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Size | Image Description | Contributed By And/Or Copyright |
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 0625401  |
81k | Milton E. Ricketts was born in Baltimore, Md. on 05 August 1913 and was appointed to the U.S. Naval Academy in 1931. He graduated and was commissioned ensign 06 June 1935, and
for the next 2 years, served in USS Ranger (CV 4). Ricketts next assisted in the fitting out of USS Yorktown (CV 5) and he thus became a plank owner of the carrier
when she commissioned 30 September 1937. He served in her through the anxious prewar years, and when America entered the war, he took part in her raids in the Pacific in February and March 1942. During the Battle of the Coral Sea, Yorktown came under severe Japanese bombing on 08 May 1942. Ricketts was directing the engineering repair party when a bomb passed through and exploded directly beneath the compartment in which he and his crew were working. All of the men were either killed, wounded, or stunned. Ricketts, mortally wounded, worked alone to open the valve to a nearby fire plug. He succeeded in leading out part of the hose and directing a stream of water into the fire before he fell dead beside it. His courageous action undoubtedly prevented the rapid spread of the fire to serious proportions, and was recognized by the posthumous award of the Medal of Honor. USS Ricketts (DE 254) (1943-1946) was the first ship named in his honor. (U.S. Navy photo #NH 95297 from the Naval History and Heritage Command) |
Mike Smolinski Clifton, N.J. Navsource Archive Manager DE / FF / LCS Archive | |
 0625402 |
38k | undated wartime image | Jerry Church | |
 0625403 |
110k | 03 February 1945: Lower New York Harbor - Ricketts (DE 254) as she proceeds to the Weapons Station at Earle, N.J. from Brooklyn Navy Yard. She then joined the other vessels of Escort Division 20 for passage to Casco Bay, Maine. | David Wright Navsource Archive Manager Destroyer Archive | |
 0625404 |
90k | 20 March 1945: Lower New York Harbor - The starboard bow of view of USS Ricketts (DE 254) off New York wearing modified 32/3D camouflage scheme.
The ship is preparing to provide convoy escort from New York to Le Havre, France, and Southampton, England, leaving New York on 31 March. Note that as refit, Ricketts has four single 40mm
guns in tubs replacing the torpedo tubes. (U.S. Navy Bureau of Ships, Catalog No. BS 82741 and BS 82743 from the United States National Archives) Both photos courtesy of C. Lee Johnson, USN Dazzle |
Mike Green Port Angeles, Wash. | |
 0625405 |
89k | |||
| Ricketts History |
| View the USS Ricketts (DE 254) DANFS history entry located on the Naval History and Heritage Command web site. |
| View the official War History of USS Ricketts as submitted by the ship at war's end. |
| Ricketts' Commanding Officers Thanks to Wolfgang Hechler & Ron Reeves |
| Dates of Command | Commanding Officers |
|---|---|
| 1.) 05 Oct. 1943 - 27 Jun. 1944 | Lcdr. Glenn L. Rollins, USCG (Philadelphia, Pa.) |
| 2.) 27 Jun. 1944 - 05 Sep. 1945 | Lt. Louis F. Sudnik, USCG (Easthampton, Mass.) |
| 3.) 05 Sep. 1945 - | Lt. Urial H. Leach Jr., USCG (New London, Conn.) |
Contact information is compiled from various sources over a period of time and may, or may not, be correct. Every effort has been
made to list the newest contact. However, our entry
is only as good as the latest information that's been sent to us. We list only
a contact for the ship if one has been sent to us. We do NOT have crew lists, rosters, or deck logs
available. Please see the
Frequently Asked Questions section on NavSource's Main Page for that information.
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This Page Created And Maintained By Mike Smolinski by Paul R. Yarnall, All Rights Reserved. Page Last Updated: 10 November 2019 |
