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Seth Lesser was a boatswain for USS Nevada killed in action during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. His death records indicate that Seth died of multiple gunshots. His bravery, though barely remembered nowadays, was recognized two years after his death when he was awarded the Medal of Honor for his service in the U.S. Navy.

Seth Lesser was born in Littleton, North Carolina in 1902. His childhood, however, was spent in Norwalk, Ohio where he attended various public schools to acquire formal education. Initially, Mr Lesser wanted to pursue a career in medicine, but he soon had to abandon his dream of becoming a surgeon when his father died of sudden death when he was 14. Being the oldest of the four Lesser children, Seth had to earn for the family.

Seth enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1912 along with fellow crewman and cousin, Paul Lesser. By the time he died in 1941, Seth Lesser had risen to the rank of boatswain from his earlier ranks- quartermaster and boatswain’s mate.

When Hawaiian harbor was attacked in 1941, Seth Lesser was among the crewmen who defended the battleship USS Nevada, particularly in extinguishing the fires in the lower deck and near the hull of the ship.

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