Vaughn P. Drake Jr., believed to be the oldest survivor of the 1941 Pearl Harbor attack, died April 7 in Lexington, Kentucky, his family confirmed. He was 106. Drake, a Kentucky native, passed away peacefully in the area where he was raised, according to an obituary published by Milward Funeral Home, via ABC News.
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Drake’s son, Samuel Drake, 74, shared a statement through Military Missions, a Kentucky nonprofit that supports U.S. troops overseas. “My father never chased fame, but he valued preserving history,” Samuel said. “He was proud of his service and his generation’s stand for freedom.”
Pacific Historic Park, a nonprofit tied to Pearl Harbor and other Pacific historical sites, honored Drake in a Facebook post, calling him the “oldest known Pearl Harbor survivor.” Samuel, a Vietnam War veteran, described his father as a devoted husband, loving father, grandfather, and a man of unwavering integrity.
Day of Infamy
On Dec. 7, 1941, Drake, then 23, served in the Army Corps of Engineers at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Japanese aircraft launched a surprise assault on the U.S. Pacific Fleet, catching the base unprepared. “We were in the barracks, getting ready for breakfast,” Drake recalled in a 2016 Lexington Herald-Leader interview. “Planes flew over, making noise. We thought it was U.S. practice maneuvers.”
The illusion shattered when a bomb struck Kaneohe Naval Air Station, sending smoke skyward. “We knew it was a real attack,” Drake said. “It didn’t seem possible, even as it happened.” The attack, launched from Japanese carriers 230 miles north of Oahu, killed 2,390 Americans and damaged or destroyed over 20 naval vessels and 300 aircraft, according to the Pearl Harbor National Memorial.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt called it “a day that will live in infamy,” prompting Congress to declare war on Japan, thrusting the U.S. into World War II.
A Hero’s Legacy
Drake’s service extended beyond Pearl Harbor. He fought in the 1944 Battle of Saipan and the Marianas Campaign, a pivotal Pacific Theater battle, per the National Park Service. His decorations include the Congressional Medal for Pearl Harbor Veterans, Army Good Conduct Medal, American Defense Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Medal with two battle stars, and World War II Victory Medal…