Named for five brothers killed together when USS Juneau sank in 1942, this Fletcher-class destroyer at Buffalo's waterfront prompted the U.S. military's Sole Survivor Policy — and its caretakers still report unexplained activity below decks.
1 Naval Park Cove, Buffalo, NY 14202
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
General admission to Buffalo Naval Park includes access to USS The Sullivans. See buffalonavalpark.org for current pricing.
Access
Limited Access
Fletcher-class destroyer with steep metal companionways, narrow passageways, and low overheads throughout. Main deck level is accessible; interior spaces are not.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1943 · Named for the five Sullivan brothers — all killed when USS Juneau sank November 13, 1942 · Sullivan brothers' deaths directly prompted the U.S. Sole Survivor Policy · Fletcher-class destroyer; served Pacific theater WWII and Korean War · Museum ship at Buffalo Naval Park since 1977
On November 13, 1942, during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, the light cruiser USS Juneau was struck by a Type 95 torpedo from Japanese submarine I-26 and sank in approximately twenty seconds. Among those aboard were five brothers from Waterloo, Iowa: Albert, Francis, George, Madison, and Joseph Sullivan, who had enlisted together and requested to serve on the same ship. All five died. Francis, Joseph, and Madison were killed instantly; Albert drowned the next day; George, the oldest, survived on a raft for four or five days before disappearing into the water. Their deaths became the defining American family-loss story of WWII and were commemorated in the 1944 film The Fighting Sullivans.
The loss of the Sullivan brothers and the concurrent concern over the Niland brothers — three of four brothers fighting together in different theaters — led the War Department to formalize the Sole Survivor Policy, which restricts combat assignments to prevent a family from losing all male members in a single conflict. The policy was later extended and codified after WWII.
USS The Sullivans (DD-537) was commissioned on September 21, 1943, specifically in honor of the brothers. The Fletcher-class destroyer served in Pacific theater operations through the end of WWII and subsequently in the Korean War. She was decommissioned on January 10, 1965, after 22 years of service. In 1977, the vessel was transferred to the Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park, where she has been preserved and open to the public since.
Sources
Paranormal accounts aboard USS The Sullivans have been collected from caretakers, security personnel, and paranormal investigators over decades, with the ship's tragic naming history providing a specific focus for the lore. The most striking reported apparition is a burned and blackened figure — described as resembling someone who died in fire or explosion — seen moving through interior passageways. No named individual has been formally identified as corresponding to this description, though the kamikaze-era damage and combat losses aboard the ship are referenced by paranormal investigators as plausible origins.
According to documentation by GhostWalks.com and confirmed as a feature by local Buffalo news WIVB, caretakers have reported the ship's radar scanning equipment activating on its own when powered down — the unit illuminating in the dark with no power source connected. Investigators sent to verify have found the equipment dark upon arrival. The incident has reportedly occurred multiple times under different caretakers.
Security staff describe hearing disembodied screams from inside the vessel when it is closed and unoccupied. Other reported phenomena include locked hatches found open in the morning, electronics draining batteries rapidly during investigations, and cold spots in the crew berthing areas.
Uss The Sullivans was featured in an episode of Syfy's Ghost Hunters, which brought a professional investigation team aboard and documented phenomena. Buffalo local news outlet WIVB covered the paranormal investigation program, describing the ship as Buffalo Naval Park's most active vessel for unexplained reports.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
Board the most-visited vessel at Buffalo Naval Park and walk the decks of the Fletcher-class destroyer commissioned in 1943 in honor of the five Sullivan brothers. The tour takes visitors through the combat information center, crew quarters, engine rooms, and the command spaces where a crew of 300 operated the ship during WWII and the Korean War.
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