About

Joseph John Karrol, the son of Ignatius and Stella (Stasskiewicz) Karrol, was born on May 15, 1915, in Essex County, New York. In 1925, he relocated to Schenectady with his family so that his father could begin working for General Electric. Following his graduation from Nott Terrace High School, Joseph made the decision to enlist in the United States Army. He joined the United States Navy after being released from the United States Army. 

Joseph enlisted in the United States Navy in 1936; he held the rank of Radioman Second Class. Joseph attended the seventeen-week communications service "Class A" school. After he graduated, he was transferred to the USS Yorktown (CV-5). The USS Yorktown was an aircraft carrier and was damaged during the Battle of the Coral Sea. She had to dock in Pearl Harbor on May 27, 1942, to be repaired. USS Yorktown left Pearl Harbor on May 30, 1942. The ship steamed toward a point northeast of Midway called "Point Luck". On June 4, 1942, they were attacked by the Japanese. Joseph was Lieutenant Adams Radioman-Gunner on a SBD that took off from the USS Yorktown. Joseph and Lieutenant Adams were seen entering a cloud formation but were never seen again. Three days later, on June 7, 1942, the USS Yorktown was torpedoed and sunk. He is remembered at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Hawaii. Joseph’s wife remained a widow for seventy-four years, and her stone reads "With God and Her Sailor Now".

Sources: The Schenectady Gazette, Find A Grave, Ancestry