In the annals of military history, few stories resonate with such profound sacrifice and unwavering fraternal devotion as that of the Sullivan Brothers.
Their tragic yet inspiring tale is a powerful testament to the human cost of war and the enduring spirit of family, particularly within the rich tapestry of Irish-American heritage.
As we delve into their story, we uncover not just a wartime tragedy, but a legacy that shaped U.S. military policy and continues to touch hearts across generations.
A Nation Rises: The Call to Duty
The bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, ignited a fierce wave of patriotism across America. Young men, part of what is now rightly considered “America’s Greatest Generation,” streamed into recruiting offices across the country, eager to defend their nation against the Axis powers. The collective determination to avenge the attack and protect freedom was palpable.
Even amidst this surge of enlistments, one particular moment at the Des Moines Naval Recruiting Station on January 3, 1942, must have stood out. Before the recruiting officer stood not one, but five brothers, all determined to join the U.S. Navy. Their one, non-negotiable stipulation was simple: they would not be split up. They would “stick together.”
The Sullivan Family: Roots in the Emerald Isle
These were the Sullivan Brothers: George Thomas, 27; Francis Henry (“Frank”), 26; Joseph Eugene (“Joe”), 24; Madison Abel (“Matt”), 23; and Albert Leo (“Al”), 20. They were born into a working-class Irish-American family in Waterloo, Iowa. Their lineage traced directly back to the Emerald Isle; they were descended from Mary Bridget and Tom O’Sullivan, a young couple who bravely left the Beara Peninsula in County Cork, Ireland, during the devastating Great Famine in 1849. This heritage, steeped in resilience and strong family bonds, undoubtedly contributed to their resolve.
Their parents, Thomas F. Sullivan, a freight conductor for the Illinois Central Railroad, and Alleta Abel, were parishioners at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Waterloo. They had seven children in total, five sons and two daughters, though one daughter tragically died in infancy. This family history forms the bedrock of their profound sacrifice. For those wondering, Did the Sullivan brothers have any other siblings? Yes, they had a sister, Genevieve, who survived them.
The immediate catalyst for their joint enlistment was deeply personal. News of their friend William Ball’s death aboard the USS Arizona during the Pearl Harbor attack in December 1941 spurred the brothers to action. They were driven by a desire to avenge his loss. George and Frank Sullivan had only been discharged from the Navy less than a year before, having served together previously on the USS Hovey, demonstrating their prior commitment to naval service.
The Plea to “Stick Together”: A Precedent Set
At the time, the Navy generally discouraged siblings from serving together on the same ship due to the inherent risks. However, George, embodying the unwavering bond of the brothers, penned a heartfelt letter to the Secretary of the Navy. In his plea, he cited his and Francis’ recent joint service and earnestly asked if he and his brothers could once again “stick together.” George’s letter closed with a powerful and prophetic phrase: “We will make a team together that can’t be beaten.” Remarkably, the Secretary of the Navy granted their unusual request, a decision that would forever link their names with both courage and profound tragedy.
After their training, all five Sullivan brothers were assigned to the newly christened light cruiser, the USS Juneau. They were not the only brothers on board; at least thirty sets of siblings served on the Juneau, including the two Rogers brothers from Bridgeport, Connecticut. This was a testament to the patriotic fervor of the time, but it also inadvertently set the stage for unimaginable loss for multiple families.
The Naval Battle of Guadalcanal: A Fateful Night
In November of 1942, U.S. and Japanese forces were locked in a deadly, protracted struggle for control of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands, a pivotal campaign in the South Pacific. The waters around Guadalcanal became known as “Ironbottom Sound” due to the sheer number of ships sunk there.
Shortly after midnight on November 13, one of the most dramatic naval engagements of the war erupted in the strait between Guadalcanal and Florida Island. American and Japanese naval task forces engaged each other at point-blank range in a chaotic night battle.
The USS Juneau was an early casualty. She exchanged fire with the Japanese destroyer Yūdachi but failed to make any hits. However, the Juneau then became the focus of the destroyer Amatsukaze, which had just sunk the destroyer USS Barton. Amatsukaze fired a spread of four torpedoes. One of these torpedoes struck the Juneau, critically damaging her. It buckled her deck, destroyed her fire control systems, and knocked out electrical power, reducing her speed to 13 knots. The crippled Juneau was forced to withdraw from the main battle.
Later that same day, as the Juneau was limping away from the Solomon Islands area towards the Allied rear-area base at Espiritu Santo with other battle-damaged U.S. warships, disaster struck again. The force was located by the Japanese submarine I-26. The submarine fired two torpedoes at the crippled heavy cruiser USS San Francisco, which was also heavily damaged. Both torpedoes missed their intended target, but one tragically hit the Juneau. The torpedo likely struck the thinly armored light cruiser at or near her ammunition magazines, and the ship was catastrophically blown in half. In a fiery explosion, the USS Juneau quickly sank.
The Immediate Aftermath and Delayed Rescue
Approximately 100 of Juneau’s crew initially survived the torpedo attack and the rapid sinking of their ship, finding themselves adrift in the vast, unforgiving ocean. However, what followed was a series of unfortunate decisions and miscommunications that sealed the fate of most of these men.
Captain Gilbert C. Hoover, commanding officer of the light cruiser USS Helena and the senior officer present afloat (SOPA) of the battle-damaged U.S. task force, was skeptical that anyone could have survived the violent sinking of Juneau. Believing it would be reckless to search for survivors and thereby expose his already wounded ships to a still-lurking Japanese submarine threat, he ordered his ships to continue on towards Espiritu Santo. He did, however, signal a nearby U.S. B-17 bomber on patrol to notify Allied headquarters to send aircraft or ships to search for survivors.
Tragically, the B-17 bomber crew, operating under strict orders not to break radio silence, did not pass the crucial message about searching for survivors to their headquarters until they had landed several hours later. Once reported, the crew’s message about the location of possible survivors was unfortunately mixed in with other pending paperwork and went unnoticed for several critical days. It was not until days after the ship had been sunk that headquarters staff realized that a rescue operation had never been mounted. Belatedly, aircraft were ordered to begin searching the area. In the agonizing interim, Juneau’s survivors, many of whom were seriously wounded, were exposed to the brutal elements, suffering from hunger, thirst, and horrific, repeated shark attacks.
The Fate of the Brothers: “All Five”
Eight agonizing days after the sinking, only ten survivors from the USS Juneau were found by a PBY Catalina search aircraft and retrieved from the water. Their harrowing accounts revealed the individual fates of the Sullivan brothers:
- Francis, Joseph, and Madison were all killed instantly in the initial attack when the torpedo struck.
- Albert drowned the next day, succumbing to the ordeal in the water. Al was survived by his wife, Katherine Mary, and their young son, Jimmy.
- George was one of the approximately 80 men who initially made it to life rafts. However, he would tragically die a few days later from shock, exposure, or, as some accounts suggest, from delirium and grief at the loss of his brothers. Some sources describe him being “driven insane with grief” at the loss of his brothers. He climbed over the side of the raft he had occupied and fell into the water, never to be seen or heard from again.
Out of the hundreds aboard the USS Juneau, only these 10 men ultimately survived. The news of the unprecedented loss of all five brothers, initially withheld due to wartime security, eventually reached their parents. Letters from their sons stopped arriving, and their mother, Alleta Sullivan, grew desperately worried. She wrote to the Bureau of Naval Personnel in January 1943, citing rumors that survivors of the task force claimed all five brothers were killed in action.
This heart-wrenching letter was answered by President Franklin D. Roosevelt himself on January 13, 1943, acknowledging that the Sullivans were missing in action. However, their parents had already learned of their unimaginable fate the day before, on January 12. That morning, their father, Tom, was preparing for work when three men in uniform – a lieutenant commander, a doctor, and a chief petty officer – approached his door. “I have some news for you about your boys,” the naval officer stated. Tom, fearing the worst but perhaps not expecting the magnitude of the blow, asked, “Which one?” The officer’s somber reply delivered the crushing news: “I’m sorry. All five.”
This tragic revelation profoundly touched the hearts of the American people, eliciting an outpouring of grief and sympathy. President Roosevelt sent a personal letter of condolence to their parents. Pope Pius XII sent a silver religious medal and rosary with his message of regret. The Iowa Senate and House adopted a formal resolution of tribute to the Sullivan brothers. The “Fighting Sullivan Brothers” became national heroes, symbols of immense sacrifice.
A Lasting Legacy: The Sullivan Brothers Law and Beyond
The unparalleled loss of the five Sullivan brothers, followed by the tragic deaths of four Borgstrom brothers within a few months of each other two years later, directly led to a significant policy change in the U.S. military. The U.S. War Department adopted what became informally known as the Sullivan Brothers law, or more formally, the Sole Survivor Policy. This policy aims to protect surviving family members from enduring further loss by reassigning or discharging individuals who are the last remaining members of a family to serve in a combat zone, or whose siblings have already been killed in action. This policy remains in effect today, a direct and enduring testament to the Sullivan family’s sacrifice.
The memory of the Sullivan brothers was profoundly honored and preserved by the U.S. Navy through the naming of two destroyers. USS The Sullivans (DD-537), a Fletcher-class destroyer, was commissioned on September 30, 1943. This marked a historic first in U.S. Naval history: it was the first time a U.S. Navy ship was named after more than one individual. This Sullivan brothers ship earned nine battle stars in WWII and in Korea before its decommissioning in 1965. In a continuation of their family’s devotion to duty, Albert’s son, Jimmy Sullivan, later served aboard the very ship named after his father and uncles. Today, USS The Sullivans (DD-537) is a cherished exhibit at The Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park in upstate New York.
Decades later, on April 19, 1997, a second Navy ship was commissioned in honor of the brothers: USS The Sullivans (DDG-68), an Arleigh Burke-class (Flight I) Aegis-guided missile destroyer. This modern warship is still in active service, carrying the brothers’ legacy forward into the 21st century. Both ships adopted the Sullivan brothers’ own powerful motto: “We Stick Together.” This phrase, once a simple request, became a timeless symbol of their unity and sacrifice.
Enduring Tributes and Cultural Impact
The sacrifice and devotion of the Sullivan brothers deeply touched the hearts of the American people. In continuing their family tradition of duty, their parents, Thomas and Alleta Sullivan, despite their profound grief and advancing years, made numerous speaking trips across the nation. They tirelessly promoted war bonds, asking that none of their sons died in vain. Their sole surviving sibling, Genevieve (1917–1975), later enlisted in the WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service), further cementing the family’s commitment to service.
The story of the Sullivan brothers resonated far beyond military circles, permeating American popular culture. Hollywood quickly remembered them, first with the 1944 movie The Sullivans, later renamed The Fighting Sullivans, bringing their story to a wide audience. Their experience also served as a significant inspiration, at least in part, for the critically acclaimed 1998 film Saving Private Ryan, which powerfully depicted the perils of brothers serving together in wartime. The Sullivan brothers movie remains a poignant tribute. The alternative rock band Caroline’s Spine also immortalized their tale in the Sullivan brothers song “Sullivan,” further embedding their story in modern memory.
Their hometown of Waterloo, Iowa, has ensured their memory lives on. The city renamed its convention center in 1988 as “The Five Sullivan Brothers Convention Center” (though a proposal in 2017 to sell and rename it met with community opposition). The town also named a street and a public park in their honor, with the park being the location of their childhood home. The Manila American Cemetery and Memorial also lists the five Sullivan brothers, a solemn reminder of their service. A Department of Defense Dependents Schools elementary school in Yokosuka, Japan, is named in their honor, and a museum wing dedicated to their service in World War II was completed in 2008 in downtown Waterloo, opening on November 15, 2008.
The legacy of the Sullivan Brothers is a complex tapestry of grief, pride, and an unbreakable bond. Their story transcends a mere wartime anecdote, serving as a powerful reminder of the deep personal cost of conflict and the extraordinary courage of those who serve. Their Irish-American roots provided a foundation of strong family ties that ultimately led to an unprecedented sacrifice, forever etched into the annals of American history and the hearts of all who hear their tale.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Sullivan Brothers
What is the true story of the Sullivan Brothers?
The true story of the Sullivan Brothers involves five Irish-American brothers from Waterloo, Iowa – George, Francis, Joseph, Madison, and Albert – who enlisted in the U.S. Navy together on January 3, 1942, after their friend was killed at Pearl Harbor. They stipulated they would serve together and were assigned to the light cruiser USS Juneau. All five were killed in action on November 13, 1942, when the Juneau was sunk by a Japanese torpedo during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal.
What happened to the five Sullivan brothers?
All five Sullivan brothers were killed on November 13, 1942, when their ship, the USS Juneau, was hit by a Japanese torpedo. Francis, Joseph, and Madison died instantly. Albert drowned the next day. George survived for a few days on a life raft but succumbed to exposure, shock, or delirium and grief, falling into the water and never seen again. Only 10 of the Juneau’s original crew survived the sinking and subsequent ordeal.
What is the Sullivan brother rule?
The Sullivan Brothers law, more formally known as the Sole Survivor Policy, is a U.S. military policy implemented as a direct result of the Sullivan brothers’ deaths (and other similar losses). This policy aims to protect immediate family members from undue hardship by limiting the deployment of individuals who are the last surviving members of their immediate family in combat zones, or whose siblings have already been killed in action.
Where are the Sullivan brothers buried?
The Sullivan brothers were lost at sea when the USS Juneau sank, and their bodies were never formally recovered or interred in a single burial site. They are honored at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, which lists their names among those missing in action from World War II. Their parents and sister are buried in Calvary Cemetery in Waterloo, Iowa.
Were any of the Sullivan Brothers’ bodies recovered?
No, none of the Sullivan brothers’ bodies were officially recovered after the sinking of the USS Juneau. They remain listed as missing in action. The wreckage of the USS Juneau was discovered off the coast of the Solomon Islands on March 17, 2018.
What happened to the sister of the Sullivan Brothers?
The Sullivan brothers had one surviving sister, Genevieve (1917–1975). In a continuation of the family’s dedication to service, she later enlisted in the WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) during World War II.
Did any of the Sullivan brothers have children?
Yes, at least one of the Sullivan brothers had a child. Albert Leo “Al” Sullivan was survived by his wife, Katherine Mary, and their son, Jimmy. Jimmy later served aboard the first USS The Sullivans (DD-537), the ship named after his father and uncles.
Is there a movie about the Sullivan Brothers?
Yes, there is a movie about the Sullivan Brothers. Their story was adapted into the 1944 film The Sullivans, later renamed The Fighting Sullivans. Their tragic story also partly inspired the 1998 critically acclaimed film Saving Private Ryan.
What family lost the most sons in WWII?
While the Sullivan brothers represent an unparalleled loss of five sons from one family in a single incident, the title for the family that lost the most sons in WWII is often attributed to the Borgstrom family of Utah, who lost four sons within a few months of each other. The deaths of both the Sullivans and the Borgstroms directly influenced the U.S. military’s Sole Survivor Policy.
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