William Manley Thompson |
USS Oklahoma (ENS SC) |
Information submitted by William's niece, Marjorie Thompson |
William "Bill" Manley Thompson was born on May 25, 1920, in White Plains, NY. He was the second child of three, and the first boy. Bill's mother, Mildred Maureen Manley Thompson was a high school teacher and taught English as well as several other languages. Bill's father was Osceola Claiborne Thompson, who was a mechanial engineer and inventor. Bill grew up in Mountain Lakes, NJ. He graduated from the University of North Carolina as a business major and was a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. Bill was a highly intelligent young man. He loved music and played the base, guitar and flute. |
Bill was fresh out of college when he went aboard the USS Oklahoma. He loved swimming and was the coach for the Oklahoma's swimming team. When the attack at Pearl Harbor began, the USS Oklahoma was one of the very first ships to be attacked. Bill's battle station was in the code room, at the approximate location of one of the torpedo explosions. Bill's remains were never identifed. A memorial plot was erected for Bill at the Old Blandford Cemetery, Petersburg, VA. |
