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| Cook 2/c John Schuelke served on the heavy cruiser USS Houston. |
John Henry Schuelke never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.
John was born on March 12, 1920 in Pomeroy, Washington. His parents Albert and Gertrude were also born in Washington and his paternal grandparents were born in Germany. His father was a farmer. John had one younger sister. I could not find the family in the 1940 census.
John was drafted into the US Navy in January 1940 and served aboard the heavy cruiser USS Houston (CA-30) as a ship’s cook, second class. In February 1942, Houston was part of the American-British-Dutch-Australian naval force based at Surabaya, Java and participated in the battles of Makassar Strait and Java Sea, where she earned the nickname “The Galloping Ghost of the Java Coast”.
On the late evening of 28 February 1942, Houston and HMAS Perth were passing thru the Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra, when they were surprised by a strong Japanese force supporting an amphibious landing on western Java. Perth attempted to force her way through the enemy destroyers, but was hit by four torpedoes and sank. Houston valiantly battled the superior enemy force and scored hits on several Japanese destroyers. Shortly after midnight she was struck by three Japanese torpedoes in quick succession and slowed to a stop. The enemy destroyers moved in and illuminated her with searchlights as they raked her decks with machine-gun fire and fired on helpless survivors in the water. Shortly thereafter Houston rolled over to starboard and sank beneath the waves of the Java Sea.
SC2c Schuelke was one of 368 survivors of the 1,061 crewmen aboard the Houston who were fished out of the water and captured by the Japanese. SC2c Schuelke was made a slave laborer in a Japanese prison camp in Kanchanaburi, Thailand where he survived almost two years of starvation, disease, torture, and forced labor until he succumbed to dysentery and died on 12 January 1944.
John Henry Schuelke is buried in Pomeroy City Cemetery in Pomeroy, Washington.
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This profile was written by Bob Fuerst. "I’m a NASA engineer, B-17 Flying Fortress enthusiast, and amateur genealogist so this kind of research is an ideal outlet for me. But more than anything, it’s a way to express my sincere appreciation for The Greatest Generation and the sacrifices that they made, especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice. They should never be forgotten and I’m grateful to Don for allowing me to play a small part in honoring them."
On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!
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Brutal typo regarding his rate. I am not being snarky. I know you and I both revere the brave men and women who sacrificed everything for our freedom. I am sure you will correct this error.
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting me know about the mistake. I fixed it. You help is much appreciated.
DeleteSchuelke was NOT "interred" in a Japanese prison camp. That word means buried. Nor was he interned, as that means he was a civilian. He was a POW of Japan who was forced to do slave labor building the Thai Burma Death Railway. It is doubtful if his body was ever found.
ReplyDeleteExcellent observation. I will change the language to be more accurate.
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