Elderly Kentuckian Vaughn Drake, recognized as the oldest known survivor of the Pearl Harbor attack, passes away at 104 years old.
Central Kentucky Native and Oldest Known Pearl Harbor Survivor, Vaughn P. Drake, Jr., Passes Away at 106
Vaughn P. Drake, Jr., a central Kentucky native and the oldest known survivor of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, passed away last week at the age of 106.
At the time of the attack, Drake was 23 years old and serving in the US Army. He was helping to build barracks at Kaneohe Naval Air Station on the east side of Oahu. Initially, he thought the planes flying overhead were part of a military exercise. However, an officer informed him and others that the island was under attack, and they witnessed a bomb hitting one of their buildings. It was then that Drake realized it was a real attack.
Drake served with the Army Corps of Engineers in the Pacific during the war, including on Saipan in the Marianas campaign. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and a former member of the Society of American Military Engineers. After the war, Drake returned to Kentucky and worked with General Telephone of Kentucky as an engineer until retirement.
Throughout his life, Drake was an active member of various organisations. He was a life member of the University of Kentucky Alumni Association and the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association. He was also a member of the Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, the National Society of Professional Engineers, and the charter member and past president of the Bluegrass Chapter of the Kentucky Society of Professional Engineers. His experiences were documented by Pacific Historic Parks.
Drake is survived by his son Sam W. Drake, two grandsons, and three great grandchildren. His wife, Lina Wilson Drake, passed away on Dec. 23, 2011.
Visitation for Drake will be held on Thursday from noon to 2 p.m., followed by military burial services at the Winchester Cemetery at 3 p.m.
In 2016, Drake gave an interview to the Lexington Herald Leader, discussing his experiences during the Pearl Harbor attack. Despite his advanced age, Drake's legacy will live on as a testament to the resilience and bravery of those who served during World War II.
Read also:
- United States tariffs pose a threat to India, necessitating the recruitment of adept negotiators or strategists, similar to those who had influenced Trump's decisions.
- Weekly happenings in the German Federal Parliament (Bundestag)
- Southwest region's most popular posts, accompanied by an inquiry:
- Discussion between Putin and Trump in Alaska could potentially overshadow Ukraine's concerns
