John Thomason (DD 760) - Naval Cruise Book

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WW , M1 III! 11 .Ill ,5n,, I ESI-I JOHN W THOMASON CDD 7605 was placed In commission 11 October 1945 under the command ol: Commander WL Tagg, USN On 30 September 1950 she sailed for the Far East to loin units ol: the Seventh Fleet in support ol: the Korean War arriving at Sasebo Japan on 27 October 1950 Her principal duty was plane guard and screening unit for Fast Carrier Task Force 77 off the east coast ol: Korea until 9 November when she took up station patrol of Wonsan Harbor Korea She returned to Sasebo on 22 November and aliter a brleli stay at Yokosuka departed on 19 December for repairs and anti submarine warfare training operations at Pearl Harbor On 23 May 1951 she was detached from Task Force 77 with battleship NEW JERSEY and destroyer USS BUCK For a gunstrlke on the Korean rallyards and other installations In the area of Yang Yang Returning to Task Force 77 in February 1952 aliter six months rest In the IIStates'l she was detached with the cruiser ROCHESTER CCA 124D and destroyer LOBUR6 CDD 7595 lor shore bombadment of the Korean coast On 1 February 1952 the destroyer USS John W Thomason CDD 760D rescued a downed pilot from the carrier ESSEX south ol: Yang do lsland Between the months ol: April 1954 and July 1958 USS JOHN W THOMASON CDD 760D conducted three more tours ot duty in WESTPAC ln March 1959 Thomason entered the Long . - I I ' , . I .. . . 1 i 'I 0 . L1 V , . I I - ' - I Beach Naval Shipyard tor an extensive overhaul as the prototype ship in the FRAM II CFLEET REHABILITATION and MODERNIZATIOND program. On 1 April 1962, due to the administrative reorganization ol: Cruiser-Destroyer Forces, Paciliic, USS JOHN W. THOMASON became the Flag Ship for COMMANDER DESTROYER DIVISION 153, lateri changed to COMDESDIV 213. On 22 March 1966 USS John W. Thomason CDD-7603 departed San Diego, California For another WESTPAC Cruise. Serving as gun tire support ship in the months ol: May thru June and again in August, oft the coast ol: Viet Nam Thomason displayed a brilliant shore bombardment record.' 5

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THE NAME USS JOHN W. THOMASON CDD-760D is Jr., United States Marine Corps. Colonel Thomason was born on 28 February 1893 in Huntsville, Texas. He was educated in Huntsville schools and was graduated from the San Houston Normal lnstitute there in 1911. He also studied at the University ol: Texas and the Art Students League ot New Yorlc. He commenced his career as a writer with the Editorial Department ot the Houston Chronicle and ioined the Marine Corps i , A if ' Branch ot the Texas Naval Militia in April 1917. Called to active dutyisoonuxaliterward, he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps 29 August. 1917 and went overseas to serve with the Famous F-ilith Marine Regiment the Following April. A He was awarded the Navy. Cross For extraordinary heroism in the battle ot Soissons, 18 July 1918. He advanced with one ot his men on an enemy machine gun nest from a lilanlc aliter his company was held up by heavy casualties From violent automatic fire. With great gallantry, he and the gunnery sergent who accompanied him, captured the nest containing two heavy machine guns, and killed the crew ot thirteen Germans, For the same act ol: heroism, he was later presented the Silver Star Medal by the Army. Atter world war 1, Thomason served in Cuba, at various posts in the United States, in USS ROCHESTER, in Nicaragua and in China. He reported to the Navy Department tor duty in Operations in June 1940. While in this duty as a representative ot the United States Navy, Colonel Thomason participated in aerial flights trom August to November 1941, charting new airways and surveying and recommending sites as potential airtields in the countries ot Central and South America. For this service he was awared the Air Medal. During World War H, he served in the Office lol: Naval lntelligence, as an inspector on Admiral Nimitz, statt in the South Pacific, and as an instructor in the Troop Training Unit, Coronado, 'Calil:ornia. Here fatal illness struclc him on 12 March 1944. 4 named in honor ot Colonel John William Thomason,

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CAPTAIN 1 iam ix :fy al . K if CCMMANDER JACK A. CHRISTENSEN, USN Commander Cl-lRlSTENSEN graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and received a commission in the U.S. Naval Reserve in 1944. I-le served in various Merchant ships until 1948, when he assumed his first Navy duty in USS Tl-lOMS JEFFERSON CAPA-30D. I-Ie briefly returned to the Merchant Marine in 1949. l-le assumed his naval career in 1950 aboard USS OKANOGAN CAPA-220D. This was followed by a tour at the NAVCOMMSTA Pearl, 'as Officer-in Charge, Naval Radio Station where he transfered to the regular Navy. He returned to sea in USS SI-IELTCN QDD-7603, then to the Naval Station, Rota, Spain. ln 1961 he became Executive Officer of the USS BLUE QDD-744D. Prior to coming to USS JOHN W. Tl-IOMASON QDD-7605 he'was Commanding Officer of the Naval Radio Station, Cutler, Maine. Commander Cl-IRISTENSEN attended the Armed Forces Staff College in 1964. , 6