THEODORE C. LYSTER, JR., LT, USN

Theodore Lyster, Jr. '36

Date of birth: September 20, 1914

Date of death: November 13, 1942

Age: 28

Lucky Bag

From the 1936 Lucky Bag:

Theodore Charles Lyster, Jr.

Los Angeles, California

"Ted"

Ted made his appearance late in plebe summer with a trunkful of cit clothes and a heart full of California. Although Navy regulations caused him to dispose of the former, he has never missed an opportunity to sing the praises of the latter. Ted is not exactly lazy but he is a strong advocate of the theory that one should mix culture with learning. He plays soccer, but finds it easier to enjoy things closer to home than to attend practices more than once or twice a week. Ted isn't a snake, but on more than one occasion he has sallied forth to give those of the fair sex a break. As he never worries about academics, he has enjoyed himself to the fullest. With his near perfect attitude toward life and the Navy, Ted will always receive the best they have to offer.

Soccer 4, 3, 2, 1; Golf Manager 1. gNf; N Club; Stage Gang 2, 1; Property Manager; One Stripe

Theodore Charles Lyster, Jr.

Los Angeles, California

"Ted"

Ted made his appearance late in plebe summer with a trunkful of cit clothes and a heart full of California. Although Navy regulations caused him to dispose of the former, he has never missed an opportunity to sing the praises of the latter. Ted is not exactly lazy but he is a strong advocate of the theory that one should mix culture with learning. He plays soccer, but finds it easier to enjoy things closer to home than to attend practices more than once or twice a week. Ted isn't a snake, but on more than one occasion he has sallied forth to give those of the fair sex a break. As he never worries about academics, he has enjoyed himself to the fullest. With his near perfect attitude toward life and the Navy, Ted will always receive the best they have to offer.

Soccer 4, 3, 2, 1; Golf Manager 1. gNf; N Club; Stage Gang 2, 1; Property Manager; One Stripe

Loss

Theodore was lost in USS Juneau (CL 52) during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal on November 13, 1942.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Theodore was born in Fort Monroe, Virginia, but lived in Los Angeles since the age of 5.
He was a charter member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity at the University of California at Los Angeles in February 1932.
His father Dr. T. C. Lyster was an assistant to Maj. Gen. William C. Gorgas in the ridding of the yellow fever during the building of the Panama Canal. He was an ophthalmologist, former chief of the eye section at Good Hope Clinic and associate clinical professor ophthalmology at the University of Southern California Medical School. He died in 1933.
Theodore was survived by his mother Lua, his wife Tekla and 4-year-old son, Theodore III. His brother Dr. Russell W. Lyster was a captain in the Army Medical Corps, stationed at Valley Forge General Hospital in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania.

His wife was listed as next of kin.

Theodore is remembered at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial.

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.