He also has a memorial marker at the Mount Carmel Cemetery in Sycamore, Illinois.

View USS Peary Monument

~

USS Peary (DD-226) was laid down by William Cramp & Sons of Philadelphia on 9 September 1919. The destroyer was launched on 6 April 1920, was commissioned on 22 October 1920.

On 19 February 1942 Darwin experienced a massive Japanese air attack. The Peary was attacked by Japanese dive bombers, and was struck by five bombs. The first bomb exploded on the fantail, the second, an incendiary, on the galley deck house; the third did not explode; the fourth hit forward and set off the forward ammunition magazines; the fifth, another incendiary, exploded in the after engine room. A .30 caliber machine gun on the after deck house and a .50 caliber machine gun on the galley deck house fired until the last enemy plane flew away. Lost with the ship were 88 officers and men.

~

Service ID: 2999806.

Entered the service from Illinois.

~

Source material from multiple public domain websites.

Remembered by Buffalo (50696055)∼According to his Missouri birth record he was LEANDER ANTHONY BAUER. He was Leander Bauer in the 1930 US Census for Sycamore, De Kalb, IL. However, he was known as Lee in US Navy records. Leander/Lee was born on 28 Feb 1920 in Montrose, Henry, MO. He was a son of Christopher "Chris" Francis and Rose Marie (Friehammer) Bauer who married in St., Florian, Lauderdale, Alabama on 29 Oct 1913. His seven siblings were Cyril Oliver (1914-2012), Denis William (1916-2007), Margery Irene Minor (1918-2010), Betty L. Roselieb (1921-1991), Robert Wilford (1923-1944), Raymond Edward (1926-1965), and Georgianne Mae Peterson (1928-2007).

Chris was born and raised in a Nebraska farming family. Sometime before April 1910, Chris' parents, John and Elizabeth Bauer, packed up five of their six children plus four of their six Peitzmeier grandchildren and embarked on a 900+ mile journey to the little town of St. Florian, Lauderdale county in Northern Alabama where they purchased a 400 acre farm. What possessed them to perpetrate this unusual move is not known. According to the 1910 census of that place, Chris, 26, was a laborer on his father's farm. His mother died suddenly in St Florian on 12 Oct 1913. She was buried in a local cemetery. Not long after Elizabeth died, John sold the farm in Alabama and purchased 320 acres of land in Montrose, Missouri and lived there a short time. He then divided his land between his two sons, John Jr., and Chris, and retired from farm life.

Rose's father, Alois, as he was known, was a farmer in the Sheboygan, WI vicinity where almost all of his children were born. What possessed Alois and his wife Susanna to move their 8 children to St Florian, AL is also a mystery, but it brought Chris Bauer and Rose Friehammer together. Alois Friehammer died in St Florian on 10 Nov 1917. His wife, Rose, according to the 1920 St Florian, AL federal census, was still there as a farmer with her youngest son, Norbert Friehammer. They eventually returned to Wisconsin.

With their half of the farm in Montrose, Chris and Rose farmed for about 8 years. During that time their first five children were born. About 1922, the Chris Bauer family was on the move again. This time it was Kane county, Illinois where their son Robert Bauer was born. They remained for about four years. About 1925, it was time to move again. This time their destination was Sycamore, De Kalb, IL where their last two children, Raymond and Georgianna, were born. As it turned out, Sycamore would be their forever home.

At the beginning of the Great Depression, the Bauer children's ages ranged from about 16 to the youngest about 2. It was a daunting task to feed ten people on the meager wages of a farm laborer. Some of the older children, when not in school worked at part-time jobs when they could find them. Several of the Bauer sons, Lee and Robert "Bob," worked part-time as newspaper carriers. It was during one of deliveries that Lee was hit by a car on 22 July 1935. He was hospitalized with possible broken ribs and head lacerations. He recovered and continued to deliver newspapers until 1939 when he enlisted in the US Navy. According to the 15 May 1942 Chicago Tribune report on Lee Bauer, it stated that Lee graduated from Sycamore High. The commencement exercises were held on Thursday, 10 Jun 1937 with 59 seniors graduating.

Lee was a child of the Great Depression and, like many of his contemporaries, he dreamt of adventure, a steady income with which to help with family finances and the chance to learn a trade. He saw those opportunities available in the US Navy. With the outbreak of War in Europe on 01 Sep 1939, Lee probably felt a patriot surge that propelled him and 12 other young men to seize the moment in Sept 1939 to obtain a US Navy Enlistment Application from the local Naval Recruiting Station (NRS) in Rockford, Winnebago, IL. There Lee completed a preliminary entrance examination, submitted personal references, completed administrative paperwork which included submitting a valid birth certificate and passing background checks. Because he was not 21 years old, Lee's father had to give his permission for his son to enlist. On 2 Oct, 1939 the 13 men entrained at Rockford for NRS, Chicago were they completed final physical and dental exams on 03 Oct 1939 and enlisted for four years in the US Navy (NSN: 299-98-06) as Apprentice Seamen (AS) at the starting monthly pay of $21.00. Later that day Lee and his fellow recruits traveled the short distance to the Naval Training Station (NTS), Great Lakes, IL to begin 8 weeks of recruit training. Upon completing that training, AS Bauer was granted 10 days of leave to visit family and friends before being assigned to either a Class "A" training school or to a ship of the US Fleet.

After completing his leave, AS Bauer reported for duty on board the battleship, USS Idaho (BB-42) on 23 Dec 1939. After several months on board Idaho, Bauer asked permission to change his navy career path from Seaman to Fireman. On 3 Feb 1940, with permission granted, Bauer changed his rate to Fireman Third Class (F3c). He was then assigned to the engine room on Idaho.

His tour on board Idaho was destined to be very short. On 09 March 1940, Bauer transferred from Idaho to duty at Asiatic Station, Manila, Philippines via the transport ship, USS Henderson (AP-1). After a short yard period at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Henderson got underway from San Francisco clearing the Golden Gate bridge on 27 Mar 1940 steaming for China. She reached Hawaiian waters on 03 April. She cleared Honolulu on 06 April, and continued westward to Guam (19 Apr), then arriving at Manila on 24 Apr. She would continue her journey to China arriving at Shanghai on 01 May. F3c Bauer disembarked upon arrival in Manila and was assigned to the destroyer, USS Peary (DD-216) later that day. Later that year on 16 Nov 1940, Bauer advanced in rate to Fireman Second Class (F2c). The following year, F2c Bauer advanced in rate to Fireman First Class on 01 July 1941.

PRELUDE TO WAR.

Overt hostilities between China and Japan began after the Marco Polo Bridge incident of 07 July 1937. Japanese aggression against it's neighbor continued to escalate each year adding to the distinct possibility that actions against foreign powers who had military and civilian personnel in China might inadvertently draw them into the fray. The US Asiatic Fleet was a force present along the Chinese coast and in some of their rivers. US warships were frequent visitors to coastal cities ostensibly to protect US interests and citizens. On 01 Sep 1939, World War II in Europe began. The quick successes of Germany and her allies against Allied forces in Europe emboldened the militarists of Japan.

Japanese aggression continued to increase in East Asia during 1940 forcing many foreign governments to begin withdrawing their ground based forces and the majority of the naval forces, as well as, evacuating military and civilian expatriates from China. On 28 Apr, Peary steamed out of Manila Bay bound for Hong Kong for some "showing the flag" as the Japanese were becoming ever increasingly bellicose. After visiting several ports along the China coast, Peary got underway from Tsingtao, China on 24 June 1940 steaming back to Manila.

By autumn of 1940, the unstable international situation in the region and Japan's persistent aggression made the presence of the Asiatic Fleet ships untenable, so Adm. Thomas C. Hart, the Commander in Chief, U.S. Asiatic Fleet, ordered the withdrawal of all major Navy blue-water ships from China on 21 October 1940, leaving only the gunboats on the Yangtze. When Peary departed from Shanghai a short time later, it would mark the end of the US Navy's blue-water ships presence in Chinese ports. As the Asiatic Fleet reduced its presence in China, Peary's operations indefinitely shifted to the Philippine Archipelago. During 1941, the bulk of her activities included training and patrols around the Philippine Islands.

Admiral Hart began evacuating all of the families of his married sailors home in late 1940. There was push-back from the resentful spouses who initially declined to leave their husbands. It was only a threat to indefinitely restrict their spouses to their ships without leave that finally convinced the families; it was time to comply with orders and return to the continental United States (CONUS). Many traveled home on the President's Steam Ship Line. Admiral Hart's directive probably saved many family members from internment by the Japanese or worse. For many of the married and unmarried sailors alike, it was the last time they would ever see their families.

The threat of hostilities between the United States and Japan grew closer to the boiling point as the year 1941 began. Then, in July 1941, as Japanese aggression intensified with their move south into lower Indo-China, Admiral Hart warned his officers that he had no doubt that war would come although he didn't know how or when hostilities would start. Hart trained his destroyer crews hard keeping them on a war-footing for extended periods and away from Cavite naval base as much as possible exercising his "defensive deployment."

On 25 November 1941, two days in advance of the "war warning" which predicted that hostile Japanese action in the Pacific was imminent, Admiral Hart directed units of the Asiatic Fleet including destroyer tender USS Black Hawk (AD-9), and other ships of Destroyer Squadron Twenty-Nine (DesRon) 29, to exercise his "Defensive Deployment" well south of Manila. The ships arrived on the morning of 29 Nov 1941 in Balikpapan, a major oil port on the eastern coast of Borneo. Some ships remained at Cavite for operational reasons. Peary was one of four destroyers to remain in Cavite with the USS Pillsbury (DD-227), USS Pope (DD-225) and USS John D. Ford (DD-228). In Nov 1941, Buer wrote to his parents. He told them he was in the Philippines at Manila and that he had been on the Henderson. He said their ship was in a collision and a large gash was ripped in its side. He believed the repairs who take about 3 months. He didn't know if he was going to be transferred to another ship or not. The ship collision he spoke about was between Peary and Pillsbury that occurred in Oct 1941.

Govern Yourself Accordingly.

On 7 December 1941 [8 December east of the International date Line], the Japanese onslaught began across a wide area, from the Far East to Pearl Harbor. When word was received that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor. Adm Hart direct his forces to "Govern Yourself Accordingly." Several days later all hell broke loose at Manila Bay! Wednesday morning, 10 Dec 1941 in Manila broke with clear skies. Just passed high noon and without warning, scores of Japanese fighters and bombers appeared overhead and commenced to wreak havoc on the naval facilities and ships still inport. When the attack was over, most of the naval base was reduced to rubble. Peary had been struck by a bomb which caused extensive damage. A number of her crew were killed, wounded and missing further reducing her manning complement further below acceptable levels. According to Peary's deck log, F1c Bauer was on board during the attack, but he was not wounded. According to a newspaper article dated 30 Dec 1941, Bauer had sent a telegram to his parents from Manila stating he was safe.

After the 10 Dec attack, Peary's remaining crew set to work repairing their ship. It was a Herculean effort performed by the crew in conjunction with the facilities of Atlantic Gulf and Pacific Company to effect the minimum repairs in order to make Peary sea-worthy. Because a large number of Peary's crew were lost, a call for replacements was made by Peary's CO to COMAF and Commandant, Sixteenth Naval District (COM16ND) in Manila. Many sailors from other commands would be transferred to Peary over the next several weeks to help fill her manning shortages. On 23 Dec 1941, Peary got underway on her first war mission; an antisubmarine patrol assignment in the Verde Island Passage between Luzon and the Philippine island of Mindoro. She returned to port late on 24 Dec. On Christmas Day, she made passenger pick-up and delivery runs to Corregidor and Manila.

The day after Christmas 1941, the CO's of Pillsbury and Peary were ashore at a conference with COM16ND, Admiral Rockwell, to discuss releasing their ships to join other US forces in the Netherlands East Indies when enemy bombers suddenly appeared overhead. Peary was attacked by five flights of Japanese high level bombers. Each flight consisted of between 6 to 9 planes. Peary's new CO, Lt Bermingham, watched from ashore as his new executive officer, Lt Martin M. Koivisto, skillfully maneuvered Peary around Manila Bay dodging bomb after bomb for several hours. Though she suffered a few near misses, Peary emerged virtually unscathed. Later that evening, Peary and Pillsbury were ordered to put to sea and proceed south by the best route and join Task Force 5 at Soerabaja, Java. For safety, each ship was to proceed independently.

Peary's voyage south was eventful and dangerous as the Japanese held mastery of the air and sea. Intelligence information provided to Peary just after her departure from Manila indicated that Japanese warships probably lurked along his intended route to Surabaja. Peary's CO changed her track and destination to Darwin, Australia. Peary traveled only by night and during the day she was brought close to shore and tied up to trees and covered with palm fronds and green paint in order to blend with the flora of the various islands. Several times, Japanese bombers flew overhead but did not detect the ship.

About 0800, 28 Dec, Peary sighted a large Japanese four-engine seaplane shadowing her. It was a Kawanishi HK6 "Mavis" flying boat. About 1400, three more Mavis' joined and the attacks began with each plane making two runs dropping a single bomb estimated at 500 pounds. During the attacks, gun crews on Peary kept up continuous fire at the enemy planes. She maneuvered successfully avoiding the bombs while her gun crews threw up a curtain of anti-aircraft fire.

Finally, after the flying boats completed their attacks, two twin engine, single wing torpedo planes appeared and commenced an attack on Peary dropping two torpedoes off the port bow and two off the port quarter. Again, the skipper maneuvered the ship out of danger. However, after dropping their ordnance, the enemy torpedo planes returned to fired several strafing bursts which struck the stacks. They were driven off by heavy shipboard machine gun fire.

About 1800, off Kema Island in the Bangka Strait, three Australian Lockheed Hudson patrol bombers were sighted approaching from astern. The aircraft challenged Peary via signal light and she responded. The pilot was seen to wave his arm. However, one of the planes assumed a glide bombing profile. Peary's anti-aircraft batteries opened fire and began maneuvering radically. One of her crewman lost his balance and fell overboard (he was picked up by a fisherman, but was turned over to the Japanese. He worked in a mine in Japan and was repatriated at the end of the war.).

Each Hudson made two attacks dropping a single 250 pound shrapnel bomb. There were no direct hits but near misses caused extensive damage. Peary was hit in various places topside and in the engineering spaces. The shrapnel hit in the engineering spaces and knocked one of Peary's two main engines out of commission. One crewman was killed when he was struck by shrapnel (S1c Kenneth E. Quinaux, a machine gunner, was buried at sea during services at 2000 on 29 Dec 1941.). Prior to departing, each Hudson made a strafing run on the ship. It was learned later that the Australian aircraft had misidentified the US ships because of their resemblance to a class of Japanese warship.

Peary anchored at Port Darwin at 0840, 03 Jan 1942 after a 2100 mile plus transit from Manila, Philippines to Darwin, Australia. Within a week of arriving at Darwin, twenty-eight enlisted men and officers became ill with a virulent form of Malaria or Dengue Fever, contracted when the ship anchored off remote Maitara Island near Ternate in the Halmakeras. It had been necessary to stop there to make repairs after being attacked by Australian aircraft. Eventually eight men would die from the diseases.

Peary received tender availability services from USS Black Hawk (AD-9) to affect temporary repairs and make Peary seaworthy. Those repairs were completed on 22 Jan 1942. Peary then assumed submarine escort duties.

On 29 Jan 1942, Peary steamed from Darwin bound for the island of Timor on a secret mission. She was to deliver a "special duty" contingent of sixteen US Army personnel, 100 drums (5300 gal) of avgas and 50 gallons of lube oil after midnight on 31 Jan 1942 to a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) field. The fuel and lubricant was to be used by US Army Air Force P-40s in the defense of Java. Five Peary crewmen manned the motor whaleboat used to ferry the men and cargo ashore. Problems quickly developed. As the boat approached the shore it went aground and due to broaching seas it could not be towed clear. Because of the high sea state, it was not possible to remove the crew or return to them to the ship. The motor whaleboat crew were left ashore until such time as the tides shifted and seas moderated before they could be returned to the ship.

She resumed her anti-submarine escort duties for USS Langley (AV-3) from Darwin to Fremantle, Australia between 08-13 Feb 1942, and she steamed with USS Houston escorting a Darwin-Koepang convoy from 14 to 18 Feb 1942. She was also searching for an elusive Japanese submarine contact which reduced her fuel supply such that she had to return to Port Darwin to refuel. Her luck was about to run out.

Peary returned to Port Darwin and anchored about 0100, 19 Feb 1942. About 1045, Port Darwin was subject to a massive air attack by a combined Japanese carrier and land base force of over 200 fighters and bombers. Peary, just underway, was hit by five bombs. The fifth bomb, an incendiary, exploded in the after engine room opening the ship to the sea. She sank, stern first with her anti-aircraft guns still firing as the last enemy planes left the area.

Eighty-eight officers and men including the commanding officer were killed in her sinking; 57 survived, 20 of whom were wounded. F1c Bauer was believed to have gone down with his ship. He was listed as missing in action on 19 Feb 1942. On 10 April 1942, Mr and Mrs Chris Bauer received a telegram from the Navy Department. It read in part; "The Navy Department deeply regrets to inform you that your son, Lee Anthony Bauer, Fireman First Class, US Navy is missing following action in the performance of his duty and in the service of his country."

According to a story in The True Republican, a local De Kalb, IL newspaper dated 27 Oct 1942, – Today, to the Navy heroes of all our wars, we add the name of Lee A. Bauer, son of Mr and Mrs. Chris Bauer, who so gallantly surrendered his life in the fight for freedom and the United States. Sycamore proudly stands at attention on this Navy Day to pay tribute to his valiant Soul and his supreme sacrifice made in the far-flung Pacific waters in this World War II.

The following year, Mr and Mrs Chris Bauer received a letter from the Secretary of the Navy, Frank Knox, dated 17 March 1943. It read; "After a full review of all available information, I am reluctantly forced to the conclusion that your son, Lee Anthony Bauer, Fireman First Class, U.S.N., is deceased, having been reported "missing in action' on the 19th day of February 1942, being a member of the crew and serving aboard the U.S.S. Peary when that vessel was sunk in the port of Darwin, Australia. In accordance with Section 5 of Public Law 490, 77th Congress, as amended, your son's death is presumed to have occurred on the 20th of February 1943, which is the day following the day of expiration of an absence of twelve months. I extend to you my sincere sympathy in your great loss and hope you may find comfort in the knowledge that your son gave his life for his Country, upholding the highest traditions of the Navy. The Navy shares in your sense of bereavement and will feel the loss of his service."

The Daily Chronicle, another De Kalb, IL newspaper wrote on 15 Apr 43 – Yesterday morning at the St. Mary's Catholic Church, a requiem high mass was said in honor of Lee Bauer, the first Sycamore casualty reported as the result of the present war. The church was filled almost to capacity by the friends of the young man and his many relatives. Bauer was a member of the crew of the US destroyer Perry (sic).8

F1c Bauer was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart, Combat Action Ribbon, American Defense Service Medal w/Fleet Clasp (bronze star in lieu of clasp), Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal w/Fleet Clasp and two bronze stars (one bronze star in lieu of clasp), US Army Presidential Unit Citation, Philippine Presidential Unit Citation, Philippine Defense Medal with a bronze service star, and the WWII Victory Medal.

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Fireman Bauer's family received a personal commemoration from President Franklin D. Roosevelt. It reads:

In grateful memory of Lee Anthony BAUER, who died in the service of his country at Darwin, Australia, ATTACHED U.S.S. Peary, 20 February 1943 (presumed). He stands in the unbroken line of patriots who have dared to die that freedom might live and grow and increase its blessings. Freedom lives, and through it, he lives -- in a way that humbles the undertakings of most men.

//s// Franklin D. Roosevelt,

President of the United States of America

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Citation of Units of Both Military and Naval Forces of the United States and Philippine Governments.

--489--

As authorized by Executive Order No. 9075 (sec. II, Bull. 11, W.D., 1942), a citation in the name of the President of the United States, as public evidence of deserved honor and distinction, is awarded to all units of both military and naval forces of the United States and Philippine Governments engaged in the defense of the Philippines since December 7, 1941. (Later, it was called the Army Presidential Unit Citation).

By order of the Secretary of War:

G. C. MARSHALL,

Chief of Staff.

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Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation

Establishing Authority

The Philippine Presidential Unit Citation was established by Headquarters, Philippine National Defense Forces, General Order Number 532 of September 14, 1946, as amended.

Acceptance by the United States

For service during World War II, acceptance is sanctioned by Public Law 80-314, which authorized the acceptance and wear of foreign decoration, medals, and awards in connection with services in World War II between the inclusive dates of December 7, 1941 and July 24, 1948.

Effective Dates

The Philippine Presidential Unit Citation has been in effect since September 14, 1946.

Criteria

The Philippine Presidential Unit Citation is awarded for extraordinarily meritorious service. The Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation has been awarded to United States military personnel who participated in the following:

• World War II

Service in the defense of the Philippines from December 7, 1941 to May 10, 1942.

Service in the liberation of the Philippines from October 17, 1944 to July 4, 1945.

All U.S. military units and naval vessels that earned any of the Philippine engagement stars are entitled to the Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation.

Certain submarines which maintained physical contact with guerrilla forces during the Japanese occupation of the Philippine Islands.

Online: https://rollofhonor.org/public/htmldetails.aspx?Cat=foreignaward&EntID=352

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Primary Sources:

1) Cox, Jeffery R., Rising Sun, Falling Skies, Osprey Publishing, UK, 2015.

2) Kehn, Donald M. Jr., In the Highest Degree Tragic, The Sacrifice of the U.S. Asiatic Fleet in the East Indies During World War II, Potomac Books, 2017.

3) Deck logs USS Peary retrieved 15 November 2021.

4) Northern Territory Library Roll of Honour: Browse location. www.ntlexhibit.nt.gov.au. Retrieved 20 November 2021. URL may not work.

5) Wikipedia page, USS Peary (DD-226), Retrieved 12 November 2021.

6) Wilde, E. Andrew, Jr. (Ed). U.S.S. Peary (DD-226) in World War II, Manila to Darwin, 12/10/41-2/19/42 : Needham, Mass. : The Editor, 2007. http://destroyerhistory.org/assets/pdf/wilde/226Peary_wilde.pdf

7 Kehn, Donald M. Jr., A Blue Sea of Blood: deciphering the mysterious fate of the USS Edsall, Zenith Press, 2008.

8) Fold3 by Ancestry Navy Muster reports and Change reports

9) Ancestry.com Navy WWII muster and Change reports

10) Iowa, U.S., World War II Bonus Case Files for Beneficiaries, 1947-1959 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016.

11) Bernauer, Maryanne, History of St. Florian, online database retrieved 21 Jun 2023.

Newspaper sources:

1 – The Daily Chronicle (De Kalb, IL) – 23 July 1935, Tues p.3

2 –The Daily Chronicle (De Kalb, IL) – 04 Oct 1939, Wed – p.5

3- The True Republican (Sycamore, IL) – 09 Aug 1940, Fri – p.1

4- The Daily Chronicle (De Kalb, IL) – 11 Oct 1939, Wed, p.2

5- The Daily Chronicle (De Kalb, IL) – 15 May 1942, Fri – p.2

6– The Daily Chronicle (De Kalb, IL) – 08 Dec 1941, Mon – p.9

7- The True Republican (Sycamore, IL) – 27 Oct 1942, Tue, p.1

8- The Daily Chronicle (De Kalb, IL) – 15 Apr 1943, Thur – p.2

9- The True Republican (Sycamore, IL) – 30 Dec 1941, Tue – p.3

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Link to USS Peary memorial in Darwin, Australia with list of names of those lost in the sinking of the ship. It's a cenotaph. https://www.maritimequest.com/misc_pages/monuments_memorials/uss_Peary_memorial.htm

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Bio sketch #425 compiled on 19 Jun 2023 by Gerry Lawton.

Military Hall of Honor ID# 124735