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CM3c Harley Wade Craft
Harley Wade Craft was born Nov. 13, 1918 near Wendling, Oregon. His father, Lee Craft, worked at a lumber mill and his mother, May Cerney Craft, was a homemaker.
His parents divorced in 1925 and by 1930 the boy was living with his mother and stepfather in Portland, Oregon.
When Harley applied to enlist in the Navy in the spring of 1938 he said he’d completed 10th grade at Kings Valley High School and was a truck driver. He was living at Hoskins, Oregon.
He enlisted in the Navy on May 18, 1938, as an apprentice seaman earning $21 a month. Mr. Craft was a carpenter’s mate and petty officer third class on the U.S.S. Arizona when he was killed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.
Mr. Craft was survived by his widow, Florence Moses Craft. They married in January 1941 while the ship was being repaired at the Puget Sound Navy Yard in Washington state.
Sources: The Eugene (Oregon) Guard; the Corvallis (Oregon) Gazette-Times; Census; Navy enlistment records and muster roll; Washington marriage record. This profile was researched and written on behalf of the U.S.S. Arizona Mall Memorial at the University of Arizona.
NOTE: If you are a family member related to this crew member of the U.S.S. Arizona, or have additional information, pictures or documents to share about his life or service to our county please contact us through our FAMILY MEMBER SUBMISSION FORM.