This Military Service Page was created/owned by
Kent Weekly (SS/DSV) (DBF), EMCS
to remember
Beach, Edward Latimer, Jr., CAPT USN(Ret).
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Contact Info
Home Town New York
Last Address 1622 - 29th St. NW Washington DC 20007
Date of Passing Dec 01, 2002
Location of Interment U.S. Naval Academy Cemetery and Columbarium (VLM) - Annapolis, Maryland
Wall/Plot Coordinates Across the road from Beach Hall
The Navy Cross is presented to Edward Latimer Beach, Lieutenant Commander, United States Navy, for gallantry and intrepidity in action as Executive Officer, Navigator and Assistant Approach Officer on board the U.S.S. TIRANTE (SS-420) on the First War Patrol of that submarine during the period 3 March 1945 to 25 April 1945, in enemy controlled waters of the East China Sea. Lieutenant Commander Beach rendered valiant service to his commanding officer in penetrating mined and shoal-obstructed shallow waters in defiance of hostile shore-based radar stations and aircraft. By his excellent judgment and keen understanding of attack problems, he aided immeasurably in sending torpedoes into targets with deadly accuracy and contributed to the sinking of three Japanese cargo ships, one large transport, a hostile tanker, three patrol frigates, and one lugger, totaling 28,000 tons of shipping vital to the enemy's ability to prosecute the war. Through his experience and sound judgment he assisted in bringing his ship safely back to port. His conduct throughout was an inspiration to his officers and men and in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
Other Comments:
He served as Presidential Aide to Dwight D Eisenhower.
Honors
Sword of the Class of 1897 - United States Naval Academy Giant of Adventure Award (1960) - Argosy Men's Magazine Honorary Doctor of Science (Sc.D) - American International College Magellanic Premium (1961) - American Philosophical Society Theodore and Frankilin D. Roosevelt Prize in Naval History (1987) - New York Council of the Navy League Alfred Thayer Mahan Award for Literary Achievement (1980; 2000) - The Navy League
World War II/Asiatic-Pacific Theater
From Month/Year
December / 1941
To Month/Year
September / 1945
Description The plan of the Pacific subseries was determined by the geography, strategy, and the military organization of a theater largely oceanic. Two independent, coordinate commands, one in the Southwest Pacific under General of the Army Douglas MacArthur and the other in the Central, South, and North Pacific (Pacific Ocean Areas) under Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, were created early in the war. Except in the South and Southwest Pacific, each conducted its own operations with its own ground, air, and naval forces in widely separated areas. These operations required at first only a relatively small number of troops whose efforts often yielded strategic gains which cannot be measured by the size of the forces involved. Indeed, the nature of the objectivesùsmall islands, coral atolls, and jungle-bound harbors and airstrips, made the employment of large ground forces impossible and highlighted the importance of air and naval operations. Thus, until 1945, the war in the Pacific progressed by a double series of amphibious operations each of which fitted into a strategic pattern developed in Washington.