Hobart Hare Throckmorton was born June 18,1919 to Tom Bentley and Edna Jeniza (Dudley) Throckmorton.
"Throck", as he was known, enlisted in the Navy in Iowa on June 26, 1941. He earned his wings at Corpus Christi, TX, Jan. 13, 1942, and was sent to San Diego as a pilot with a patrol squadron. He was then sent to the Aleutians in Alaska to counter the Japanese attack, being stationed on Adak Island with Patrol Bombing Squadron 136 (VB-136).
On Sept. 25, 1943, on what was supposed to be a routine training flight, his PV-1 Ventura (BuNo 33133) "experienced an unknown airborne emergency", according to the record, and crashed into the waters of Sweeper Cove, about 6 miles south of the runway. Two crewmembers were rescued by local fishing boats and suffered serious injuries - Throck and three other crewmembers were killed, and their bodies were determined by the DPAA to be unrecoverable.
An avid cartoonist, Throck left behind his parents, siblings, his wife Shirley, and their daughter Ann, along with a legacy of heroism and humor, the evidence of which can be found in surviving cartoons he drew during his time on Adak.
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