Y2c Warren Joseph Sherrill

Warren Joseph Sherrill and his twin, John Benjamin Sherrill, left high school in Corpus Christi, Texas, in October 1938 to enlist in the Navy.

They were both on the U.S.S. Arizona until 1940 when John transferred to a destroyer. Warren remained on the Arizona and was killed Dec. 7, 1941 in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He was a yeoman, petty officer second class, and a chaplain’s assistant.

His body was recovered and returned to Corpus Christi after the war. A Mass was said for him at the cathedral and he was buried at Holy Cross Cemetery. A part of the shoreline in Corpus Christi is named Sherrill Park and an American Legion Post was also named in his memory.

The twins were born Sept. 29, 1920 to Korah Ellis Sherrill and Lora Mary Williams Mathews Sherrill. He was a doctor and she was a homemaker. They divorced in 1925.

The mother remained active for years in the Texas Gold Star Mothers Association and in the American Legion Auxiliary. She worked to support her family as a waitress and then as a nursing home owner.

Warren’s twin survived the war, but a third brother, Koren, died while on leave from the Coast Guard in 1944.

At least four half brothers also served in World War II and survived.  Ellis Pinckney Sherrill was a technician in the Army medical department. Sidney Howard Sherrill was a pharmacist’s mate in the Naval Reserve. Hoke Korah Sherrill was a chief electrician’s mate in the Naval Reserve. Armon Hadley Sherrill was a chief metalsmith aboard a destroyer during most of the war.

Sources: South Texas Catholic magazine; Corpus Christi Caller-Times; The Oakland (California) Tribune; Navy muster rolls; headline application for military veterans; Census; marriage and divorce records;  “History of Kansas and Kansans. This profile was researched and written on behalf of the U.S.S. Arizona Mall Memorial at the University of Arizona.