Charles Bernard Johns

Charles Johns – often called by his middle name, Bernard – reported for duty with the the Marine detachment aboard the USS Vincennes in the early months of 1942. Shortly after he came aboard, the cruiser departed for duty in the Pacific; Johns had to work quickly to learn his duties at sea, especially the function of his battle station – likely with one of the five-inch batteries arranged along the ship’s upper deck. He took part in the Doolittle Raid and the battle of Midway; after a short respite in the Hawaiian Islands, Johns and the Vincennes sailed for the Solomon Islands. After providing fire support for the amphibious landings on  7 August 1942, Vincennes took up a patrol station screening the vulnerable transports unloading cargo for the Marines ashore.

At 0155 on 9 August, bright searchlights stabbed out of the darkness and illuminated Vincennes. The cruiser let loose a salvo, but was almost immediately bracketed by Japanese shells. In just fifteen minutes, she suffered at least 85 hits from large and medium caliber shells, and at least one torpedo strike. Without power, aflame from stem to stern, Vincennes drifted to a stop and began to list.