Francis C. Flaherty

Infobox Military Person
name= Francis Charles Flaherty
born= birth date|1919|3|15
died= death date and age|1941|12|7|1919|3|15
placeofbirth= Charlotte, Michigan
placeofdeath= KIA at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
placeofburial=


caption= Ensign Francis C. Flaherty
nickname=
allegiance= United States Naval Reserve
serviceyears= 1940 - 1941
rank= Ensign
commands=
unit= USS "Oklahoma" (BB-37)
battles= World War II *"Attack on Pearl Harbor"
awards= Medal of Honor
laterwork=

Francis Charles Flaherty (March 15, 1919 – December 7, 1941) was an officer in the United States Naval Reserve and a recipient of America's highest military decoration — the Medal of Honor. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for helping his crewmates escape the sinking USS "Oklahoma" (BB-37) at the expense of his own life, during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Biography

Francis Flaherty was born on March 15, 1919 in Charlotte, Michigan. He was a parishioner at St. Mary's Catholic Church while living in Charlotte. He enlisted in the Naval Reserve in July 1940 and was commissioned as an Ensign in December of that year.

At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Flaherty was serving on board the USS "Oklahoma". The "Oklahoma" was based at Pearl Harbor for patrols and exercises, and was moored in Battleship Row when the attack began. Almost immediately after the first Japanese bombs fell, the ship was hit by three torpedoes and began to capsize. Those who could began to abandon ship as more torpedoes struck home. Ensign Flaherty remained in one of the ship's turrets, providing light so that the turret crew could escape. When the "Oklahoma" rolled completely over, he was trapped inside the hull along with many others. Thirty-two crewmembers of the "Oklahoma" were rescued from inside the hull over the next few days, but Ensign Flaherty was not among them.

Over all, 429 men were entombed in the "Oklahoma" at Pearl Harbor, including Flaherty. The ship was raised for salvage in 1943, and the remains inside were eventually interred in mass graves marked "Unknowns" at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii. Flaherty's name is inscribed in the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, and a memorial headstone was placed in Maple Hill Cemetery in his hometown of Charlotte, Michigan.

Medal of Honor citation

For conspicuous devotion to duty and extraordinary courage and complete disregard of his own life, above and beyond the call of duty, during the attack on the Fleet in Pearl Harbor, by Japanese forces on 7 December 1941. When it was seen that the U.S.S. "Oklahoma" was going to capsize and the order was given to abandon ship, Ens. Flaherty remained in a turret, holding a flashlight so the remainder of the turret crew could see to escape, thereby sacrificing his own life.

Namesakes

*The destroyer escort USS "Flaherty" (DE-135), commissioned in 1943 and decommissioned in 1946, was named in honor of Ensign Flaherty.
*American Legion Post 42 (Greenawalt-Flaherty) in Charlotte, Michigan is partially named after Ensign Flaherty.

ee also

*List of Medal of Honor recipients
*List of Medal of Honor recipients for World War II

References

:NHC
*cite web
url = http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/pers-us/uspers-f/f-flahty.htm
title = Ensign Francis C. Flaherty, USNR, (1919-1941)
work=US People
accessdate = 2006-07-31
date = December 30, 2000
publisher = Naval Historical Center}, Department of the Navy

*cite web
url = http://www.nps.gov/usar/home.htm
title = USS "Oklahoma"
accessdate = 2006-07-31
date = 2005-02-04
work = USS "Arizona" Memorial
publisher = National Park Service, Department of the Interior

*cite web
url = http://www.medalofhonor.com/FrancisFlaherty.htm
title = Medal of Honor Recipient Ensign Francis C. Flaherty
accessdate = 2006-07-31
publisher = www.medalofhonor.com
*findagrave|5783769 Retrieved on 2007-10-23
*findagrave|10049384 Retrieved on 2007-10-23