BURDEN R. HASTINGS, LT, USN

Burden Hastings '33

Date of birth: August 1, 1910

Date of death: December 27, 1941

Age: 31

Lucky Bag

From the 1933 Lucky Bag:

BURDEN ROBERT HASTINGS

Washington, D.C.

"Nobody loves a carpenter ant." Having spent his younger days "burro-ing" about the hills of Haiti, Burden knows that they are not to be trusted at all when it comes to matters like walls, doors, or even cement. In his rare loquacious moods he can be persuaded to tell of "gooks" and tarantulas and banana leaves and —carpenter ants.

Being a Marine Junior he decided to follow his parents to Washington, D.C. and Quantico, Virginia. From this region he came to us.

We found him to be a hard-working quiet young man fond of leaning on his studies. Every winter he matched flying mares and figure-fours with appropriate counters up in the wrestling loft, wresting away numerals for his devotion to this art.

Every season is an open season to Burden as an amateur inventor. He is very handy at making labor-saving devices and tricky gadgets, barring unfortunate alarm clocks that get within his reach. His other great passion is tidiness. It is inherent with him to straighten his bookshelf or dust behind his radiator every morning. His essays at "dragging" are few and far between, with neither rhyme nor reason.

His big ambition is to become a Marine. If industrious application means anything Burden will go high in this service.

Wrestling 4, 3, 2; Fencing 1; 2 P.O.

BURDEN ROBERT HASTINGS

Washington, D.C.

"Nobody loves a carpenter ant." Having spent his younger days "burro-ing" about the hills of Haiti, Burden knows that they are not to be trusted at all when it comes to matters like walls, doors, or even cement. In his rare loquacious moods he can be persuaded to tell of "gooks" and tarantulas and banana leaves and —carpenter ants.

Being a Marine Junior he decided to follow his parents to Washington, D.C. and Quantico, Virginia. From this region he came to us.

We found him to be a hard-working quiet young man fond of leaning on his studies. Every winter he matched flying mares and figure-fours with appropriate counters up in the wrestling loft, wresting away numerals for his devotion to this art.

Every season is an open season to Burden as an amateur inventor. He is very handy at making labor-saving devices and tricky gadgets, barring unfortunate alarm clocks that get within his reach. His other great passion is tidiness. It is inherent with him to straighten his bookshelf or dust behind his radiator every morning. His essays at "dragging" are few and far between, with neither rhyme nor reason.

His big ambition is to become a Marine. If industrious application means anything Burden will go high in this service.

Wrestling 4, 3, 2; Fencing 1; 2 P.O.

Loss

Burden was lost when his PBY-4 Catalina patrol bomber was shot down during an air raid on Jolo, Philippines, on December 27, 1941. He was commanding officer of Patrol Squadron (VP) 101. Some of his crew survived after being in the water for 30 hours.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Burden graduated from Central high school in 1938 in Washington, D. C. Birthplace: Washington, D. C. School activities and social clubs: Cadets; Math Club; Officers’ Club. School honors: First Lieutenant in Cadets, ’27-’28; Marksmanship Medal, ’27. Hobby: Automobiles. Next year what? Annapolis Naval Academy. Ambition: To enter Diplomatic Corps. Favorite expression: “What th’!”
From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 20, 1942:

Don Dexter Lurvey, chief aviation pilot, tells what happened when six PBYs set forth from Ambon to bomb Jolo:
“With Lieut. Deede at the controls we started at moonset and cruised slowly to keep down gas consumption and arrive there at daybreak. The Japs got the motor of Lieut. Burden R. Hastings of Long Beach, Cal., whose crew was the same which had participated with ‘Capt’n Pete’ in the first attack against Kongo.
“Then they got busy on us. Two of us jumped before we leveled out over the water. Then we hit the waves and began to sink. …”

Later in the article, Radioman’s Story as told by Edward W. Bedford:

“When Lieut. Keller had sighted the fleet he turned over the controls to Ensign Andrew H. Reid (of Springfield, Ill.), who was doing the navigating, and Lieut. Hastings and came back to study our position.”

From the 1953 edition of the book "Double Three Roundup," published by the class of 1933:

Barney served a year in the CALIFORNIA, then 18 months in the IDAHO before going to Pensacola for flight training. He got his wings in August 1936, and after 8 more months at Pensacola reported to VB-1B aboard the RANGER. Duty with Torpedo Squadron two in the LEXINGTON followed, then assignment to Patrol Planes, in VP-18, 13, 26, and 102. For extraordinary heroism while attached to VP102 he was awarded the Navy Cross posthumously. The citation reads in part, "For extraordinary heroism as Commander of a six plane Bombing Group while conducting a dawn attack on enemy Japanese ships, in the vicinity of Jolo, Mindanao, Philippine Islands, on 27 December, 1941, Lieutenant Hastings pressed home the attack on an enemy disposition consisting of several large surface combatant and auxiliary ships in the face .of overwhelming air and anti-aircraft opposition." Barney died when his airplane crashed in that operation. A group burial for him and his crew members was made on 29 January 1952 at Fort McPherson National Cemetery in Maxwell, Nebraska.
Barney was one of three classmates to have a ship named after him. The BURDEN R. HASTINGS (DE19), commissioned on 1 May 1943, participated in the Gilbert Islands and Marshall Island operations, took part in raids on Palau, Yap, Ulithi and Wollai, and was credited with one "definitely sunk" Japanese submarine. She was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register in February 1947.
Barney and Elise Hoagland, of Long Beach, California, were married in that city on February 12, 1936. She has since remarried, and as Effie Elise Engomar, is living at 14469 Greenleaf St., Sherman Oaks, California.

Burden became naval aviator #5172 in 1937.

His wife was listed as next of kin. He is buried in Nebraska (his remains were repatriated in 1952).

Photographs

From his high school yearbook
From his high school yearbook
From The Evening News on October 26, 1942. He was listed as #10 of 12 of the Navy's leading heroes from Pennsylvania to that point in the war.

Navy Cross

From Hall of Valor:

The President of the United States of America takes pride in presenting the Navy Cross (Posthumously) to Lieutenant Burden Robert Hastings, United States Navy, for extraordinary heroism in operations against the enemy while serving as Commander of a Navy Patrol Plane and Commanding Officer of Patrol Squadron ONE HUNDRED ONE (VP-101), Patrol Wing TEN (PatWing-10), in action against enemy Japanese naval forces located near Jolo, in the Philippine Islands, on the morning of 27 December 1941. Pressing home his attack in the face of overwhelming air and anti-aircraft opposition, Lieutenant Hastings led his formation, maneuvering his bombers to pass clear of lower clouds until the objective was reached and they had dropped their bombs, inflicting heavy damage upon several enemy war and merchant ships. Lieutenant Hastings' outstanding courage, daring airmanship and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
General Orders: Bureau of Naval Personnel Information Bulletin No. 304 (July 1942)
Action Date: 27-Dec-41
Service: Navy
Rank: Lieutenant
Company: Patrol Squadron 101 (VP-101)
Division: Patrol Wing 10