RICHARD S. WAGGENER, LT, USN

Richard Waggener '22

Date of birth: December 27, 1900

Date of death: August 10, 1927

Age: 26

Lucky Bag

From the 1922 Lucky Bag:

RICHARD STOKELY WAGGENER

Warrington, Florida

"Dick," "Hans," "Stoker."

"HEY, 'Dick', what are you doing with that gun?"

That's "Hans"—the sturdy youngster with the youthful face. It breaks his heart to have extra duty prevent him seeing an athletic contest; but it doesn't prevent him dragging. Oh, no! He'll probably make an inspection of the Naval Academy tomorrow with a large staff of girls, and then find time to wrestle.

"How did you get your demerits, 'Hans'?"

"Oh, singing after taps. Haven't those duty officers any souls?"

"Dick's" love of fun has often led him astray. When on duty once the monotony of being quiet and dignified proved too much for the little boy. Then he thought himself showing the latest sleight-of-hand tricks to a large audience of classmates, and awoke to find as a lone spectator a lieutenant commander.

"What you say, 'Hans'?"

"By the deep six, sir, submerge."

Well, girls, line up. Time is short and we must make this good-bye ceremony snappy.

Wrestling Squad (3); Class Wrestling (2, 1); Mandolin Club (3, 2, 1).

RICHARD STOKELY WAGGENER

Warrington, Florida

"Dick," "Hans," "Stoker."

"HEY, 'Dick', what are you doing with that gun?"

That's "Hans"—the sturdy youngster with the youthful face. It breaks his heart to have extra duty prevent him seeing an athletic contest; but it doesn't prevent him dragging. Oh, no! He'll probably make an inspection of the Naval Academy tomorrow with a large staff of girls, and then find time to wrestle.

"How did you get your demerits, 'Hans'?"

"Oh, singing after taps. Haven't those duty officers any souls?"

"Dick's" love of fun has often led him astray. When on duty once the monotony of being quiet and dignified proved too much for the little boy. Then he thought himself showing the latest sleight-of-hand tricks to a large audience of classmates, and awoke to find as a lone spectator a lieutenant commander.

"What you say, 'Hans'?"

"By the deep six, sir, submerge."

Well, girls, line up. Time is short and we must make this good-bye ceremony snappy.

Wrestling Squad (3); Class Wrestling (2, 1); Mandolin Club (3, 2, 1).

Loss

Richard was lost on August 10, 1927 when the plane he was aboard crashed at Point Loma, California, near San Diego.

Other Information

From Find A Grave:

From the Santa Cruz Evening News (Santa Cruz, California), Wednesday, August 10, 1927, page 1:
Plane Crashes Into Point Loma When On the Way North
San Diego, Cal. - Aug. 10- Lieuts. George Covell and R. S. Waggener, U. S. N., who left here today in an airplane they had entered in the Dole flight to Honolulu, were killed when their airplane crashed into Point Loma near here. The plane was destroyed less than fifteen minutes after it left her for the Oakland air port, where they intended taking off Friday on the Honolulu flight.
Bursts into Flame
The plane burst into flames after it struck Point Loma. An orderly of the naval coaling station and La Playa residents stated it was reported both bodies had been recovered.
From the position of the plane it was believed it had struck the west bank of Point Loma as the airman endeavored to gain altitude.
The low winged monoplane which Covell and Waggener planned to fly to San Francisco for the Honolulu flight was a type entirely different from any before seen here. The plane was built by William D. Tremaine at Brea, Calif., from where Covell and Waggener started for San Diego last Saturday, only to be forced down near Escondido because of a broken oil feed line. After repairs had been made they continued their flight to San Diego, landing here late in the day. The plane was different from the usual monoplane in that its wings swung from the fuselage. In fact the whole body of the plane rested on the wings. The planes wings had a spread of 47 feet 6 inches, 7 feet wide, and had seven fuel tanks with a capacity of 645 gallons of gasoline and 35 gallons of oil were carried in the plane, which weighted two and a half tons and had a cruising speed of 100 miles an hour.
Seen Through the Fog
First reports of the crash came from the La Playa district, a small town on the edge of the reservation. It appears that some one saw the crash through the fog and made a report to the police authorities. No one in the reservation knew anything about it until their attention was called to it.
The naval air station, located on the top of the promontory near the end, reported having seen nothing. Fort Rosecrans reservation is practically the whole outer portion of Point Loma. Owing to the armament located there many parts are inaccessible and heavy brush prevent moving about.
Lieutenant Covell was born in Ellis, Neb., in 1899, and joined the aviation service of the navy in 1925. He resided at 327 B. avenue, Coronado and was married and had two children.
Lieutenant Waggener was a native of Warrington, Fla., and was twenty six years old. He made his home at officers headquarters, North Island. Waggener was not married but fellow officers stated he was engaged to be married, although they do not know the name of his fiancee.

From researcher Kathy Franz:

In May 1917, Richard participated in a debate in a Pensacola high school on the subject “Resolved, That Railroads Should Be Owned by the Government.” He was also in the color squad that raised and lowered the flag each school day.
Richard was leader of the Engineers’ Patrol of Boy Scout Troop One.
Richard's engagement Miss Virginia Powell of Sausalito had been announced the month before his death. They were to be married after he returned from the races in Honolulu.
Lieutenant A. P. Storrs (’22) accompanied Richard’s body home for burial. Richard’s father was a physician, pharmacist and retired naval officer. His mother was Isabelle; brother Jasper; and sisters Florence (Mrs. Alex Zelius,) Bessie (Mrs. T. Lachman,) and Olive (Mrs. Walter Johnson.)

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.