Noah A Graham, Gunners Mate 3C
USS Eversole DE 404
The first Eversole ( DE-404 ) was launched 3 December 1943 by Brown Shipbuilding Co. Houston, Texas sponsored by Mrs. Sarah R. Eversole, mother of Lieutenant (junior grade) Eversole; and commissioned 21 March 1944, Lieutenant Commander G. E. Marix in command.
Eversole sailed from Boston 20 May 1944 for Pearl Harbor, arriving 19 June. After training with submarines in the Hawaiian Islands, she made an escort voyage to Eniwetok, then sailed to Eniwetok and Manus on escort duty. She returned to Eniwetok for antisubmarine patrols until 9 August, when she put to sea screening carriers for the attack on Morotai. She continued this duty, serving with the escort carriers in the initial assaults in Leyte Gulf 20 October.
During the battle for Leyte Gulf, when a decisive victory was won after great hazard to the escort carriers and their screens, Eversole screened two of the damaged carriers, rescued downed pilots, and took wounded off one of the carriers. In the early morning of 28 October, Eversole made contact by sonar with a submarine, and only half a minute later suffered the first of two torpedo hits. The ship was ordered abandoned, and after the men were all in the water, the submarine surfaced and opened fire, then dived once more. Five minutes later there was a tremendous underwater explosion which killed or wounded all of Eversole’s men. Lights from the survivor’s flashlights attracted two other destroyer escorts, one of which rescued the 139 wounded survivors, as the other began a series of attacks which sank I-45, presumably the submarine which had torpedoed Eversole.
Eversole received two battle stars for World War II service.
28 October 1944
Vito Thomas Accardi PhM 2/C
Reny Albert Cox
Donald R. Aldrich S 2/C
Warren H. Arnold F 2/C
Raymond L. Bates S 2/C
Bilton Ross Beed EM 3/C
Burr Brayman, Jr. S 2/C
George William Boland F 1/C
Joseph L. Brennan S 2/C
Merrill C. Brimer S 2/C
Steven L. Brown S 2/C
Charles W. Campbell GM 2/C
Clifford H. Carr F 2/C
Harry E. Clopp, Jr. F 1/C
Nicholas W. Combas S 1/C
Milan W. Cottam S 1/C
Dale F. Cox S 1/C
Robert J. Deshaies S 1/C
Theodore J. Doyle RM 3/C
Frank J. Drobot WT 3/C
Jack Dropkin F 2/C
Nelson W. Elliott WT 3/C
Earl W. Exum F 2/C
Albert J. Faatz S 2/C
Alvin W. Finley MM 1/C
Charles M. Frierson, Jr. F 1/C
Thomas J. Galvin F 1/C
John L. German QM 3/C
Noah A. Graham GM 3/C
Dayton Green F 1/C
Nick Griz SoM 3/C
George E. Hagerdorn F 1/C
Lawrence H. Hamner F 1/C
Randall G. Harbough MM 3/C
Robert J. Hayes F 1/C
Rueben B. Heffel S 1/C
Charles R. Hemstreet F 1/C
Lawrence S. Hitchcock F 1/C
William B. Holder S 1/C
Robert L. Horner S 2/C
Frank R. Inda, Jr. S 2/C
Angelo R. Iovino S 2/C
Lewis J. Isaac MM 3/C
Raymond A. Jambois F 1/C
Bonnie H. Johnson F 2/C
Kenneth Kean S 1/C
Forest H. Kirby SK 1/C
Seymour Kluger F 1/C
Richard T. Kratoska F 2/C
Robert W. Lattimer QM 3/C
Earl H. Lease F 1/C
Alfred A. Lebel F 2/C
Calvin I. Light ENS
Francis A. Macri F 1/C
Domineck J. Merico S 1/C
Robert J. Morrison RM 2/C
William H. Moschelle, Jr. FC 3/C
Dellovare R. Newman, Jr. Y 2/C
Joseph S. Nobile S 1/C
James W. Patterson Y 1/C
Louis Perera F 1/C
Frank J. Petito S 1/C
Raymond A. Pfeiffer S 1/C
Willis M. Pitt WT 1/C
Thomas E. Rearden GM 2/C
Herbert Reiser MM 3/C
Arthur Robert Riddle QM 1/C
Ernest C. Roberg S 1/C
Manuel Saladrigas F 1/C
Edwin F. Schuler LT
Hoyt C. Smith RdM 3/C
John B. Sochalski F 1/C
Robert J. Stella F 1/C
Eugene P. Tomassa Cox
Mervin F. Udell SM 3/C
Edward L. Weide MM 3/C
Robert E. Wiegand SoM 3/C
Robert E. Wilson MM 2/C30 October 1944
Joseph V. Houdek WT 1/C31 October 1944
Stephen G. Mroczlowski Lt.(jg)God Bless All Members of our Armed Services, gone but not forgotten, God Bless America.
