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| TRIVIA - THE SULLIVAN BROTHERS
Thomas F. Sullivan, the head of the family, worked for the Illinois Central railroad. He was named after his grandfather who had been born in Ireland. Tom Sullivan married Alleta Able in 1914. As was typical of Irish-Catholic families of that generation, they lost no time in starting a large family.
Most of the family found work at the Rath meat packing plant. When the two oldest, George and Frank, returned home from a hitch in the Navy, all five Sullivan brothers were together again. Albert, the youngest, was first to get married. The other brothers would have probably followed Albert down the isle too, but WWII got in the way. When reports were received about the death of their friend Bill Ball, who was on board the USS Arizona when it went down Dec. 7, 1941, the brothers enlisted in the United States Navy. They insisted that the Navy allow them to remain together throughout their service. The Navy agreed, and on Jan. 3, 1942, less than a month after Pearl Harbor, they were all sworn in at Des Moines, and left for Great Lakes Training Center. Security required that the Navy not reveal the loss of the Juneau or the other ships so as not to provide information to the enemy. Letters from their sons stopped arriving at the Sullivan home and the parent's anguish began as they awaited word. One of the survivors of the Juneau wrote to Tom and Alleta, but they still clung to the hope that their sons, or at least one of them, had survived. Soon an outpouring of sympathy ensued. The "Fighting Sullivan Brothers" were heroes. President Franklin Roosevelt sent a letter of condolence to Tom and Alleta. Pope Pius XII sent a sliver religious medal and rosary with his message of regret. The Iowa Senate and House adopted a formal resolution of tribute to the Sullivan brothers. Thomas and Alleta Sullivan, in spite of losing their 5 sons all at once , made speaking appearances at war plants and ship yards on behalf of the war effort. They hoped that they could prevent the loss of other American boys. Their daughter Genevive often accompanied them, until she joined the WAVES on June 14, 1943. In April of that year Mrs. Sullivan christened a new destroyer the USS Sullivan in San Francisco. The ship is moored in Buffalo, N.Y. as a memorial to the five brothers. Today there is a park and play ground where the Sullivan house once stood. To prevent a tragedy of this magnitude from happening again, Congress passed the "Sullivan Law", which prevents brothers from serving on the same ship. |
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