Harold Bray (sailor)

Bray was born in northern Michigan on June 15, 1927.^[1] He joined the ROTC as a teenager and became his squadron leader while awaiting the chance to enlist.^[1]

At age 17 in 1944, Bray enlisted in the United States Navy and attended boot camp at Great Lakes, Illinois.^[1] He was later assigned to the Indianapolis at Mare Island Naval Shipyard in California, where the ship was undergoing repairs after a Kamikaze attack at Okinawa in March 1945 that killed nine crew members.^[1]

During the summer of 1945, while the ship was refitting, Bray trained in firefighting, watch-standing, and other naval duties, living in barracks and commuting by train to the ship each day.^[1] On July 30, 1945, after completing a top-secret mission to deliver atomic bomb components to Tinian, the Indianapolis was sunk by a Japanese submarine.^[2] Bray survived the sinking and was rescued after several days in a raft boat.^[3]

After his Navy service, Bray settled in Benicia, California, where he raised a family and worked for the Benicia Police Department.^[1] He became a well-regarded member of the local community and has remained active in civic life.^[1]

Bray is recognized as the last living survivor of the sinking of the Indianapolis.^[1] He has been honored at memorial events and continues to share his story to preserve the memory of his shipmates.^[3]