Carr (FFG 52) - Naval Cruise Book

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Gunners Mate Third Class Paul Henry Carr United States Navy Reserve Gunners Mate Third Class Paul Henry Carr, USNR (1924-1944) came from Checotah. Oklahoma. He served as gun mount captain of the after 5 inch gun on the destroyer escort USS SAMUEL B. ROBERTS (DE 413). During the battle of Leyte Gulf on 25 October 1944, SAMUEL B. ROBERTS and a small number of destroyers found them- selves as the sole line of defen.se against a large surface force of Japanese battleships, cruisers, and destroyers. The target of the Japanese force was a group of six American carriers providing aircraft support for the U.S. Army forces on the beachs of Leyte Gulf. The carriers operated aircraft suitable only for support of ground troops, and were helpless against the onrushing force of enemy ships. Fully aware of the situation they faced, SAMUEL B. ROBERTS and a handful of other small boys charged headlong into the larger Japanese battle force. The aggressive attack must have caught the Japanese admiral by surprise, because he ordered the signal for general attack vice the more potent battle line formation. The result was a free for all that pitted small destroyers against an overwhelming force of battleships and cruisers. SAMUEL B. ROBERTS fought her way into the thick of the Japanese force and began a head-to-head duel with a heavy cruiser. The two 5 inch guns on SAMUEL B. ROBERTS fired furiously against the cruiser while the destroyer escort managed for over two hours to avoid the 8 inch and 14 inch shells fired at her. SAMUEL B. ROBERTS was so close to her target that the cruiser ' s guns could not be trained low enough to aim at her. SAMUEL B. ROBERTS meanwhile knocked out an 8 inch gun mount, destroyed the cruiser ' s bridge, and caused fires aft. Janpanes shells from several ships finally found their mark, knocking out all power, compressed air, and communi- cations on the destroyer escort. During the battle, Paul Carr kept his gun mount operating countinuously, firing over 300 rounds until power and air were lost. Carr then began firing rounds by hand, accepting the risk that without air the gun would not cool down between firings. With seven rounds left in the magazine, the tremen- dous heat in the gun breech cooked off a round, exploding the projectile loaded in the gun and killing most of the gun crew. When a rescue team member made his way into the shattered mount, he found Paul Carr, literally torn open from neck to thigh, attempting vainly to load a shell into the demolished gun breech. The rescue member took the round from Carr and laid him aside as he began to remove the bodies of the gun crew. When he returned to the mount, he again found Paul Carr, projectile in hand, trying to load his gun. Carr begged the sailor to help him get off one last round. The sailor pulled him from the mount and laid him on the deck. Paul Carr died a few moments later, beneath the gun he served so well. The crew of the SAMUEL B. ROBERTS finally had to abandon ship, but they did see the Japanese force turn away, believing by the ferocity of the SAMUAL B. ROBERTS attack that they faced a large and potent foe.