William Dodge Sample (March 9, 1898 – October 2, 1945) was a

rear admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

and an Escort Carrier Division commander in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was the youngest rear admiral in the

Pacific Theater of World War II The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

World War I and early career

Sample was born in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...

, and graduated from the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, in June 1918. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Sample served aboard the

transport Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

. For meritorious service during a fire onboard ''Henderson'', he received a letter of commendation from the

Secretary of the Navy The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On March 25, 2025, John Phelan was confirm ...

. Detached in August 1918, he served on several destroyers based at Queenstown,

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. He remained in the European Waters Detachment after the end of World War I. In December 1921, Sample was transferred to the

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

in the

Asiatic Fleet The United States Asiatic Fleet was a fleet of the United States Navy during much of the first half of the 20th century. Before World War II, the fleet patrolled the Philippine Islands. Much of the fleet was destroyed by the Japanese by Februar ...

. Sample attended flight training at

Naval Air Station Pensacola Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola (formerly NAS/KNAS until changed circa 1970 to allow Nassau International Airport, now Lynden Pindling International Airport, to have IATA code NAS), "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United Sta ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, and was designated a

Naval Aviator Naval aviation / Aeronaval is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. It often involves '' navalised aircraft'', specifically designed for naval use. Seaborne aviation encompas ...

on June 23, 1923. Shortly thereafter, he served as commanding officer of Scouting Squadron VS-1. In the 1920s, he successively served in the Aviation Departments of the

light cruiser A light cruiser is a type of small or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck. Prior to thi ...

s and , and

battleship A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...

s and . Sample served on board the

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and hangar facilities for supporting, arming, deploying and recovering carrier-based aircraft, shipborne aircraft. Typically it is the ...

s and , commanding Fighter Squadron VF-5B on the latter from 1932 to 1934. Promoted to lieutenant commander, Sample saw duty at the

Bureau of Aeronautics The Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer) was the U.S. Navy's material-support organization for naval aviation from 1921 to 1959. The bureau had "cognizance" (''i.e.'', responsibility) for the design, procurement, and support of naval aircraft and rela ...

from 1935 to 1937 followed by duty as Navigator on in 1938. In 1939, Sample was assigned as air operations officer on . His last duty before World War II was as supervisor of aviation training at Naval Air Station, Pensacola, Florida.

World War II

At the outbreak of

, he assisted in the conversion of the oil tanker into an escort carrier. Shortly thereafter, he was promoted to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

. Assuming command of ''Santee'' on her commissioning, he was awarded a

letter of commendation Letter, letters, or literature may refer to: Characters typeface * Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech or none in the case of a silent letter; any of the symbols of an alphabet * Letterform, the g ...

for service during

Operation Torch Operation Torch (8–16 November 1942) was an Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. Torch was a compromise operation that met the British objective of securing victory in North Africa whil ...

; the invasion of

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Sample assumed command of on April 19, 1944. In May 1944, he was transferred to serve as commanding officer of and in the ensuing months participated in the

Battle of the Philippine Sea The Battle of the Philippine Sea was a major naval battle of World War II on 19–20 June 1944 that eliminated the Imperial Japanese Navy's ability to conduct large-scale carrier actions. It took place during the United States' amphibious r ...

and a strike against the Volcano Islands. In late summer 1944, Sample was promoted to rear admiral, planting his flag aboard the

escort carrier The escort carrier or escort aircraft carrier (U.S. hull classification symbol CVE), also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the United States Navy (USN) or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slower type of aircraf ...

as commander,

Carrier Division 27 Carrier may refer to: Entertainment * ''Carrier'' (album), a 2013 album by The Dodos * ''Carrier'' (board game), a South Pacific World War II board game * ''Carrier'' (TV series), a ten-part documentary miniseries that aired on PBS in April 200 ...

(CarDiv 27), for the invasion of

Palau Palau, officially the Republic of Palau, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Pacific Ocean. The Republic of Palau consists of approximately 340 islands and is the western part of the Caroline Islands ...

. In October 1944, at the

Battle of Leyte Gulf The Battle of Leyte Gulf () 23–26 October 1944, was the largest naval battle of World War II and by some criteria the largest naval battle in history, with over 200,000 naval personnel involved. By late 1944, Japan possessed fewer capital sh ...

, his CarDiv 27 was part of Task Unit 77.4.2 (TU 77.4.2, otherwise known as Taffy II) at the

Battle off Samar The Battle off Samar was the centermost action of the Battle of Leyte Gulf, one of the largest naval battle in history, largest naval battles in history, which took place in the Philippine Sea off Samar (island), Samar Island, in the Philippin ...

under Rear Admiral

Felix B. Stump Felix Budwell Stump (December 15, 1894 – June 13, 1972) was an admiral in the United States Navy and Commander, United States Pacific Fleet from July 10, 1953 until July 31, 1958. Early life and career Stump was born in Parkersburg, West Virgini ...

. In early 1945, Commander, CarDiv 27, and ''Marcus Island'' supported the

Invasion of Lingayen Gulf The Invasion of Lingayen Gulf (; ; ; ), 3–13 January 1945, was an Allies of World War II, Allied Amphibious warfare, amphibious operation in the Commonwealth of the Philippines, Philippines during World War II. In the early morning of 6 Janua ...

, Philippines. For the

Invasion of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army and United States Marine Corps forces against the Imperial Japanese Army. The initial invasion of Okinawa on 1 April ...

, Sample moved his flag to CarDiv 22 and . During the Leyte invasion, Rear Admiral Sample "desired a better view of operations" and decided to hitch a ride in a

torpedo bomber A torpedo bomber is a military aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with aerial torpedoes. Torpedo bombers came into existence just before the World War I, First World War almost as soon as aircraft were built that were capable of carryin ...

. He lay in the "tunnel gun" position and observed through the window below the tail. The plane was hit by antiaircraft. Sample was severely cut on the head and shoulders. James C. Edinger, ARM3c, USNR, of

Foxburg, Pennsylvania Foxburg is a borough in Clarion County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located along the east bank of the Allegheny River, about north of the mouth of the Clarion River. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 181. History The town ...

), came down from the "blister" where he was manning a machine gun, and applied first aid. Edinger said that it took them more than an hour to return to ''Marcus Island'', during which he kept kicking Sample in the face with his foot to keep the Admiral from passing out. Sample was a big man: Edinger was afraid that if they ended up in the water, he would be unable to get him out of the plane. Each time Sample would warn Edinger to make sure the machine gun in the tail was empty. He was afraid that when they landed the gun would go off. Later, in the state room Sample explained to Edinger that he could see the headlines in the paper, "Admiral lands upon carrier: shoots hole in deck". According to the ship's surgeon, Commander Lee,"the excellence of Edinger's treatment helped prevent infection". Admiral Sample was awarded the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

, and at Sample's request, Edinger was promoted to Aviation Radio Man, Second Class.

Awards

Sample received the Legion of Merit for his service as commanding officer of the ''Hornet'' on June 20, 1944.

Death

On October 2, 1945, shortly after the war ended, Sample was listed as missing after his

Martin PBM Mariner The Martin PBM Mariner is a twin-engine American Maritime patrol aircraft, patrol bomber flying boat of World War II and the early Cold War era. It was designed to complement the Consolidated PBY Catalina and Consolidated PB2Y Coronado, PB2Y C ...

aircraft failed to return from a familiarization flight near

Wakayama Wakayama may refer to: * Wakayama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan * Wakayama (city), the capital city of Wakayama Prefecture, Japan * Wakayama Station, a train station in Wakayama, Wakayama * Wakayama University, a national university in Wakayama, ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. Rear Admiral Sample was officially declared dead on October 3, 1946. He was buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

, in

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...

. The remains of Sample, Capt. Charles C. McDonald of , and the seven members of the flight crew were discovered in the wreckage of the aircraft on November 19, 1948, recovered, and returned to the United States to be interred together at

Family

He was married to Mary Lee Lamar of Pensacola, Florida. They had one daughter, Carolyn Lamar Sample, who lived in Alexandria, Virginia, with her husband David M. Abshire.

Namesake ship

* The frigate was commissioned on March 23, 1968.

Notes

Bibliography

* * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sample, William 1898 births 1945 deaths Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in Japan Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Military personnel from Buffalo, New York United States Naval Academy alumni United States Naval Aviators United States Navy personnel of World War I United States Navy World War II admirals United States Navy admirals Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1945