Jesse Blackwell '27
Date of birth: January 14, 1905
Date of death: September 6, 1936
Age: 31
Lucky Bag
From the 1927 Lucky Bag:
Jesse Blackwell
Maysville, Georgia
"Blackie"
FRESH from sunny Georgia, Blackie first descended upon us, with a contagious smile and an aversion for the Academics, to begin his naval career. His strongest trait is the ease with which he hits the pap or turns in at Sick Bay.
Blackie is usually just a little better than sat, and there's always a distant fear prompting his boning. We sometimes hear, "Hey, Bill, what's the math?" but usually it is the familiar "How about a little session of bridge?" He has that carefree disposition of the South and an accompanying weakness for the fair sex which often, on Saturday night, finds him wearing out the deck in Dahlgren Hall.
He has an intense love for his native state and consequently is an authority on peaches and baseball in general and women in particular. We know that Blackie will always remain a true Southerner. Anyone who has been on the mid-watch around the North of Scotland with him cannot refute that. His pet ambition is a life detail in the tropics.
Despite his Georgian disposition, we prophesy that he will get along in the Navy. We sincerely hope that the time he has spent in running down logarithms and checking off math problems will earn for him a well-merited reward. We know that behind his smiling face, he is at heart serious and that he will make a good shipmate.
Baseball: Class (3); Tennis: Squad (2).
Life & Loss
Jessie died on September 6, 1936 of tuberculosis.
The Register of Alumni lists "September 6, 1936, Denver, CO" next to Jesse's name. The 1936 Navy Directory has "TRTMT FITZSIMONS GENERAL HOSP DENVER COLO".
In 1935 (Navy Directory) he was an instructor at the Naval Academy. He earned his wings as naval aviator #3612 on February 4, 1930.
Jesse is buried in the Naval Academy cemetery. He was survived by his parents, a sister, a brother, his wife, and his son (Jesse Blackwell, USMA '56).
Class of 1927
Jesse is one of 43 members of the Class of 1927 on Virtual Memorial Hall.
