James enlisted into the Navy at the age of 19 on October 22nd of 1943 where he was a first class seaman whose duties could vary, but he most likely was relegated to lower level tasks. His motivations for entering the service were likely as a result of his father, grandfather, and older brother serving in the war. He was also likely emboldened as a result of his brother dying only 2 months after he enlisted. James served aboard the USS Monaghan, whose name comes from John Robert Monaghan who, after taking the examinations to get into the Military Academy at West Point and the Naval Academy at Annapolis, received the highest percentages on both of the examinations. Monaghan ceded his position at his preferred institution instead for the next applicant to be able to attend. Later in his life he served on the ships Olympia and Philadelphia. Eventually Monaghan died against the Samoans in the battle of the First Samoan Civil War, getting struck through the thigh by a sniper.
The USS Monaghan began construction on November 21st, 1933 and was completed and operational by August 30th, 1935. The Monaghan joined with escort ships Crowley and Weaver in order to help aid three oiler ships across the waters of the Philippines when on December 17th and 18th, 1944 they were intercepted by Typhoon Cobra, which claimed the lives of 790 men, leaving only 6 survivors from the Monaghan. Due to the violent storm the Monaghan's bridge was ripped off and the ship capsized. |