, USN
Lieutenant Roger W. O'Neil, MC-V(G), USNR [senior surviving officer]
Pharmacist Mate First Class William T. Sims, USN




Since their loss much confusion has resulted from the many myths surrounding both the Sullivan brothers and the Navy's policy regarding family members serving together at sea. This tragedy received wide publicity in the United States and resulted in a new Navy policy discouraging family members from serving together in the same ship.

Many memorial efforts have honored the five brothers. In February 1943, the destroyer Putnam, then under construction at San Francisco, California, was renamed USS The Sullivans (DD-537) in honor of the Sullivan Brothers. More recently, an Arleigh Burke class destroyer, DDG-68, was named USS The Sullivans.





An invitation letter from the US Government
for the Sullivan Family to attend the christening
of the USS The Sullivans, honoring their five sons
to be launched in San Francisco, California
April 14, 1943.




       


Source:
US Navy Historical Center