CARL B. A. HOLMSTROM, LCDR, USN

Carl Holmstrom '38

Date of birth: January 10, 1916

Date of death: August 5, 1944

Age: 28

Lucky Bag

From the 1938 Lucky Bag:

CARL BERMAN HOLMSTROM

Arlington, Washington

Swede

From far out younder where the lumberjacks grow comes this very good-natured Swede. It would seem that the big trees of the evergreen state imbue in a fellow a love of fun that makes him liked by everyone. Rarely serious, always easy going, the Swede's inordinate desire to skylark coupled with a very fertile mind have furnished laughs on any number of occasions. However he's a good sport and when some of his victims retaliate with more than they receive he laughs it off and goes to work on a new idea. Ever the "Plebe's friend," his fund of pertinent dope has made him an oracle to which the knowledge-thirsty "untouchables" are sent for the answers. Compositely, Swede is a complacent hard-working Semi-Red Mike possessed with a delightful manner of bumming cigarettes and an ability to make friends with everyone.

Track 3, 2, 38; Batt. Football 2, 1; Cross Country 4; Log 4; Ensign.

CARL BERMAN HOLMSTROM

Arlington, Washington

Swede

From far out younder where the lumberjacks grow comes this very good-natured Swede. It would seem that the big trees of the evergreen state imbue in a fellow a love of fun that makes him liked by everyone. Rarely serious, always easy going, the Swede's inordinate desire to skylark coupled with a very fertile mind have furnished laughs on any number of occasions. However he's a good sport and when some of his victims retaliate with more than they receive he laughs it off and goes to work on a new idea. Ever the "Plebe's friend," his fund of pertinent dope has made him an oracle to which the knowledge-thirsty "untouchables" are sent for the answers. Compositely, Swede is a complacent hard-working Semi-Red Mike possessed with a delightful manner of bumming cigarettes and an ability to make friends with everyone.

Track 3, 2, 38; Batt. Football 2, 1; Cross Country 4; Log 4; Ensign.

Loss

Carl was lost when his SB2C-3 Helldiver was shot down over Chichijima, Bonin Islands, Japan, on August 5, 1944. He was operating from USS Franklin (CV 13) as a part of Bombing Squadron (VB) 13; he was the squadron's executive officer.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

In 1931 and 1932, “Berman” was a reporter for the Arlington High School newspaper, the Eagle. In the 1932 Arlington High School yearbook, he was Sports Editor and wrote the description for the track team. He was also a member of the Rifle Club. He graduated in 1933, and was assistant editor for the newspaper. Scientific Course. “Night after night he sat and blessed his weary eyes with books.” Track 4; Torch Society 2-3-4; Rifle Club 4; Eagle Staff 1-2-3-4; Vodvil 4; Scholarship Contest 3.
Carl’s parents were Frank and Olga (Carlson) Holmstrom. His father was naturalized in April 1912 and was a motorman in Seattle at that time. In September 1918, his father registered for WWI and was a logger in Silvana, Washington, but the family lived in Arlington. In the 1920 census, Carl was listed as Burmont, and his father was a faller in a logging camp in Cliff, Washington. His brother was Frank Gottfried, Jr., and his mother’s brother lived with them and was a logger. In 1942, his family lived in Arlington, Washington, and his father was employed by Young Iron Works in Seattle.

His parents were listed as next of kin.

Career

From naval aviation historian Richard Leonard via email on February 9, 2018:

NAS Pensacola attached for HTA flight training, 8/26/1940

NAS Pensacola designated NA # 7200, 2/26/1941

Date of rank LTJG from 1 Jul 1941 USN Register, 6/2/1941

Date of rank LT from 1 Jul 1942 USN Register, 6/15/1942

VB-13 (XO) NAS Wildwood, 11/1/1943

Date of rank LCDR from 1 Jul 1944 USN Register, 3/1/1944

VB-13 (XO) USS Franklin (CV-13), 3/1/1944

VB-13 (XO) USS Franklin (CV-13) DFC PH KIA BNR, 8/5/1944

Distinguished Flying Cross

From Hall of Valor:

SYNOPSIS: Lieutenant Commander Carl B. A. Holmstrom (NSN: 0-81095), United States Navy, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (Posthumously) for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight as pilot of a carrier-based Scout Bomber in the Bonin Islands on 5 August 1944.
General Orders: Bureau of Naval Personnel Information Bulletin No. 337 (April 1945)
Action Date: August 5, 1944
Service: Navy
Rank: Lieutenant Commander

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.