RAYMOND L. MAYO, CDR, USN

Raymond Mayo '30

Date of birth: November 8, 1906

Date of death: February 26, 1944

Age: 37

Lucky Bag

From the 1930 Lucky Bag:

RAYMOND LEON MAYO

Richardson, Texas

"Hoot" "Hep" Ray"

DISTINGUISHED by his curly blonde hair and his abundant good nature, Ray came to the Naval Academy because he felt the discipline would be good for him. Hoot likes to celebrate and his readiness to make "whoopee" on the slightest provocation led him to an early entanglement with the Executive Department, which has acted as a slight—very slight—curb on his exuberance.

Never have the academic departments taken a telling hold on "Hep" long enough to gain even a slight time advantage. "Hoot's" marks, while not starring, have been good enough to warrant his taking time off to talk about the sport in season with you. And few there are who can treat on Ray after the end of any given season. Though an ardent advocate of the "Radiator Club," he spends his winter afternoons in the Armory with the basketeers. And in the springtime he betakes himself to the Rifle Range to fire away at the old bullseye.

"Hoot" likes the Navy, and the Navy likes him, a reciprocation which bodes well for our future relations with him.

Assistant Manager Basketball 4, 3, 2, Manager Basketball 1, "N" 1; Rifle 4, 3; Small 30 4; 2 P.O.

RAYMOND LEON MAYO

Richardson, Texas

"Hoot" "Hep" Ray"

DISTINGUISHED by his curly blonde hair and his abundant good nature, Ray came to the Naval Academy because he felt the discipline would be good for him. Hoot likes to celebrate and his readiness to make "whoopee" on the slightest provocation led him to an early entanglement with the Executive Department, which has acted as a slight—very slight—curb on his exuberance.

Never have the academic departments taken a telling hold on "Hep" long enough to gain even a slight time advantage. "Hoot's" marks, while not starring, have been good enough to warrant his taking time off to talk about the sport in season with you. And few there are who can treat on Ray after the end of any given season. Though an ardent advocate of the "Radiator Club," he spends his winter afternoons in the Armory with the basketeers. And in the springtime he betakes himself to the Rifle Range to fire away at the old bullseye.

"Hoot" likes the Navy, and the Navy likes him, a reciprocation which bodes well for our future relations with him.

Assistant Manager Basketball 4, 3, 2, Manager Basketball 1, "N" 1; Rifle 4, 3; Small 30 4; 2 P.O.

Loss

Raymond was lost when USS Grayback (SS 208) was sunk by Japanese aircraft on February 26, 1944 south of Okinawa.

Though he was senior to the boat's commanding officer, John Moore '32, Raymond was apparently aboard as the prospective commanding officer.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Raymond was born in Oklahoma, and his father Edward was a farmer. His mother was Annie, and his brothers were Clement, Earl, Cyril, Carl, and DeWitt. In 1920 the family lived in Liberty, Oklahoma. In 1935 his parents and brother DeWitt lived in Richardson, Texas, in 1935. That year Raymond and his wife Janet were in Honolulu and were at several social gatherings there.

His wife was listed as next of kin. Raymond is listed at the Courts of the Missing in Hawaii.

Photographs

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.

October 1930

Ensign, USS New York

Others at this command:

LTjg Hugh Black '26

LTjg James Willis '27

ENS Joshua Nix '30

Others at or embarked at this command:

LTjg Henry Dozier '27 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 3B)

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

January 1931

Ensign, USS New York

Others at this command:

LTjg Hugh Black '26

ENS Joshua Nix '30

Others at or embarked at this command:

LTjg Henry Dozier '27 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 3B)

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

April 1931

Ensign, USS New York

Others at this command:

LT Rogers Elliott '22 (Submarine Division 9)

October 1935

Lieutenant (j.g.), USS S-31

Others at this command:

LTjg Julian Morrison, Jr. '25

January 1936

Lieutenant (j.g.), USS S-31

Others at this command:

LTjg Julian Morrison, Jr. '25

April 1936

Lieutenant (j.g.), USS S-31

Others at this command:

LTjg Julian Morrison, Jr. '25

July 1936

Lieutenant (j.g.), USS S-31

January 1937

Lieutenant (j.g.), USS S-31

April 1937

Lieutenant (j.g.), engineering officer, USS S-31

September 1937

Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Naval Academy

Others at this command:

Others at or embarked at this command:

LT Earl Olsen '26 (Engineering Experiment Station, Naval Academy)

January 1938

Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Naval Academy

Others at this command:

Others at or embarked at this command:

LT Earl Olsen '26 (Engineering Experiment Station, Naval Academy)

July 1938

Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Naval Academy

Others at this command:

Others at or embarked at this command:

LT Earl Olsen '26 (Engineering Experiment Station, Naval Academy)

January 1939

Lieutenant, under instruction, Naval Academy

Others at this command:

Others at or embarked at this command:

LT Earl Olsen '26 (Engineering Experiment Station, Naval Academy)

October 1939

Lieutenant, USS Marblehead

Others at this command:

ENS Alexander Groves, II '37

Others at or embarked at this command:

LT William Sisko '31 (Cruiser Scouting Squadron (VCS) 2)

In 2019 USS Grayback was found near Okinawa. Previous expeditions to locate her final resting place had been unsuccessful because of a mistake in translating the attacking aircraft's report.

Class of 1930

Raymond is one of 42 members of the Class of 1930 on Virtual Memorial Hall.

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John Shaffer, III '30 →

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