Capt. Frank Otto Brown

Notes:

Frank was Killed In Action with the sinking of a Japanese ship carrying American prisoners of war, sailing from Manila, Philippine Islands by submarine action on October 24, 1944.

Died:
The Arisan Maru was a Japanese freighter POW ship, one among many. It was sunk 24 October 1944 by an Allied forces torpedo. The two possible submarines which sank the Arisan Maru were the USS Shark or the USS Snook, with inadequate or conflicting information about which submarine was responsible. These two submarines were part of a wolf pack of allied submarines responsible for the many sinkings of the Japanese convoy MATA-30 heading for Takao. The USS Shark was sunk in Luzon Strait by Japanese destroyers on 24 October 1944. The last contact from the USS Snook was on 8 April 1945 in Luzon Strait.
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Japanese Freighter Arisan Maru POW Ship

Arisan Maru was a Japanese freighter and was one of Imperial Japan's "hell ships". The vessel, named for a mountain on Formosa, was initially used as a troop transport. The vessel was then used for the transportation of POWs from the Philippines to Manchuria, China or Japan. On October 24, 1944 the ship was torpedoed by an American submarine and sank. Of the 1,781 POWs aboard, all of them escaped the sinking ship but were not rescued by the Japanese. In the end, only nine of the prisoners survived the sinking.

(click ship image to close ship information)

Allied Submarine USS Shark POW Ship On 24th October, USS Seadragon received a message from the USS Shark stating that she had made radar contact with a single freighter, and she was going in to attack. This was the last message received from the submarine. She was reported as presumed lost on 27th November. Japanese records examined after the war indicate that on 24th October 1944, in Luzon Strait, Japanese destroyer Harukaze made contact with a submerged submarine and dropped depth charges. After losing and regaining the contact, the destroyer dropped another 17 depth charges which resulted in “bubbles, heavy oil, clothes and cork” coming to the surface.

(click ship image to close ship information)

Allied Submarine USS Snook POW ShipUSS Shark
The USS Snook was lost on her 9th patrol in Luzon Strait. She was last heard of on 8th April, 1945, when she was reporting her position.

(click ship image to close ship information)

Notes:

Source: Personal knowledge of his daughter-in-law, Elvira (Schwartz) Brown, birth certificate and marriage license of his son, Richard John Brown, and death certificate of his son, Frank Otto Brown.

Name:
Otto Richard...born Barth was adopted by his stepfather, Dr. Edward George Brown, taking on the Brown surname and following in his footsteps as a doctor.

Otto married Clementine F. Pokorny on 31 Jul 1916 in Cuyahoga Co, OH. Clementine (daughter of Otto John Pokorny and Marie A. Sprosty) was born on 23 Aug 1895 in Cleveland, Cuyahoga Co, OH; died on 19 Jun 1977 in Lancaster, Los Angeles Co, CA. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Immigrated from Germany in 1880. Both parents born in Germany. A sister, Lillie Maystrick, is listed in the 1900 US census as living in this household. Note that son, Otto Richard Barth (Brown)'s wife, Clementine Pokorny of IL, also has Maystrick/Maestrick ancestors. Lillie could be a sister-in-law.

From great granddaughter of Richard:
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I will call my grandfather's father Barth and step/adopted-father Brown to help prevent confusion. Also, I will call his mother Mary, since that was her name. I was told that Mary divorced Barth when my grandfather was around 5 years old. He remembered his father and loved him very much. However, Barth was not such a good husband. He beat Mary (which is why she left). She soon met Brown, married him and they moved to Mexico (where my grandfather was raised). Brown was a medical doctor and he adopted my grandfather and his brother, who was older (I didn't know of any other siblings). My grandfather was the youngest and learned to love his new father. His brother never accepted Brown, though. My Uncle Allen actually contacted this brother (his uncle) who lived in LA, but I don't know any other details.

In the meantime, Barth was very upset about losing his family. He was an excellent marksman and loved to hunt. My Uncle Allen had a picture of him with his dogs and he looked pretty majestic with his rifle. He decided to go after Brown and get his family back. He went to Mexico and shot at Brown, missing him. The police were called and Barth was arrested. This was the last anyone ever saw of him. No one knows why he missed since he was such a good shot. Many thoughts have been expressed, but no one will ever know.

This had to have happened before WWII because my grandfather was only a little boy at the time. As an adult who understood Mexican culture and could talk their language fluently, my grandfather never could find out what happened to his father. He went to Mexico several times searching for his father with no luck. I think he may have found the jail he was taken to, but lost the trail there. My grandfather was also a decorated officer with many Mexican contacts on at least one occasion. Since he lived in Mexico, my grandfather learned how to speak and read/write Spanish fluently. He also knew how to read, write and speak English, German, Latin, and 5 other languages fluently.
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Birth:
1900 Census gives Richard's name as Otto with a birth in Feb 1855 or 1858 (number written over).

Richard married Mary A. Maystrick. Mary (daughter of Joseph F. Maystrick and Marie A.) was born in Sep 1870 in Bohemia, Knox Co, NE. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Name:
Timeline of Selected Documentation of Lineages
for Mary A. Maystrick-Barth-Brown, born 1870
— son, Otto Richard Barth-Brown, born 1893
— grandson, Richard John Brown, born 1924

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Tracing relationships re name change from Barth to Brown:

1. 1870-NE Census - Mary with "Mejstrick" parents at age 1
   • Gen-1 Frank Mejstrick, age 48 and family is living next door to
   • Gen-2 Joseph F. Mejstrick (Sr)


2. 1890-OK Territorial Census - Joe & Mary "Maistrick" living without Mary in household
   • Gen-3 Joseph F. Maistrick (Jr), age 22 (sibling of Mary A.) living next door


3. 1900-OK Census
   • Gen-3 Mary A. Maystrick Barth with 1st husband, Richard Barth (married approximately 1890), with their two sons
     • Gen-4 Otto Richard Barth
     • (Gen-4) Frank A. Barth (sibling of ancestor)


4. 1906-OK (Gen-3) Mary A. Maystrick Barth married her 2nd husband, Edward George Brown
   • (Gen-4) Otto Richard Barth changed surname to Brown
   • (Gen-4) Frank A. Barth changed surname to Brown


5. 1910-TX Census - (Gen-4) Sons, Frank & Otto Brown in seminary


6. 1913-OK Pension Appl re Civil War Veteran, (Gen-2) Joseph F. Maystrick by widow, (Gen-2) Marie A. Maystrick, again showing (Gen-3) Mary A. Maystrick's parents in Oklahoma


7. 1913-OK List of U.S. Citizens, Return to of (Gen-4) Otto R. Brown from Mexico to U.S., shows his legal residence as Chicago, IL


8. 1916-OK (Gen-4) Otto R. Brown & (Gen-4) Clementine Pokorny


9. 1917 Application as Native Citizen upon reentry from Mexico - (Gen-4)Otto Richard Brown, shows his legal residence as San Antonio, TX


10. 1917 WWI Draft Registration, (Gen-4) Otto Richard Brown, reaffirming his U.S.-native birth


11. 1917-1918 WWI Army Record showing (Gen-4) Otto Richard Brown served in Illinois (and other places)


12. 1920-Philippine Islands Census - (Gen-4) Otto Richard Brown & (Gen-4) Clementine Pokorny with son, (Gen-4) Frank Otto Brown (who later died when on a Japanese POW ship (Arisan Maru), sunk by Allied forces in WWII in 1944)


13. 1921-IA Marriage of Grandson of Mary A. Maystrick-Barth-Brown, (Gen-4) Frank A. Brown (sic) & (Gen-4) Marvel Maclean, giving his parents as (Gen-4 adoptive parent) Edward Brown & (Gen-4) Mary A. Maystrick


14. 1924-CA Gen-5 Richard John Brown born to Gen-4 Otto Richard Brown & Gen-4 Clementine Pokorny Brown (the youngest of 3 sons)


15. 1952-AZ Gen-5 Richard John Brown married Gen-5 Elvira Elizabeth Schwartz

Notes:

Buried:
Funeral probably in Lakewood, Cuyahoga, OH

Died:
Otto J. Pokorny - 1945 Obituary

Name: Pokorny, Otto J.
Date: Oct 8 1945
Source: Cleveland Press, Reel #64
Notes: Pokorny: Otto J., beloved husband of the late Marie (nee Sprosty), father of Mrs. O. R. Brown and Mrs. A. D. Bochmer, and grandfather; brother of Frank and Mrs. John Bees; residence, 325 Arundel rd. Rocky River. Friends received at Klanke Funeral Parlors, 12629 Detroit ave., Lakewood, where services will be held Thursday, Oct. 18, at 1:30 p. m.
(This transcription of Otto's obituary was extracted from a findagrave profile for Otto J. Pokorney/Pokerny, where it had been erroneously displayed.)
• Mrs. O.R. Brown is Clementine Pokorny Brown, wife of Dr. Otto Richard Brown.
• Mrs. A.D. Bochmer is Andela F. Pokorny Boehmer, wife of August D. Boehmer.

Otto married Marie A. Sprosty on 20 Sep 1894 in Cuyahoga Co, OH. Marie (daughter of Frank Sprosty, Jr. and Marie Maystrik) was born on 4 Feb 1870 in Cleveland, Cuyahoga Co, OH; died on 3 Apr 1941 in Cleveland, Cuyahoga Co, OH; was buried on 5 Apr 1941 in West Park Cemetery, Cleveland, Cuyahoga Co, OH. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Birth:
Birth also given as in 1869.

Joseph married Marie A.. Marie was born in 1844 in Prussia. [Group Sheet]

John married Unknown wife of John Pokorny. Unknown was born in in Bohemia. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Birth:
The 1920 census in Cleveland, OH gives Frank as immigrating in 1866, and naturalized in 1872 while living on Clark Avenue where he also lives in 1920.

Frank married Marie Maystrik. Marie (daughter of Unknown Maestrick and Vorsila) was born in Sep 1848 in Prague, Bohemia, Czechoslovakia; died before 9 Jan 1920. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

See death record of daughter, Marie A. Sprosty, listing her as mother.

Frank married Ursula. Ursula was born est 1824 in Bohemia. [Group Sheet]

Anton married Unknown wife of Anton Pokorny. Unknown was born in in Bohemia. [Group Sheet]

Frank married Anna Dobrava. Anna was born in Jul 1823 in Pisek, Bohemia; died in 1903; was buried in Riverside Cemetery, Cleveland, Cuyahoga Co, OH. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

1900 Census Image - Vorsila Maestrick given as mother to head of household, Frank Sprosty (wife Mary). As the surname is always given first, it would appear her name was Maestrick Vorsila; however, her daughter is Marie Maystrik. Because of this, I am listing her here as Vorsila Maestrick; with consideration for "Maestrick" being her married name.

1900 Census Summary Data - Ma*Strick Vorsila given as living with Frank Sprosty. He is listed as head of household and as son of Ma*Strick Vorsila. Mary Sprosty is listed as Frank's wife. Ohio death records show Marie A. Pokorny as daughter of Frank Sprosty and Marie Maystrik...and this Marie Pokorny is the same person with maiden name Marie Sprosty. While the summary data is unclear on the proper name for Ma*Strick Vorsila, it is apparent that she is Frank's mother-in-law (rather than "mother"). The image itself shows what appears to be the correct (married) name.

Name:
Anna Dobrava Sprosty immigrated to the United States in 1866 (per the 1900 census).

Anna's maiden name, Dobrava, is from her son, John F. Sprosty's death certificate. The 1900 census shows Anna's son, Frank and wife Mary...and Vorsila Maestrick listed as "mother". Apparently, this is simply a census error, and Vorsila is actually his mother-in-law. Anna Dobrava Sprosty herself appears in the 1900 census with her daughter Mary's family.

Unknown married Vorsila. Vorsila was born in Dec 1822 in Bohemia. [Group Sheet]