John Wilson Williams
John Wilson Williams, born in Flippin, AR on January 18, 1922, was a US Navy sailor serving aboard the USS Pillsbury (DD-227) when the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor started World War II. As a Carpenter’s Mate 3rd class, his on-board responsibilities included: ship maintenance, repair, and battle damage control, as well as ventilation and painting.
In December of 1941, the USS Pillsbury was docked in the repair yard at Philippine Naval Base Cavite where it was under repair for an earlier collision with the USS Peary. While John was likely very busy with repairs to his ship on December 10th, Japanese bombers attacked and destroyed much of the repair yard. The Pillsbury backed out evading damage from the raid and then returned to fight the fires and aid the wounded from the USS Peary that had been struck by a bomb.
As Christmas approached, there were rumors that both the Pillsbury and the Peary would be scuttled. On Christmas day, both ships were a few miles away from Cavite at Sangley Point Naval Base. They were refueling there and John likely watched facilities at the naval base being blown up by yet another air attack. The Pillsbury was then deployed to operate in the Borneo and Java regions for reconnaissance and anti-submarine patrols.
In February of 1942, the Pillsbury was involved in a battle with the Japanese destroyer Michishio causing enough damage to the Michishio that it was forced to withdraw from battle.
In the next month, in the dark of night on March 4th, the Pillsbury encountered a powerful Japanese naval force, including several destroyers, three Takao-class heavy cruisers, the Takao, the Maya, and the Atago, which engaged in battle. The USS Pillsbury was sunk. John Wilson Williams and his 100+ shipmates perished in a dark sea south of Java.
John Williams name, along with the names of 36,285 other service personnel that were either killed or missing in action during the Pacific war, is listed on the Tablets of the Missing in the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial.
Naval Warfare Blogspot -- USS Pillsbury (DD-227)