CREIGHTON K. LANKFORD, LTJG, USN

From USNA Virtual Memorial Hall
Creighton Lankford '25

Date of birth: September 21, 1902

Date of death: September 16, 1931

Age: 28

Lucky Bag

From the 1925 Lucky Bag:

1925 Lankford LB.jpg

Creighton Kirby Lankford

Plattsburg, Missouri

"Sam"

ALL right, better get there for the first translation, only going through the Dago once today. That's good, sit on the other bed, that's mine. Yes, she's from Missouri. Now in Missouri———' and Sam is off again.

"Sam" missed Plebe summer and so not many of us knew him until late in the year. We don't pretend that this fellow with the big brown eyes is an athlete or even a scholar, but could you imagine an indoor golf tournament without Sam? Fact is, he attended once too often around about the end of Second Class year.

The proof of the pudding's in the eating; so if you know "Sam" you already know how entertaining he is. Once Plebe year he and two or three others kept the whole duty squad awake until 4:00 A. M. with their attic antics.

He doesn't drag often because, as Caesar said, "I would rather drag one forty than be bricked twice."

"Sam" is one of the most staunch supporters of the Radiator club, only every pay-day he leaves his post to play golf.

"Hey, doc, gowan down to Nobel's room and get something started."

Masqueraders (3); Gymkhana (2); Black N* *.

1925 Lankford LB.jpg

Creighton Kirby Lankford

Plattsburg, Missouri

"Sam"

ALL right, better get there for the first translation, only going through the Dago once today. That's good, sit on the other bed, that's mine. Yes, she's from Missouri. Now in Missouri———' and Sam is off again.

"Sam" missed Plebe summer and so not many of us knew him until late in the year. We don't pretend that this fellow with the big brown eyes is an athlete or even a scholar, but could you imagine an indoor golf tournament without Sam? Fact is, he attended once too often around about the end of Second Class year.

The proof of the pudding's in the eating; so if you know "Sam" you already know how entertaining he is. Once Plebe year he and two or three others kept the whole duty squad awake until 4:00 A. M. with their attic antics.

He doesn't drag often because, as Caesar said, "I would rather drag one forty than be bricked twice."

"Sam" is one of the most staunch supporters of the Radiator club, only every pay-day he leaves his post to play golf.

"Hey, doc, gowan down to Nobel's room and get something started."

Masqueraders (3); Gymkhana (2); Black N* *.

Loss

From Find A Grave:

Ensign C. K. Lankford, USN, was designated Naval Aviator #3439 in 1929. Graduated U.S. Naval Academy, Class of 1925.

Lieutenant (Junior Grade) Lankford died from severe burns following the crash of his aircraft while flying relief supplies into Costa Rica following a deadly earthquake.

His date of death was September 16, 1931.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

As a young child, Creighton attended the Urich school. He graduated from Plattsburg High School in 1920. In 1919, Creighton and a classmate won the school’s first silver cup in an inter-school debating contest. In the senior graduation program, he performed “School Oracle.”

He next attended Westminster College at Fulton for a year where he again won debating distinction. Congressman Dickerson appointed Creighton to the Naval Academy.

Creighton did stunt flying at the air races at Cleveland in 1929. He crashed during the races. He also crashed in making a forced landing in Virginia shortly afterward.

While he was stationed in California, his squadron did the aerial flying and stunt flying for the movie “Sea Gulls” starring Wallace Berry. Creighton was also in the Squadron VF-1, known as the “High Hats” which did the aerial flying for the movie “Hell Divers.” He was flying the plane I-F-II.

In June, 1931, Creighton visited his family before going to duty in Panama.

Creighton's wife was Georgia. She was born in the Philippines and her father was a Navy officer.

His father Chatham was a farmer. His mother Jennie was a teacher and was the Clinton County superintendent of schools. Her maiden name was Creighton, and she was born in Creighton, Missouri. His sisters were Ruth and Louise.

He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Career

Creighton was earlier a member of Fighting Squadron (VF) 1B, aboard USS Saratoga (CV 3), in San Diego. In the summer of 1929 the entire squadron journeyed cross-country to participate in the National Air Races in Cleveland, Ohio. Before he arrived, though, he had a very rough landing in a field near Lorain, Ohio, that fractured his jaw. Charles Lindburg filled in for him in a flight demonstration at the event.

The link above also includes some additional details on Creighton's loss.

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.

July 1925
Ensign, USS Idaho

October 1925
Ensign, USS Idaho

January 1926
Ensign, USS Idaho

October 1926
Ensign, USS Decatur
January 1927
Ensign, USS Decatur
April 1927
Ensign, USS Decatur
October 1927
Ensign, USS Decatur
January 1928
Ensign, USS Sinclair
July 1929
Lieutenant (j.g.), Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B, USS Saratoga

Others at or embarked at USS Saratoga:
LCDR Henry Mullinnix '16 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LT Thomas Fisher '18 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LT Paul Thompson '19 (Aircraft Squadrons, Battle Fleet)
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (USS Saratoga)
LTjg Charles McDonald '24 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg John Crane '26 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Henry Dozier '27 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Henry Twohy '29 (USS Saratoga)
October 1929
Lieutenant (j.g.), Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B, USS Saratoga

Others at or embarked at USS Saratoga:
LCDR Henry Mullinnix '16 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LT Thomas Fisher '18 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (USS Saratoga)
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LTjg Charles McDonald '24 (USS Saratoga)
LTjg John Crane '26 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Henry Twohy '29 (USS Saratoga)
January 1930
Lieutenant (j.g.), Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B, USS Saratoga

Others at or embarked at USS Saratoga:
LCDR Henry Mullinnix '16 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LT Thomas Fisher '18 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LTjg Charles McDonald '24 (USS Saratoga)
LTjg Hubert Waters '25 (Aircraft Squadrons, Battle Fleet)
LTjg Charles Signer '26 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Claude Haman '26 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
ENS Loren Morris '27 (Aircraft Squadrons, Battle Fleet)
ENS Robert Winters '27 (Aircraft Squadrons, Battle Fleet)
ENS John Eldridge, Jr. '27 (Aircraft Squadrons, Battle Fleet)
ENS Eugene Lindsey '27 (Aircraft Squadrons, Battle Fleet)
ENS Julian Greer '27 (Aircraft Squadrons, Battle Fleet)
ENS Henry Twohy '29 (USS Saratoga)
April 1930
Lieutenant (j.g.), Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B, USS Saratoga

Others at or embarked at USS Saratoga:
LT Thomas Fisher '18 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LTjg Charles McDonald '24 (USS Saratoga)
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
LTjg Charles Signer '26 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Claude Haman '26 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
ENS John Eldridge, Jr. '27 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
ENS Julian Greer '27 (Light Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 2B)
ENS Henry Twohy '29 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Jacob Britt '29 (USS Saratoga)
October 1930
Lieutenant (j.g.), Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B, USS Saratoga

Others at or embarked at USS Saratoga:
CDR Melville Brown '10 (USS Saratoga)
LT Thomas Fisher '18 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LT Van Moore '19 (USS Saratoga)
LT Dixie Kiefer '19 (USS Saratoga)
LT William Sample '19 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Charles Signer '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Claude Haman '26 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Robert Symes '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Renwick Calderhead '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg John Eldridge, Jr. '27 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Warren Graf '27 (USS Saratoga)
LTjg Julian Greer '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS Weldon Hamilton '28 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
ENS Jacob Britt '29 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Charles Hart '30 (USS Saratoga)
ENS James Clarkson '30 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Dudley Morton '30 (USS Saratoga)
ENS John Craig '30 (USS Saratoga)
ENS James Kyes '30 (USS Saratoga)
January 1931
Lieutenant (j.g.), Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B, USS Saratoga

Others at or embarked at USS Saratoga:
CDR Melville Brown '10 (USS Saratoga)
LT Thomas Fisher '18 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LT Van Moore '19 (USS Saratoga)
LT Dixie Kiefer '19 (USS Saratoga)
LT William Sample '19 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Charles Signer '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Claude Haman '26 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Robert Symes '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Renwick Calderhead '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg John Eldridge, Jr. '27 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Warren Graf '27 (USS Saratoga)
LTjg Julian Greer '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS Weldon Hamilton '28 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
ENS Jacob Britt '29 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Charles Hart '30 (USS Saratoga)
ENS James Clarkson '30 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Dudley Morton '30 (USS Saratoga)
ENS John Craig '30 (USS Saratoga)
ENS James Kyes '30 (USS Saratoga)
April 1931
Lieutenant (j.g.), Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 1B, USS Saratoga

Others at or embarked at USS Saratoga:
CDR Melville Brown '10 (USS Saratoga)
LT Thomas Fisher '18 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LT Van Moore '19 (USS Saratoga)
LT Dixie Kiefer '19 (USS Saratoga)
LT William Sample '19 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Walter Leach, Jr. '24 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Charles Signer '26 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
LTjg Claude Haman '26 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Robert Symes '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg Renwick Calderhead '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
LTjg John Eldridge, Jr. '27 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 2B)
LTjg Warren Graf '27 (USS Saratoga)
LTjg Julian Greer '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 6B)
ENS Weldon Hamilton '28 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 2B)
ENS Jacob Britt '29 (USS Saratoga)
ENS James Clarkson '30 (USS Saratoga)
ENS James Kyes '30 (USS Saratoga)
July 1931
Lieutenant (j.g.), Naval Air Station Coco Solo, Panama


Class of 1925

Creighton is one of 30 members of the Class of 1925 on Virtual Memorial Hall.

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