ROYAL R. INGERSOLL, II, LT, USN

Royal Ingersoll, II '34

Date of birth: December 17, 1913

Date of death: June 4, 1942

Age: 28

Lucky Bag

From the 1934 Lucky Bag:

ROYAL RODNEY INGERSOLL

La Porte, Indiana

"Roy" "Whitey" "Rube" "Railroad"

ON June 16, 1930 another Navy Junior was entrusted to the tender mercies of numerous steam profs, Dago profs, and D.O.'s. After four years of hard effort Roy has overcome this initial handicap and emerges a star man.

We have found only one attribute of Roy's that annoys us — that is his stamp collecting. Outside of this one weakness he has been an ideal roommate. Likes sailing, tennis, and squash and spends most of his time engaged in one of these sports. For three and a half years Roy was one of the Red Mikes but something happened first class Xmas Leave and since then he has blossomed out into a regular fusser.

Easy going, the Rube seldom kills himself working, yet he has gained more both in the line of pleasure and in the line of real achievement than most men who pass four years here.

Looking back on the four years spent with Whitey we realize that we have been fortunate to have had such a classmate. Loyal and generous, cheerful and friendly he has been a constant help to all who knew him. Those of us who know him best are sure that he possesses all the traits which go towards making a successful naval officer, and wish him the best of luck in his chosen profession.

We know that in future years, wherever he may go, his cheery disposition and winning smile will win him hosts of friends. May "a fair wind and a following sea" always be yours, Roy!

Soccer 4. Tennis 4, 3, 2, 1. Radio Club 3, 2, 1. Musical Clubs 4, 3, 2, 1. Choir 4, 3, 2. Glee Club 4, 3, 2, 1. Lucky Bag Staff. Star 1. C.P.O.

ROYAL RODNEY INGERSOLL

La Porte, Indiana

"Roy" "Whitey" "Rube" "Railroad"

ON June 16, 1930 another Navy Junior was entrusted to the tender mercies of numerous steam profs, Dago profs, and D.O.'s. After four years of hard effort Roy has overcome this initial handicap and emerges a star man.

We have found only one attribute of Roy's that annoys us — that is his stamp collecting. Outside of this one weakness he has been an ideal roommate. Likes sailing, tennis, and squash and spends most of his time engaged in one of these sports. For three and a half years Roy was one of the Red Mikes but something happened first class Xmas Leave and since then he has blossomed out into a regular fusser.

Easy going, the Rube seldom kills himself working, yet he has gained more both in the line of pleasure and in the line of real achievement than most men who pass four years here.

Looking back on the four years spent with Whitey we realize that we have been fortunate to have had such a classmate. Loyal and generous, cheerful and friendly he has been a constant help to all who knew him. Those of us who know him best are sure that he possesses all the traits which go towards making a successful naval officer, and wish him the best of luck in his chosen profession.

We know that in future years, wherever he may go, his cheery disposition and winning smile will win him hosts of friends. May "a fair wind and a following sea" always be yours, Roy!

Soccer 4. Tennis 4, 3, 2, 1. Radio Club 3, 2, 1. Musical Clubs 4, 3, 2, 1. Choir 4, 3, 2. Glee Club 4, 3, 2, 1. Lucky Bag Staff. Star 1. C.P.O.

Loss

Roy was killed at his battle station by machine gun fire from a crippled fighter plane (an F4F Wildcat) from the USS Yorktown (CV-5) during its emergency landing on board the Hornet. Its wounded pilot was either unable to, or failed to, cut off its guns. Four enlisted men on board the Hornet were also killed, and 20 more sailors were wounded in this accident.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Royal received one of the 15 Naval Academy appointments of President Hoover in 1930.
Royal married Helen Earle in 1938 in Chevy Chase, Maryland. She was the granddaughter of Rear Admiral A. V. Zane.
In addition to his wife, he was survived by his two children Grace Helen, 3, and Royal Eason Ingersoll II, one year old.

His wife was listed as next of kin. Royal has a memory marker in Indiana; he is also remembered at the Courts of the Missing in Hawaii.

Career

Roy was born in Manila, Philippines, the son of Admiral Royal E. Ingersoll and the grandson of Rear Admiral Royal R. Ingersoll. After graduating from the United States Naval Academy in 1934, Ingersoll served on the battleship USS California (BB 44), on the destroyer USS Cassin (DD 372), and other warships during 1934-41. He reported on board the aircraft carrier USS Hornet (CV 8) during her fitting-out period in 1941. Roy served on Hornet during the critical early months of the War in the Pacific, including on the famous Doolittle Raid on Tokyo in April 1942, the Hornet's maiden combat voyage.

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.