ROBERT W. LARSON, LT, USN
Robert Larson '24
Lucky Bag
From the 1924 Lucky Bag:
ROBERT WARREN LARSON
Cheyenne, Wyoming
"Swede"
LOOKING at his rosy cheeks and robust J build, you just know he spent his early days on the plains of his native state. Swede is not at all the story-book cow-puncher; quite the opposite, in fact. He is quiet in the extreme and has never been known to give the famous "Hook 'em, cowboy" yell.
Our hero's pet diversion is playing solitaire, and he spends most of his leisure hours trying to prove that it is a good game.
High on the tree; dragging blind, a philosophy that would make Socrates turn over in his grave—that's Swede. He has his own ideas about life and nothing will change them, except, possibly, a girl.
Bob tries never to force his opinions on anyone and is one of the rarest specimens of mankind,—a good listener.
"I'm going to the Asiatics for the first twenty years, 'cause they're the hardest."
Class Lacrosse (3).
ROBERT WARREN LARSON
Cheyenne, Wyoming
"Swede"
LOOKING at his rosy cheeks and robust J build, you just know he spent his early days on the plains of his native state. Swede is not at all the story-book cow-puncher; quite the opposite, in fact. He is quiet in the extreme and has never been known to give the famous "Hook 'em, cowboy" yell.
Our hero's pet diversion is playing solitaire, and he spends most of his leisure hours trying to prove that it is a good game.
High on the tree; dragging blind, a philosophy that would make Socrates turn over in his grave—that's Swede. He has his own ideas about life and nothing will change them, except, possibly, a girl.
Bob tries never to force his opinions on anyone and is one of the rarest specimens of mankind,—a good listener.
"I'm going to the Asiatics for the first twenty years, 'cause they're the hardest."
Class Lacrosse (3).
Loss
Robert was lost on June 11, 1936 when the SOC-1 he was piloting crashed near Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
From Naval History and Heritage Command:
During dive bombing practice, SOC-1 from Memphis (CL-13) crashed into the sea near Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Lt. Robert W. Larson and Aviation Machinist's Mate Sidney L. Harris both killed. 11 June 1936.
They were members of Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 5B.
Other Information
Robert earned his wings as naval aviator #3402 on April 7, 1928.
From researcher Kathy Franz:
Robert was born in Nebraska.
After graduating from the Naval Academy, Robert spent time with his parents in Omaha, his friends in Cheyenne, and his brother Arnold in Casper. He then joined his ship, the Rochester, in the Canal zone, Panama.
In 1910, Robert’s family lived in Denver. His father John, who was born in Sweden, was a railroad clerk, and his mother Margaret was a merchant at a novelty store. His brother was Arnold, and his sister was Margaret.
Unable to find a memorial marker.
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.
January 1926
October 1927
January 1928
April 1928
July 1928
ENS William Graham, Jr. '25 (USS Lexington)\
ENS Eugene Karpe '26 (USS Lexington)
October 1928
LTjg William Graham, Jr. '25 (USS Lexington)\
ENS Eugene Karpe '26 (USS Lexington)
January 1929
ENS Eugene Karpe '26 (USS Lexington)\
ENS Harold Sheehan '27 (USS Lexington)
April 1929
LTjg William Graham, Jr. '25 (USS Lexington)\
ENS Hilan Ebert '26 (USS Lexington)\
ENS Eugene Karpe '26 (USS Lexington)
ENS Richard Downer '27 (USS Lexington)\
ENS William Potts '27 (USS Lexington)
July 1929
LTjg William Graham, Jr. '25 (USS Lexington)\
ENS Hilan Ebert '26 (USS Lexington)
ENS William Potts '27 (USS Lexington)\
ENS John Yoho '29 (USS Lexington)
October 1929
LT Dixie Kiefer '19 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 3B)\
LT Arnold Isbell '21 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 1B)\
LTjg William Graham, Jr. '25 (USS Lexington)
LTjg Hilan Ebert '26 (USS Lexington)\
ENS William Potts '27 (USS Lexington)\
ENS John Yoho '29 (USS Lexington)
January 1930
LT Dixie Kiefer '19 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 3B)\
LT Arnold Isbell '21 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 1B)\
LTjg William Graham, Jr. '25 (USS Lexington)
ENS William Potts '27 (USS Lexington)\
ENS John Yoho '29 (USS Lexington)
April 1930
LT Dixie Kiefer '19 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 3B)\
LT Arnold Isbell '21 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 1B)\
LTjg William Graham, Jr. '25 (USS Lexington)
ENS Robert Winters '27 (Torpedo and Bombing Plane Squadron (VT) 1B)\
ENS William Potts '27 (USS Lexington)\
ENS John Yoho '29 (USS Lexington)
October 1930
LT Paul Thompson '19\
LT Irving Wiltsie '21\
LTjg Matthias Marple, Jr. '23\
LTjg James McDonough '24\
LTjg John Waldron '24\
LTjg Charles McDonald '24\
LTjg Richard Moss '24\
1LT Donald Willis '24
January 1931
LT Paul Thompson '19\
LT Irving Wiltsie '21\
LTjg Matthias Marple, Jr. '23\
LTjg James McDonough '24\
LTjg John Waldron '24\
LTjg Charles McDonald '24\
LTjg Richard Moss '24\
LTjg John Duke '26\
LTjg James Averill '27
April 1931
LT Irving Wiltsie '21\
LTjg Matthias Marple, Jr. '23\
LTjg James McDonough '24\
LTjg John Waldron '24\
LTjg Charles McDonald '24\
LTjg Richard Moss '24\
LTjg John Duke '26\
LTjg James Averill '27\
LTjg William Potts '27\
ENS Carl Lindgren '28
July 1931
LT Irving Wiltsie '21\
LTjg Matthias Marple, Jr. '23\
LTjg James McDonough '24\
LTjg Charles McDonald '24\
LTjg Richard Moss '24\
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26\
LTjg Charles Signer '26\
LTjg John Duke '26\
LTjg William Potts '27\
ENS Carl Lindgren '28
October 1931
LT Irving Wiltsie '21\
LTjg Matthias Marple, Jr. '23\
LTjg James McDonough '24\
LTjg Charles McDonald '24\
LTjg Arthur Farrell '25\
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26
January 1932
LT Jack Richardson '19\
LT Irving Wiltsie '21\
LTjg Matthias Marple, Jr. '23\
LTjg James McDonough '24\
LTjg Charles McDonald '24\
LTjg Arthur Farrell '25\
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26\
LTjg Charles Signer '26
April 1932
LT Jack Richardson '19\
LT Irving Wiltsie '21\
LTjg Matthias Marple, Jr. '23\
LTjg James McDonough '24\
LTjg Charles McDonald '24\
LTjg Arthur Farrell '25\
LTjg Carlton Hutchins '26\
LTjg Charles Signer '26\
2LT Lofton Henderson '26
October 1932
LT Richard Cross, Jr. '21 (USS Akron)\
LTjg Hammond Dugan '24 (USS Akron)
LTjg Charles Redfield '26 (USS Akron)\
LTjg Wilfred Bushnell '26 (USS Akron)
January 1933
LCDR Harold MacLellan '18 (USS Akron)\
LT George Calnan '20 (USS Akron)\
LT Richard Cross, Jr. '21 (USS Akron)\
LT Herbert Wescoat '23 (USS Akron)
LTjg Charles Miller '25 (USS Akron)\
LTjg Charles Redfield '26 (USS Akron)\
LTjg Wilfred Bushnell '26 (USS Akron)\
LTjg Cyrus Clendening '27 (USS Akron)
April 1933
LCDR Harold MacLellan '18 (USS Akron)\
LT George Calnan '20 (USS Akron)\
LT Richard Cross, Jr. '21 (USS Akron)\
LT Herbert Wescoat '23 (USS Akron)
LTjg Charles Miller '25 (USS Akron)\
LTjg Charles Redfield '26 (USS Akron)\
LTjg Wilfred Bushnell '26 (USS Akron)\
LTjg Cyrus Clendening '27 (USS Akron)
July 1933
October 1933
April 1934
July 1934
October 1934
January 1935
April 1935
October 1935
January 1936
April 1936
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