HOWARD R. GARNER, LCDR, USN

Howard Garner '29

Date of birth: April 10, 1905

Date of death: April 9, 1943

Age: 37

Lucky Bag

From the 1929 Lucky Bag:

Howard Robert Garner

Lawrenceburg, Kentucky

"Bob"

HAILING from the land of the blue-grass, the home of the superior horse, this clean-cut young fellow made a quiet entry into our naval officers' kindergarten, and has been going his tranquil way ever since. Being a lightweight put the quietus on any athletic aspirations, so he concentrated on raising the artistic and mechanical standards of the U.S.N.A. He can build a nifty radio and manipulate a mean set of fingers that would put a "Handy Andy" to shame at any job or can listen to good music by the hour with the same relish. Another attribute is his possession of a keen business head which he has used to inestimable advantage in conducting the business end of this Bag.

In fact, he's an all around good man with quiet and unassuming airs and an irresistible attraction for both sexes.

A glance at his picture will give partial explanation for his popularity but that isn't all there is to him by a long shot. There's oceans of gray matter behind that smooth exterior and it belongs to one who takes a keen delight in using it. Here's one boy that would succeed in any walk of life. Last but not least, he's a perfect gentleman and an invaluable friend. Here's to you, Howard. May you capture the choicest of life's tidbits.

Assistant Business Manager Lucky Bag; Hop Committee; Reception Committee; Ring Dance Committee; 2 P.O.

Howard Robert Garner

Lawrenceburg, Kentucky

"Bob"

HAILING from the land of the blue-grass, the home of the superior horse, this clean-cut young fellow made a quiet entry into our naval officers' kindergarten, and has been going his tranquil way ever since. Being a lightweight put the quietus on any athletic aspirations, so he concentrated on raising the artistic and mechanical standards of the U.S.N.A. He can build a nifty radio and manipulate a mean set of fingers that would put a "Handy Andy" to shame at any job or can listen to good music by the hour with the same relish. Another attribute is his possession of a keen business head which he has used to inestimable advantage in conducting the business end of this Bag.

In fact, he's an all around good man with quiet and unassuming airs and an irresistible attraction for both sexes.

A glance at his picture will give partial explanation for his popularity but that isn't all there is to him by a long shot. There's oceans of gray matter behind that smooth exterior and it belongs to one who takes a keen delight in using it. Here's one boy that would succeed in any walk of life. Last but not least, he's a perfect gentleman and an invaluable friend. Here's to you, Howard. May you capture the choicest of life's tidbits.

Assistant Business Manager Lucky Bag; Hop Committee; Reception Committee; Ring Dance Committee; 2 P.O.

Loss

Howard was lost on April 9, 1943 when the boat he was on capsized during testing near Cove Point, Maryland, in the Chesapeake Bay. His body was recovered two days later.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Born in Somerset, Kentucky, Howard graduated as valedictorian from Lawrenceburg High School in 1923.
He then attended the College of Engineering, University of Kentucky at Lexington for two years before passing entrance examinations to the Naval Academy. He received a telegram from Senator Richard Ernst announcing his appointment. High school classmate Hugh MacKay (N. A. ’30) received his appointment then as well.
Howard married Margaret Routt of Lawrenceburg on December 16, 1932, at the First Baptist church in Boston. Their daughter was Celia.
In 1935, Howard graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He then went to the Chemical Warfare School, Edgewood Arsenal in Maryland, until October 4, 1935.
He along with high school classmates MacKay and Robert O. Strange (’28) were promoted to lieutenant commander in November, 1941.
In August 1942, Howard traveled from Gander Lake, Newfoundland, to New York City on American Export Airlines’ plane NC-41881. Also on board were a university professor, a scientist, a Navy dental worker, a physicist, and eight others from the Central Scientific office, the U. S. Maritime Commission and the British Embassy, all located in Washington, D. C.
His father was William H., mother Effie and sister Sallie. In 1910, the family lived in Harrodsburg where his father was a whiskey gauger. In 1920, the family lived in Lawrenceburg where his father was a bookkeeper.

From The Courier-Journal (Louisville, Kentucky) on July 29, 1946:

Posthumous award of the Legion of Merit to Lt. Com. Howard Robert Garner, U.S.N., son of Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Garner, 945 Cherokee Road, killed in a training accident in 1943, was announced yesterday.
A native of Lawrenceburg, Garner graduated from the U. S. Naval Academy in 1929 and from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1933. He was serving as assistant to the head of the preliminary design section, Bureau of Ships, conducting experiments in Chesapeake Bay and was lost when a ship he was testing capsized in April, 1943 [April 9, 1943].
The citation, presented to his daughter, Celia, 4, stated: "Realizing the growing importance of underwater demolition and protection systems. Lieutenant Commander Garner planned and executed tests in an underwater explosion testing program and then applied the results of these tests to new designs of warships. By his technical knowledge and leadership in this field he contributed immeasurably to the designing of underwater protection systems of new ships which were built in time to take an active part in the war, thereby furthering the progress of the war."

Howard is buried in Arlington National Cemetery; he is also listed on the MIT World War II Memorial.

Photographs

From the Courier-Journal on July 29, 1946
From The Courier Journal on May 30, 1925

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.

July 1929

Ensign, USS New York

Others at this command:

LTjg Robert Hollenbeck '26

ENS Douglas Fox '26

ENS James Willis '27

Others at or embarked at this command:

LCDR Charles Cecil '16 (Battleship Division 3)

LT William Sample '19 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 3B)

October 1929

Ensign, USS New York

Others at this command:

LTjg Robert Hollenbeck '26
ENS Hugh Black '26

LTjg Douglas Fox '26

ENS James Willis '27

Others at or embarked at this command:

LCDR Charles Cecil '16 (Battleship Division 3)

LT William Sample '19 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 3B)

January 1930

Ensign, USS New York

Others at this command:

LTjg Hugh Black '26

LTjg Douglas Fox '26

ENS James Willis '27

Others at or embarked at this command:

LCDR Charles Cecil '16 (Battleship Division 3)
LT William Sample '19 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 3B)

ENS Leonard Southerland '27 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 3B)

April 1930

Ensign, USS New York

Others at this command:

LTjg Hugh Black '26

LTjg Douglas Fox '26

ENS James Willis '27

Others at or embarked at this command:

LT William Sample '19 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 3B)

ENS Leonard Southerland '27 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 3B)

July 1931

Ensign, USS Rochester

October 1931

Ensign, USS Rochester

January 1932

Ensign, USS Rochester

April 1932

Ensign, tempo, USS Trenton

Others at this command:

LTjg Knowlton Williams '25

ENS Alden Irons '31