The tragic story of the Sullivan Brothers

I just recently learned that my friend is a direct descendant of Al Sullivan, one of the five Sullivan Brothers most famous for the tragic events of the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, 1942. This is the story of the Sullivan Brothers

All five of the brothers served on the US light cruiser, USS Juneau. In the very early morning of November 1942, a US naval fleet was scouting the Iron Bottom Sound off Guadalcanal, defending the Henderson airfield from the Japanese retaking the airfield. The US fleet ran into a Japanese fleet of several warships, and both sides opened fire on each other. The cruiser Atlanta was caught in the crossfire, being hit from Japanese shells and US shells by mistake. Several US ships were struck by Japanese shells and torpedoes, including the Juneau. All five brothers perished in the battle.

The parents didn't learn of the deaths until January 1943, but they were worried before they learnt of their deaths, as the letters from the brothers had stopped. The boy's father, Thomas Sullivan, was leaving for work, when he was approached by three men in uniforms. "I have some news for you about your boys," the naval officer said. "Which one?" asked Thomas. "I'm sorry," the officer replied. "All five." This was before the sole survivor policy was introduced in 1948. Al Sullivan had left behind a son, who served in a US Destroyer named after the brothers; the USS The Sullivans.

If you want more information, click on the links:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sullivan_brothers
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_Battle_of_Guadalcanal

 

This is normally the part which someone would say, "Shit..." or ," Im sorry", but I really do not know how to feel about that. All I can say is your friend really had a tragic past, and all we can do is honor the Sullivan brothers before him.

 

They are honored, and they have a big legacy that they left behind. Two US destroyers bear the Sullivan name, and the famous movie, Saving Private Ryan, was inspired by the Sullivan Brothers' story, as well as other similar incidents, where families lost almost, if not all, their sons.

 

As a history nerd, this is extremely cool to me.
That even though they perished, they still live on in history.
Wish I had cool ancestors like this.

 

I also really like history.

Watch this video:


Check out the rest of the Battle 360 series, it's an amazing documentary series.