F1c John William Lincoln

John “Jack” William Lincoln was born and raised in Iowa, but spent many summers with relatives at Pelican Lake in northern Minnesota. He learned to fish and handle a boat, and was a professional guide on the lake for three summers.

Mr. Lincoln was born Feb. 23, 1922 to Abraham Lincoln, a farmer, and Lois Lincoln, a housewife. President Lincoln was a distant relative. 

The family lived near Dysart in east-central Iowa south of Waterloo until the son was 10. He graduated in 1939 from high school in Norway, Iowa, population 407, about 25 miles to the southeast.

Mr. Lincoln enlisted in the Navy on Oct. 8, 1940, and was a fireman first class on the U.S.S. Arizona when he was killed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.

A memorial service honored him at the Methodist church in Norway in February 1942. The minister preached from Chapter 14 of the Gospel of St. John. His high school class attended as a group.

Sources: Benton County Star of Norway, Iowa; Blairstown (Iowa) Press; Census; Navy muster roll; Iowa application for WWII compensation. This profile was researched and written on behalf of the U.S.S. Arizona Mall Memorial at the University of Arizona.