Harold Anderson was the Laurel’s third war death

Harold R. Anderson was the third Laurel boy killed in action in World War II.

Harold was born to Reuben and Gladys Anderson in Hartington on Jan. 23, 1920. The Andersons moved to Laurel in January 1922 and Harold attended school through part of his senior year. He seems to have quit school before graduation.

The Advocate of Sept. 7, 1938, reported that Harold had been called to Omaha to take another examination before entering the Navy.

Harold, who was then 18 years old, had signed up for a three-year hitch and planned to be out by his 21st birthday. Following basic training at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center, he was stationed first in the Panama Canal Zone. He then requested a transfer to Hawaii where he was assigned to the crew of the cruiser New Orleans.

In September 1941, the New Orleans was docked at the naval shipyard in Bremerton, Washington. Anderson returned to Laurel on leave, but had to be back on duty by Oct. 17. Some time after that date the New Orleans returned to Honolulu where it was moored on Dec. 7, 1941, during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. During the attack some of the men fired rifles and pistols at the Japanese planes. Because electric power to the ship had been cut off, others passed ammunition hand to hand. Howell Forgy, the ship’s chaplain, walked the ammo handling lines urging the sailors to ‘’Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition.”

Several crew members were injured when a fragmentation bomb exploded nearby. But the ship suffered no major damage and returned to service within a few days ferrying troops to Palmyra Atoll and Johnson Island southeast of Hawaii.

In April the New Orleans participated in the Battle of the Coral Sea where Duane Phillips went down with destroyer Sims. When the carrier Lexington was torpedoed on May 8, 1942, the crew of the New Orleans helped rescue the survivors.

In June the New Orleans participated in the Battle of Midway. During this battle U.S. warships and aircraft inflicted major damage on the Japanese fleet. Midway is considered to be the turning point in the Pacific War.

After Midway the New Orleans returned to Pearl Harbor to replenish supplies before sailing to the Solomon Islands to protect the carrier Saratoga and to support the Marine landing on Guadalcanal. After the Saratoga was hit by a Japanese torpedo on August 31, 1942, the New Orleans escorted the damaged carrier back to Pearl Harbor for repairs.

In early November the New Orleans returned to the Solomons along with four other cruisers and two destroyers to intercept a Japanese force heading for Guadalcanal. As the task force rounded Tassafaronga Point on Guadalcanal Island, the New Orleans was fourth in line behind the cruiser Minneapolis. Shortly before midnight on Nov. 30, 1942, the Minneapolis was struck by two torpedoes which caused the ship to lose power. In order to avoid colliding with the stern of the disabled ship, the New Orleans veered out of line directly into the path of an incoming torpedo. That torpedo struck the New Orleans near the forward gun turret causing an explosion in the ammunition magazine. The explosion severed 150 feet of the bow and killed everyone who was in that part of the ship. Among the dead was Harold Anderson.

On Dec. 23, 1942, Mr. and Mrs. Reuben Anderson received a telegram stating that their son was missing in action. No other details were given. The Andersons, who then operated the Home Cafe and Service on the north edge of town, had two other sons in the service: Robert who had recently enlisted in the Marines and Wayne who had been drafted into the Army.

In April 1943, the Andersons received a letter from the commanding officer of the New Orleans informing them that their son was in the forward part of the ship when it was hit and that he had been killed in action. The news did not come as a complete surprise as the Andersons had heard reports from other men engaged in the same action.

“Nevertheless, the news comes as a great shock and the sympathy of the entire community goes out to the family,” said the Advocate of April 21, 1943.

On Sunday, May 23, a joint memorial service was held in the Methodist church to honor Harold Anderson and Eldon Larson, who also was killed in action in November 1942. Music was provided by the high school girls sextette and the church was filled with friends of the boys and their parents. Although Harold has a stone in the Laurel Cemetery, his remains may lie in the bow of the New Orleans in the murky waters off the coast of Guadalcanal.

Brothers Robert and Wayne survived the war and both lived to the ripe old age of 93. Wayne died in 2011 and is buried in Blair. Robert died in 2016 and is buried in Big Springs, NE.

Despite suffering catastrophic damage, the New Orleans was able to sail to Tulagi and then to Sydney, Australia, where the ship received temporary repairs. From Sydney, the New Orleans was able to make it back to the Puget Sound Navy Yard in Washington state by sailing stern first to avoid taking on water. At Puget Sound the New Orleans was repaired and returned to service. After the war the New Orleans was decommissioned and placed in storage until 1959 when it was scrapped.

With 17 battle stars, the New Orleans was one of the most decorated ships of World War II. The flag flown on the New Orleans on Nov. 30, 1942, is on display at the U.S. Naval Academy museum in Annapolis, Md.