Thomas Stutley Henry (1923 - 2013)

Born 11 Jul 1923 in Brownville, Jefferson, New York, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Marjorie Jean (Armstrong) Henry — married 27 Jan 1945 in Rome, Oneida, New York, United States

Died 20 Aug 2013 at age 90 in Rochester, Monroe, New York, United States

Biography

Signalman Thomas Henry served in the United States Navy in World War II
Service started: 17 Dec 1942
Unit(s): USS Walter Camp
Service ended: 20 Nov 1945

Thomas Stutley Henry was the second child of Ruth (Wicks) and Bernard Henry. He was born on July 11, 1923 in Brownville, Jefferson, New York. He died at age 90. He married Marjorie "Jean" Armstrong in Rome, NY on January 27, 1945. She passed away November 20, 2008. Tom served with the U.S. Navy during WW II. He was a member of the Arthur S. Moran American Legion Post #66, member and past Commander Lt. Victor Giles V.F.W. Post #6530, an honorary member Marine Corp League LZ Corps #999. Tom was an accomplished musician and was a member of NYS Olde Tyme Fiddlers Assoc. Tom played Taps at the funeral services of many veterans. He was buried at a Cemetery in Camden, New York. (I will type the name of the Cemetery when I get that information.)

Interview from 2001

Daily Sentinel, Rome, N.Y., Friday Evening, June 22, 2001 - Page 5 Written By Chip Haley, who interviewed Thomas S. Henry about his World War II experiences.

Henry's ship, the USS Walter Camp, was sunk by the Germans on January 25, 1944, 300 miles west of the coast of India. The ship's crew of 40 Merchant Marines and 28 Navy men was thrown into the water. Henry joined some of the other survivors on a life raft, where they floated at sea for four days. On January 29th, "a British PBY airplane spotted us and circled. They signaled back and said they would circle and look for subs. They called back and said they were low on fuel" and "would be back in the morning".

"The next morning, we spotted a conning tower coming toward us from the east. We were all terrified!" for fear it was another enemy ship coming to finish them off. "Then I looked to the north, and I spotted a British plane coming. It was the return of the PBY from the day before. "As we looked back to the east, we realized it was the British light cruiser, HMS Danae and not the submarine we thought it was. The ship sent me a signal that he was going to circle to look for subs, about an hour, and also told us to get ready to board quickly. They could only be dead in the water for about one minute. "There was about eight or nine of us on the life raft. They put cargo nets over the side and we had to climb up the nets and carry some of the men that were too weak to climb the net. We carried about three men.

The date of rescue was 1-30-44 at 0828 hours. They took us to Aden, Arabia, to an Air Force base... The next day a hospital ship picked us up, and they gave us Castor oil. They took us to a dock where an ambulance took us to "a hospital in Cairo, Egypt". The sailors were hospitalized for about two weeks.

Henry traveled by train to Port Said, Egypt, where they caught a ship to the U.S. They went to New Orleans for a physical, then to Philadelphia by bus. "While I was there, I tried to order a beer and they refused because I was not yet 21."

Henry had entered the Navy on December 17, 1942, after quitting in his first year of high school at RFA. His first ship was the SS Gulf Wing, which carried oil from New Jersey to South Wales. "Upon entering, we could see the Germans bombing Cardiff, with their V2 bombs," he remembers. He worked as gunner, and later as a signalman or "skivvy waver." Henry was discharged on November 20, 1945.

Research Notes

The "USS Walter Camp" was actually the SS Walter Camp, a Merchant Marine Liberty Ship. ^[1][2]

Sources

1. ↑ Walter Camp at uboat.net
2. ↑ List of Liberty ships (S–Z)