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Casualty Info
Home Town Carroll County, MD
Last Address New Windsor, MD
Casualty Date Aug 09, 1942
Cause KIA-Body Not Recovered
Reason Other Explosive Device
Location Pacific Ocean
Conflict World War II
Location of Interment Pipe Creek Church of the Brethren Cemetery - Union Bridge, Maryland
Wall/Plot Coordinates (memorial marker)
Official Badges
Unofficial Badges
Additional Information
Last Known Activity:
The first Japanese cruiser searchlight beams illuminated USS Vincennes (CA-44) shortly after 0155 on August 9, 1942, and the American cruiser opened fire with her main battery at the troublesome lights. Within a minute, however, Japanese shells bracketed the ship and Vincennes shuddered under the impact of Japanese eight-inch armor-piercing shells. The bridge, carpenter shop, "battle II," and radio antenna trunks all were hit by the first salvo.
Altering course to port, Riefkohl, who had come to the bridge at the alarm, rang down for increased speed. With the ship and internal communications disrupted, it is doubtful that the order was received. Still moving at 19.5 kn, the heavy cruiser reeled under the impact of another group of direct hits.
Some of the shells in this group set fire to the volatile aircraft in Vincennes' hangar space, and the resultant flames became uncontrollable. A direct hit knocked the aft antiaircraft director overboard. At 0200, Vincennes heeled to starboard in an attempt to evade enemy gunfire, only to be hit by Japanese torpedoes. One or two "Long Lance" torpedoes ripped into the ship's number 4 fireroom and put it out of action. In moments the report came "Both engine rooms are black and dead."
Having lost power and all steering control five minutes later, Vincennes was dead in the water within minutes. The glare of burning fires attracted additional incoming shells which quickly put the ship's own guns out of action. Vincennes shuddered to a halt. Hit at least 85 times by 8 in and 5 in shells, the ship gradually began to list.
At 0210, the Japanese retired, leaving Savo Island and the burning hulks of three American cruisers in their wakes. As Vincennes' list increased to port, Riefkohl issued the order to abandon ship at 0230. Serviceable life jackets and rafts were broken out, and the crew began abandoning ship. At 0240, the captain went down to the main deck and jumped into the waters of what would come to be known as Ironbottom Sound. 332 crewmen did not survive and are officially recorded as killed in action in the loss of Vincennes.
CWO Babylon was among the men listed as missing and later declared dead.
Comments/Citation:
Service number: Enlisted - 2580139 CWO - 199284
The information contained in this profile was compiled from various internet sources.
Pacific Air Offensive (1942-45)/Doolittle B-25 Attack on Tokyo
From Month/Year
April / 1942
To Month/Year
April / 1942
Description The Doolittle Raid, also known as the Tokyo Raid, on 18 April 1942, was an air raid by the United States on the Japanese capital Tokyo and other places on Honshu island during World War II, the first air raid to strike the Japanese Home Islands. It demonstrated that Japan itself was vulnerable to American air attack, served as retaliation for the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, and provided an important boost to U.S. morale while damaging Japanese morale. The raid was planned and led by Lieutenant Colonel James "Jimmy" Doolittle, U.S. Army Air Forces.
Sixteen U.S. Army Air Forces B-25B Mitchell medium bombers were launched without fighter escort from the U.S. Navy's aircraft carrier USS Hornet deep in the Western Pacific Ocean, each with a crew of five men. The plan called for them to bomb military targets in Japan, and to continue westward to land in China—landing a medium bomber on Hornet was impossible. Fifteen of the aircraft reached China, and the other one landed in the Soviet Union. All but three of the crew survived, but all the aircraft were lost. Eight crewmen were captured by the Japanese Army in China; three of these were executed. The B-25 that landed in the Soviet Union at Vladivostok was confiscated and its crew interned for more than a year. Fourteen crews, except for one crewman, returned either to the United States or to American forces.
After the raid, the Japanese Imperial Army conducted a massive sweep through the eastern coastal provinces of China, in an operation now known as the Zhejiang-Jiangxi Campaign, searching for the surviving American airmen and applying retribution on the Chinese who aided them, in an effort to prevent this part of China from being used again for an attack on Japan. An estimated 250,000 Chinese civilians were killed by the Japanese during this operation.
The raid caused negligible material damage to Japan, but it succeeded in its goal of raising American morale and casting doubt in Japan on the ability of its military leaders to defend their home islands. It also caused Japan to withdraw its powerful aircraft carrier force from the Indian Ocean to defend their Home Islands, and the raid contributed to Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto's decision to attack Midway Island in the Central Pacific—an attack that turned into a decisive strategic defeat of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) by the U.S. Navy in the Battle of Midway. Doolittle, who initially believed that loss of all his aircraft would lead to his being court-martialled, received the Medal of Honor and was promoted two steps to Brigadier General.
