Purple Heart Walk – Donald Hall – Nemaha County Historical Society

Early Life and Draft Registration

Donald Kenneth Hall was born on December 15, 1917, in Seneca, Kansas. He was raised for much of his youth by his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Herb Hall, near Pawnee City, Nebraska. When the Selective Service System expanded its registration requirements in 1941, Hall was among the young men who reported. On July 9, 1941, just weeks after his 23rd birthday, he registered for the draft with the Nemaha County draft board in Seneca, Kansas.

Enlistment and Naval Training

Hall formally entered the U.S. Navy in February 1942. His initial training was at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station in Illinois, followed by specialized schooling at the Internal Combustion Fleet School, U.S. Destroyer Base, San Diego, California. In a letter published in the Courier Tribune in August 1942, Hall described enjoying naval school, noting that the program included young men from across the United States and even from Cuba.

By late 1942, Hall had advanced to the rating of Motor Machinist’s Mate Second Class. He spent the year on duty both ashore and afloat out of San Diego. During a furlough in December 1942, he visited his grandparents and other relatives in Pawnee City, Nebraska, where he had been raised.

Submarine Service

In June 1943, Hall graduated from Submarine School at New London, Connecticut. He next entered naval engineering training, preparing for submarine duty. By the fall of 1943, he was assigned to the USS Corvina (SS-226), a newly commissioned Gato-class submarine. Muster rolls from October 31, 1943, list Hall as a Motor Machinist’s Mate Second Class on board the Corvina.

Loss of the USS Corvina

The Corvina, commanded by Lieutenant Commander Roderick S. Rooney, departed Pearl Harbor on November 4, 1943, for her maiden war patrol. After topping off fuel at Johnston Island, she sailed toward the waters south of Truk, a heavily defended Japanese naval stronghold. Her mission was to patrol aggressively against enemy forces threatening U.S. operations in the Gilbert Islands.

Tragically, the Corvina never returned. Japanese records later revealed that on November 16, 1943, the Japanese submarine I-176 torpedoed and sank the Corvina near Truk. Two torpedoes struck the submarine, producing massive explosions. All 82 crew members perished. The Corvina was the only U.S. submarine confirmed to have been sunk by an enemy submarine during World War II.

Missing in Action and Final Declaration

Initially, the Navy reported Donald Hall missing in action in January 1944. His family—parents Adrian and Mrs. Hall of Salt Lake City, Utah, as well as siblings serving in both the U.S. Army and Navy—held hope for his return. After more than two years with no word, the Navy officially declared him dead on January 23, 1946.

Recognition and Legacy

For his service and sacrifice, Donald Kenneth Hall was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart. His name is preserved on memorials honoring the lost crew of the Corvina, including plaques at Seal Beach, California, and the Veterans Cemetery in Fernley, Nevada. He is also remembered on the “On Eternal Patrol” project, which commemorates the men of the 52 U.S. submarines lost during World War II.

Donald Kenneth Hall’s life was brief, but his courage and dedication embody the highest traditions of the United States Navy. His ultimate sacrifice reminds us of the heavy toll of submarine warfare and the enduring legacy of those who gave their lives beneath the seas.

SOURCES

Donald Hall

Sabetha Herald

2 Jul 1941

page 1

86 New Registrants

Sabetha Supplies 25 Young Men for Additional Selective Service Classification

Eighty six young men who reached the age of 21 between last October 16, 1940 and July 1, 1941, registered with the Nemaha county draft board in Seneca Tuesday. Of these, only a few are from outside the county. Sabetha supplied by far the larges number of registrants with a total of 25, Seneca provided 16, Baileyville 11, Goff, Wetmore and Oneida six each, Corning four, Centralia three, Axtell two and the following one each: Circleville, Bern, Kelly, Onaga, Marysville, Harper, Kas., and Farmersburg, Ind.

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Baileyville: … Donald Kenneth Hall

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Draft Registration Card dated Jul 9 1941

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Courier Tribune

27 Aug 1942

page 2

Donnie Hall writes from San Diego that he likes naval school he is attending. There are boys enrolled form all over the United States and some form Cuba. His address is Donald Kenneth Hall, Internal combustion fleet school, US Destroyer base, San Diego, California. He is an Axtell boy.

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Pawnee Republican

17 Dec 1942

page 1

News of Pawnee Boys

with the Colors

Donald Hall, mo.mm 2cl., arrived Sunday from San Diego, Calif., to visit his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Herb Hall, at the Tommy Johnson home south of Pawnee City, and with other relatives and friends. Mr. Hall, in whose home Donald was reared has been critically ill. Donald, who petty officer rating translates into “motor machinists’ mate, second class,” has been on duty ashore and afloat out of the U.S. destroyer base at San Diego, and has been in the navy a year. He is on furlough until Christmas morning, and was in town the first of the week visiting his uncle John Werner.

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Courier Tribune

1 Jul 1943

page 2

With the Armed Forces

Relatives of Donald Hall received word that he graduated from Submarine School June 26 at New London, Conn. He will now enter engineering school. Donald is in the U.S. Navy.

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Courier Tribune

24 Jan 1944

page 1

Donald Hall, serving in the U.S. Navy since December 942, is reported missing in action. He made his home with an uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs. John Werner, Pawnee City, Neb., before entering service. He is the grandson of Mr. and Mrs. Herb Hall of Pawnee City.

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U.S. Navy Muster Rolls

page 27

U.S.S. Corvina (SS226)

31 Oct 1943

Hall, Donald Kenneth 628 16 19 NR – V6 MoMM2c 6 Jan 42 Kansas City

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Salt Lake Telegram

15 Jan 1944

page 9

Service Men from Utah Killed; Two Wounded, Two Missing

One Utahn has been killed in action, two are missing and two are wounded, according to word received form the war and navy departments Saturday.

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Missing:

Motor Machinist’s Mate Second Class Donald Kenneth Hall, son of Mr. and Mrs. Adrian C. Hall, 538 Fifth East street, Salt Lake City.

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The Salt Lake tribune

23 Jan 1946

page 13

Navy Declares S.L. Sailor War Casualty

MMM2/c Donald Kenneth Hall, USNR, son of Mr and Mrs. Adrian Hall, 538-5th East, Tuesday was declared dead by the naval department in a letter to his parents. He had been missing since Nov. 30, 1943.

Born Dec. 15, 1917, in Seneca, Kan., he entered the service in February, 1942 and served at Great Lakes naval training station in Illinois prior to going overseas in October 1943. HE was listed missing when the USS Corvina, submarine on which he was serving, failed to return from patrol operations in the Pacific.

Survivors besides his parents include three brothers, Raymond Hall, U.S. army in Manila; Herbert Louis Hall, USN, San Diego, Cal., and Glen Arthur Hall, Salt Lake City; four sisters, Mrs. George Bentley, Fall City, Neb.; Mrs. Oscar Warfel, Topeka, Kan., Miss Margaret Hall and Miss Vonia Grace Hall, both of Salt Lake City.

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State Summary of War Casualties

US Navy

1946

Utah

page 5

Hall, Donald Kenneth, Motor Machinist’s mate, 2c, USNR. Parents, Mr. and Mrs. Adrian Hall, 538 S. 5th East, Salt Lake City.

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The Naval History and Heritage Command site give a history of the USS Corvina and its loss during World War II.

Venturing into enemy waters for her first time, Corvina (Commander R.S. Rooney) departed from Pearl Harbor on 4 November 1943. After topping off with fuel at Johnston Island she proceeded to an area south of Truk, there to attack enemy naval forces during our surface operations in the Gilbert Islands. She was to patrol as close to Truk as enemy antisubmarine measures would permit. On 14 December, she was to pass to command of Commander Task Force Seventy-Two and proceed to an eastern Australian port for refit and duty in SubSoWestPac.

When the major surface force operations in the Gilberts were finished,Corvina was directed by dispatch on 30 November to pass to command of Commander Task Force Seventy-Two on 2 December 1943. The message was repeated three times on each of two successive nights, and an acknowledgment was directed, but none was received. Because of the difficulty being experienced as a result of Japanese interference, Corvinawas considered to have passed to Commander Task Force Seventy-Two, despite her failure to acknowledge. She was directed to proceed to Tulagi and rendezvous with a surface escort, but she did not appear. Again transmissions directing answer were repeatedly sent, but were not fruitful. Since she had not appeared or been heard from since her departure from Johnston Island on 6 November, Corvina was reported as presumed lost on 23 December 1943.

Enemy records indicate that Corvina met her doom on 16 November 1943, by enemy action. An enemy submarine reported having sighted a surfaced submarine in Latitude 5°-50’N, Longitude 151°-10’E, and torpedoed her. Three torpedoes were fired and two were reported to have hit, causing “a great explosion sound.”

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The website, On Eternal Patrol, lists the sailors on board the USS Corvina when it was sunk and provides a memorial page for each sailor.

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The crew of the USS Corvina is memorialized in several locations.

There is a memorial plague in Seal Beach, California.

Corvina Base has a memorial for the USS Corvina SS-226 at the Veterans Cemetery in Fernley, NV.

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From Perplexity

USS Corvina (SS-226): Service and Loss

USS Corvina was a Gato-class submarine launched on May 9, 1943, and commissioned on August 6, 1943, at the Electric Boat Company, Groton, Connecticut. She was commanded by Roderick S. Rooney and was the only US Navy ship named for the corvina fish.wikipedia+1

Mission and Fate

Corvina departed Pearl Harbor on November 4, 1943, and began her first war patrol, refueling at Johnston Island two days later.
Her assignment was perilous: patrol near Truk, a heavily defended Japanese stronghold, to intercept enemy sorties threatening the upcoming US invasion of the Gilbert Islands, known as Operation Galvanic.usscorvinabase+1
After leaving Johnston Island, Corvina was never heard from again. Communications sent to her were never acknowledged.submarinememorial+1

Sinking Details

On the night of November 16, 1943, the Japanese submarine I-176 under Lieutenant Commander Yamaguchi Kozaburo sighted a surfaced submarine about 300 miles south of Truk. Moonlight illuminated the target, mistakenly identified as a Perch-class submarine, likely recharging batteries.
I-176 maneuvered into firing position and launched three torpedoes at Corvina at 0120 hours; two hit and caused massive explosions, sinking Corvina with all 82 crew lost. Debris and oil slick were observed afterward, confirming the sinking.thetidesofhistory+2
Corvina is the only US submarine ever sunk by an enemy submarine in World War II.honorstates+1

Aftermath

The exact details of Corvina’s last moments remain unknown, but her loss was announced on March 14, 1944, after she failed to respond to repeated messages and orders.
The events were later confirmed in 1946 when captured Japanese naval records detailed I-176’s attack.history.navy+1
USS Corvina was officially stricken from the Navy list on March 25, 1944.history.navy

Memorial

Corvina and her crew are commemorated among the 52 US submarines lost in WWII, honoring their sacrifice and service.oneternalpatrol+1

In summary: USS Corvina was lost on her maiden patrol, sunk by the Japanese submarine I-176 south of Truk on November 16, 1943. All 82 hands were lost, and her sinking remains unique as the only confirmed instance of a US submarine being destroyed by an enemy submarine during the war.wikipedia+2