George Themistocles George

George Themistocles George was born 23-Aug 1915.  He lived in St Louis, St Louis County, Missouri.  His father was Themistocles George (1887–1967) and his mother was Elpiniki “Ellen” Prodani (1892–1970). His father owned a local candy store. George attended Hadley Vocational School for three years before enlisting in the US Naval Reserve in 1940.

On December 7, 1941, at 7:56 a.m., the Japanese launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, targeting Battleship Row. The USS Oklahoma was struck by as many as nine torpedoes. Within 12 minutes, at 8:08 a.m., the battleship capsized. Hundreds of men were trapped below deck, struggling in the pitch-dark, upside-down compartments as they filled with water. 429 officers, sailors, and Marines lost their lives, marking the second-greatest loss of life at Pearl Harbor after the USS Arizona.

On December 2, 2016, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced that his remains had been identified and accounted for. He has been laid to rest at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.

George was likely awarded the following medals:

  • Purple Heart
  • Combat Action Ribbon
  • World War II Victory Medal
  • American Campaign Medal
  • Navy Presidential Unit Citation
  • Navy Good Conduct Medal
  • Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
  • Navy Expeditionary Medal

George Themistocles George is buried or at Honolulu Memorial, Honolulu, Hawaii.

For more of the story, click on the pdf below:

KIA 7-Dec 1941-George T. George

 

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