Lewis Puller (FFG 23) - Naval Cruise Book

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A PROUD NAMESAKE Ueutenant General Lewis Burwell Chesty Puller was tfie only Marine ever to win the Navy Cross live times for heroism and gallontry in combat. He is remembered as the quintesser tial fighting man, and is one of a select few Marines to have U.S. Navy ships of the line named after them. Bom in Virginia In 1898, General Puller attended the VIrglrv la Military Institute, but withdrew In 1918 to join the Marines as an enlisted man. He first saw combat in the jungles of Haiti, where he served for five years. In 1924 he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant, and during the 1930s he served in Nica ragua and commanded the famous Horse Marines ' ' In China. Of the 37 years that General Puller spent in the Marines, 27 of them were spent at sea or stationed overseas. His last corrv mand was at Camp Lejeune, N.C where he retired from the Corps in 1955 General Puller died in his native Virginia in 1971, General Puller was one of the most decorated Marines in history. He earned two Navy Crosses in Nicaragua in 1930 and 1932. and later fought the Japanese at Guadalcanal and at Cape Gloucester where he earned two more such awards. The General ' s lost combat assignment was as Command- er of the 1st Marine Division in Korea, during which he was awarded the Army Distinguished Service Cross and his fifth Navy Cross for heroism In action. In addition. General Puller was authorized to wear the Legion of Merit with Combat V and Gold Star, the Army Silver Medal, the Air Medal with two Gold Stars, and the Bronze Star, as well as a Purple Heart for wounds received on Guadalcanal. He was also awarded nu merous unit citations and a host of expeditionary medals and decorations from foreign governments for service In Haiti. Nic- aragua, China, Korea, and the Pacific theater. Perhaps the noblest legacy that Lewis B. Puller left Is not his long list of awards, but the affection felt in the hearts of the men he commanded. Puller learned eariy on that respect bor dering on adulation was essential for success as a combat leader, and he led by example. He was braver and tougher than most of his men, and he cared for their welfare. He grieved for men who fell In battle. He also spoice his mind In defense of his troops and his Ideals, offending many of his su periors with criticism of how the Marine Corps and other ser vices were run. He was truty A Marine ' s Marine .

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BULLDOG ' S SECOND DEPLOYMENT

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and a tradition to upiioid USSLEWISB. PULLERis a member of Destroyer Squodron Twen- ty-Three, also known as The Little Beavers. During 1943 in the war in the Pacific, the squadron made a name for itself as part of the Third Fleet assigned to duty in the Guadalcanal area. As the bottle for Guadalcanal raged, the Squadron was tasked with escorting men and material to resuppiy the beleaguered island. This required numerous sorties up the Infamous slot between the islands to blunt Japanese counter attacks and thwart the enemy ' s effort to reinforce Its own troops on the island, it took brave men, good ships and Innovative tactics to operate in such a dangerous environment. Under the command of Captain Arleigh 31knot Burke (lat- er Admiral and Chief of Naval Operations), the squadron earned a Presidential Unit Citation, the only destroyer squadron ever to win such on award. The ships of DESRON 23 engaged the Japa- nese In classic destroyer battles at Empress Augusta Boy and Cope St. George, later participated In the Battle of Leyte Gulf, and served on the deadly picket station off Okinawa, where kamikaze attacks were a daily event. Following the Battle of Cape St. George, Arleigh Burke gave the squadron Its Little Beaver name, which came from RED RYDER , a popular comic strip of the 1940s. Little Beaver was Red Ryder ' s faith- ful Indian companion in a long series of western adventures drown by cartoonist Fred Harmon. An Insignia designed by Harmon was pro- vided to DESRON 23 back In 1943: USS LEWIS B. PULLER still proudly carries this Insignia (pictured here) on Its superstructure.