Dozens of Illinoisans died at Pearl Harbor

By Tom Emery

It is known as "the day that will live in infamy." Like the rest of the nation, the people of Illinois felt its scars.

Wednesday, Dec. 7, marks the anniversary of Pearl Harbor, which left 2,403 Americans dead. Among them were dozens of Illinoisans, including George Francis Clark, 20, of Paris, who was lost on the USS Arizona.

Born in Paris on March 31, 1921, Clark's father was a taxi driver. The family resided at 1208 South Marshall Street.

The fifth of eight children, Clark attended the local high school but never graduated. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy at St. Louis on Jan. 16, 1940.

He was assigned to the Arizona on March 26, 1940, and was a Gunner's Mate Third Class at the time of Pearl Harbor. His body was never recovered, and he remains entombed on the Arizona.

Clark was one of four brothers in military service. His younger sibling, Robert, a private in the 79th Infantry Division, died in France on Oct. 10, 1944.

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One Illinoisan of note was Lt. John Dains, a 21-year-old Mt. Olive native who was serving in the Army Air Corps. A student at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, Dains was one of the few American airmen who made it off the ground that morning.

Dains' role in the American defense is one of the intriguing, yet overlooked, stories of Pearl Harbor. Some researchers believe he shot down the first Japanese plane in the war, while others cite a lack of evidence for that claim. Others believe he was the first pilot to die.

Regardless, there is no question of Dains' valor. When the bombing originated, Dains and another man, Lt. Harry Brown, hopped in a Jeep and raced through cane fields to reach a base.

From there, Dains flew two sorties in a P-40 in the early stages of the bombing. Various accounts state that Dains was forced to land either for lack of fuel, or because his bullet-riddled plane was unable to return. He then went up for a third time in a P-36, but was mistaken for the enemy, and downed by friendly fire.

Dains was posthumously awarded the Silver Star and a Purple Heart. Days later, Brown wrote to Dains' family that their son "died as he wanted to die – fighting and laughing to the last. He gave his life for his country – he died a true hero's death."

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Like Dains, William Arbuckle of Marshall had also attended college, spending a year at DePauw University in Indiana before landing a job as an assistant manager at a Woolworth store in Champaign.

Arbuckle enlisted in the U.S. Navy on May 20, 1941, and was on the USS Utah at the time of the bombing. Though most men managed to escape when the Utah capsized, Arbuckle was one of 58 men who perished.

Days later, some of Arbuckle's friends in Marshall received Christmas cards from him, dated Nov. 29.

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One of the older men to die at Pearl Harbor was Capt. Thomas Kirkpatrick, 54, a Navy chaplain who studied and was ordained in Chicago. Kirkpatrick had been a chaplain in the Navy since February 1918, and is believed to be the first military chaplain killed in the war.

In central Illinois, Edward Clapp of Forsyth, 31, had joined the Navy at age 16, serving intermittently over 15 years. His father had died in service in World War I.

Nearby, the Conlin family of Decatur was a military family, as seven brothers served in the Navy. Two died on the Arizona at Pearl Harbor. One was James Conlin, a 19-year-old Fireman Second Class.

The other, Bernard, was a Seaman Second Class who had turned 18 just 15 days before. They were among 57 Illinoisans who were lost on the Arizona, the ship that is most synonymous with the attack. The Conlins were one of 38 sets of brothers stationed on the Arizona, 23 of which were lost.

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Some families endured an agonizing wait for word on their loved ones. In Clark County, Lester Walden did not hear for days on his brother, Cleo, who was stationed at Pearl Harbor. Finally, the Clark County Democrat printed word on Dec. 31 that Cleo was "safe and unhurt."

On the other end of the state, the family of Phil Merker of Rosiclare, near the Ohio River, awaited word from his brother, who was stationed with the Marines at Honolulu. As the Hardin County Independent reported, "their worries were eased yesterday when they received a cablegram, 'Safe and well.'"

In the Calumet region of Chicago, the Stodola family received a letter a week after the bombing from their son, George Jr., who was on the USS Phelps at Pearl Harbor. His letter read, "I know you are worried so I thought I would drop you a few lines to let you know I am ok." The local paper reported "there was great joy" in the household from the news.

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For one family in the tiny Clark County village of Walnut Prairie, the long wait ended in sorrow. On Jan. 7, the parents of Virgil Rayhel learned he had died in the attack.

Virgil had graduated from the Air Corps School at Chanute Field in Rantoul in 1938 and had spent several months at Lowery Field in Colorado. He was shipped to Honolulu in 1940, and stationed at Hickam Field.

The remains of U.S. servicemen are still being identified, 80 years later. One example is Navy Fireman First Class Robert Harr, a product of Dallas City in northwestern Illinois, whose remains were accounted for in February 2021. Harr, who died on the USS Oklahoma, was buried in August.

The Arizona and Oklahoma were among 19 U.S. ships that were either damaged or destroyed at Pearl Harbor. Navy men accounted for 2,008 of the American casualties in the attack.

In addition to the deaths, 1,178 American servicemen were wounded. A total of 159 U.S. planes were damaged in the bombing, while another 169 were destroyed.

Tom Emery is a freelance writer and historical researcher from Carlinville, Ill. He may be reached at 217-710-8392 or [email protected].