STUART W. KING, LTCOL, USMC

Stuart King '20

Date of birth: September 25, 1897

Date of death: January 12, 1945

Age: 47

Lucky Bag

From the 1920 Lucky Bag:

Stuart Waller King

Alexandria, Virginia

"Yokel"

HERE'S a man that puts us all to shame when it comes to ideals, traditions, and blue blood. For we have finally discovered that "Yokel" comes from one of the first families of Virginia, in spite of his protestations to the contrary.

We have only to hear his effervescent eulogies on peanut plantations, the tobacco trade, or the "Big Bool" to realize that "Yokel" is a true autocrat of the old school.

"Yokel" is usually of a serious disposition, but when he laughs the rest laugh with him.

In athletics "Yokel" has shown glimpses of previous powers, and rumor has it that the Old Dominion Boat Club isn't what it used to be since "Yokel" left.

But all the time, " Yokel," we inwardly admire your high ideals and self-sacrificing nature, characteristics that are sure to stand you in as good stead as will the many friendships you have cemented at the Academy.

Honors: Buzzard.

The Class of 1920 was graduated in June 1919 due to World War I. The entirety of 2nd class (junior) year was removed from the curriculum.

Stuart Waller King

Alexandria, Virginia

"Yokel"

HERE'S a man that puts us all to shame when it comes to ideals, traditions, and blue blood. For we have finally discovered that "Yokel" comes from one of the first families of Virginia, in spite of his protestations to the contrary.

We have only to hear his effervescent eulogies on peanut plantations, the tobacco trade, or the "Big Bool" to realize that "Yokel" is a true autocrat of the old school.

"Yokel" is usually of a serious disposition, but when he laughs the rest laugh with him.

In athletics "Yokel" has shown glimpses of previous powers, and rumor has it that the Old Dominion Boat Club isn't what it used to be since "Yokel" left.

But all the time, " Yokel," we inwardly admire your high ideals and self-sacrificing nature, characteristics that are sure to stand you in as good stead as will the many friendships you have cemented at the Academy.

Honors: Buzzard.

The Class of 1920 was graduated in June 1919 due to World War I. The entirety of 2nd class (junior) year was removed from the curriculum.

Loss

Stuart died in Japanese captivity, probably on January 12, 1945, following his transport aboard the Hell Ship Enoura Maru. (One listing has December 31, 1944; another has January 19, 1945. Believe that the list here, with January 12, 1945, is more accurate.) Stuart had survived the bombing of the Oryoku Maru in December, and was transferred to Enoura Maru where he died right before reaching Takao, Formosa (Jan. 1) or after that ship, too, was bombed (Jan. 9).

He had been captured upon the fall of Corregidor in May 1941.

His wife, Mary, was listed as next of kin. He has a memory marker in South Carolina.

Career

He was once a member of VMI's class of 1919.

At the beginning of the war, he was commanding officer of the Marine Barracks, U.S. Naval Base, Subic Bay, PI. That unit, which included 3 officers and 73 Marines, was disbanded on December 22, 1942 and personnel transferred to the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines. Stuart became "technical advisor" and executive officer to Francis Bridget '21, a patrol plane pilot who was then also the commander of the Naval Battalion. They were involved in action on the Bataan peninsula and later on Corregidor island.

Memorial Hall Error

He is listed on the killed in action panel in the front of Memorial Hall, but not with his classmates in the Class of 1920.

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.

January 1920

2nd Lieutenant, Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Norfolk, Virginia

Others at this command: 2LT Frederick Chappelle '20 and 2LT Ronald Boone '20.

January 1921

2nd Lieutenant, 1st Provisional Brigade Marines, Haiti

Others at this command: CAPT Arthur Page, Jr. '18.

January 1922

2nd Lieutenant, 1st Brigade Marines, Haiti

Others at this command: CAPT Arthur Page, Jr. '18.

May 1923

2nd Lieutenant, Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Charleston, South Carolina

July 1923

2nd Lieutenant, Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Charleston, South Carolina

September 1923

2nd Lieutenant, Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Charleston, South Carolina

November 1923

2nd Lieutenant, Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Charleston, South Carolina

January 1924

2nd Lieutenant, Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Charleston, South Carolina

March 1924

2nd Lieutenant, Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Charleston, South Carolina

May 1924

2nd Lieutenant, 2nd Marine Brigade, Dominican Republic

July 1924

2nd Lieutenant, 2nd Marine Brigade, Dominican Republic

September 1924

2nd Lieutenant, 1st Marine Brigade, Haiti

November 1924

2nd Lieutenant, 1st Marine Brigade, Haiti

January 1925

2nd Lieutenant, 1st Marine Brigade, Haiti

March 1925

2nd Lieutenant, 1st Marine Brigade, Haiti

May 1925

1st Lieutenant, 1st Marine Brigade, Haiti

July 1925

1st Lieutenant, 1st Marine Brigade, Haiti

October 1925

1st Lieutenant, 1st Marine Brigade, Haiti

January 1926

1st Lieutenant, 1st Marine Brigade, Haiti

October 1926

1st Lieutenant, Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Norfolk, Virginia

Others at this command: 2LT Joseph Wolfe '26 and 2LT Thomas Jordan '26.

January 1927

1st Lieutenant, Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Norfolk, Virginia

Others at this command: 2LT Joseph Wolfe '26 and 2LT Thomas Jordan '26.