Barker, Loren Joseph
BARKER, KECK, SHARP
Posted By: Nettie Mae (email)
Date: 5/22/2025 at 08:55:22
**Loren Joseph “Joe” Barker (1921–1941): A Life of Promise Cut Short at Pearl Harbor**
Loren Joseph Barker, known to family and friends as "Joe," was born on August 23, 1921, in the small town of Keosauqua, nestled in the heart of Van Buren County, Iowa. He was the son of Joseph M. Barker and Iva B. Keck, a Midwestern family rooted in the traditions of hard work and close community ties.
By 1930, Loren was recorded in the U.S. Census as an eight-year-old boy living with his father, Joe Barker, in the town of Anginal Des Manie in Keosauqua. His childhood would have been shaped by the lingering effects of the Great Depression, a time that tested the resolve of rural families but also forged a strong sense of resilience and duty in those who came of age during its harshest years.
A bright and capable young man, Loren found work early. By the time of the 1940 census, he was living as a boarder in the home of John A. Schulze in New Albin, Allamakee County, Iowa, and working as a teacher—an impressive accomplishment for someone just 21 years old. That same year, on May 23, 1940, Loren married Susan Elizabeth Sharp in Monticello, Lewis County, Missouri, signaling the beginning of a new chapter in both their lives.
But as Europe was engulfed in war and tensions in the Pacific escalated, Loren, like many young Americans, answered the call of duty. He enlisted in the United States Navy, eventually earning the rank of Coxswain (COX), a position of responsibility aboard naval vessels.
Loren was assigned to the **USS Arizona (BB-39)**, one of the U.S. Navy’s most formidable battleships. Commissioned in 1916 and named in honor of the 48th state, the *Arizona* had long stood as a symbol of American naval strength. By 1941, it was stationed at **Pearl Harbor**, Hawaii—a strategic location and a hub of U.S. Pacific Fleet operations.
On the morning of **December 7, 1941**, the tranquil Sunday calm of Oahu was shattered when the Japanese Imperial Navy launched a surprise aerial attack on Pearl Harbor. Just before 8:00 a.m., bombers descended on the harbor in a meticulously coordinated assault aimed at crippling the American fleet. The USS Arizona was among the first and most devastating targets. A bomb pierced the ship’s forward magazine, causing a massive explosion that split the battleship in two and engulfed it in flames. Of the 1,512 crew members aboard, **1,177 perished**—including **Coxswain Loren Joseph Barker**.
Loren was declared **Missing in Action**, and his body was never recovered. His name is inscribed on the **Courts of the Missing** at the **Honolulu Memorial** in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known more familiarly as the "Punchbowl." He was posthumously awarded the **Purple Heart Medal**, in honor of his sacrifice.
Today, the wreckage of the *USS Arizona* lies beneath the waters of Pearl Harbor, serving as a tomb and a solemn memorial for those lost. Loren’s legacy is enshrined not only in stone but in the hearts of a nation that remembers the bravery of young men like him—those who traded the promise of peaceful lives for the burden of war.
Loren Joseph Barker was just 20 years old when he gave his life in defense of his country. His story is a poignant reminder of the youth and promise lost in the attack that propelled the United States into the Second World War, and of the enduring cost of freedom.
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*“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” – John 15:13*
Loren Joseph Barker
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