The Fighting Sullivan Brothers in World War II

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The Fighting Sullivan Brothers in World War II

The Sullivan brothers (l-r) aboard the USS Juneau 1942: Joseph, Francis, Albert, Madison, George, image courtesy U.S. Navy

The Sullivan Family of Waterloo, Iowa

In 1941, the Sullivan family resided in a white frame house at 98 Adams Street in Waterloo, Iowa. The head of the household, Thomas, was employed as a freight conductor for the Illinois Central Railroad. Thomas’ family was comprised of his wife Alleta, sons George (27), Francis (26), Joseph (24), Madison (23) and Albert (20) and daughter Genevieve (24). Of the six siblings, only Albert was married at the time, the father of a one-year-old son named James.

When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, plunging the United States into World War II, all five Sullivan brothers were civilians, working at the giant Rath meat packing plant in Waterloo. Both George and Francis (Frank), however, were already U.S. Navy veterans, having served four-year hitches after enlisting in 1937.

With the coming of Pearl Harbor, George and Frank were eager to get back into the Navy – “the sooner the better” in Frank’s words. Joining them in their enthusiasm were Joseph (Red), Madison (Matt) and Al. All five Sullivan brothers then marched to the Navy recruiting center to voluntarily enlist, with the one condition that they not be separated during their military service. The Navy, however, could not honor that request, for it had a policy of breaking up family members during wartime in order to minimize one family’s loss if a ship was hit.

Following a protest letter to the Navy Department, however, the rule was waived. On January 3, 1942, the Sullivan brothers, along with other volunteers from Waterloo, were given a rousing send off as they departed for boot camp at Great Lakes Training Center.

The Sullivans Assigned to the USS Juneau

While at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the Sullivan brothers requested that they be assigned to the light cruiser USS Juneau, which had just been commissioned. The Juneau was a brand new light anti-aircraft cruiser weighing 6,000 tons and armed with 16 five-inch .38 caliber guns, four quadruple 1.1-inch gun mounts and eight 21-inch surface torpedo tubes. Built for speed and maneuverability, the ship’s steel armor was relatively thin – only three and three-quarters inches thick – making it easy prey for enemy torpedoes.

The USS Juneau was commanded by Captain Lyman Knut Swenson, embarking on its first cruise on March 22, 1942. Following training operations in Chesapeake Bay and cruises to the West Indies and Central Atlantic, the Juneau eventually departed the Panama Canal Zone for war in the South Pacific in August 1942.

The USS Juneau at Guadalcanal

As part of a 21-ship American task force, the Juneau arrived off Guadalcanal on September 11, 1942, providing cover for fresh troops from the First Marine Division. As gunners from the Juneau and other ships blazed away at Japanese planes overhead, the marines broke out of their transports and headed to the beach under withering enemy fire.

Several days later, a Japanese submarine slammed a torpedo into the American aircraft carrier Wasp, wounding her badly. Enemy planes quickly filled the skies, as the Juneau and other ships moved in to pick up survivors in the choppy waters.

In October 1942, the Juneau found herself in combat once again, this time in the Battle of Santa Cruz. It proved to be savage combat, with the Japanese sinking the aircraft carrier Hornet along with three other American warships. The mounting toll on Allied ships prompted the U.S. Navy, in its Information Bulletin, to issue an advisory. All brothers and close relatives, they warned, should apply for duty on separate ships. The five Sullivan brothers, serving aboard the Juneau, elected to ignore the bulletin.

The Sullivans and the USS Juneau Are Lost

On November 12, 1942, the Juneau returned to Guadalcanal as part of Rear Admiral Daniel Callaghan’s Task Group 67.4. The next night, the American and Japanese naval forces met in a fierce battle, with a Japanese torpedo driving into the forward fire room on Juneau’s port side, instantly killing all 19 sailors inside.

Now badly damaged but still able to move under her own power, the Juneau along with the other surviving ships from the flotilla, charted course for the nearest American base at Espiritu Santo. But waiting in the depths was the Japanese submarine I-26, which sent two of its fish winging their way at the crippled American task force. One torpedo barely missed the Helena, but did find its mark on another cruiser, the Juneau, cutting her in half and sending her to the bottom in seconds.

In the end, only 10 men of a crew of nearly 700 had survived the Juneau’s final mission. As for the Sullivan brothers, Frank and Madison had apparently gone down with the ship. George, Albert and Joseph had all survived the sinking, making it onto life rafts. Albert and Joseph had then disappeared during the first or second hellish day on the open sea, while George, in a fit of delirium, had left the relative safety of the life raft in order to hazard an impossible swim to San Cristobal Island some 50 miles away. Despite the pleadings of others, George jumped into the water and hadn’t gone but 25 yards or so before three sharks moved in and ripped him to pieces.

Waterloo and America Mourn the Sullivan Brothers

On January 12, 1943, the Sullivan family finally received the official news, delivered in person by a navy officer, petty officer and physician. Lt. Commander Truman Jones, who had sworn in the five Sullivan boys in Des Moines, solemnly told the family: “The Navy Department deeply regrets to inform you that your sons Albert, Francis, George, Joseph and Madison Sullivan are missing in action in the South Pacific.”

The Sullivan tragedy immediately became big news on the American home front, with newspapers, magazines and radio running the story. Tom and Alleta Sullivan, along with their daughter Genevieve, later traveled the country visiting defense plants and selling war bonds. In addition, a destroyer, USS The Sullivans, was later named in honor of the five brothers.

The Fighting Sullivans 1944 movie poster

The Fighting Sullivans Movie, Notes, Saving Private Ryan

In 1944, Twentieth Century-Fox released a movie on the close-knit Iowa family titled The Sullivans (also known as The Fighting Sullivans), starring Anne Baxter, Thomas Mitchell and Selena Royle. The film was later withdrawn from theaters, mainly because of its tragic, depressing nature for an already war-weary public.
In 1997, Kelly Sullivan Loughren, the granddaughter of Albert Sullivan, christened a new guided missile destroyer, USS The Sullivans, at Stapleton Pier in Staten Island, New York.
The five Sullivan brothers were once again in the news in 1998 when television crews came to Waterloo, Iowa, prior to the premiere of Saving Private Ryan, Steven Spielberg’s fictional drama of a family who experiences a similar tragedy during World War II.
Famous WW II poster picturing the Sullivans along with five gold stars declares: “the five Sullivan brothers ‘missing in action’ off the Solomons. They Did Their Part.”
From the Des Moines Register, January 4, 1942: “Five husky Waterloo boys who lost a ‘pal’ at Pearl Harbor were accepted as Navy recruits yesterday at Des Moines. All passed their physical exams ‘with flying colors’ and left by train last night for the Great Lakes (Ill.) training station…”

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World Travel News question by يا سلام: How can Lebanon be one of the top 10 most dangerous countries?
Though stuff happens in Lebanon but still a lot of people tell me that the country especially Beirut is relatively peaceful. So why is it dangerous according to this site? http://www.tourism-review.com/weekly-travel-news/733-the-worlds-most-dangerous-destinations
BTW, Israel is more dangerous than Lebanon on the global peace index list!

World Travel News best answer:

Answer by Haifa
anti-lebanese propaganda probably made by zionists.
you see they didn’t mention Israel (a country which keeps terrorizing Innocent palestinian and lebanese civilians for no reason) WHICH proves the conspiracy.

Edit :The first 5 are Somalia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Haiti and Pakistan. Sudan, Congo, Lebanon, Zimbabwe and the Palestinian territories make up the top ten.

Israel is not in this list which is now clear who actually made this racist list.