Lt Commander Willis Manning Thomas – Service # O-0716

Willis Manning Thomas was born 26 Sep 1907 in Richmond, Contra Costa County, California, the son of Benjamin F Thomas and Fanny Manning (died 1922). In 1910, his father was an engineer on the railroad

He married Alice Jessamine Bates at the First Baptist Church on 2 Aug 1931. In 1940, the census shows Willis and Alice living in Vallejo, Solano County, California with their 2 daughters.

Willis entered into the Navy on 17 Jun 1927, per military register. The 1930 census shows Willis at the US Naval Academy at Anne Arundel County, MD serving as a midshipman. In Jun 1931, he graduated from Annapolis as Ensign.

After his marriage and upon return from a honeymoon trip, Willis was to be stationed in late Aug 1931 on the USS Tennessee near Long Beach, CA. On 21 May 1937, he was on the SS Santa Maria sailing from Valparaiso, arriving at the port of New York on 8 Jun. He earned the rank of Lt on 1 Oct 1938.

The USS Pompano was to leave her patrol to return to Pearl Harbor thru Midway (off northeast coast of Honshu, Japan). It was expected the ship would arrive in Midway on 5 Oct 1943, but it never arrived. It was probably lost to Japanese mines. The date for missing of 27 Sep 1943 is an approximate one. The USS Pompano (SS 181) was lost with 77 officers and men.

A cenotaph is in Arlington National Cemetery (section MH, grave 36). Note, the tombstone shows a death date of 4 Jan 1946. He is also memorialized on the Honolulu Memorial in Hawaii.

Lt Commander Willis Manning Thomas, we thank you for your dedication, service and sacrifice for our country. You are not forgotten.

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project (see https://www.storiesbehindthestars.org/). This is a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 400,000+ of the US WWII fallen here on Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will be a smartphone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story.

If you have any details, photos, or corrections for this story, please email me by clicking on my name.
Kathy Harmon- Contributing Author, Stories Behind the Stars

SBTSProject/CA/Solano

Sources –
Page 90 WWII Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard Casualty List - Fold3
Page 73 WWII Navy Muster Rolls - Fold3 – 12/30/1942
Thomas, Willis Manning, CDR: PERSON, pictures and information - Fold3.com
CDR Willis Manning Thomas (1907-1943) - Find a Grave Memorial
Cdr Willis Manning “Tommy” Thomas (1907-1943) - Find a Grave Memorial
U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 - Ancestry.com
1940 United States Federal Census - Ancestry.com
02 Aug 1931, 12 - The Fresno Morning Republican at Newspapers.com
09 Aug 1931, 11 - The Fresno Morning Republican at Newspapers.com
1910 United States Federal Census - Ancestry.com
California Birth Index, 1905-1995 - Ancestry.com
U.S., Select Military Registers, 1862-1985 - Ancestry.com
1930 United States Federal Census - Ancestry.com
Ancestry.com - New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957
Willis Manning Thomas : Commander from California, World War II Casualty (honorstates.org)