I have just written a piece for Ireland's Own magazine on the Sullivan Brothers, whose tragic story would have profound implications for the US military and lawmakers. Read it here. The five Irish-American Sullivan brothers served on the same ship in the United States navy during the Second World War. They volunteered for the navy after a friend of theirs died in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941.
The five brothers, George, Francis, Joseph, Madison, and Albert, were all in their twenties when they joined up. Even though it was established navy policy to separate family members and not allow them serve on the same ship, they appealed and won the right to serve together. They were assigned to the USS Juneau, a light cruiser.
On the night of November 13th 1942, the Juneau was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine. It was hit again the following day when it was trying to make some repairs and this caused it to explode and sink. All but a handful of the almost 700 crew that were on board lost their lives (including the five Sullivans).
As well as helping to create the Sole Survivor Policy which protects family members from the draft or combat duty if they have lost family members in military service, the Sullivans' story inspired several books, television documentaries and movies. One of the movies was Steven Spielberg's 1998 film, Saving Private Ryan, which was partially filmed in Co. Wexford, Ireland. In a way, this was like some sort of homecoming as the Sullivans' ancestors left Cork in Ireland for America in the 1840s.
The wreck of the Juneau was located in recent years on the ocean floor (4,200 meters below the surface) off the coast of the Solomon Islands. It's incredible to think that we can carry out such a search and that we can see such clear photographs that really bring history to life. If you want to find out more about the wreck, have a look at this blog.
