Ken Harbaugh tells the stories of service members who have distinguished themselves through an act of valor. These stories feature recipients from the Civil War to present day, including a few who were originally overlooked for the medal.
During WWII, one day before the landing at Tarawa, Captain Cromwell’s submarine was severely damaged by a Japanese destroyer. Forced between losing all his men as they took water or risking capture, Cromwell scuttled the ship with himself in it, keeping the Japanese from learning about Tarawa or the Allies’ ULTRA intelligence program. Cromwell was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.
Welcome to the Medal of Honor podcast, brought to you in partnership with the National Medal of Honor Museum. I’m Ken Harbaugh. In each episode, we’ll learn about a different service member who has distinguished him or herself through an act of valor.
John Phillip Cromwell was born on September 11th, 1901 in Henry Illinois. After graduating from the United States Naval Academy in 1924, he reported to the battleship USS Maryland.
Cromwell served on various ships and submarines leading up to World War II. When the war began, he was promoted to Captain and assumed command of a Submarine Coordinated Attack Group, personally commanding the USS Sculpin. In the first years of the war, Cromwell and his submarines went on war patrols throughout the mid-Pacific.
On November 19th, 1943, a day before the Battle of Tarawa began, Cromwell and his submarine tracked a Japanese convoy. As the Sculpin prepared to submerge and attack, the Japanese navy spotted its periscope, forcing the submarine to lay low and let the convoy pass. Cromwell waited and brought the Sculpin back to the surface to locate the convoy for another attack. Unfortunately, the Japanese navy anticipated this, leaving a destroyer behind to track the American submarine. As the Sculpin submerged again, the destroyer dropped depth charges which damaged the Sculpin’s instruments, including the depth gauge. When Cromwell resurfaced, the gauge was stuck at 125 feet below the surface yet the submarine was in view of the Japanese ship. The destroyer dropped more depth charges on the rapidly submerging Sculpin, causing major damage. The hull was breached, and the only way to save the crew was to surface. Despite being outmatched by the destroyer’s firepower, the Sculpin manned its surface weapons before the gun crews were killed by fire from the destroyer. A senior ship officer made the decision to scuttle the submarine. Cromwell knew there was a high likelihood the Japanese would capture them. He also knew of the impending amphibious landing on Tarawa, as well as Ultra - the Allied interception of Axis encrypted communications. Knowing the danger of revealing these secrets, Cromwell and 11 sailors went down with the ship to avoid capture.
41 sailors survived the Sculpin and were interrogated by the Japanese. When the war was over, they were repatriated. Vice Admiral Charles Lockwood learned of Cromwell’s deliberate sacrifice and recommended him for the Medal of Honor. Captain Cromwell was posthumously awarded the Medal, with his widow accepting the award on his behalf. His other awards include the Legion of Merit and the Purple Heart.
The USS Cromwell, a destroyer escort, was named in his honor.
The Medal of Honor podcast is a production of Evergreen Podcasts.
Nathan Corson is our producer and engineer, León Pescador is our associate producer, and I’m Ken Harbaugh.
We are proud to support the National Medal of Honor Museum. To learn more, and to support their mission, go to mohmuseum.org. Thanks for listening.
