JOHN P. CROMWELL, CAPT, USN
John Cromwell '24
Lucky Bag
From the 1924 Lucky Bag:
JOHN PHILIP CROMWELL
Henry, Illinois
"Henry"
LIKE the famous Oliver Cromwell of old, our own "Oliver" started out to conquer worlds. He gained quite a bit of attention his first day with us when the D. O. encountered him:
"Where you from, Mister?"
"Henry."
"Henry, what?"
"Henry, Illinois."
"Henry, Illinois, what?"
"Henry, Illinois, U. S. A."
"Henry, Illinois, U. S. A., what?"
Then the light that had almost failed flickered into being once more and with a painful, but understanding, gasp, he added, "Sir".
During Youngster year he was offered a large remuneration to write of the beauties of the countries he had visited while on his "European Cruise". The letter from the "Editor" of the Baltimore Sun stated that their Henry correspondent had informed them of the tour that Henry's prodigal son had made and that his writings were to run as an added Sunday feature. It was a sad day when he learned that his cruel roommate and some heartless friends had sent the letter.
"Day by day, be it bright or gray, I get a letter from Mary."
JOHN PHILIP CROMWELL
Henry, Illinois
"Henry"
LIKE the famous Oliver Cromwell of old, our own "Oliver" started out to conquer worlds. He gained quite a bit of attention his first day with us when the D. O. encountered him:
"Where you from, Mister?"
"Henry."
"Henry, what?"
"Henry, Illinois."
"Henry, Illinois, what?"
"Henry, Illinois, U. S. A."
"Henry, Illinois, U. S. A., what?"
Then the light that had almost failed flickered into being once more and with a painful, but understanding, gasp, he added, "Sir".
During Youngster year he was offered a large remuneration to write of the beauties of the countries he had visited while on his "European Cruise". The letter from the "Editor" of the Baltimore Sun stated that their Henry correspondent had informed them of the tour that Henry's prodigal son had made and that his writings were to run as an added Sunday feature. It was a sad day when he learned that his cruel roommate and some heartless friends had sent the letter.
"Day by day, be it bright or gray, I get a letter from Mary."
Loss
John was lost on November 19, 1943 when he consciously chose to remain aboard the sinking USS Sculpin (SS 191) rather than risk capture by the Japanese. He had been briefed on the upcoming invasion of Tarawa, and was aware of the United States' success in decrypting Japanese radio communications. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.
Other Information
From researcher Kathy Franz:
John’s sister was Dorothy, and his brother was Frederick.
John graduated from Henry high school in 1919. In August, he and a friend drove in John’s car to Washburn to hear Roxie Larocco, a young Italian harpist.
John then attended the Marion Institute before passing the final examinations for the Naval Academy.
John married Margaret Robertson on September 27, 1927, in Schuyler, Illinois. Their children were John (Jack) and Ann. Jack was a member of the Class of 1951.
John and his wife, daughter, and son were present in New London, Connecticut during the Great New England Hurricane of 1938 and in Honolulu during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
From the Lacon Home Journal, Illinois, December 18, 1924, via Kathy Franz:
Ensign John Phillip Cromwell, oldest son of Dr. E. G. Cromwell of Henry, who is sailing on the U. S. S. Maryland, was badly burned Monday of last week when an explosion occurred on the taxi ship Lamoyne which was returning with a full load of passengers to the various ships of the battle fleet.
The accident is believed to have been caused by a backfire which ignited the fuel tank.
Ensign Cromwell was burned on the lower part of his face and his hands, but his burns are not thought to be deep enough to disfigure his face.
Dr. Cromwell received a telegram from his son, saying that he is in a hospital at San Francisco, Cal., having been burned but not dangerously, when a yacht manned by himself and a crew, exploded, killing three men and injuring himself and several others.
From Wikipedia:
Cromwell was born in Henry, Illinois, on September 11, 1901. Appointed to the U.S. Naval Academy in 1920, he graduated in June 1924 and served initially in the battleship USS Maryland school and was assigned to USS S-24 (SS-129) during 1927–29. He next had three year's diesel engineering instruction, followed by further tours of duty in submarines.
Lieutenant Cromwell commanded USS S-20 (SS-125) in 1936–37, then served on the staff of Commander Submarine Division 4. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant commander in 1939 and spent two years in Washington, D.C. with the Bureau of Engineering and Bureau of Ships. In May 1941, he became engineer officer for the Pacific Fleet submarine force.
World War II
During 1942–43, Cromwell commanded Submarine Divisions 203, 44 and 43, flying his pennant in USS Sculpin (SS-191).
Following promotion to captain, he went to sea in Sculpin as prospective commander of a mid-Pacific submarine wolf pack. Sculpin was commanded by LCDR Fred Connaway, making his first war patrol. If conditions warranted, Cromwell would form a wolfpack with USS Searaven (SS-196) and either USS Spearfish (SS-190) or USS Apogon (SS-308) under his direction. It was Cromwell's first war patrol also.
His wife was listed as next of kin; he was also survived by a son and daughter.
John has a memory marker in Illinois.
From the Peoria Journal Star (IL) - Wednesday, September 7, 2011:
HENRY - A ceremony Sunday preceding a large 9/11 memorial service will honor a local war hero and attach additional meaning to a torpedo that has stood mounted in Central Park downtown for nearly four decades.
The service, scheduled for 2 p.m., will honor the memory, valor and sacrifice of John Phillip Cromwell, a Henry native who earned the Medal of Honor for actions as commander of a submarine during World War II.
The service is being organized by the Peoria base of the United States Submarine Veterans Inc., said James Hafele, a Peoria attorney who served on a submarine in the 1950s and is now commander of the Peoria unit. Cromwell was born in Henry on Sept. 11, 1901, so this special commemoration will come on the 110th anniversary of his birth, Hafele noted.
"Our whole purpose is to call attention to the Congressional Medal of Honor," Hafele said. "It's so unusual for a small town like Henry to be the birthplace of a Medal of Honor recipient."
Cromwell was awarded that honor posthumously for his actions as commander of the USS Sculpin submarine in November 1943 near the Gilbert Islands in the South Pacific. After a battle with a Japanese vessel left the sub seriously damaged, he ordered most of his crew to abandon ship so they could be rescued.
Cromwell himself, however, had extensive knowledge of broader military intelligence and planning, and he chose to sacrifice his life rather than risk disclosing secrets under the pressure of enemy interrogation, Hafele said.
"He voluntarily went down with the sub so he would not reveal any information," Hafele said.
The torpedo memorial in Central Park was dedicated in 1974. It contains plaques honoring Cromwell and the submarine service.
"There have been 66 submarines that have been lost since the birth of the submarine service," Hafele said, "all the way from the old diesel boats to the current nuclear boats."
One person paying respects at the memorial Tuesday was Chip Lanham, a Vietnam veteran from South Carolina who is a crew member on the USS LST 325, a restored World War II battleship, which has been docked in Henry for tours since Friday and will be in Peoria later this week.
"I heard about (the Cromwell memorial) from another crew member, and I decided to jump ship and take a walk," Lanham said.
Cromwell's descendants have scattered to distant areas, and none are expected to attend Sunday's service, according to email exchanges provided by Hafele.
"We very much appreciate the significance of the memorial service you are conducting," wrote his grandson, John P. Cromwell III, in California.
From the News Tribune (La Salle, IL) - Friday, August 24, 2012:
By Shannon Crawley-Serpette, Marshall-Putnam Bureau Chief
HENRY -- Henry City Council recently passed a proclamation posthumously honoring Capt. John P. Cromwell.
Cromwell, who was born Sept. 11, 1901, in Henry, died in 1943 after he remained aboard the sinking U.S.S. Sculpin during World War II, rather than risk capture.
A memorial service has been set for 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11 at Central Park in Henry. Food and beverages will be available 5-6 p.m.
The service will be provided by the Peoria Base of the United States Submarine Veterans Inc. The guest will be Capt. John Cromwell, Jr.
Photographs
Medal of Honor Action
After a brief overhaul, Sculpin left Pearl Harbor for her ninth war patrol on 5 November 1943. After refueling at Johnston Island on 7 November, she departed for her assigned station northeast of Truk. On 29 November, COMSUBPAC radioed Sculpin to order CAPT Cromwell to activate the wolfpack. When Sculpin failed to acknowledge the message, even after several repetitions, she was assumed – correctly – to have been lost at sea. It wasn't until after the war that the details of her loss – and that of John Cromwell – to enemy action became known from both Japanese sources and surviving crewmembers who had been prisoners of war.
Sculpin had actually arrived on station on 16 November and made radar contact with a large, high-speed convoy on the night of the 18th. After making a fast surface run to get ahead of the quarry, LCDR Connaway submerged for an attack at dawn. As he started his final approach, however, his periscope was spotted by the enemy, and Connaway was forced to take Sculpin deep and allow the convoy to pass overhead. Then, he surfaced again to attempt another end run in broad daylight. Unfortunately, the Japanese destroyer Yamagumo had lagged behind the convoy specifically to counter such a move and, after forcing Connaway to make a quick dive, dropped a pattern of depth charges that – unbeknownst to the crew – damaged the depth gauge. Sculpin went deep and laid low for several hours.
Around noon, Connaway attempted to bring Sculpin back to periscope depth, seeking another opportunity to attack. However, while coming up, the broken depth gauge stuck at 125 feet, confusing the diving officer, and causing the boat to broach the surface in full view of Yamagumo, which was still patrolling the area. As Sculpin crash-dived again, the Japanese destroyer dropped a string of 18 depth charges, severely damaging the boat and causing temporary loss of depth control. Numerous leaks developed in the hull, and so much water came on board that the submarine was forced to run at high speed to maintain depth. This invited a second Japanese attack that did even more damage.
At this point, Connaway concluded that the only chance of saving his crew was to come to the surface and fight it out there. Sculpin surfaced, and with decks awash, her crew manned the deck guns. The result of this uneven contest was hardly in doubt. Yamagumo's first salvo hit Sculpin's conning tower, killing the entire bridge watch team, including Connaway and his executive and gunnery officers. The gun crew died almost instantly from shrapnel. The senior ship's officer surviving, a reserve lieutenant, ordered the boat scuttled and the crew to abandon ship.
This action left CAPT Cromwell facing a fateful choice. With his personal knowledge of both ULTRA and GALVANIC, he realized immediately that to abandon ship and become a prisoner of the Japanese would create a serious danger of compromising these vital secrets to the enemy under the influence of drugs or torture. For this reason, he refused to leave the stricken submarine and gave his life to avoid capture. He and 11 others rode Sculpin on her final plunge to the bottom, where her secrets would be safe forever.
Medal of Honor
From Hall of Valor:
The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor (Posthumously) to Captain John Philip Cromwell (NSN: 0-58950), United States Navy, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as Commander of a Submarine Coordinated Attack Group with Flag in the U.S.S. SCULPIN, during the 9th War Patrol of that vessel in enemy-controlled waters off Truk Island, 19 November 1943. Undertaking this patrol prior to the launching of our first large-scale offensive in the Pacific, Captain Cromwell, alone of the entire Task Group, possessed secret intelligence information of our submarine strategy and tactics, scheduled Fleet movements and specific attack plans. Constantly vigilant and precise in carrying out his secret orders, he moved his undersea flotilla inexorably forward despite savage opposition and established a line of submarines to southeastward of the main Japanese stronghold at Truk. Cool and undaunted as the submarine, rocked and battered by Japanese depth charges, sustained terrific battle damage and sank to an excessive depth, he authorized the Sculpin to surface and engage the enemy in a gunfight, thereby providing an opportunity for the crew to abandon ship. Determined to sacrifice himself rather than risk capture and subsequent danger of revealing plans under Japanese torture or use of drugs, he stoically remained aboard the mortally wounded vessel as she plunged to her death. Preserving the security of his mission, at the cost of his own life, he had served his country as he had served the Navy, with deep integrity and an uncompromising devotion to duty. His great moral courage in the face of certain death adds new luster to the traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
Legion of Merit
John was also awarded the Legion of Merit, but the citation at Hall of Heroes is obviously incorrect.
Namesakes
USS Cromwell (DE 1014) was named for John; the ship was sponsored by his daughter.
Cromwell Hall, the Navy's Submarine Learning Center at the submarine base in Groton, Connecticut, was also named for him.
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.
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The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.
