Rank / Rating: S1-Seaman First Class/Quartermaster Striker
On May 16, 1926, William Friend Emery was born in Evanston, Illinois. His older brother, John Colvin Emery, my father, was born two years earlier in 1924. In 1935, there was a “surprise“ child who was born. His name was Steven Gray Emery. In 1939, Steven complained of an earache, and was taken to the Madison, Wisconsin Children’s Hospital. Uncle Steven went home the next day, but continued to feel unwell. After more tests, Uncle Steven was diagnosed with Spinal Meningitis and sadly passed away. Uncle Steven was only four years old.
In September 1940, the Emery family decided to move from Madison, Wisconsin to New Canaan, Connecticut. Perhaps it was to get a new fresh start in life and try to put the sadness and grief of losing a small child behind them. Tragedy would once again visit the Emery family five years later.
Bill Emery entered the ninth grade at Henry W. Saxe Junior High School in New Canaan. Uncle Bill took an immediate interest in the affairs of his school as a way to get to know his fellow classmates better. Uncle Bill served on the staff of the school newspaper Junior Highlights. Uncle Bill was also student council president.
When Uncle Bill entered New Canaan High School, he participated successfully in class activities and school affairs. Uncle Bill was on the staff of the Courant, which was the high school newspaper. He was made the Courant Editor in Chief during his senior year. For three years, Uncle Bill served on the student council. During his last two years of high school, he sang in the school chorus. Uncle Bill also loved to play sports. For two years, he played on the schools tennis team, and also played defensive end for the New Canaan High School Rams football team. Uncle Bill always wore his favorite number 9 jersey. During his senior year, he chose to be a member of the senior class play. New Canaan friends still remember his performance in “Pinafore.” In his high school senior yearbook, he wrote on fellow classmate Marion Boomhower’s page: “To my future mother-in-law. All the best. Bill.” (In the play, Uncle Bill was in love with Marion’s characters daughter.”) Just one small example of Uncle Bill's sense of humor.
One of Uncle Bill's New Canaan High school classmate’s said: “I liked Bill so much, that it is impossible for me to use anything but superlatives about him. In high school, he was without a doubt, one of the most popular of the students- liked not only by classmates, but also by teachers and parents. Looking back on it all, perhaps the main reason I can fine for his popularity, was he could get along with anyone at any time: a quality which very few people have. And with a smile, he could make himself at home in nearly any group. A high school brawl couldn’t be considered a success, without his presence to inject a note of humor into the proceedings. I can say, without a doubt, that when I think of my high school days, I think of Bill Emery.“
In May 1944, Uncle Bill graduated from New Canaan High School. Uncle Bill then enlisted in the United States Navy Reserve on May 11, 1944, as Apprentice Seaman, at the Naval Recruiting Station in New Haven, Connecticut. Uncle Bill reported for active duty at the Naval Training Station in Samson, New York for basic training on July 14, 1944. During his training, he was offered an important appointment to officers training in the V-6 Navy program. Uncle Bill graciously declined, in order to remain with his buddies at the Naval Training Station in Sampson. When Uncle Bill successfully completed his basic training in Sampson, his abilities and good record were acknowledged and recognized by his superiors. Uncle Bill was ordered to the Naval Training Center in Bainbridge, Maryland for further training. While in Bainbridge, Uncle Bill entered the Quartermaster Skill School. While at the Navy Training Station in Sampson, Uncle Bill was the only member of his company to be chosen for Quartermaster instruction. In Lynn Vincent and Sara Vladic's “Indianapolis” book, Uncle Bill was described as a “hot shot.” Uncle Bill had the leadership skills and abilities to have a long successful career in the military.
Uncle Bill entered the Quartermaster School with the Seaman Second Class rating while stationed at Bainbridge, Maryland. When his duty at Bainbridge was completed, Uncle Bill was one of the few who were advanced to the rating of Seaman First Class: Quartermaster. This allowed Uncle Bill to wear the Wheel insignia of a “Quartermaster Striker” on his uniform.
For several months, Uncle Bill's assignment to duty with the fleet at sea was delayed due to serious illness. Uncle Bill's father, John Colvin Emery, my grandfather, was a Lieutenant Commander in the Navy, stationed in San Francisco. My grandfather received a direct order from his superior (my grandmother), Janet Millar Emery, to not put her son in harms way. The war campaign in Europe had ended, and the Pacific war campaign was in its waning days and weeks. With his father's naval contacts, Lt. Commander Emery was able to get his prodigal son ordered from the East Coast to the West Coast.
My grandfather looked up and down the Navy’s Fifth Fleet, trying to find that perfect ship that had the least likelihood of seeing any action. The Emery family were still processing the death of their four-year-old son. With my grandfather's naval contacts, he found the perfect ship: 10 battle stars, Admiral Spruance’s flagship, FDR’s ship of state, and it was in dry dock at Mare Island in Vallejo, California, after getting hit by a kamikaze prior to the Okinawa Gunto Campaign: It was USS Indianapolis CA-35. It was a sad and eerie coincidence, and perhaps a foreshadowing of what destiny held for the Indy and Uncle Bill, that one of the nine sailors killed in the kamikaze attack was a Quartermaster who served in the NAN (Navigation) Division named Calvin Ball Emery.
Uncle Bill reported to duty aboard the Indy on May 8, 1945 and served in the NAN Division. My grandparents lived in Mill Valley, 30 minutes away from Vallejo, so Uncle Bill could come home on weekend liberties for the next 2 1/2 months. During this time, Uncle Bill took 15-day leave, and returned to New Canaan, Connecticut to see his family, friends and high school sweetheart Ann Jackson. Uncle Bill also took the train into Jackson Heights, Queens New York to see his best friend and older brother, John, prior to going out for his first and last mission aboard USS Indianapolis CA-35.
In Uncle Bill’s last letter written to his grandparents Llewellyn and Francis Millar in Madison, Wisconsin, Uncle Bill took great pride serving on USS Indianapolis.
“As you can see from the address above, I am now on Indianapolis, and she is a swell ship. She is now in for repairs, but I expect we will be going out in a week or two. But we have a swell bunch of guys on board, and I’m looking forward to the voyage.”
In the same letter written to his grandparents, Uncle Bill had a request.
“I wonder if you could do me a big favor? Mother tells me that my strong box was sent to your place with that other stuff that was sent there. Well, I am enclosing the key for the box, and if you will open it, you will find in there a little blue ring box with a ring in it. I bought the ring sometime ago to give to my girl when I went away, and I want her to have it now. So if you will mail it to her, I would appreciate it very much. Her address is Miss Ann Jackson, Canoe Hill Road, New Canaan, Connecticut. Then you can mail the key back here and I’ll get it sometime. Anne is expecting the ring, so you don’t have to put in any note. Thanks a million!”
Uncle Bill’s first and last voyage was a closely guarded secret, as well as historic: Deliver the atomic bomb materials to destroy Hiroshima, and help bring an end to the war against Japan. USS Indianapolis accomplished their mission, but not soon enough to save the Indy.
As USS Indianapolis was sailing to meet USS Idaho BB 42 and prepare for gunnery practice for the top-secret mission “Operation Downfall,” the Indy was torpedoed by the Japanese submarine I-58 at 12:14 AM on July 30, 1945. The Indy’s bow was completely torn off, and she sank in 12 minutes.
It is not known the manner in which Uncle Bill was killed, but, by all indications, he went down with his ship. When the torpedoes struck the Indy, it is believed Uncle Bill was on watch on the bridge of his ship.
In Richard F. Newcomb’s classic book “Abandon Ship: The Saga of Indianapolis, the Navy's Greatest Sea Disaster,” Bill Emery is mentioned on page 84.
“On the bridge, the watch began to settle down. Jack Orr checked his course and speed, Casey Moore strolled around the open navigation bridge, and found all watch standers on duty. Just after midnight, the bugler of the watch, Donald F. Mack, went into the chart house to see Quartermaster Jimmy French. French's striker, Seaman First Class William F. Emery, was also in there. “
Captain Charles B. McVay III, USN, Commander of USS Indianapolis, and one of the survivors, said in a formal letter to Bill's parents: “It is believed that he (Bill) went down with his ship.” Captain McVay wrote in a supplementary private hand written letter: “I knew your boy, as he stood watches on the bridge, where I spent most of the hours while the ship was underway. He was a fine boy... I can only believe he went down with his ship. There were several others on the bridge at the time the ship rolled over, and I have no idea what happened to them either.”
Naval colleagues of Lieutenant Commander John Colvin Emery interviewed some of the survivors at a Guam base hospital and secured additional details about his missing in action son. Survivor Quartermaster Vincent Allard reported he “remembered Bill well, having served in the same division, and gone on several liberty parties with him. He last saw Bill Emery after the explosions had occurred, standing on the bridge in his Kapok life jacket, along with several officers and other men from the Quartermaster Division. Allard and one other Quartermaster attempted to go to a lower deck preparing to go over the side, but when they got below, they found they couldn’t make it, and returned to the bridge deck. Bill Emery and the officers and men with him had disappeared from the bridge when Allard returned. None of the survivors saw Bill 's group again.”
“It is Allard’s belief that Bill and the other men with him also went to a lower deck in hope of going over the side from there, but were perhaps caught in some gear below, or were not well away from the ship when she went under. At the time Allard last saw Bill on the bridge, the ship had not yet begun to list very badly, and it is possible everyone thought they had some little time left before abandoning ship. Actually, the ship went down in three sharp lurches, very suddenly, shortly after Allard returned to the bridge. In any event, no survivor saw Bill Emery or a member of his group in the water after the ship had plunged.”
Bill Emery was officially listed as missing in action on August 13, 1945. Several weeks later, a spiritual miracle happened in my family. Llewellyn Millar, brother to Janet Millar Emery, mother to Bill Emery, wrote to his sister about a conversation he had with his youngest daughter the previous night during a family dinner at their Madison, Wisconsin home. Llewellyn told his sister Janet that they had not been talking about Billy to the children while he was missing in action, and were hoping that Billy swam to a deserted island when the Indy was sunk. At dinner, Llewellyn’s daughter started talking about her Uncle Bill in the present tense. Llewelyn corrected his daughter that she must be referring to when her Uncle Billy visited their family farm the previous summer. Llewelyn’s daughter said no, it was that day when Uncle Billy came to visit her. Llewelyn looked at his wife with big eyes, and then asked his daughter what happened during her visit with her Uncle Billy? Llewelyn’s daughter nonchalantly shared how she and her Uncle Billy played together and talked for a while. Llewelyn then asked his daughter if her Uncle Billy said goodbye? She looked at her Daddy, paused, and said no, her Uncle Billy didn’t say goodbye. He just told his favorite niece five words: “I will see you later.”
On September 18, 1945, a telegram was sent to Uncle Bill’s parents from the Chief of Naval Personnel: “A careful review of all the facts available relating to the disappearance of your son, William Friend Emery, Seaman First Class, USNR, previously reported missing, leads to the conclusion that there is no hope for his survival, and that he lost his life as a result of enemy action on 30 July 1945 while in the service of his country.“ William Friend Emery, Seaman First Class/ Quartermaster Striker, USS Indianapolis CA-35, was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart.
Uncle Bill gave the ultimate sacrifice for the precious freedoms that we cherish today. As a Gold Star family, the Emery family knows the true cost of freedom. I will never stop sharing the USS Indianapolis history, tragedy, and her ongoing legacy. Every day I will continue to honor my beloved uncle, my namesake, and my personal hero. William Friend Emery and his Indy shipmates will never ever be forgotten. Not on my watch. To be remembered is to live forever.
William was honored in VOICES OF THE LOST AT SEA program in 2018.
Click on VOICES OF THE LOST AT SEA to view from Time Stamp 6:11 - 8:15.
ABBOTT, George Stanley 
FRONTINO, Vincent Fred 
AMICK, Homer Irwin