CARLTON F. REES, LT, USN

Carlton Rees '40

Date of birth: October 5, 1916

Date of death: January 3, 1944

Age: 27

Lucky Bag

From the 1940 Lucky Bag:

CARLTON FUSON REES

Muncie, Indiana

Tiger

Known to everyone as Tiger, he belies his name; for Tiger is just the antithesis of his striped namesake. Quiet — but not too quiet, serious — but not too serious, he is an embodiment of the attributes sought in a true friend. Although he still yearns for the open fields and cozy farms of Indiana, this yearning has been overpowered by a stronger desire — to become an officer in the United States Navy. Professing only a passing interest in athletics, Tiger forgets his indifference when he climbs into a boxing ring. Man's man that you are, the Naval Service will be proud to number you among its members, Tiger.

Boxing 4; 1 Stripe.

CARLTON FUSON REES

Muncie, Indiana

Tiger

Known to everyone as Tiger, he belies his name; for Tiger is just the antithesis of his striped namesake. Quiet — but not too quiet, serious — but not too serious, he is an embodiment of the attributes sought in a true friend. Although he still yearns for the open fields and cozy farms of Indiana, this yearning has been overpowered by a stronger desire — to become an officer in the United States Navy. Professing only a passing interest in athletics, Tiger forgets his indifference when he climbs into a boxing ring. Man's man that you are, the Naval Service will be proud to number you among its members, Tiger.

Boxing 4; 1 Stripe.

Loss

Carlton was lost in the explosion of USS Turner (DD 648) in New York harbor on January 3, 1944.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Carlton graduated from Central High School in 1934. Honor Society, Hi-Y, Munsonian. “He has ideas on any subject you want, and his advice is always safe to follow.” He also attended Ball State Teachers’ College and was appointed to the Naval Academy by Senator Frederick Van Nuys.
He had seen service in both the Atlantic and the Pacific and had participated in the invasions of Africa and Sicily.
He married Claribel Hebeisen in June, 1943.
Carlton’s rod and reel was donated by his cousin Ernest Parkinson to the Gladding International Fishing Museum in South Otselic, New York, in 1973.

His wife was listed as next of kin.

Carlton has a memory marker in Delaware and another in Illinois; he is also remembered in the East Coast Memorial.

Photographs

From the Lucky Bag
From The Indianapolis Star on January 6, 1944

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.