James Leslie Patrick
Corporal James L. “Pat” Patrick served with the Marine detachment aboard the cruiser USS Vincennes (CA-44).
He was lost at sea in the battle of Savo Island, off Guadalcanal, on 9 August 1942.
Branch
Marine Corps Regular
Service Number 282464
Current Status
Lost At Sea
Pursuit Category
Based on circumstances of loss, this individual is considered permanently non-recoverable.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
May 12, 1919
at Louisville, KY
Parents
Guy Peter Patrick
Anna Bell (Clark) Patrick (d. 1922)
Education
Grammar school
Occupation & Employer
Details unknown
Service Life
Entered Service
February 15, 1940
at Cincinnati, OH
Home Of Record
Elizabethtown, KY
Next Of Kin
Father, Mr. Guy Patrick
Military Specialty
Marine Detachment
Captain’s Orderly
Primary Unit
USS Vincennes
Campaigns Served
Midway
Guadalcanal / Savo Island
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
James “Pat” Patrick reported for duty with the the Marine detachment aboard the USS Vincennes in 1940, shortly after completing his Sea School training. In 1941, he was assigned as an orderly and bodyguard to the cruiser’s commanding officer, Captain Frederick Riefkohl. “Pat was my special orderly when we were at battle stations,” noted Riefkohl, “and was with me continuously…. Pat always kept my pistol, gas mask, and life belt in case I should need them.” The Captain and the Marine built a special relationship in the last months of peace and the early months of war, as Vincennes participated in the Doolittle Raid and the battle of Midway. In the summer of 1942, the cruiser salied for the Solomon Islands; Patrick’s role in the invasion of Guadalcanal centered on keeping Riefkohl safe.
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.
Corporal Patrick shadowed Captain Riefkohl as the officer assessed the damage, and ran messages to other officers on the stricken cruiser. Riefkohl saw little hope of saving Vincennes, and at 0230 asked Patrick and Chief Yeoman Stucker to pass the the word to abandon ship.
When they returned the water had reached the deck where we were standing, so we just started swimming away from the ship.
I was not wearing my life belt but towing it with one and, when someone asked if he could hang on to it. I got him on it and, with Pat pushing him while I pulled, we got him clear of the ship and to a raft. Pat and I told this boy to hang on with one hand and paddle with the other. Pat seemed to be in perfectly fine shape all of the time.
After I got to this raft, I was very busy taking care of wounded men. I had no idea but that Pat was quite all right. As it was very dark it was impossible to recognize anyone unless he was right close... I left this raft after awhile and swam to others nearby to see how they were.
In the morning we were picked up by three different destroyers and went to different ships.... The report that Pat was missing was a shock to me. Afterwards, some men who were with him on the bridge informed me that he had been wounded. Pat had been my staunch friend and standby through many arduous months of cruising, and in several engagements with the enemy. He was always right on the job, a perfect gentleman and a real man. I thought the world of Pat and I am proud to say that I think he was rather fond of his Captain also....
If Pat were my own son, I could not feel any more deeply than I do about him.
Of nearly 900 crew, 332 men – among them Corporal Patrick – died in the battle for Savo Island.
Burial Information or Disposition
Remains lost at sea; ship considered to be final resting place.
Memorials
Manila American Cemetery and Memorial
Saint James Cemetery, Elizabethtown, Kentucky
The wreck of the Vincennes was discovered by RV Petrel in 2015.
Next Of Kin Address
Address of father, Mr. Guy Patrick.
Location Of Loss
The Vincennes sank in Iron Bottom Sound at approximately 0240 hours.
