WILLIAM C. FRANCE, CAPT, USN
William France '24
Lucky Bag
From the 1924 Lucky Bag:
Loss
William was lost on April 2, 1945 when USS Henrico (APA 45) was struck by a kamikaze during the invasion of Okinawa.
He had only taken command of Henrico two weeks earlier, on March 18.
His wife was listed as next of kin; he was also survived by his daughter, Martha. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
Bronze Star
William was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star.
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.
July 1924
Ensign, USS Oklahoma
Others at this command:
September 1924
Ensign, USS Oklahoma
Others at this command:
November 1924
Ensign, USS Oklahoma
Others at this command:
January 1925
Ensign, USS Oklahoma
Others at this command:
March 1925
Ensign, USS Oklahoma
Others at this command:
May 1925
Ensign, USS Oklahoma
Others at this command:
July 1925
Ensign, USS Oklahoma
Others at this command:
October 1925
Ensign, USS Oklahoma
Others at this command:
April 1927
Ensign, USS Farquhar
April 1928
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Charles Ausburn
July 1928
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Charles Ausburn
October 1928
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Charles Ausburn
January 1929
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Charles Ausburn
April 1929
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Charles Ausburn
July 1929
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Charles Ausburn
October 1929
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Charles Ausburn
January 1930
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Charles Ausburn
April 1930
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Fairfax
October 1930
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Naval Academy
Others at this command:
LCDR Robert English '11
LCDR Warner Portz '15
LCDR Cassin Young '16
LT Joseph Severyns, Jr. '20
Others at or embarked at this command:
1LT David Claude '24 (Marine Barracks, Naval Academy)
January 1931
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Naval Academy
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
April 1931
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Naval Academy
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
July 1931
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Naval Academy
Others at this command:
LCDR Robert English '11
LT Joseph Severyns, Jr. '20
LT Samuel Arthur '20
LT Robert Smith '20
LT Paul Slawson '20
LT John Jones '21
LT John French '22
Others at or embarked at this command:
October 1931
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Carnegie Institute of Technology, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
January 1932
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Carnegie Institute of Technology, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
April 1932
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Carnegie Institute of Technology, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
October 1932
Lieutenant (j.g.), Naval Gun Factory, Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.
Others at or embarked at Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.:
LTjg Julian Morrison, Jr. '25 (Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.)
January 1933
Lieutenant (j.g.), Naval Gun Factory, Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.
Others at or embarked at Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.:
LT Raymond Hansen '22 (Diving School)
LTjg Robley Clark '24 (Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.)
1LT Edward Trumble '25 (Marine Barracks)
LTjg Julian Morrison, Jr. '25 (Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.)
April 1933
Lieutenant, Naval Gun Factory, Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.
Others at or embarked at Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.:
LT Raymond Hansen '22 (Experimental Diving Unit)
LTjg Fremont Wright '25 (Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.)
July 1933
Lieutenant, USS Texas
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
October 1933
Lieutenant, USS Vestal
April 1934
Lieutenant, USS Vestal
July 1934
Lieutenant, USS Vestal
October 1934
Lieutenant, USS Vestal
January 1935
Lieutenant, USS Vestal
April 1935
Lieutenant, USS Vestal
October 1935
Lieutenant, USS Vestal
January 1936
Lieutenant, USS Vestal
April 1936
Lieutenant, USS Vestal
July 1936
Lieutenant, Naval Gun Factory, Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.:
LT John Hollowell, Jr. '22 (Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.)
LT Henry Batterton '23 (Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.)
January 1937
Lieutenant, Naval Gun Factory, Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.:
LT Henry Batterton '23 (Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.)
April 1937
Lieutenant, Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.:
September 1937
Lieutenant, Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.:
January 1938
Lieutenant, Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.:
July 1938
Lieutenant, USS Maryland
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
January 1939
Lieutenant, USS Maryland
Others at this command:
Others at or embarked at this command:
October 1939
Lieutenant Commander, gunnery officer, USS Raleigh
Others at this command:
June 1940
Lieutenant Commander, gunnery officer, USS Raleigh
Others at this command:
November 1940
Lieutenant Commander, gunnery officer, USS Raleigh
Others at this command:
April 1941
Lieutenant Commander, gunnery officer, USS Raleigh
Others at this command:
Class of 1924
William is one of 42 members of the Class of 1924 on Virtual Memorial Hall.