Sullivan Brothers - Legacy

Legacy

• As a direct result of the Sullivans' deaths (and the deaths of four of the Borgstrom brothers within a few months of each other two years later), the U.S. War Department adopted the Sole Survivor Policy.

• A museum wing has been built in honor of their service in World War II. The museum is located in downtown Waterloo, Iowa, their hometown. It was completed in 2008. The grand opening occurred on November 15, 2008. The $11.5 million, state-of-the-art facility aims to play a role in preserving the history and service of Iowa veterans and serve as a facility for research and genealogy studies.

• The Navy named two destroyers The Sullivans to honor the brothers: The Sullivans (DD-537) and The Sullivans (DDG-68). DD-537 was the first American Navy ship ever to be named after more than one person. The motto for both ships was "We stick together."

• Al Sullivan's son, James, served on board the first USS The Sullivans. His grandmother christened the first ship. The second USS The Sullivans was christened by Al's granddaughter Kelly Ann Sullivan Loughren.

• Thomas and Alleta Sullivan toured the country promoting war bonds and asked that none of their sons died in vain.

• Genevieve, their only sister, served in the WAVES. She was the girlfriend of Bill Ball, whose death at Pearl Harbor prompted her brothers to join the Navy to avenge him.

• The brothers' story was filmed as the 1944 movie The Sullivans (later renamed The Fighting Sullivans) and inspired, at least in part, the 1998 film Saving Private Ryan. The Sullivans were also briefly mentioned in Saving Private Ryan.

• The brothers' hometown of Waterloo, Iowa, has a convention center named "The Five Sullivan Brothers Convention Center", and the town also renamed a street and set aside a public park in their honor. The park is the location of their childhood home.

• The Sullivans were not the only brother sailors on board the ship. There were at least thirty pairs of brothers including the four Rogers brothers from New Haven, Connecticut. Before the ill-fated Savo Island operation two of the Rogers brothers were transferred to other commands. According to those who survived, had the ship returned to port safely at least two Sullivans would have also transferred.

• The Sullivan Brothers have a Department of Defense Dependents Schools elementary school in Yokosuka, Japan named in their honor.

• The song "Sullivan" by the alternative rock band "Caroline's Spine" tells the story of the Sullivans.

• The Sullivans Association, an organization of veterans who served on both US Navy ships named after the brothers, conducted a reunion on 25 September 2011 in Waterloo, Iowa. The attendees gathered at Sullivans Park, visited Calvary Cemetery and laid flowers at the graves of the Sullivan brother's parents and sister, and visited the neighborhood where the family had lived.