AUGUST W. LENTZ, JR., LCDR, USN

August Lentz, Jr. '26

Date of birth: April 7, 1903

Date of death: September 15, 1942

Age: 39

Lucky Bag

From the 1926 Lucky Bag:

August William Lentz, Jr.

Jersey City, New Jersey

"Gus" "Grandpa" "Baldy"

THE grand old man in person. Behold, then, one of the original hairless, super-editions of the Jersey variety. I say behold him, but you could hardly miss him. When he came to us late Plebe summer it was evident that our class had gained in size as well as number.

Gus first sought the higher knowledge in the halls of Rutgers, where he acquitted himself in noble style on the football field. Just to prove that brass buttons didn't cramp his style, Gus made the varsity Plebe year and has been as permanent as the Navy Goat ever since. And as a Captain Gus further proved that age made no difference in football a la good. One would, offhand, fail to see anything pugnacious in so shy an appearing chap, but several of the gentlemen from colleges hereabouts can testify to his ring prowess.

Uncle Gus will always be remembered for his extra-size heart, and many are the fortunate lads adopted by this kindly paternal bulwark of good fellowship and radiant Dutch cheer. May Baldy's cruises be as big as the ships it will take to hold him, and may his side of the line in the Big Game be counted upon.

Football Squad (4, 3, 2, 1), N (4, 3, 2, 1), Captain (1); Boxing (4, 3, 2, 1), Navy Numerals (3), N(2, 1); Class Track (4, 3), Numerals (4, 3); Lacrosse Squad (3); Gymkhana (4, 3).

August William Lentz, Jr.

Jersey City, New Jersey

"Gus" "Grandpa" "Baldy"

THE grand old man in person. Behold, then, one of the original hairless, super-editions of the Jersey variety. I say behold him, but you could hardly miss him. When he came to us late Plebe summer it was evident that our class had gained in size as well as number.

Gus first sought the higher knowledge in the halls of Rutgers, where he acquitted himself in noble style on the football field. Just to prove that brass buttons didn't cramp his style, Gus made the varsity Plebe year and has been as permanent as the Navy Goat ever since. And as a Captain Gus further proved that age made no difference in football a la good. One would, offhand, fail to see anything pugnacious in so shy an appearing chap, but several of the gentlemen from colleges hereabouts can testify to his ring prowess.

Uncle Gus will always be remembered for his extra-size heart, and many are the fortunate lads adopted by this kindly paternal bulwark of good fellowship and radiant Dutch cheer. May Baldy's cruises be as big as the ships it will take to hold him, and may his side of the line in the Big Game be counted upon.

Football Squad (4, 3, 2, 1), N (4, 3, 2, 1), Captain (1); Boxing (4, 3, 2, 1), Navy Numerals (3), N(2, 1); Class Track (4, 3), Numerals (4, 3); Lacrosse Squad (3); Gymkhana (4, 3).

Loss

August was lost when USS Wasp (CV 7) was sunk by a Japanese submarine on September 15, 1942. He was the ship's aerographer since June; previously he was the aerographer for Fleet Air Wing (FAW) 5 in Norfolk, Virginia.

His wife was listed as next of kin.

Memorial Hall Error

August is a "Jr." in the Lucky Bag, but this suffix is omitted on the class of 1926 panel and the killed in action panel in Memorial Hall.

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.

October 1926

Ensign, USS Oklahoma

Others at this command: ENS Adolph Hede '25, ENS Harold Pound '25, ENS William Graham, Jr. '25, ENS Claude Haman '26, and ENS John Crane '26.

January 1927

Ensign, USS Oklahoma

Others at this command: ENS Adolph Hede '25, ENS Harold Pound '25, ENS William Graham, Jr. '25, ENS Claude Haman '26, and ENS John Crane '26.

April 1927

Ensign, USS Oklahoma

Others at this command: ENS Adolph Hede '25, ENS Harold Pound '25, ENS William Graham, Jr. '25, ENS Claude Haman '26, and ENS John Crane '26.

October 1927

Ensign, without orders

January 1928

Ensign, treatment, Naval Hospital Boston, Massachusetts

April 1928

Ensign, sick leave

July 1928

Ensign, USS Antares

October 1928

Ensign, USS Antares

January 1929

Ensign, USS Antares

April 1929

Ensign, USS Antares

July 1929

Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Antares