Frank W. Fenno – Rear Admiral, United States Navy

Frank W. Fenno was born in Massachusetts on 11 September 1902.  He served in the United States Navy and progressed through the ranks to Rear Admiral.  During his career, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the Navy Cross with two Gold Stars, the Silver Star Medal, the Legion of Merit with Gold Star and the Bronze Star Medal.

Admiral Fenno died on 16 August 1973 and was buried with full military honors in Section 5 of Arlington National Cemetery.

May 25, 1942:

Lieutentant Commander Frank W. Fenno won the Distinguished Service Cross. Seventy officers and men of his submarine command were awarded Silver Stars. They got these awards for steering their submarine, loaded with a huge store of gold, silver and other Philippine treasure, from Corregidor through Jap-infested waters to a cruiser that transshipped the precious cargo to San Francisco. But in that prodigious, daring smuggling feat there was one unsung hero.

Behind the exploit was the patient labor of a tall, thirtyish, toothy assistant to U.S. High Commissioner Francis B. Sayre named Woodbury Willoughby. Willoughby gathered the treasure from Philippine banks, counted gold and silver, burned currency and securities after recording their serial numbers, then supervised its transfer to the sub.

Last week Willoughby turned up in San Francisco with a sheepish grin and one bar of gold, which he turned over to authorities, saying, “Here’s one I forgot.”

Michael Robert Patterson

Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.

Reviewed by: Michael Howard