Name: Norbert George BOSS
Rank / Rating: S2-Seaman Second Class
Service #: 339 10 14
DOB: Feb 14, 1927
From: Chamois, MO
Parents: Mr and Mrs Joseph W. Boss
Went Aboard: Jun 23, 1945
Age When Ship Went Down: 18 years, 5 months, 16 days
Spouse:
Children:
Grandchildren:
Bio Submitted By: Patricia Stephens (Admin)
Date Posted:

USS Indianapolis Survivors, Only 316 Survived; (e-book, 2025), p. 532: Survivor Gerald M. Poor, S2c, recounted his time in the water after the sinking: "I became good friends of Alfred Jurgensmeyer and Norbert Boss. I remember Jurgensmeyer became disoriented , and I was holding him in my arms when he died. There were officers and corpsmen who would come and help 'bury' someone when they passed away. Finally, there were only corpsmen left. When I called for help to 'bury' Alfred, I was told there were no more corpsmen left and I would have to do it myself. Norbert helped me and all we could do was take off his life jacket, say a prayer, and let him slip into the water. Later, Norbert became disoriented and kept asking about Alfred." Norbert swam away and "I never saw him again." Burial at Sea Norbert was one of the eight crew members picked up and identified by USS French Monday August 6, 1945. His official Burial at Sea Ceremony was performed by the Commanding Officer, LCDE Reginald C. Robbins at 1835 hours. Norbert was reverently placed in a sea bag, weighted with two 5" shells and committed to the deep. Norbert was misidentified in USS French's Action Report as Norbert, George Boss.