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USS Whitehurst Logo by: Pat Stephens, Webmaster, DESA

Henry Purefoy Whitehurst Jr

16 February 1920 -- 9 August 1942

Henry Purefoy Whitehurst Jr was born in New Bern, N.C. and died in action during the Battle of Savo Island in the U.S Navy's first year in WWII.

Appointed midshipman 14 July 1938, graduated with the Naval Academy, 19 December 1941 and reported aboard the heavy cruiser Astoria, 18 January 1942 in Pearl Harbor Hawaii.

He served as junior watch and division officer aboard Astoria during the Battles of Coral Sea and Midway and during the landings on Guadalcanal on 7 August 1942. The next day the Astoria screened for the vital transports as they unloaded supplies and equipment for the marines ashore, and that evening stood out to a night retirement station off Savo Island.

In the early hours of 9 August, a Japanese force under Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawawhich unleashed a devastating night attack on the Southern and Northern Forces.
In the former, Chicago (CA-29) was damaged and the Australian heavy cruiser HMAS Canberra was crippled so badly that she later sunk.

The Northern Force, unaware of the enemy's presence until too late, soon took staggering punishment. Vincennes (CA-44) and Quincy (CA-39) sank before daylight. Astoria lingered on while her surviving officers and men labored to save their ship. However the damage proved too great; and Astoria, like her two sister ships, eventually succumbed shortly after noon on 9 August. Among the dead suffered in the Battle of Savo Island was Ensign Whitehurst.

Midshipman Henry P. Whitehurst, 1938 and as an Upperclassman

Robbie Sams Whitehurst christens the ship named after her son, September 5th, 1943, Bethlehem Shipyard, San Francisco, CA.

Whitehurst slides into the waters of San Francisco Bay.

We express our gratitude to Mary Carter Guion, sister of Henry Whitehurst, for preserving and providing the photos on this page, and to her son-in-law, Mike Monkusky who scanned and uploaded them to me. max crow, site author

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Henry Purefoy Whitehurst Jr
16 February 1920 -- 9 August 1942

Henry Purefoy Whitehurst Jr was born in New Bern, N.C. and died in action during the Battle of Savo Island in the U.S Navy's first year in WWII. Appointed midshipman 14 July 1938, graduated with the Naval Academy, 19 December 1941 and reported aboard the heavy cruiser Astoria, 18 January 1942 in Pearl Harbor Hawaii. He served as junior watch and division officer aboard Astoria during the Battles of Coral Sea and Midway and during the landings on Guadalcanal on 7 August 1942. The next day the Astoria screened for the vital transports as they unloaded supplies and equipment for the marines ashore, and that evening stood out to a night retirement station off Savo Island. In the early hours of 9 August, a Japanese force under Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawawhich unleashed a devastating night attack on the Southern and Northern Forces. In the former, Chicago (CA-29) was damaged and the Australian heavy cruiser HMAS Canberra was crippled so badly that she later sunk. The Northern Force, unaware of the enemy's presence until too late, soon took staggering punishment. Vincennes (CA-44) and Quincy (CA-39) sank before daylight. Astoria lingered on while her surviving officers and men labored to save their ship. However the damage proved too great; and Astoria, like her two sister ships, eventually succumbed shortly after noon on 9 August. Among the dead suffered in the Battle of Savo Island was Ensign Whitehurst.


Midshipman Henry P. Whitehurst, 1938 and as an Upperclassman

Robbie Sams Whitehurst christens the ship named after her son, September 5th, 1943, Bethlehem Shipyard, San Francisco, CA.

Whitehurst slides into the waters of San Francisco Bay.
We express our gratitude to Mary Carter Guion, sister of Henry Whitehurst, for preserving and providing the photos on this page, and to her son-in-law, Mike Monkusky who scanned and uploaded them to me. max crow, site author