Project 888
Name: William Stanley STRIPE
Rank / Rating: S2-Seaman Second ClassService #: 565 59 75 DOB: Jun 16, 1926 From: Glendale, CA Parents: George S. and Hazel Grace Thomson Stripe Went Aboard: Dec 21, 1943 Age When Ship Went Down: 19 years, 1 months, 14 days Spouse: Children: Grandchildren: Bio Submitted By: Patricia Stephens (Admin) |
 STRIPE, William S |
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William was born June 16, 1926, the son of George S. and Hazel Grace Thomson Stripe of Glendale, CA. He had one sister, Winifred E. Stripe, listed on the 1940 census.
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| William enlisted in the USN at age 17 on Oct 13, 1943 at Los Angeles, CA. He was received at Naval Training Station, San Diego, CA, for basic training. On Nov 9, 1943 he advanced from AS (Apprentice Seaman) to S2c (Seaman 2nd class). After basic training, on Dec 17 1943, he was sent to the Naval Training Station, Navy Receiving Barracks, Shoemaker, CA for General Detail. Only five days later he was transferred for duty on board USS Indianapolis CA-35. He went aboard on Dec 21, 1943. His rate remained S2c during his service on Indy. Most likely, William served with the deck crew. He had only five weeks to settle into life on board ship before Indianapolis went into battle action. Beginning on Jan 29, 1944, Indianapolis, 5th Fleet Flagship, took part in the Occupation of Kwajalein and Majuro Atolls, Marshall Island, operations. From there, the ship was part of the Occupation of Eniwetok Atoll. A few week later, Indy was in the Western Carolinas for the raids on Palau, Yap, Ulithi, and Woleai. The operations ended on 2 April 1944. After a short two month break, Indianapolis arrived in the Marianas for the capture and occupation of Saipan, Battle of the Philippine Sea and capture and occupation of Guam. The action ended on July 23, 1944 but started again the next day with the campaign that captured Tinian in the Northern Mariana Islands. All was quiet on the deck for William until September. From the 12th to the 29th Indy bombarded the island of Peleliu in the Palau Group, both before and after the landings. She then sailed to Manus in the Admiralty Islands where she operated for 10 days before returning to the Mare Island Navy Yard, CA. William most likely was given a furlough when Indianapolis arrived back in the US. Overhauled, Indianapolis joined Vice Adm. Marc A. Mitscher's fast carrier task force on 14 February 1945 2 days before it made the first attack on Tokyo since General Doolittle's famous raid in April 1942. The operation covered American landings on Iwo Jima, scheduled for Feb 19, 1945, by destroying Japanese air facilities and other installations in the "Home Islands." Immediately after the strikes, the Task Force raced to the Bonins to support the landings on Iwo Jima. The ship remained there until March 1, aiding in the bloody struggle for that little island. The ship returned to Admiral Mitscher's Task Force in time to strike Tokyo again on 25 February and Hachijo off the southern coast of Honshu the following day. Indianapolis, with the fast carrier force, departed Ulithi 14 March 1945, and proceeded toward the Japanese coast for the Okinawa Gunto Operation. During the pre-invasion bombardment, Indy was hit by a Japanese Kamikaze plane that resulted in nine men killed and 20 injured. William escaped injury. Indianapolis return to Mare Island, CA for repairs from the attack and overhaul. On July 16, 1945, Indianapolis left Mare Island on her secret mission carrying component of the atomic bomb that would be dropped on Hiroshima. After delivering her cargo to Tinian, Northern Mariana Islands, Indianapolis proceeded to Guam and the following day departed for Leyte, Philippine Sea. Two days out of Guam, July 30, 1945, Indianapolis was sunk by two torpedoes from Japanese submarine I-58. William was able to get off the ship and into the water, but did not survive. His cause of death is not known but his body was recovered by USS Helm DD-388 on Aug 6th. He was identified by the dog tags he wore. Crewmembers from Helm reported that they wrapped and weighed down the bodies of the men they located and that William Stripe was one of the men. William was present for seven of the engagements for which Indianapolis was awarded battle stars. He would have worn the Asiatic-Pacific ribbon with one silver star, representing 5 bronze stars, and 2 bronze stars to represent the seven actions. His name is inscribed on the Tablets of the Missing in the Manila American Cemetery, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig, Philippines. He was awarded the Purple Heart, posthumously. A beautiful cenotaph with his and his mother's names was placed in Valhalla Memorial Park cemetery, North Hollywood, Los Angeles Co., CA. Burial at Sea William was one of the twenty-eight crew members picked up and identified by USS Helm between Sunday August 5, 1945 to Monday August 6, 1945. It not being possible to bring William aboard for the official Burial at Sea Ceremony he was placed in a sea bag, weighted with two 5" shells and "committed to the deep" by his fellow seamen. Source: CA Birth Index, 1905-1995, Los Angeles; online at Ancestry; citing Hazel Grace Thomson Stripe. 1940 US Census, CA, Los Angeles Co., Glendale. HH # 1142; citing George S. Stripe family Navy Department, Casualty Section, Office of Public Information (1946): Combat Connected Naval Casualties, WWII, by States; Vol. AL-MO; CA, p. 86; citing William S. Stripe. US Navy, USS Helm DD-388, War Diary; citing William Stripe. Wren, L. Peter, LCDR, "We Were There", Wren Enterprises, Richmond, VA (2002) | |
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