Biography

Wallace C. Craig was born in Westerly, Rhode Island in July 1898.  He was the son of Charles Craig and Leola Cox. He entered Rhode Island State College (RISC) in September 1914 with the class of 1918. Wallace majored in Applied Sciences.  He attended RISC for two and one-half years and participated in the Army ROTC Program while a student at RISC.

When the United States entered World War I, there were 562 male students enrolled at Rhode Island State College; 334 left to serve in WW I. Wallace, like so many of his classmates, departed college before he graduated and enlisted in the US Navy.  He was assigned to Mine Squadron #1 Atlantic Fleet.  Seaman Craig died of pneumonia on 11 Feb 1918 at Chelsea Naval Hospital, Boston, MA. 

A military funeral was held in February 1918 at River Bend Cemetery in Westerly, Rhode Island.  Seaman Wallace C. Craig, US Navy, answered the call to serve America with courage and honor during World War I.  He was the first Westerly boy to die in the service of his beloved Country in the First World War.  A monument with bronze plaque was erected in his honor from his shipmates of the U.S.S. Aroostook.