For the most up-to-date version of this article, please visit Seaman 1st Class Frank Sanborn (1925–1946) at Delaware's World War II Fallen.

Early Life and Family

Frank Sanborn was born in Newark, Delaware on July 7, 1925, the son of Italian immigrants Nicholas (who worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad, 1883–1979) and Mary Anne Sanborn (née Charamella 1894–1951). He had two brothers and five sisters. The Sanborn family was living at 131 South Chapel Street at the time of the 1930 and 1940 censuses.

When Sanborn registered for the draft on July 7, 1943, he was living at 131 South Chapel Street, across the street from his employer, the Continental Diamond Fibre Company. He was described as standing 5 feet, 5½ inches tall and weighing 129 lbs., with black hair and brown eyes. An April 19, 1946 article in the Wilmington Morning News stated that “Before entering the Navy he was a motion picture operator at the State Theatre in Newark.”

Military Career

Apprentice Seaman Sanborn joined the U.S. Naval Reserve on September 22, 1943. Summary of career events:

September 29, 1943: Reported for boot camp, U.S. Naval Training Station, Bainbridge, Maryland
November 22, 1943: Completed recruit training and promoted to seaman 2nc class
January 1, 1944: Transferred to the U.S. Naval Air Station, Sanford, Florida
August 1, 1945: Reported for duty at the U.S. Naval Training and Distribution Center at Shoemaker, California
September 6, 1945: Boarded U.S.S. New Mexico (BB-40) as a passenger
September 24, 1945: Boarded U.S.S. Enterprise (CV-6) at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
October 29, 1945: Boarded U.S.S. Missouri (BB-63) at New York City
December 1, 1945: Promoted to seaman 1st class
January 13, 1946: Reported for duty at Fleet Boat Pool, Naval Net Depot, Melville, Rhode Island
March 22, 1946: Injured when he fell from his bunk
March 26, 1946: Hospitalized for abdominal pain (unclear if this was caused by the fall or whether that what a distraction from the appendicitis that was making him sick)
April 16, 1946: Died of complications from a ruptured appendix at the U.S. Naval Hospital, Newport, Rhode Island

The April 19, 1946 article in the Wilmington Morning News stated that he “died Tuesday in the Naval Hospital at Newport, R. I., from injuries sustained in a fall in his barracks several weeks ago.”

An April 18, 1946 article in The Newark Post stated: “Due to be released this week, young Sanborn had been in the Navy for 31 months and saw overseas service in the Pacific theatre. He was a student at Newark High School when he entered the Navy and had served as movie projectionist in Florida and at the State Theatre here.”

After services on April 22, 1946, Sanborn was buried in the St. John’s Roman Catholic Church Cemetery in Newark. He was the last man with a connection to Newark who died while serving in the military during the World War II era, which officially ended on December 31, 1946 by proclamation of President Truman.

Notes

Oddly enough, Sanborn’s father wrote in the Individual Military Service Record that Frank Sanborn joined the U.S. Navy on September 17, 1942 (a year earlier than other sources) and remained there until January 1, 1943. Since the official reviewing the headstone application gave a date of September 22, 1943, Sanborn registered for the draft in July 1943, and a newspaper article stated that Sanborn had been in the U.S. Navy for 31 months at the time of his death, it would seem Nicholas Sanborn meant to write that Sanborn was at Bainbridge from September 1943 until January 1, 1944.

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to the Delaware Public Archives and Newark History Museum for the use of their photos.

This piece was written by Lowell Silverman, part of a series honoring fallen service members. Additional tributes by the author can be viewed here.

Bibliography

Applications for Headstones, compiled 01/01/1925 - 06/30/1970, documenting the period ca. 1776 - 1970. Record Group 92, Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General, 1774–1985. National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2375/images/40050_644066_0014-03429?usePUB=true&usePUBJs=true&pId=1522157

“Frank Sanborn Dies From Injures Received In Fall.” The Newark Post, April 18, 1946. Pg. 1. https://udspace.udel.edu/bitstream/handle/19716/19030/np_037_09.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Frank Sanborn Official Military Personnel File. Record Group 24, Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel. National Personnel Records Center, St. Louis, Missouri.

“Joseph Sanborn.” The News Journal, October 9, 2013. Pg. B10. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/65985346/frank-sanborns-brother/

“Sailor From Newark Fatally Hurt In Fall.” Wilmington Morning News, April 19, 1946. Pg. 2. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/65749558/frank-sanborn-killed/

Sanborn, Nicholas. Frank Sanborn Individual Military Service Record, dated May 10, 1946. Record Group 1325-003-053, Delaware Public Archives, Dover, Delaware. https://cdm16397.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p15323coll6/id/20671

United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Fifteenth Census of the United States, 1930. National Archives at Washington, D.C. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6224/images/4531890_00867

United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. National Archives at Washington, D.C. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2442/images/m-t0627-00546-00284

World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. National Archives at Washington, D.C. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6482/images/005207030_01405

WWII Draft Registration Cards for Delaware, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947. Record Group 147, Records of the Selective Service System. National Archives at St. Louis, Missouri. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2238/images/44003_01_00005-01423

Article last updated on June 3, 2023