Lucky Bag Yearbook

From the 1931 Lucky Bag:

Leo O. Crane

Leo, Ichie

Boxing 1 Football, Block N 1 Wrestling, NA Lacrosse, NA 2 P. O.

Mister Crane, what do girls call you?"

“Ichabod, sir,” was the prompt and ready answer, and thus we have the evolution of the present day “Ichie.” Unlike his predecessor in “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” “Ichie” has not only surrendered himself to the wiles and smiles of the ladies, but is very successful in his campaigns.

“Ichie” is an ardent contender that chasing the elusive “theta” is poor sport. Nevertheless, his mental capabilities have gained him a standing that will make him an admiral long before the majority of his classmates. To be more outspoken, he is a savoir that takes exams as a matter of course and caulks the first hour, third period, in the face of an Ordnance recitation. In the silence of a study hour, the conquering “cluck” of the genius in him may be heard as he solves those products of the devil’s mind more commonly known as math probs.

Leo is a man of strong character, possessing ideals of the highest type.

Loss

Leo was lost on March 30, 1938 when the PBY Catalina he was piloting crashed just offshore of Ka’ena Point on the northwestern portion of Oahu, Hawaii. Four others were killed; two crewmen survived. They were part of Patrol Squadron (VP) 4.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Leo received his elementary education at Summertown and graduated from Lawrence County high school at Lawrenceburg. He then attended Georgia Tech for one year and worked the following year at Old Hickory in Nashville.

He was appointed to the Naval Academy by the president on recommendation of Senator L. D. Tyson of Tennessee.

From Find A Grave:

Leo’s first duty after graduation was on the USS Saratoga. In 1933 he went for flying school in Pensacola reviving his wings in 1934. Then going to VO Squadron duty for two years then a year in VF-5 on the USS Lexington. 1n 1937 he shifted to Patrol Squadron four fleet air base, Pearl Harbor. During the annual fleet exercises in the spring of 1938 he was flying a search patrol when his plane crashed in the heavy overcast off Kaena Point Oahu Hawaii on March 30, 1938. He was married to Frances O’Neil the sister of his class mate Eddie O’Neil.

From Wikipedia:

30 March: PBY-1 Catalina, BuNo 0142, of VP-4, crashes and sinks ~200 yards offshore at Kaena Point at ~0405 hrs., while en route to scouting station, operating with Fleet Problem #19. Crash believed to be due to low visibility and darkness. Killed are Lt. (jg) Leo O. Crane, USN, pilot; Aviation Cadet William Howard Lear, USNR; Vernon August Luciana, R.M. 2c, USN; Garland Harold O’Neal, A.C.M.M., USN; and Bluitt Iven Windham, A.O.M. 1c, USN. Injured are Herbert Fred Bartz, A.M.M. 1c, USN; and George Joseph Nilles, R.M. 3c, USN. On 31 March, small seaplane tender USS Avocet salvages the wreckage and recovers the body of a radioman.

Photographs

From the Honolulu Advertiser on April 1, 1938

From The Tennessean on March 18, 1928

Football Career

From the Evening Start (Washington, D.C.) on March 31, 1938:

Lt. Crane was an end on the Navy varsity. football team in 1928 and 1929, winning his major letter in 1928. An injured knee curtailed his play during 1929 and in 1930 he was appointed one of the keepers of the goat, the Navy mascot.

Lt. Harry J. (Hank) Hardwick, head football coach at the academy, who was end coach while Crane was midshipman, said he was one of the best ends he had handled.

Family

From researcher Kathy Franz: “His father served in the Spanish-American War and was a general merchant before serving in WWI. He was killed in France in 1918 as a 1st Lieutenant. Leo’s mother was Ethel, his brothers were John and Joseph, and his sisters were Mildred and Elizabeth.”

Leo was also survived by his son, LCDR Mark Crane (USNA ‘63) and daughter, Patricia, who married CDR Gary Nuss (USNA ‘57). Mark’s three daughters all married Naval Academy graduates, and one of his great-grandsons, Eric Kousky, is a member of the class of 2020.

Leo’s wife, Frances, had ten sisters and brothers; all of them were married to or themselves officers in the Navy or Marine Corps:

• Helen m Lt. (j.g.) William Allen ‘26
• Catherine m Lt. Cdr. Joseph O’Brian ‘31
• Doth m Capt. George Carter (Navy Pilot, non Academy), one son Jimmie Carter USNA ‘64 or ‘65
• Radm Edward O’Neil ‘31, 3 sons, Brian ‘57, Ed, John ,classes unknown USNA
• Claire m Cdr. Ray Vogel ‘36, KIA Korea
  • sons Bill ‘62, Fred ‘65, Tim USMA ‘65 (Navy Pilot)
• Claire m Radm Francis Foley ‘32
• Jerry m Capt Robert Carter ‘38
• Mary Lee m Lt. Hank Shaub (Navy Pilot, non Academy), but chief scientist at Navy R&D Annapolis
• Major Bud O’Neil, USMC USNA ? 2.5 years, non-grad
• Francis m Leo Crane ‘31, killed in plane crash in 1938
  • Son Lt. Cdr. Mark Crane ‘63, Instructor USNA and later Financial Head USNA
    • 3 daughters m USNA grads, Jenny m Cdr. Todd Kousky ‘89, Cristina, Anne, Classes unknown
      • 1 Grandson Eric Kousky, USNA 2020
  • Daughter Patsy m Cdr. Gary Nuss ‘57
• Francis m Radm John Sweeney ‘26
  • son Johnnny died on USS Scorpion on Cold War Patrol

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.

Memorial Hall Error

Leo is listed in Memorial Hall as a LTjg. From The Tennessean on April 3, 1938:

Three days after he died in a plane crash near Hawaii, the promotion of Leo Crane of Nashville from junior lieutenant to lieutenant in the U. S. Navy came through last night.

Crane’s appointment was announced by the Navy Department along with 465 other promotions to lieutenant and lieutenant commander which were approved Saturday by President Roosevelt.

Crane’s mother is Mrs. Ethel Crane of 1409 Ordway Place.