From collection Member List
Known as Fred Walsh during his school years.
From the 99 Lives Project (99 Lives (knox.edu))
FREDERICK THOMAS WEBER
From the 99 Lives Project (99 Lives (knox.edu))
FREDERICK THOMAS WEBER
KNOWN AS
Fred Walsh during his school years
BIRTH DATE
4 Feb 1916
BIRTH LOCATION
Des Moines, Polk County, Iowa, USA
FATHER
Frederick William Weber
MOTHER
Opal Elizabeth Moncrief Weber Walsh McCoy
OTHER FAMILY
On 30 Nov 1917, his father died as the result of an accidental fall; in 1921, his mother married Matthew Richard Walsh, a horse buyer. Although known as Frederick Walsh during his youth, the Navy used his legal surname, Weber
HIGH SCHOOL
Galesburg HS
HIGH SCHOOL LOCATION
Galesburg, Illinois
HIGH SCHOOL ACTIVITIES
Athletics manager
HOMETOWN
Des Moines, Polk County
HOME STATE
Iowa
ENTERED KNOX
1933, transferred in 1934 to Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa
CLASS YEAR
1937
HONORED
In 1943, destroyer escort DF 675 was named the USS Weber in his honor. The 1944 Gale, yearbook of Knox College, was dedicated to his memory.
FRATERNITY
Phi Gamma Delta
WAR / CONFLICT
World War II
MILITARY SERVICE
US Navy Reserve
RANK
Lieutenant Junior Grade (promoted retroactively)
UNIT
Bombing Squadron 6 (VB-6), USS Enterprise (CV-6), Naval Aviation Corps
SERVICE HISTORY
Trained in tactical gunnery and bombing techniques by LT Richard Halsey Best at Pensacola, Florida, he received his commission as an Ensign. He flew one of the first SBDs (Scout Bomber Douglas) Dauntless dive bombers made by Douglas Aircraft Company at their El Segundo, California factory. Weber was stationed on the US aircraft carrier Enterprise, which was put on defensive patrol the day after Pearl Harbor was attacked (7 Dec 1941). On the morning of 4 Jun 1942, the first day of the Battle of Midway, the Enterprise Morning Carrier Strike Group of 33 aircraft, after an extensive time and fuel consuming search, located the Japanese fleet. The Strike Group, while not following Navy Doctrine because of battle conditions, proceeded to attack. As a result, ENS Weber piloted one of only three SBDs to attack the Akagi - the largest carrier and Flagship of the Japanese fleet. The three Dauntless Dive Bombers caused devastating continuous damage, rendering the carrier useless. Weber's bomb just missed the stern of the ship, damaging its rudder and peeling back the deck. Eventually the ship, while being towed back to Japan, had to be scuttled.
CASUALTY DATA
KIA / Killed In Action - Battle of Midway
DATE OF DEATH
4 Jun 1942
AGE AT DEATH
26
LOCATION OF DEATH
Over the Pacific Ocean near Midway Island
BURIAL
Body not recovered
CIVILIAN CENOTAPH
"Frederick" and "Lost in Pacific" are inscribed on Walsh monument in the north central part of Saint Joseph's Cemetery, Galesburg, Knox County, Illinois, USA
MILITARY CENOTAPH
Courts of the Missing, Honolulu Memorial, Honolulu, Honolulu County, Hawaii, USA
FIND A GRAVE
AWARDS
Navy Cross (second only to Medal of Honor), Purple Heart, Presidential Unit Citation
CITATION
Navy Cross commendation: "The President of the United States takes pride in presenting the Navy Cross (Posthumously) to Frederick Thomas Weber (0-083087), Ensign, U.S. Navy (Reserve), for extraordinary heroism in operations against the enemy while serving as Pilot of a carrier-based Navy Dive Bomber of Bombing Squadron SIX (VB-6), embarked from the U.S.S. ENTERPRISE (CV-6), during the "Air Battle of Midway," against enemy Japanese forces on 4 June 1942. Defying extreme danger from concentrated anti- aircraft barrage and powerful fighter opposition, Ensign Weber, with bold determination and courageous zeal, participated in dive-bombing assaults against Japanese naval units. Flying at a distance from his own forces which rendered return unlikely because of probable fuel exhaustion, he pressed home his attacks with extreme disregard for his own personal safety, scoring a direct hit on an enemy aircraft carrier. Later, while pressing home a desperate and vigorous counterattack against enemy Japanese fighter planes, he was shot down. His gallant intrepidity and loyal devotion to duty contributed greatly to the success of our forces and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country."
REMARKS
Confusion regarding correct date of birth (4th or 14th?) was solved when chief researcher, James L Bjorkman, obtained a copy of the original birth certificate
