Francis Eugene Organ
Era: World War II
Military Branch: Navy
ORGAN, Francis Eugene
Francis Eugene Organ was born on December 6th 1921 to Frank Henry & Mabel Ruth [Olsen] Organ in Chetek, Wisconsin. The family moved to Duluth, Minnesota
Mr. Organ entered the Navy on June 23rd 1942. He rose in rank to a Torpedman, 1st Class and a submarine service volunteer aboard USS S-28 and USS Trutta (SS 421) in the Pacific Theater.
He says: "Finally I was a crew member on USS S-28, a WWI submarine off to Dutch Harbor, Alaska, where we would make five war patrols, each about five weeks long, in the coldest, roughest waters in the world, the Bering Sea. After Attu and Kiska, we proceeded to the northern island of Japan, Permashero, sank a merchant ship and a small warship only to have to head for the bottom and wait out a severe depth charge attack."
"We finally surfaced with much damage, though not critical, and headed back to Bremerton (Washington) for repairs and then on to Pearl Harbor for tests and R&R. Rotation leaves were given, with 11 of us in the first group. The USS S-28 headed to sea, never to return and sadly we lost 52 close shipmates."
"At San Francisco, we were given our choice of new subs. I selected the Trutta, being built in Portsmouth and scheduled for launch in November. After gunnery and torpedo practice it was off to Pearl Harbor."
"Patrols included Midway, Guam, Okinawa, Saipan and Iwo Jima, where we picked up one of our fliers who had been downed in a raft for some days. After transferring him to a passing ship, we headed for the many unknown islands and to the ports of Japan. On the surface, sometimes flying the Japanese flag, we sank 17 ships in three days, all with deck gun action (no torpedoes) to add to the two sunk before."
He received the followng merits for his service:
- Good Conduct Medal,
- Navy Commendation Medal,
- Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Service Medal with 2 bronze battle stars,
- American Campaign Service Medal, -and-
- World War II Victory Medal.
He was honorably discharged on December 6th 1945. After the war he returned home and married Hazel Margaret [Sigfrinius]
Mr. Organ died on December 13th 1997 in Duluth at the age of 76 years. He is buried at Park Hill Cemetery in Duluth.
Source(s): Hometown Heroes: The St. Louis County World War II Project. 233.
Albert J. Amatuzio Research Center | Veterans Memorial Hall (vets-hall.org)
Page 1 WWII Draft Registration Cards - Fold3
Francis Eugene Organ (1921-1997) - Find a Grave Memorial
U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 - Ancestry.com
