On December 7, 1941, Japan infamously coordinated an attack of Pearl Harbor. The next day newspapers from all across the country reported that the United States was officially at war. The Allied powers ultimately claimed victory; a victory that may have not seemed possible during the first few months of 1942. Join us on Veterans Day for a dual lecture as museum docent, Whit Drake, and author, Donald Kehn, delve into some of the early events of WWII in the Pacific. They will discuss how the Japanese failed despite having all the pieces in place to win the war and try to untangle the stubbornly interwoven narrative of the sinkings of the USS Pope and USS Edsall.
William (Whit) Drake is native to El Paso and joined the Air Force after graduating from Texas A&M University. After seven years flying B-52s, he came to Houston in the 70’s to work in engineering and construction at Brown and Root. Since retiring after 45 loyal years in the business, he has pursued his passion of military history by diligently researching World War II and sharing that knowledge as a docent at the Houston Maritime Museum.
Donald M. Kehn Jr. is a native Houstonian and lifetime Asiatic Fleet ‘partisan.’ He is the historian for the USS Houston Survivors Association/Next Generations group and for the Texas Commandery, Naval Order of the United States. He is the author of A Blue Sea of Blood; Deciphering the Mysterious Fate of USS Edsall, and In the Highest Degree Tragic; the Sacrifice of the U.S. Asiatic Fleet in the East Indies during WWII.
These lectures are generously sponsored by Frost Bank