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CTCP Walter Charles Ebel
Walter Charles Ebel was born March 22, 1895 at Genesee in northern Idaho. His mother, Freida Mattausch, was a homemaker and his father, Charles Ebel, a farmer. They were German immigrants and Walter was the oldest of their 14 children.
It isn’t clear when Walter enlisted in the Navy, but a family photo dated 1915 shows him in uniform. The 1920 Census listed him as a chief gunner’s mate. His family was still in Genesee, population 676.
He married Florence Murphy in 1926 and their son, Edward, was born in 1928 in Long Beach, California, next to the home port of the U.S.S. Arizona.
Walter Ebel was a turret captain and chief petty officer on the battleship when he was killed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941.
At least three of his brothers, Robert, Charles, and Anthony, also served in the military during World War II.
Sources: the San Bernardino County (California) Sun; the Lewiston (Idaho) Tribune; the Spokane (Washington) Chronicle; Census; Connecticut marriage record; World War II draft registration card; Veterans Administration. Ancestry.com photograph. This profile was researched and written on behalf of the U.S.S. Arizona Mall Memorial at the University of Arizona.