HOWARD M. LAMMERS, CAPT, USN (RET.)
Howard Lammers '08
Lucky Bag
From the 1908 Lucky Bag:
HOWARD MELVIN LAMMERS
Heron Lake, Minnesota
"Howard"
Possessor of a pleasing address and a winning smile, he is quite successful in the fussing line. His conscientious obedience to the regulations won him a buzzard in February of second class year. Disdaining the delays of the tailor shop, he stayed up all night to sew the bird on the sleeve of his dress jacket, in order to be ready for the next hop. His scrupulous neatness is his predominant characteristic, and many a Saturday afternoon the O. C. has taken visitors into his rooms to find even the lockers neatly stowed, much to the admiration of the "distinguished personages," who little knew that they were inspecting the rooms of a "Model Midshipman."
HOWARD MELVIN LAMMERS
Heron Lake, Minnesota
"Howard"
Possessor of a pleasing address and a winning smile, he is quite successful in the fussing line. His conscientious obedience to the regulations won him a buzzard in February of second class year. Disdaining the delays of the tailor shop, he stayed up all night to sew the bird on the sleeve of his dress jacket, in order to be ready for the next hop. His scrupulous neatness is his predominant characteristic, and many a Saturday afternoon the O. C. has taken visitors into his rooms to find even the lockers neatly stowed, much to the admiration of the "distinguished personages," who little knew that they were inspecting the rooms of a "Model Midshipman."
Loss
Howard was lost on July 24, 1942 when the RAF transport plane he was aboard crashed near Bangalore, India. He had been the Naval Liaison at Colombo, Sri Lanka, for about 18 months.
Other Information
From researcher Kathy Franz:
Howard was appointed to the Naval Academy by Representative McCleary.
Howard married Ann Bailey in 1914. Their children were Howard, Jr. and Elizabeth “Betsy” Ann. In February 1931, Howard, Jr. qualified as an expert rifleman in the junior division of the National Rifle Association.
In March 1915, Howard was one of the assistants to Lieutenant Commander J. F. Hellweg at the Indian Head naval proving grounds. They were testing a new type of naval gun which was 48 feet long and had a 16-inch caliber.
On August 25, 1916, Howard gave a talk on ordnance methods and how tests are made of armor at the Indian Head proving grounds. He was addressing members of the civilian crew on board the U.S. cruiser New Orleans during the first naval training cruise for civilians.
Howard gave a talk to the Navy Mothers' club in Minneapolis in October 1919. He was visiting with his parents and was working as secretary of the Naval War College at Newport, Rhode Island.
In June 1921, Rear Admiral W. S. Sims was reprimanded for a speech he made. Sims had publicly attacked the deficiencies of American naval strategy tactics, policy, and administration in World War I. He also attacked Irish sympathizers in America. Howard was his aide at the time.
In February 1922, Howard spoke on “The Navy as a Factor in Our Foreign Relations” at the monthly smoker in the Cadet Armory in Boston. The Boston Globe of February 19 reported: “This brilliant young officer, for the entire period of the war, was aid to Admiral Caperton, commander of the South Atlantic Fleet, whose work in connection with the diplomatic work of the United States and Her Allies in securing the South American Republics joining the Allied cause was a notable achievement.”
In July 1928, Howard was captain on the destroyer Reid on a cruise with the Dale, Flusser and Fox. The fleet stopped in Portland, Maine, and the many Navy reservists on board had leave. Citizens were allowed to tour the ships.
In April 1932, Howard was interviewed about Congress omitting the annual funding for the Guam agricultural experimental station. Per The Perry Daily Journal, April 30, 1932: “This station has proved of invaluable assistance to the native population on animal husbandry, agronomy and horticulture, but it has been a slow process,” he said. “The Chamorro people require a greater amount of encouragement and personal supervision to induce them to accept new ideas than is the case with a more advanced people. The older generation of farmers are unable to read English, consequently the station's work is from necessity accomplished through practical demonstration and personal contact.”
In April 1936, Howard, his wife, and daughter Elizabeth sailed from Balboa, Canal Zone to New York City.
Per The Cushing Citizen on June 29, 1939: Howard “took charge of the New York world's fair amusement area in a move to curb the section's nude shows. Fair officials said Lammers' appointment to the chairmanship of the amusement control committee was hastened by Southern Rhodesia's removal of its name, flag, and crest from its Victoria Falls concessions because of the conduct of bawdy shows close by.”
In July 1941, Howard was stationed in Columbo, Ceylon, as a naval observer.
Howard's father Louis was an attorney. His mother was Harriet (Spaulding.) His sister was Mildred, and his brother Raymond S. became an attorney. Howard's grandmother Mary Spaulding lived with them.
Though retired on June 30, 1934 as a Commander, he had been on active duty (as a temporary Captain) for nearly 1 year and 5 months as of the July 1, 1942 Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps of 1942. He is not listed on the Navy overseas casualties of WWII.
Howard was survived by his wife, daughter, and son. He is buried in Hawaii.
Photographs
Howard's family. From the Evening star on February 8, 1931
From The Pawhuska Daily Capital on June 30, 1921
Career
Howard was commanding officer of USS Brooks for a few months in mid-1922. He was mentioned as the "Naval observer" in this book. (He "was exceedingly helpful" and a "capable officer".)
Another book mentions him in Colombo, and also states that he was once executive officer of USS California (BB 44).
It appears that Howard was interviewed on a radio program in December 1939. He was "chief of the amusement committee" for the 1939 New York World's Fair.
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.
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Memorial Hall Error
Howard should be included in Memorial Hall with his classmates. (Another retired-on-active-duty officer, Joseph Murphy '09 is included with his classmates.)
He was identified through the diligent efforts of Leslie Poche, a volunteer who combed through Shipmate issues to find operational losses not accounted for in Memorial Hall.
Howard is one of 7 members of the Class of 1908 on Virtual Memorial Hall.
The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.