World War II Honoree

Charles King Wilson

Branch of Service

U.S. Navy

Hometown

Claremore, Oklahoma

Honored By

Orville L. Kline

Rank: Fireman Second Class. He was inducted into the United States Navy December 17, 1941 at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, with recruit training at the U.S. Naval Training Station Great Lakes, Illinois. Upon his graduation from boot camp and Fire Training, he was transferred to the USS Jarvis Destroyer, DD-393 for duty as a Fireman. On August 7, 1942 the Destroyer and her shipmates, along with an armada of U.S. Battleships, Destroyers, and Cruisers arrived off-shore of Guadalcanal in support of the impending invasion. Reported missing in action, lost at sea Sunday, August 9, 1942 when his warship was torpedoed by an Imperial Japanese Bomber in the Southwestern Pacific Theater of Operations, and she went down with all hands off-shore of Tulagi Island. In remembrance of the brave, his name is permanently inscribed in the tablets of the missing, memorialized at the Manila American Cemetery at Fort William-McKinley, Philippine Islands. Later his missing in action status was amended to read, killed in action January 12, 1945. This American Patriot was awarded the Purple Heart posthumously, for his ultimate sacrifice in defense of his country.