Jim O'Sullivan
| Date and Place of Birth: | Date Unknown New York, NY |
| Date and Place of Death: | April 3, 1943 Henderson Field, Guadalcanal |
| Baseball Experience: | College |
| Position: | Catcher |
| Rank: | First Lieutenant |
| Military Unit: | VMSB-233, 1st Marine Air Wing USMC |
| Area Served: | Pacific Theater of Operations |
James A. O'Sullivan was born in New York city and attended Bates
College in Lewiston, Washington, where he excelled as a catcher in
baseball and football. O'Sullivan was also on the basketball and
swimming teams.
Graduating from Bates in 1941, he enlisted in the Navy the following
year and trained as a pilot. He transferred to the Marine Corps in
February 1943 and served in the Pacific as a Douglas SBD-4 Dauntless
pilot at Henderson Field, Guadalcanal. First Lieutenant O'Sullivan was
awarded the Distinguished Service Medal for participation in an aerial
attack that resulted in the sinking of a Japanese transport ship.
At around 7:20pm on April 3, 1943, Lieutenant O'Sullivan crash landed
his SBD-4 at Henderson Field after returning from a task force coverage
mission. He was buried at the Army, Navy, Marine Cemetery at
Guadalcanal.
Bates College baseball team 1941 (O'Sullivan is front row, third from left)
Bates College football team 1941 (O'Sullivan is second row, third from right, #18)
A Douglas SBD-4 Dauntless as Henderson Field, Guadalcanal in 1943. The same type of plane flown by Lt. O'Sullivan
Source
Mirror, Bates College, 1941
Lewiston Evening Journal, April 15, 1943
Thanks to Astrid van Erp for help with this biography.
Date Added June 27, 2014. Updated August 5, 2017
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