|
61k |
Edward Martin Blessman was born on 29 December 1907 in Nott, North Dakota. He grew up in his hometown of Appleton, Wisconsin. Appointed midshipman from the
9th District of Wisconsin on 21 June 1927 he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy on 04 June 1931. Service at sea in Maryland (BB 46) and Hale (DD 133) preceded
flight training at Naval Air Station, Pensacola, Fla., after which he served in VS-2B in Lexington (CV 2) and VP-17F, based on Thrush (AVP 3). Following a two-year
tour at the NAS Anacostia, Blessman was promoted to lieutenant in January 1939. His next assignment was to the USS Marblehead (CL 12) as she joined the U.S. Asiatic Fleet on
10 December 1939. He was still serving with her when Japan launched its onslaught in the Far East in December 1941.
On 04 February 1942, Marblehead stood out of Surabaya, Java, as part of a mixed American-Dutch cruiser-destroyer force under Rear Admiral Karel W. F. M. Doorman, RNN. Japanese
Kawanishi H6K5 "Mavis" flying boats from the Toko Kokutai, however, spotted the Allied force as it attempted to transit the Madoera Strait to attack the Japanese Borneo invasion fleet. Thus
forewarned, Japanese naval land attack planes bombed the allied force. At 1027, a stick of seven bombs from a Mitsubishi G4M1 "Betty" Bomber straddled Marblehead. The first of
the two bombs to hit the ship penetrated the main deck and exploded near the wardroom, the blast ripping through the light sheet metal bulkheads that comprised the boundaries of the compartment.
Blessman, who, as the ship’s senior aviator had no air defense station and was in the wardroom at the time, was killed instantly by the concussion. Lieutenant Blessman was posthumously awarded
the Purple Heart. His wife Mrs. Helen Malloy Blessman accepted the award on his behalf from a grateful nation. His other awards include the American Defense Service Medal; and World War II Victory
Medal.
USS Blessman (DE 69) (1943-1947) was the first ship to be named in his honor.
(Photo from the U.S. Naval Academy Yearbook; The Lucky Bag, Class of 1931) |
Bill Gonyo
Downey, Cal.
Assoc. Researcher
Navsource |
