JOHN S. BLUE, LCDR, USN
John Blue '25
Lucky Bag
From the 1925 Lucky Bag:
John Stuart Blue
Marion, South Carolina
"Vic" "Stuart" "Monte"
LOOK here, now, you don't know your stuff." It's this way," and Stuart proceeds to expound the theory of relativity or to extoll the virtues of a well-known patent medicine, the product of none other than the Standard Oil Corporation.
Stuart dotes on long words which he collects assiduously and pronounces atrociously. As yet, he has not words to sufficiently describe the last night in Gibraltar, Youngster cruise. It was stupendous, even astounding. His other little pastime is "making up" to cats. On one occasion in Trinidad, it almost led to disastrous results when he attempted to entice a Maltese kitten from its owner.
Stuart is our little sunshine, the most optimistic and hard-working man in the regiment, to whom the Sunday night good word never applies.
An earnest exponent of the old Navy, Stuart is sea-going through and through, and is destined to bring honor and distinction to a name already famous in Naval circles.
Here's to you, Stuart, and may you always set that example of happiness and optimism.
John Stuart Blue
Marion, South Carolina
"Vic" "Stuart" "Monte"
LOOK here, now, you don't know your stuff." It's this way," and Stuart proceeds to expound the theory of relativity or to extoll the virtues of a well-known patent medicine, the product of none other than the Standard Oil Corporation.
Stuart dotes on long words which he collects assiduously and pronounces atrociously. As yet, he has not words to sufficiently describe the last night in Gibraltar, Youngster cruise. It was stupendous, even astounding. His other little pastime is "making up" to cats. On one occasion in Trinidad, it almost led to disastrous results when he attempted to entice a Maltese kitten from its owner.
Stuart is our little sunshine, the most optimistic and hard-working man in the regiment, to whom the Sunday night good word never applies.
An earnest exponent of the old Navy, Stuart is sea-going through and through, and is destined to bring honor and distinction to a name already famous in Naval circles.
Here's to you, Stuart, and may you always set that example of happiness and optimism.
Loss
John was lost when USS Juneau (CL 52) was sunk at the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal on November 13, 1942.
Other Information
From researcher Kathy Franz:
John was born in Manhattan. He was listed in both the Marion, South Carolina, and the Fort George Island, Florida, census of 1920.
On May 2, 1939, in Fort Myer, Virginia, John married Alice (Torrey) Griffith.
His father was Victor (Naval Academy, Class of 1887) who died in January 1928. His mother was Eleanor, brother Victor.
From Wikipedia:
John Stuart Blue was born in New York City on 29 August 1902, and graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1925. During 1933 he commanded the Presidential yacht USS Sequoia (AG-23) and served as Aide to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Between August 1940 and January 1942 he commanded the destroyer USS Palmer (DD-161) and then reported to the light cruiser USS Juneau (CL-52) as navigator.
His wife, Alice, was listed as next of kin; he was also survived by his mother, daughter, and brother (who was also a naval officer).
Photographs
"John at Fort George Island, Florida. Date unknown."
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.
October 1928
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November 1940
April 1941
Namesake
Blue (DD 744) was named for John; the ship was sponsored by his widow and daughter.
The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.
