THOMAS H. WILKINSON, LT, USN
Thomas Wilkinson '43
Lucky Bag
From the 1943 Lucky Bag:
THOMAS HAROLD WILKINSON
Butte, Montana
Tommy hails from Butte, Montana, out west where the men are supposed to be individualists. At any rate, Tommy had a remarkable ability for taking things as they came, good or bad. For him, convention was something which should be followed only when it fitted his personal desires. Here at school, Tommy fenced for the varsity, winning awards all three years, played a lot of handball, swam, and did a bit of sailing to pass his time, when this did not interfere with his bulky correspondence. Tommy was a member of the Boat Club, and a very able debater when interested. "A friend in need, indeed."
He was a member of the fencing team.
The Class of 1943 was graduated in June 1942 due to World War II. The entirety of 2nd class (junior) year was removed from the curriculum.
THOMAS HAROLD WILKINSON
Butte, Montana
Tommy hails from Butte, Montana, out west where the men are supposed to be individualists. At any rate, Tommy had a remarkable ability for taking things as they came, good or bad. For him, convention was something which should be followed only when it fitted his personal desires. Here at school, Tommy fenced for the varsity, winning awards all three years, played a lot of handball, swam, and did a bit of sailing to pass his time, when this did not interfere with his bulky correspondence. Tommy was a member of the Boat Club, and a very able debater when interested. "A friend in need, indeed."
He was a member of the fencing team.
The Class of 1943 was graduated in June 1942 due to World War II. The entirety of 2nd class (junior) year was removed from the curriculum.
Loss
Thomas was lost when USS Scamp (SS 277) was sunk, possibly by a Japanese surface craft or mine, south of Tokyo Bay, probably on November 16, 1944.
Other Information
From researcher Kathy Franz:
Thomas was nominated to West Point by Senator James E. Murray in December, 1938. However, he enrolled in the Naval Academy instead.
His father Thomas was a prominent Butte mine foreman who died in February, 1939. His mother was Adele. Thomas had three brothers: Marine M/T Sgt. Richard, F 1/c Leonard served two years in the Navy, and Albert served in the Marines and then attended medical school.
From the Class of 1943 anniversary book "25 years later…":
Tom was born in Butte, Montana on 10 July 1920. He was appointed from Montana and entered the Academy on 12 July 1939. Upon graduation he reported to Commander, Submarine Division TWELVE in Key West, Florida and then to the submarine Base, New London, Connecticut in connection with submarine instruction.
In December 1942 he reported to submarine USS BONITA in the Atlantic for duty and qualified in submarines on 1 November 1943. Tom then was transferred to the submarine O-3 in January 1944 which was engaged in training operations. Ordered to submarine USS SCAMP, he reported in September 1944 for that duty. The SCAMP was on her eighth war patrol in the vicinity of the Bonin Islands. On 8 November she acknowledged her last message. SCAMP may have encountered a mine or may have been the victim of Japanese anti-submarine attacks in the area on the 11th or the 16th of November when large quantities of oil at the first and large explosions at the second were reported in Japanese war records. In any case the SCAMP and all hands failed to return from patrol. Tom wore the Purple Heart, the American Defense Service Medal with Fleet Clasp, the American Area Campaign Medal and the Asiatic-Pacific Area Campaign. Tom was survived by his wife, Alice Margaret and their son Thomas Harold Junior whose address at the time of Tom’s death was c/o Glen Rock, Guymon, Oklahoma.
From The Montana Standard on April 14, 1945:
Lt. Thomas Harold Wilkinson, 24-year-old son of Mrs. Adele M. Wilkinson, 1405 Dewey, and the late Thomas Wilkinson, one-time prominent Butte mine foreman, was executive officer aboard the submarine Scamp, which has been lost on patrol in the Pacific.
Announcement of the loss of the Scamp, which carried a crew of about 65 men, was made by the Navy department. Mrs. Wilkinson had received notification from the department previously.
Lt. Wilkinson was graduated from the U. S. Naval academy at Annapolis in 1943 and for a time was stationed as an instructor at the submarine school at New London, Conn. He was assigned to sea duty in July of last year.
Lt. Wilkinson is a graduate of Butte high school where he was prominent in dramatics. He also attended the Montana School of Mines and studied at Butte Business college preparatory to his entrance to Annapolis.
His wife and one-year-old son, Thomas Harold, Jr., reside in Guymon, Okla. Uncles and aunts are Mr. and Mrs. Albert E. Wilkinson of Butte; Mrs. C. O. Smithers, Butte, and Capt. C. O. Smithers, New York, and Mr. and Mrs. Archie Walkup, Butte.
Two of his brothers, M/T Sgt. Richard Wilkinson, and F 1/c Leonard Wilkinson, are in the armed forces. Richard currently is stationed at the El Centro, Calif., Marine base, and Leonard, a veteran of two years service with the Navy in the Pacific, now is in the Atlantic theater of war. A third brother, Albert, also served with the Marines and now is in Missoula after receiving a discharge to attend medical school.
Photographs
From his high school yearbook
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