This Military Service Page was created/owned by
Kent Weekly (SS/DSV) (DBF), EMCS
to remember
Merrill, Aaron Stanton (Tip), VADM USN(Ret).
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Contact Info
Home Town Brandon Hall, MS
Last Address Natchaz, MS
Date of Passing Feb 28, 1961
Location of Interment Natchez City Cemetery - Natchez, Mississippi
Aaron Stanton Merrill, also known as Tip Merrill, was an American rear admiral during World War II who led American naval forces during the Solomon Islands campaign as well as the first admiral to solely use radar for fire control during wartime.
Other Comments:
USS Merrill (DD-976), named for Rear Admiral Aaron Stanton Merrill, was a Spruance-class destroyer that entered service with the United States Navy in 1978.
Foreign Awards:Officer of the Order of the Crown by the Belgium Government Grand Officer of the Order of Merit by the Government of Chile
Treasury-Bougainville Operation/Battle of Empress Augusta Bay
From Month/Year
November / 1943
To Month/Year
November / 1943
Description The Battle of Empress Augusta Bay, on 1–2 November 1943—also known as the Battle of Gazelle Bay, Operation Cherry Blossom, and in Japanese sources as the Sea Battle off Bougainville Island was a naval battle fought near the island of Bougainville. The naval battle was a result of Allied landings on nearby Bougainville in the first action in the Bougainville campaign of World War II and may also be seen as part of the Solomons and New Guinea campaigns. The battle was significant as part of a broader Allied strategy—known as Operation Cartwheel—aimed at isolating and surrounding the major Imperial base at Rabaul. The intention was to establish a beachhead on Bougainville, within which an airfield would be built.
On 1 November 1943, the U.S. 3rd Marine Division landed at Cape Torokina in Empress Augusta Bay. The bay had been chosen because it was at the outer limit of Allied fighter plane range, and because the numerically-superior Japanese 17th Army was concentrated at other, more strategic sites in the north and the south. The Marines were backed by Task Force 39, composed of cruisers and destroyers, commanded by Rear Admiral Aaron S. "Tip" Merrill.
