HAROLD T. GORANSON, CAPT, USN

Harold Goranson '40

Date of birth: September 13, 1916

Date of death: January 18, 1960

Age: 43

Lucky Bag

From the 1940 Lucky Bag:

HAROLD THEODORE GORANSON

Bowling Green, Ohio

Amnesia

Although the Swede has often clashed with the Bull and Dago departments, his three years at college enabled him to take the Math and Skinny in his stride. Always the possessor of an enormous appetite, he has never been known to turn down chow of any kind. Although he engages in all sports with zest, his favorite is basketball, and he has shown himself to be quite a star at that sport. From external appearances Hood is a red mike, but one glance at his locker door and you will understand why he is counting the days till June, 1942. Conscientious and sincere in all his undertakings, he is the type one is proud to call a friend.

Log 1; Basketball 40, N.A., 4, 3, 2, 1.

HAROLD THEODORE GORANSON

Bowling Green, Ohio

Amnesia

Although the Swede has often clashed with the Bull and Dago departments, his three years at college enabled him to take the Math and Skinny in his stride. Always the possessor of an enormous appetite, he has never been known to turn down chow of any kind. Although he engages in all sports with zest, his favorite is basketball, and he has shown himself to be quite a star at that sport. From external appearances Hood is a red mike, but one glance at his locker door and you will understand why he is counting the days till June, 1942. Conscientious and sincere in all his undertakings, he is the type one is proud to call a friend.

Log 1; Basketball 40, N.A., 4, 3, 2, 1.

Loss

Harold was a passenger aboard Capital Airlines Flight 20, which crashed on January 18, 1960 while enroute from Washington, D.C. to Norfolk, Virginia.

Other Information

He was commanding officer of USS Ellyson (DMS 19) until November 17, 1945. It appears he took command sometime in October of that same year.

From the 1946 Cruise Book of USS Shannon (DM 25):

Harold Theodore Goranson was born in Minneapolis, Minn., September 13. 1916. As a youth he moved to Bowling Green, Ohio, where his mother and father still live at 340 West Evers Avenue. He compiled an enviable scholastic and athletic record in high school, from which he graduated in 1934. "Swede" enrolled in Bowling Green State University, where he played basketball and was elected to an honorary fraternity. He is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons and a Chevalier in the Order of DeMolays.
Appointed to the Academy, Goranson was sworn into the Navy June 19, 1936, as a Midshipman. At Annapolis he earned letters in basketball, which he played four years. June 6, 1940, he was graduated high in his class with the degree of Bachelor of Science and an Ensign's commission.
Ensign Goranson was assigned to the Pennsylvania (BB 38) as "F" Division Officer. During the Pearl Harbor attack, the Pennsylvania was in dry dock, where she was hit and temporarily put out of action. Men from damaged ships were transferred to active ships to bring them up to full wartime compliment. During the early phases of the war, Ensign Goranson served on board the carriers Yorktown and Enterprise.
He was then ordered to the Baltimore (CA 68), on which he served until early 1944 as CIC and Radar Officer. His ingenuity, resourcefulness and enterprising efforts were an important factor in the early development of the tactical use of radar.
Lieut. Goranson participated in the battle of Midway, the Pacific raids of 1943 and 1944, and Eastern and Western New Guinea, Gilbert and Marshall Islands raids. He was ordered to Norfolk in early summer, 1944, to take charge of the balance crew of the Shannon.
In addition to serving as executive officer, he was Navigator until Lt. (jg) Howard was qualified. At general quarters he was stationed in CIC as Evaluator. Lieut. Goranson's knowledge of radar, navigation, naval tactics, equipment and men, and his intelligent comprehension of situations which confronted us were an important factor in the successful and unscathed operations of the Shannon.
The Bronze Star Medal was awarded to him "for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding service" as Navigator of the Shannon and groups of minesweepers in operations associated with the Okinawa campaign.
Mr. Goranson was promoted October 17, 1944, to Lt. Commander. While at Sasebo early in October, 1945, he was given command of the USS Ellyson (DMS 19), then at Wakayama. Ordered to the States a month later, he was stationed briefly at Pearl Harbor, where his fiancee, Miss Mabel Craft, of Baltimore, was employed by the Navy. They were married in November 28, 1945, in Honolulu.
Lt. Commander Goranson was stationed at the Naval War College, Newport, R. I., studying in the staff course from December to April, 1946, and as a member of Admiral Spruance's staff and instructor in CIC from May until mid-summer.
He later was sent to the Post Graduate school at the Naval Academy for an ordnance engineering course in guided missiles.

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Harold graduated from Bowling Green high school and attended Bowling Green State University. He was nominated to the Naval Academy by Congressman William L. Fiesinger.
Harold was stationed in England 1949-1952. He was promoted to captain in July 1959. He was survived by his wife, four children Harold, Jr., Kristin, Stephen, and Zoa, and brother Henry of Toledo.

He was survived by his brother, who filed a suit on his behalf alleging wrongful death.

He is buried in the Naval Academy Cemetery.

Photographs

From the Lucky Bag
From the 1946 Cruise Book of USS Shannon (DM 25)

Bronze Star

From the 1946 Cruise Book of USS Shannon (DM 25):

For exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding service as Executive Officer and Navigator of a United States Ship in Central Pacific waters from March 24, 1945, to June 8. 1945. By his initiative, perseverance, and outstanding ability he performed navigation for this vessel and certain mine sweeping units in company which enabled the mine sweeping units to conduct a sweep of extremely restricted waters, in the face of the enemy, without damage and his evaluation and dissemination of information of friendly and enemy forces in the vicinity through many air attacks resulted in the destruction of several enemy planes without damage to his own ship. His outstanding service and conduct throughout were in keeping with the highest tradition of the Naval Service.

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.