I thought this was kind of cool, in an immensely somber way.

Our grandfather, John Smith Gregory (1862-1933) may help to find his lost grandson.

*  *  *

Yesterday, I contacted an organization in Hawaii in the hope of identifying Wayne Morgan, one of two Arroyo Grande sailors killed on the ship on December 7, 1941.

Some of the victims, unidentified, were buried onshore and new DNA techniques make their identification possible.I got the most thoughtful reply from the group, called Project 85, this morning. Evidently, the DNA trail for Morgan has run out–not enough living relatives. Damn.

However, they asked me if I’d like to donate a sample to potentially identify Electrician’s Mate 2c Charles Taylor, an Arizona sailor from Rock Island, Illinois.

He’s my cousin. We share a common grandfather; his mother was my Aunt Aggie.

Sadly, his father took his own life seven months after Pearl Harbor.

I was just told by telephone that my DNA would be a close enough match, and they’re sending me a DNA swab kit.

I am deeply touched.




Arizona in the van, 1930s.

World War II took a toll on my father’s family. Like Charles B. Taylor, Roy Gregory was his nephew—and my cousin.