EARLY LIFE

Samuel Warwick Crowder was born on June 14, 1906 in Louisville, Kentucky. His parents were William Maddock Crowder (1888-1951) from Kentucky and Charlotte B. Sullivan Crowder (1887-1948) from Indiana. Samuel had a younger brother, William Reeves Crowder born in 1911. Samuel and William’s parents divorced and remarried. His father and his new wife had two boys and two girls, who were half siblings to Samuel and William. The 1920 U.S. Census shows 13 year-old Samuel living with his maternal grandparents. In 1940, he was living with his brother, William, and his mother, Charlotte. Samuel worked as a draftsman and a commercial artist beginning in 1923 according to the phone directories.

MILITARY

Samuel enlisted in the U.S. Navy on July 26, 1940 in Louisville, Kentucky. His service number was 2868801. His first assignment was on the USS Robinson (88) according to the August 23, 1940 Muster Roll. His next assignment was on the USS Oklahoma on October 14, 1940. He was 34 years old at this time. His job was First Class Fireman. As Fireman 1st Class his duties included: fire and tend boilers, operate, adjust and repair pumps.

DEATH

F1c Samuel Warwick Crowder died when his ship was attacked by the Japanese on the morning of December 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor. Here is a description of what happen to the people on the USS Oklahoma:

On the morning of 7 December 1941, a fleet of Japanese carriers launched an air strike against the U.S. Pacific Fleet at anchor in Pearl Harbor, on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. The attack decimated the ships and personnel of the fleet and thrust the United States into World War II. At the onset of the 7 December 1941 attack, the battleship USS Oklahoma (BB-37), being moored at berth Fox 5 on “Battleship Row.” Just before 8 am, the Oklahoma was among the first of the ships struck in the attack. A torpedo struck on her port side and she capsized quickly. After the Arizona, she was the largest loss of life at 429 sailors and marines. The Oklahoma was salvaged in 1942, but it was determined she could not be repaired. In May of 1947, she was sold for scrap and while under tow to California, she sank in a storm. Her exact location remains unknown to this day.

POST DEATH EVENTS

F1c Samuel Warwick Crowder’s remains weren’t located until 2017. They were identified through DNA. The remains were returned to his family and laid to rest at Resthaven Memorial Cemetery in Louisville, Kentucky after a funeral with full military honors was held. He was laid to rest next to his mother. He is also memorialized at the at Tablets of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Thank you for your service and ultimate sacrifice! You will not be forgotten!

COMMENDATIONS

★ World War II Victory Medal

★ Purple Heart

★ Combat Action Ribbon

★ American Campaign Medal

★ Navy Presidential Unit Citation

★ Navy Good Conduct Medal

★ Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal

★ Navy Expeditionary Medal

SOURCES

https://pearlharbor.org/history-uss-oklahoma/https://www.history.navy.mil/our-collections/photography/wars-and-events/world-war-ii/pearl-harbor-raid/battleship-row-during-the-pearl-harbor-attack/uss-oklahoma-and-uss-maryland-during-the-pearl-harbor-attack.htm

honorstates.org

familysearch.org

findagrave.com

ancestry.com

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project

(see www.storiesbehindthestars.org). This is a national effort of volunteers to

write the stories of all 400,000+ of the US WWII fallen saved on Together We

Served and Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will

be a smartphone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or

cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story.

This story was written by Kathleen Reber, a Stories Behind the Stars contributor.

Samuel W Crowder