BRUCE T. SIMONDS, CDR, USN
Bruce Simonds '41
Lucky Bag
From the 1941 Lucky Bag:
BRUCE THOMAS SIMONDS
Seattle, Washington
When Bruce left the hills of Seattle for what Uncle Sam had to offer, he did so whole-heartedly. That is his way. Never anything but sincere with all that concerns him, Bruce has a pleasant nature, that makes him a friend of all. After knowing him for awhile, we are quite sure of the intelligence which his modesty and serious application tend to hide. Never have we seen anyone who can set a goal and work so steadfastly to attain it.
Gym made him "Suicide." And when he does that half twist, we know why! Yes, gym is his love here, and to be an Intercollegiate Champion is not a bad reward.
"Suicide" stars at the hops when he is not stagging or on a gym trip. We wonder sometimes what he is going to substitute for the parallel bars in the fleet, for we suspect the sea is in his blood. We hope it is, and here's luck to you, fellow, though you are not one to depend on it too much.
Gym 4, 3, 2, 1, N*, Captain '41; Lucky Bag; Company Representative 4, 3, 2.
The Class of 1941 was the first of the wartime-accelerated classes, graduating in February 1941.
BRUCE THOMAS SIMONDS
Seattle, Washington
When Bruce left the hills of Seattle for what Uncle Sam had to offer, he did so whole-heartedly. That is his way. Never anything but sincere with all that concerns him, Bruce has a pleasant nature, that makes him a friend of all. After knowing him for awhile, we are quite sure of the intelligence which his modesty and serious application tend to hide. Never have we seen anyone who can set a goal and work so steadfastly to attain it.
Gym made him "Suicide." And when he does that half twist, we know why! Yes, gym is his love here, and to be an Intercollegiate Champion is not a bad reward.
"Suicide" stars at the hops when he is not stagging or on a gym trip. We wonder sometimes what he is going to substitute for the parallel bars in the fleet, for we suspect the sea is in his blood. We hope it is, and here's luck to you, fellow, though you are not one to depend on it too much.
Gym 4, 3, 2, 1, N*, Captain '41; Lucky Bag; Company Representative 4, 3, 2.
The Class of 1941 was the first of the wartime-accelerated classes, graduating in February 1941.
Loss
From Find A Grave:
USNA Class of 1941, Commander Simonds was a decorated veteran of World War II. In Korea, he was the Commanding Officer of Attack Squadron 702 and the pilot of an AD-4L Skyraider dive bomber aboard the carrier USS KEARSARGE (CVA-33). On October 16, 1952, his plane crashed on take-off. He could not get himself free from his parachute and drowned.
He had taken command on December 6, 1951.
Other Information
From researcher Kathy Franz:
Bruce graduated from Franklin High School in Seattle in 1935. Active in Boys’ Tumbling club, Honor Society, Service club, and Usher-Doormen committee; collects stamps and builds model airplanes.
Bruce’s father was William Adams Simonds, and his mother was Marjorie Wildena (Muncaster). In 1918, his father William was a newspaperman for the Seattle Times. His mother died in 1919. Bruce moved in with his maternal grandparents in Seattle in 1930.
His father was a journalist and public relations director for Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, Michigan, and he was married to Theresa. His father was best known for his biography of Thomas A. Edison which was made into a movie starring Spencer Tracy. Bruce’s brothers were William, Jr.; Henry; Chandler and Vance; sister Betty Jane; step-sister Patreca and step-brother Ford.
His wife survived him; she later remarried to a 1936 Naval Academy graduate who retired as a Vice Admiral.
Photographs
From the Lucky Bag's "Stripers" page
From his high school yearbook
Distinguished Flying Cross
From Hall of Valor:
(Citation Needed) - SYNOPSIS: Commander Bruce Thomas Simonds (NSN: 0-100250), United States Navy, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (Posthumously) for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight while serving as Commanding Officer of Attack Squadron SEVEN HUNDRED TWO (VA-702), embarked in U.S.S. KEARSARGE (CV-33), on 26 September 1952.
General Orders: All Hands (April 1954)
Action Date: September 26, 1952
Service: Navy
Rank: Commander
Company: Attack Squadron 702 (VA-702)
Division: U.S.S. Kearsarge (CV-33)
Memorial Hall Error?
Bruce is listed on the killed in action panel in the front of Memorial Hall. While not an obvious error, inclusion on the panel for crashes like this (incidental to combat flights) has been inconsistent across WWII, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.
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.
April 1941
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