JOHN J. LENHART, LT, USN

John Lenhart '21

Date of birth: July 3, 1899

Date of death: March 19, 1928

Age: 28

Lucky Bag

From the 1921 Lucky Bag:

John Jacobs Lenhart

Yonkers, New York

"Jack" "Jake"

STAND back girls—don't crowd. Here we have him, the toy of women. Just look at his eyes, nose, hair, ears, teeth, mouth, and you'll understand.

One summer Jake broke away from Yonkers to develop his military tastes at Plattsburg and this patriotic effort was followed by a term in Shad's War College, after which he was well prepared for his four years of "For Better or for Worse."

Besides indulging in that aesthetic exercise of the broken suspender or dangling sword belt, Yacob developed a few extra muscles on his sturdy form, galloping gracefully about the basketball court.

This Senator from Yonkers returned from Sep leave with a full array of golf clubs, but these were soon put aside for the famed game of African Golf, and at this pastime he was invincible.

Jack had one failing; he never failed to be on hand for a good party and was no mean hand at arranging and putting one in action. All those present at Delmonico's will vouch for that. We might take the liberty here to mention that Jack became a victim of the fair sex that night.

"Say, look 'a here, feller."

Buzzard; Expert Rifleman; Basketball Squad (2, 1); Tennis Squad (2).

The Class of 1921 was the last of the wartime-accelerated classes. "1921A" was graduated on June 3, 1920; the second half, "1921B", was graduated on June 2, 1921. John was graduated with 1921B.

John Jacobs Lenhart

Yonkers, New York

"Jack" "Jake"

STAND back girls—don't crowd. Here we have him, the toy of women. Just look at his eyes, nose, hair, ears, teeth, mouth, and you'll understand.

One summer Jake broke away from Yonkers to develop his military tastes at Plattsburg and this patriotic effort was followed by a term in Shad's War College, after which he was well prepared for his four years of "For Better or for Worse."

Besides indulging in that aesthetic exercise of the broken suspender or dangling sword belt, Yacob developed a few extra muscles on his sturdy form, galloping gracefully about the basketball court.

This Senator from Yonkers returned from Sep leave with a full array of golf clubs, but these were soon put aside for the famed game of African Golf, and at this pastime he was invincible.

Jack had one failing; he never failed to be on hand for a good party and was no mean hand at arranging and putting one in action. All those present at Delmonico's will vouch for that. We might take the liberty here to mention that Jack became a victim of the fair sex that night.

"Say, look 'a here, feller."

Buzzard; Expert Rifleman; Basketball Squad (2, 1); Tennis Squad (2).

The Class of 1921 was the last of the wartime-accelerated classes. "1921A" was graduated on June 3, 1920; the second half, "1921B", was graduated on June 2, 1921. John was graduated with 1921B.

Loss

John was lost on March 19, 1928 when the seaplane he was piloting broke up while landing at Pensacola, Florida. He was an instructor pilot; the student escaped.

Biography

From researcher Kathy Franz:

John was born in Brownsville, Pennsylvania. His father William was manager of the Brownsville Water Cracker Company, and his mother was Ann. His brothers were William and Phillip, and he had three sisters. The family later moved to Yonkers, New York. John married Katherine Bradley of Nyack, New York, in November 1927. She was a graduate of Vassar College. John was an alternate pilot in the Schneider Cup race held at Norfolk, Virginia, in November 1926. Also participating were Lieutenants George T. Cuddihy (Class of 1918), W. G. Tomlinson (Class of 1920), and Carleton C. Champion (Class of 1920). Lieutenant Frank H. Conant (Class of 1920) who was to participate died a few days before the race.

John was survived by his wife, Katherine Bradley of Nyack, New York; they were engaged in July 1927. She was a 1925 graduate Vassar College.

He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Memorials

The "Lt. John J. Lenhart Memorial Tablet," by Edward McCartan, is cited as one of the holdings of the Naval Academy Museum.

There is a plaque at the base of a statue outside the Boeing Museum of Flight that reads:

'Team Effort' by Larry Anderson. In loving memory of Katharine B. Lenhart and Lieut. John J. Lenhart, U.S. Navy, Schneider Team Pilot, 1927. [This plaque was placed in] 1994. Casting by Riverdog Fine Art.

The "Schneider Team Pilot" refers to the Schneider Trophy.

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.