SK3 Roberto Stillman Garcia, U.S.

Navy December 17, 1918 Killed in Action-December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor, Honolulu, Hawaii

PURPLE HEART

Roberto was born in Concepcion, Texas. The 1920 U.S. Census shows his parents were Nicolas and Cleotilde, and siblings: Cleotilde, Sara, Dora, Esther, Nicolas, and Rodolfo. The census in Justice Precinct 3 (Concepcion) Duval, TX showed that Roberto was 2 years old. SK3 Garcia was aboard the Battleship USS California: (http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/pearlhbr/ph-bba.htm) Before dawn on 7 December 1941, the American strategic center of gravity in the Pacific reposed in the seven battleships then moored along "Battleship Row", the six pairs of interrupted quays located along Ford Island's eastern side. Quay F-2, the southernmost, which usually hosted an aircraft carrier, was empty. Northeastward, Battle Force flagship California was next, moored at F-3. Then came two pairs, moored side by side: Maryland with Oklahoma outboard, and Tennessee with West Virginia outboard. Astern of Tennessee lay Arizona, which had the repair ship Vestal alongside. Last in line was USS Nevada, by herself at quay F-8. These seven battleships, ranging in age from eighteen to twenty-five years, represented all but two of those available to the Pacific Fleet. The Fleet flagship, Pennsylvania, was also in Pearl Harbor, drydocked at the nearby Navy Yard. The ninth, USS Colorado, was undergoing overhaul on the west coast. The USS California during the attack: http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/pearlhbr/ph-ca.htm USS California (BB-44), flagship of the Battle Force, was hit forward and aft by two Japanese torpedoes in the early minutes of the Pearl Harbor raid. She was later hit by a bomb and near-missed by another, which caused additional flooding. California had steam up and was nearly ready to get underway when a large mass of burning oil, drifting down "Battleship Row", threatened to set the ship afire. She was ordered abandoned, and, when the crew returned on board sometime later, it was impossible to control her flooding. Despite strenuous efforts, she slowly settled to the bottom of Pearl Harbor, coming to rest on 10 December. Nearly a hundred of her officers and men were killed in action during the Pearl Harbor attack. Note: From the Chief Rick Stone (charitable) foundation: SK3c Garcia is one of 20 Missing in Action from the USS California at Pearl Harbor for which we conducted extensive research in an attempt to locate and return home. The next pages show the memorials and honorees shown for SK3 Roberto Stillman Garcia.

Roberto Stillman Garcia

BRANCH OF SERVICE

U.S. Navy
HOMETOWN

Premont, TX
HONORED BY Ms. Irene Canales Mackay, Niece ACTIVITY DURING WWII HE WAS KILLED IN ACTION, PEARL HARBOR, DECEMBER 7, 1941. S Garcia
Name: Date of Loss: Branch: Rank: Service Number: Status: Robert S Garcia 7 Dec 1941 0 U.S. Navy SK3 3602144 Missing in Action

Robert S. GarciaID:

03602144

Entered the Service From: Texas Rank: Storekeeper, Third Class Service: U.S. Navy, United States Died: Sunday, December 07, 1941 Memorialized at:

Navy

Honolulu Memorial USA

Location: Honolulu, HI, Awards: Purple Heart