Charles William Thompson
Posted: Monday, June 12, 2017 4:26 pm

Services: 9 a.m. Saturday, June 17, at Hathaway-Peterman Chapel, Wheatland. Burial with full military honors will follow at Fairview-Butcher Cemetery, Weaubleau.

Charles William Thompson was born Dec. 25, 1921, the son of Claude C. and Rosa Ana (Selvidge) Thompson. His mother passed away when he was three years of age. He then lived with an aunt and uncle, Mr. and Mrs. Charley Selvidge, who raised him as a son.

Charles graduated from the Weaubleau Missouri High School in 1939. He completed two terms at the Springfield Teachers College in Springfield before enlisting in the U.S. Navy in January 1940.

After completion of his training at the Grand Lakes Naval Training Center in Illinois, Charles was assigned to the USS Oklahoma. On Dec. 7, 1941, this ship was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, when it was attacked by Japanese aircraft and sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to capsize. Charles and 428 other crewmen on the USS Oklahoma were killed. All were posthumously awarded the Purple Heart.

At the time of his death, Charles had achieved the rank of Fireman First Class. In letters to his family and friends, he indicated that he loved his job and enjoyed being in the Navy.

In June 1944, the Navy had completed the task of recovering the remains of the deceased crewmen. Those who could not be identified (including Charles) were ultimately interred in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu.

In 2015, the Deputy Secretary of Defense directed the disinterment of the crew of the USS Oklahoma. DPAA and Armed Forces Medical Examiner scientists identified Charles' remains using mitochondrial DNA analysis, matching him to a niece, Corinne Bubier-Johnson and her two brothers, Durl Bowell and Richard Boswell, who are his closest living relatives. They are the children of the late John and Ruby (Thompson) Boswell. Ruby was a sister to Charles.

Charles will be buried, with full military honors, next to his mother's grave in the Fairview-Butcher Cemetery in Butcher.

Rev. Kent Parson will officiate.

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http://www.news-leader.com/story/news/local/ozarks/2017/06/16/lost-attack-pearl-harbor-missouri-sailor-finally-returns-home/399288001/

http://bolivarmonews.com/news/local-wwii-sailor-identified/article_7a948390-521a-11e7-8e8b-abbbde8a960f.html


http://www.ky3.com/content/news/sailors-remains-pearl-harbor-back-home-428941163.html

Charles Thompson Memorial Erected, The Index, Hermitage Mo., 14 Nov 1946, p1.

Charles Thompson Death, The Index, Hermitage, Mo., 25 May 1944, p1.

Charles Thompson MIA-Declared Dead, The Index, Hermitage, Mo., 30 Apr 1942, p2.

Charles Thompson Obituary, The Index, Hermitage, Mo., 21 May 1942, p1.

Reception at Kansas City International Airport upon arrival of Fireman First Class Thompson's remains to his home state.