LTJG JOSEPH J. SILHAVY, JR., USN

Class 1944

Born April 3, 1921

Died April 29, 1945

Age 24

Hometown Wauseon, Ohio

Lucky Bag Yearbook

From the 1944 Lucky Bag:

Joseph John Silhavy, Jr.

From “late-dater” to midshipman is a transition that few have undergone. Joe, a former “St. Johnnie,” had this distinction. Schooled at St. John’s in the works of the old philosophers, he was able to master with ease any course. Joe managed to find time from his academics to help the Reception Committee, to write for the Trident, to participate in battalion athletics, to improve his game of colt, and above all, to write letters to Jean. The charm responsible for the tonnage of mail he received, coupled with his never-ceasing good sense of humor, will result in his ending up at but one place—the top.

The Class of 1944 was graduated in June 1943 due to World War II. The entirety of 2nd class (junior) year was removed from the curriculum.

Loss

Joseph was one of ten officers and 67 men killed — with another 36 missing — when USS Hazelwood (DD 531) was struck by a kamikaze on April 29, 1945 while operating near Okinawa.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Joseph was born in Alma, Michigan. He graduated from Wauseon High School and then attended St. John’s College for one year. In April 1939, Joseph was one of four Ohio candidates who competed for admission to the U. S. Coast Guard Academy at New London, Connecticut.

He married Florence Jean Guilford on June 12, 1943, in Fulton County, Ohio. She also graduated from Wauseon High School and became a nurse.

His father Joseph was a retail merchant in auto sales. Born in Austria, his father was a Magyar.

He has a memory marker in Ohio and he is also listed at the Courts of the Missing in Hawaii. Joseph was survived by his wife, Mrs. Florence Jean Silhavy.

Class of 1944

Joseph is one of 66 members of the Class of 1944 on Virtual Memorial Hall.

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