ALVA F. NETHKEN, ENS, USN

Alva Nethken '40

Date of birth: June 10, 1916

Date of death: March 1, 1942

Age: 25

Lucky Bag

From the 1940 Lucky Bag:

ALVA FREEMAN NETHKEN

Ruston, Louisiana

A F

From the famed swamps of Louisiana came Alva, a quiet, industrious little fellow who is constantly working at something, whether it be radios, boats, or cameras. A true fourth platooner, he has had a continuous battle with the Medical Board over his stature. In spite of his height, however, he is a real man, and most any afternoon finds him at the gym swinging through the air on the rings or performing gyrations on the horizontal bar. Though lacking stars, academics have never bothered him. He is a friend who will come through when the going is rough. Louisiana lost a good E.E. when Alva picked the Navy.

ALVA FREEMAN NETHKEN

Ruston, Louisiana

A F

From the famed swamps of Louisiana came Alva, a quiet, industrious little fellow who is constantly working at something, whether it be radios, boats, or cameras. A true fourth platooner, he has had a continuous battle with the Medical Board over his stature. In spite of his height, however, he is a real man, and most any afternoon finds him at the gym swinging through the air on the rings or performing gyrations on the horizontal bar. Though lacking stars, academics have never bothered him. He is a friend who will come through when the going is rough. Louisiana lost a good E.E. when Alva picked the Navy.

Loss

Alva was lost when USS Houston (CA 30) was sunk on on March 1, 1942 during the Battle of Sunda Strait. He was in charge of the after damage repair party.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Alva was assistant scout master of Troop 47 in 1935. In September, the Sea Scout Ship “Legionnaire” of Ruston replaced absent officers including Alva. He had been a charter member of the ship having joined in 1930.
Alva received his appointment from Congressman Riley J. Wilson of the fifth district of Louisiana. Alva had been attending Louisiana Tech in the College of Engineering.
His father Harley Joseph was professor of electric engineering at Louisiana Tech. In 1944, Alva’s sister Shirley was an apprentice seaman in the WAVES, brother Robert was an apprentice seaman, and brother Lt. (j.g.) Harley was on sea duty in the Atlantic.

His parents were listed as next of kin.

Alva is remembered at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial; he also has a memory marker in Louisiana.

Photographs

From the Lucky Bag
From The Shreveport Journal on March 16, 1942
Alva as a Midshipman from an undated photo at Find A Grave

Navy Directories & Officer Registers

The "Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps" was published annually from 1815 through at least the 1970s; it provided rank, command or station, and occasionally billet until the beginning of World War II when command/station was no longer included. Scanned copies were reviewed and data entered from the mid-1840s through 1922, when more-frequent Navy Directories were available.

The Navy Directory was a publication that provided information on the command, billet, and rank of every active and retired naval officer. Single editions have been found online from January 1915 and March 1918, and then from three to six editions per year from 1923 through 1940; the final edition is from April 1941.

The entries in both series of documents are sometimes cryptic and confusing. They are often inconsistent, even within an edition, with the name of commands; this is especially true for aviation squadrons in the 1920s and early 1930s.

Alumni listed at the same command may or may not have had significant interactions; they could have shared a stateroom or workspace, stood many hours of watch together… or, especially at the larger commands, they might not have known each other at all. The information provides the opportunity to draw connections that are otherwise invisible, though, and gives a fuller view of the professional experiences of these alumni in Memorial Hall.