George Warren Parten - Gainesville, TX
N 33° 38.008 W 097° 07.493
14S E 673915 N 3723093
George Warren Parten served on the U.S.S. Juneau, and died at sea during the Battle of Guadalcanal, November 13, 1942. A gray granite cenotaph stands for him with his parents in historic Fairview Cemetery, Gainesville, TX.
Waymark Code: WMPWPW
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 10/31/2015
Views: 1
His rank was Petty Officer Third Class, and his headstone has the chain, anchor, and "USN" of the US Navy, with this inscription:
In Loving Memory Of
GEORGE WARREN PARTEN
Who Died in Service of His Country
At Sea Attached U.S.S. Juneau
Jan. 12, 1922
Nov. 13, 1942
Wikipedia (see website) provides some details about the battle that claimed this young man's life:
"On 8 November, Juneau departed Nouméa, New Caledonia as a unit of TF 67 under the command of Rear Admiral Richmond K. Turner to escort reinforcements to Guadalcanal. The force arrived there early morning on 12 November, and Juneau took up her station in the protective screen around the transports and cargo vessels. Unloading proceeded unmolested until 1405, when 30 Japanese planes attacked the alerted United States group. The AA fire was effective, and Juneau alone accounted for six enemy torpedo bombers shot down. The few remaining Japanese planes were in turn attacked by American fighters; only one bomber escaped. Later in the day, an American attack group of cruisers and destroyers cleared Guadalcanal on reports that a large enemy surface force was headed for the island. At 0148 on 13 November, Rear Admiral Daniel J. Callaghan's relatively small Landing Support Group engaged the enemy. The Japanese force consisted of two battleships, one light cruiser, and nine destroyers.
Because of bad weather and confused communications, the battle occurred in near pitch darkness and at almost point-blank range as the ships of the two sides became intermingled. During the melee, Juneau was struck on the port side by a torpedo causing a severe list, and necessitating withdrawal. Before noon on 13 November, Juneau, along with two other cruisers damaged in the battle — Helena and San Francisco — headed toward Espiritu Santo for repairs. Juneau was steaming on one screw, keeping station 800 yd (730 m) off the starboard quarter of the likewise severely damaged San Francisco. She was down 12 ft (4 m) by the bow, but able to maintain 13 kn (15 mph, 24 km/h). A few minutes after 1100, two torpedoes were launched from I-26. These were intended for San Francisco, but both passed ahead of her. One struck Juneau in the same place that had been hit during the battle. There was a great explosion; Juneau broke in two and disappeared in just 20 seconds. Fearing more attacks from I-26, and wrongly assuming from the massive explosion that there were no survivors, Helena and San Francisco departed without attempting to rescue any survivors. In fact, more than 100 sailors had survived the sinking of Juneau. They were left to fend for themselves in the open ocean for eight days before rescue aircraft belatedly arrived. While awaiting rescue, all but 10 died from the elements and shark attacks, including the five Sullivan brothers. Two of the brothers apparently survived the sinking, only to die in the water; two presumably went down with the ship. Some reports indicate the fifth brother also survived the sinking, but disappeared during the first day in the water. On 20 November 1942, USS Ballard (AVD-10) recovered two of the ten survivors. They were found in separate rafts around five miles apart. One of the survivors recovered by Ballard stated he had been with one of the Sullivan brothers for several days after the sinking."
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He is listed on the Tablets of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.