Lucky Bag Yearbook

From the 1935 Lucky Bag:

JAMES FRANCIS XAVIER FITZPATRICK, JR.

Fitz

Football 4, 3, 2, 1, NA. Baseball 4, 3, 2, 1, NA. Water Polo 4, 3, 2, 1, N. Captain Water Polo. N Club 3, 2, 1. 1 P.O.

FOR those who are not acquainted with Fitz, and they are few, he is a third platoon lad, one hundred seventy-five pounds of fun and popularity, can be readily identified in any crowd by his grin, and is one of the few Midshipmen who has been courageous enough to insult the almighty Tecumseh while pulling sat. Fitz is fond of athletics and excells in aquatic sports. He derives a peculiar thrill in holding people under water, and we enjoy his sense of humor when he is oiling someone’s wagon. There have been moments with the Executive Department and struggles with Old Man Academics, but they add only to his glory, as those familiar “woids” “goal by Fitzpatrick of Navy” ring in our ears.

Loss

James was lost on June 26, 1943 when the aircraft he was aboard crashed “in dense jungle” in New Hebrides. (Information from September 1946 issue of Shipmate.)

He was commanding officer of Fighting Squadron (VF) 27. The squadron, along with several others, were in the process of flying from New Hebrides to Guadalcanal. The squadron normally operated from USS Suwanee (CVE 27), but was based in Guadalcanal until late July while the ship was moored to a buoy in Havannah Harbor, Efate Island, New Hebrides. (Though it’s not noted in the ship’s logs, the war cruise book notes, “during this period the squadrons, VT and VF 27, were sent to Guadalcanal for two long periods during which they amassed an impressive combat record.”)

Operations in February - June 1943

In the first months of 1943, Carrier Division 22 seems to have operated their aircraft almost interchangeably. For example, on April 17 Sagamon listed pilots aboard from VFs 26, 27, 28, and VC-26. However, most of the time James Fitzpatrick, Jr. ‘35, John Dalton ‘38, and Jack Mahony, Jr. ‘39 were aboard Suwanee or ashore at Guadalcanal. The following mentions were found in the ship’s logs:

• 4 February: Suwanee, VGF 27 (Mahoney)
• 8 February: Suwanee, VGF 27 (Dalton, Mahoney)
• 6 March: Suwanee Air Group transferred to Guadalcanal
• 24 April: Suwanee VF 27 mostly returns. Dalton does, but Fitzpatrick and Mahoney are at the Guadalcanal base hospital
• 11 May: Suwanee Dalton flight lead
• 11 May: Suwanee Dalton and LCDR Fitzpatrick
• 13 May: Suwanee Fitzpatrick flight lead
• 13 May: Suwanee Dalton and LCDR Fitzpatrick
• 26 May: Suwanee Mahoney flight lead
• 27 May: Dalton, Mahoney TAD aboard Sagamon
• 8 June: Suwanee Fitzpatrick flight lead
• 9 June: Suwanee Fitzpatrick and Mahoney
• 10 June: Suwanee Fitzpatrick, Dalton, Mahoney
• 11 June: Suwanee Dalton
• 12 June: Suwanee Mahoney, Dalton
• 13 June: Suwanee Fitzpatrick, Mahoney
• 14 June: Suwanee Fitzpatrick, Dalton
• 15 June: Suwanee Fitzpatrick
• 21 June: Suwanee Fitzpatrick, flight lead, catapulted from the ship while she lay at anchor

After this, there are no further mentions of any of these men or Fighting Squadron (VF) 27 aboard USS Suwanee or USS Sagamon (CVE 26).

Previous Wartime Experience

When Escort Fighting Squadron (VGF) 27 was commissioned on April 22, 1942 in Norfolk, Virginia, James was appointed executive officer. He, and the squadron, were heavily involved in operations in North Africa in November of 1942. He became commanding officer of the squadron on November 30, 1942 when the prior commanding officer became Air Officer of Suwanee.

Other Information

From the Pensacola News Journal on July 16, 1943:

Lt. Comdr. James F. Fitzpatrick, 30, whose wife and two children are Pensacolans, has been killed in an airplane crash in the South Pacific, the Navy department advised his relatives today.

Mrs. Fitzpatrick is the former Louise Mackey, daughter of W. C. Mackey, laundry proprietor. Mrs. Fitzpatrick and her son, James F. Jr.. 2 years old and daughter, Johanna, four months, reside at 1319 East Blount street.

Lieut. Commander Fitzpatrick had been in the South Pacific area since last October. Born in New York city, he was graduated from the Naval academy in 1935 and obtained his wings as a naval aviator at Pensacola.

He played football on the Annapolis varsity and also played with the Naval Air station team in a line position. Fitzpatrick served as an instructor at the Pensacola station, later was ordered to Norfolk and then to sea duty in the Pacific.

He and Miss Mackey were married April 27, 1940.

Besides his wife and children here, he is survived by his mother, Mrs. Johana Fitzpatrick of New York city. His father, James F. Fitzpatrick, is dead.

From researcher Kathy Franz:

James’ father died of an illness on March 16, just three months before James. His father was in charge of the detectives of the Clinton Street police station and a member of the New York City police force for more than 36 years. He received five departmental commendations for his work. James’ mother was Johanna.

His wife, Mary Louise, was listed as next of kin. She remarried in 1960.

James is buried in Hawaii.

Navy Directories & Officer Registers

The "Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps" was published annually from 1815 through at least the 1970s; it provided rank, command or station, and occasionally billet until the beginning of World War II when command/station was no longer included. Scanned copies were reviewed and data entered from the mid-1840s through 1922, when more-frequent Navy Directories were available.

The Navy Directory was a publication that provided information on the command, billet, and rank of every active and retired naval officer. Single editions have been found online from January 1915 and March 1918, and then from three to six editions per year from 1923 through 1940; the final edition is from April 1941.

The entries in both series of documents are sometimes cryptic and confusing. They are often inconsistent, even within an edition, with the name of commands; this is especially true for aviation squadrons in the 1920s and early 1930s.

Alumni listed at the same command may or may not have had significant interactions; they could have shared a stateroom or workspace, stood many hours of watch together, or, especially at the larger commands, they might not have known each other at all. The information provides the opportunity to draw connections that are otherwise invisible, though, and gives a fuller view of the professional experiences of these alumni in Memorial Hall.