WILLIAM T. HULSON, LTJG, USN

From USNA Virtual Memorial Hall
William Hulson '36

Date of birth: November 17, 1913

Date of death: September 3, 1940

Age: 26

Lucky Bag

From the 1936 Lucky Bag:

1936 Hulson LB.jpg

William Terrill Hulson

Colchester, Illinois

"Bill"

"There's a good ol' boy!"— that laudatory phrase or its equivalent has never failed to be forthcoming when Huls' name is mentioned. Even-tempered, unassuming, a boy with something good to say to every one, Huls has established a host of real friends. One towards whom the lovely gals are wont to cast a second look, Huls gets along in their society. However, the always present thoughts of an O.A.O. have kept him from losing his heart in the East; a tale that's told by a look at the splendid picture on his locker door. Being athletically inclined his talents have been devoted to football for four years. With a flair for finding good fun in everything, one who possesses sound ideas, an ambition, and a congenial nature, Huls is a prince as a friend and wife.

Football 4, 2, 1. N; Crew 4; N Club; Choir; Musical Club; Glee Club; One Stripe

1936 Hulson LB.jpg

William Terrill Hulson

Colchester, Illinois

"Bill"

"There's a good ol' boy!"— that laudatory phrase or its equivalent has never failed to be forthcoming when Huls' name is mentioned. Even-tempered, unassuming, a boy with something good to say to every one, Huls has established a host of real friends. One towards whom the lovely gals are wont to cast a second look, Huls gets along in their society. However, the always present thoughts of an O.A.O. have kept him from losing his heart in the East; a tale that's told by a look at the splendid picture on his locker door. Being athletically inclined his talents have been devoted to football for four years. With a flair for finding good fun in everything, one who possesses sound ideas, an ambition, and a congenial nature, Huls is a prince as a friend and wife.

Football 4, 2, 1. N; Crew 4; N Club; Choir; Musical Club; Glee Club; One Stripe

Loss

William was lost on September 3, 1940 when his F2A-1 crashed near Dana Point, California. He was a member of Fighting Squadron (VF) 3 at NAS San Diego. (Aircraft type and other details from an email from naval aviation historian Richard Leonard on December 29, 2017.)

Other Information

He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

His wife's obituary:

Jeanne was born in Cambridge Springs, PA and raised in Redlands, CA. She attended Scripps College for three years before transferring to Stanford University where she graduated with a degree in Psychology. In 1938 she married William Hulson, a Naval aviator. Bill died in an accident in 1940. Jeanne was commissioned an Ensign in the Naval Reserve at the outbreak of WWII, serving at the WAVE training base in New York. When she married Lt. Commander Alfred Gardes in 1943, they entered history as the first pair of naval officers to wed. They were married for 57 years until his death in 2000.

William and his wife arrived in Coronado in late February 1940 following completion of his pilot training in Florida.

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.

July 1936
Ensign, USS California


Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Eugene Davis '27 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 4B)
LTjg Frederick Purdy '33 (Battle Force)
ENS Mark Eslick, Jr. '35 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 4B)
April 1937
Ensign, USS Ranger


Others at or embarked at this command:
LT Ralph Smith '26 (Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 1B)
LT Seymour Johnson '27 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 3B)
LTjg Donald Lovelace '28 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 1B)
LTjg Finley Hall '29 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 1B)
LTjg Leo Crane '31 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 5B)
LTjg Albert Gray '31 (Bombing Plane Squadron (VB) 1B)
LTjg Robert Strickler '32 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 5B)
LTjg Archibald Greenlee '32 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 1B)
LTjg William Townsend '32 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 5B)
LTjg Dewitt Shumway '32 (Scouting Plane Squadron (VS) 1B)
LTjg William Widhelm '32 (Fighting Plane Squadron (VF) 5B)
September 1937
Ensign, USS Ranger

Others at this command:

Others at or embarked at this command:
LT Donald Lovelace '28 (Scouting Squadron (VS) 41)
LTjg Vernon Hain '31 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 4)
LTjg George Hutchinson '32 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 4)
LTjg Robert Strickler '32 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 4)
LTjg Archibald Greenlee '32 (Scouting Squadron (VS) 41)
LTjg William Townsend '32 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 4)
LTjg Dewitt Shumway '32 (Scouting Squadron (VS) 41)
LTjg Frank Fernald '33 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 4)
LTjg Charles Brewer '34 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 4)
January 1938
Ensign, USS Ranger

Others at this command:

Others at or embarked at this command:
LT Donald Lovelace '28 (Scouting Squadron (VS) 41)
LTjg George Hutchinson '32 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 4)
LTjg Robert Strickler '32 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 4)
LTjg Archibald Greenlee '32 (Scouting Squadron (VS) 41)
LTjg William Townsend '32 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 4)
LTjg Dewitt Shumway '32 (Scouting Squadron (VS) 41)
LTjg Frank Fernald '33 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 4)
LTjg Charles Brewer '34 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 4)
July 1938
Ensign, staff, Aircraft, Battle Force, USS Saratoga

Others at or embarked at USS Saratoga:
LCDR Irving Wiltsie '21 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 3)
LT John Waldron '24 (USS Saratoga)
LT Gerald Dyson '27 (USS Saratoga)
LT William Pye, Jr. '28 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 3)
LT John Yoho '29 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 3)
LTjg John Spiers '32 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 3)
LTjg James Reilly '32 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 3)
LTjg Albert Major, Jr. '32 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 3)
LTjg George Nicol '34 (Scouting Squadron (VS) 3)
ENS David Taylor, Jr. '35 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 3)
ENS Paul Riley '37 (USS Saratoga)
ENS William Mason, Jr. '37 (USS Saratoga)
ENS John Black '38 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Osborne Wiseman '38 (USS Saratoga)
ENS John Smith '38 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Keene Hammond '38 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Vincent Sim '38 (USS Saratoga)
January 1939
Ensign, staff, Aircraft, Battle Force, USS Saratoga

Others at or embarked at USS Saratoga:
LCDR Irving Wiltsie '21 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 3)
LT John Waldron '24 (Scouting Squadron (VS) 3)
LT Gerald Dyson '27 (USS Saratoga)
LT John Yoho '29 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 3)
LTjg John Spiers '32 (Fighting Squadron (VF) 3)
LTjg James Reilly '32 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 3)
LTjg George Nicol '34 (Scouting Squadron (VS) 3)
LTjg David Taylor, Jr. '35 (Bombing Squadron (VB) 3)
ENS Paul Riley '37 (USS Saratoga)
ENS William Mason, Jr. '37 (USS Saratoga)
ENS John Black '38 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Osborne Wiseman '38 (USS Saratoga)
ENS John Smith '38 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Keene Hammond '38 (USS Saratoga)
ENS Vincent Sim '38 (USS Saratoga)


Class of 1936

William is one of 39 members of the Class of 1936 on Virtual Memorial Hall.

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