Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
Marshall Cohen—researcher and producer, CNN
Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
SCHMITT, Aloysius
SCHMITT, Aloysius (Father). (St. Lucas, IA, Dec. 4, 1909--Pearl Harbor, HA, Dec. 7, 1941). Chaplain of the USS Oklahoma. The first chaplain to die in World War II, Father Schmitt perished while heroically attempting to save others following the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor. His death occurred on the sixth anniversary of his ordination.
Schmitt attended LORAS COLLEGE and after graduation in 1932 served as a parish priest at SAINT MARY'S CHURCH.
On October 26, 1948, Loras dedicated the Father Schmitt Memorial of CHRIST THE KING CHAPEL in his memory. Father Schmitt was honored in 1968 when a harbor in Dubuque was named in his honor. A monument shaped like a ship's wheel sinking beneath the waves was placed on the riverbank in 1973. He was honored nationally during the May 21, 1989, dedication of a gray granite monument or Chaplain's Hill at Arlington National Cemetery The monument honors Roman Catholic priests killed during service in World War II, the Korean War, or the VIETNAM WAR.
