NOTE: Listed as “Walter” in census data
DOB/DOD: February 19, 1913 (New Britain, CT) – March 13, 1944; 31 years old
MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried
LOCAL ADDRESS: 153 Curtiss Street, New Britain
SERVICE NUMBER: Z-400021
FAMILY: Born to Piotr “Peter” (1878-1973) and Bronislawa “Bertha” Wasewicz Szparkowski (1888-1979). One sister, Jessie Szparkowski Niedzwicki (1912-1970). One brother, Stanley (1923-1996).
CIRCUMSTANCES: On March 13, 1944, the U.S. tanker H.D. Collier was torpedoed by the Japanese submarine I-26 at 21°30´N, 66°11´E. H. D. Collier was en route from Iran to Bombay with 103,000 barrels of gasoline and kerosene. The stern caught fire, and the radio antennae were destroyed. As the stern gun area is in flames and the forward gun cannot be aimed at the submarine, I-26 surfaces and shells the ship. Of the 28-man Armed Guard, 12 perish in the action. On March 16th, she sinks, and the British ship Empire Raja rescues 14 survivors. On March 17th, the last survivors are rescued by SS Karagola.
The fate of I-26
On October 27, 1944, I-26 was ordered to an area east of Lamon Bay, but she never acknowledged the order. When 6th Fleet headquarters issued an order on November 7, 1944, for submarines in the Leyte area to return to their home bases, I-26 did not respond. On November 21, 1944, the Imperial Japanese Navy declared I-26 to be presumed lost with all 105 hands east of Leyte. The Japanese removed her from the Navy list on 10 March 1945.
The cause of the loss of I-26 is controversial. Some historians have concluded that she sank in a diving accident. Others believe it more likely that she was sunk when she attacked the escort aircraft carrier USS Petrof Bay during the night of October 25-26, 1944 in the aftermath of the Battle off Samar and that the destroyer escorts USS Coolbaugh and USS Richard M. Rowell of Petrof Bay′s screen sank her, most likely by a Hedgehog barrage from Richard M. Rowell early on October 26 at 09°45′N 126°45′E. [combinedfleet.com]
Memorialized on the New Britain WWII Memorial, 27 W. Main Street, New Britain, CT.
