The USS Juneau afloat just after being launched at the Federal Shipbuilding Company yard in Kearny, New Jersey, on Oct. 25, 1941. (Public domain photo courtesy Bureau of Ships Collection/U.S. National Archives)
The five Sullivan brothers were all killed in the World War II sinking of the U.S.S Juneau on Nov. 13, 1942. From left to right: Joseph, Francis, Albert, Madison and George Sullivan. (Public domain photo courtesy The National Archives)
Juneau Mayor Ken Koelsch speaks during a memorial service for the USS Juneau on the downtown waterfront on Tuesday, May 16, 2017. Juneau Port Director Carl Uchytil listens at far left. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
Cmdr. Colby Sherwood, commanding officer of the USS O’Kane, speaks during a memorial service for the USS Juneau on the downtown waterfront on Tuesday, May 16, 2017. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
Representatives of the officers and crew from the USS O’Kane place a wreath at the memorial for the USS Juneau on the downtown waterfront on Tuesday, May 16, 2017. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
Members of the USS O’Kane color guard bow their heads during the benediction at Tuesday’s memorial service for the USS Juneau. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
The U.S. Navy destroyer USS O'Kane and its 281-member crew sits in the Gastineau Channel near downtown Juneau on Monday, May 15, 2017. The O'Kane is on a five-day stay in Alaska's capital city, moored offshore. The ship is 505-feet wide ship was commissioned on Oct. 23, 1999. (Photo by Tripp J Crouse/KTOO)
Crew from the USS O’Kane, a U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class Aegis destroyer making a port call in Juneau this week for rest and relaxation, paid their respects on Tuesday to the sailors who died during the sinking of the USS Juneau.
The USS Juneau was a light cruiser that participated in the battle of Guadalcanal, one of the fiercest naval battles of World War II. When the vessel was torpedoed and sunk on Nov. 13, 1942, 687 sailors perished.
Only 10 sailors survived shark attacks and exposure after eight days in the water. Among the dead were five Sullivan brothers.
A memorial for the USS Juneau on the downtown waterfront includes the names of the vessel’s crew.
The five Sullivan brothers weren’t the only set of brothers who perished during the sinking of the USS Juneau, but they were certainly the most famous. After their deaths, most service branches implemented a policy of allowing service exemptions for sole survivors of a family. (Photo by Matt Miller/KTOO)
