Crew's Medals and Patches


Patches, Plaques, and Medals

*Over the years, various emblems have been associated with Whitehurst.* If you have any information on these shown here, or know of others, please e-mail me. max crow Site Author**

The first of course was the Official Seal of the ship

Comments by Roger Ekman Capt. USN Ret. Concerning the official seal, it was a seal made of lead and used with an embossing tool, an item that allows a sheet of paper or the like to be inserted and then a lever/handle is pressed down and the seal is embossed on the paper. It does not use ink. It is normally maintained by the XO and is generally secured in his personal safe. A notary normally has the same type of device. Concerning all the patches, they have no official meaning and are usually designed by a crew member. If approved by the CO (which he will do for morale purposes), they can be used on coffee mugs, patches, cigarette lighters, etc.


Korean War Era Logo In September, 1950, Whitehurst was Re-commissioned for duty in Korea, supplying power to shore in Pusan. It was during this period that some imaginative sailor came up with the logo showing Reddy Kilowatt holding a Hedge Hog (a forward thrown anti submarine bomb). The emblem was immediately put on display in the Whitehurst Club, the crew's own beer lounge built on the pier at Pusan.
1951 in the "Whitehurst Club" Pusan Korea

I'd like to credit the artist who designed this patch. If you remember, please get in touch. crowmax@aol.com

Patches Designed in the 1960s The "Little Beaver Patch" Story by Tim Lake GMC. Patch picture provided by Rodger Clement QM3
The patch was given to the Whitehurst by Admiral A. A. Burke, known as 31 knot Burke, when he was C.O. of Com Des Div. 43., operating in south pacific around the Solomons. When you look at the plaque you may be able to make out, on the right pocket, JR which means Little Beaver jr. given in honor of the Little Beaver Squadron of world war 2. It was presented to the ship by Admiral Burke himself, sometime around 1960. This patch was not worn on any official uniform but, usually, on dungaree jackets or civilian clothes above the left breast. TIM LAKE


**The following letter contains the comments of Tim Dorgan SM2 re: this patch I am not sure when it happened but I know it was before they re-activated the Whitehurst in 1960. Most likely it was in 1958, when there was a lot of press about the Reserves in the Northwest. In Seattle there was the Whitehurst and the Brannon. In Tacoma there was the USS Watts a DD that was still in active service but being used as a Reserve training ship. Then down in Portland there was the McGinty another DE. It was about this time that Admiral Arleigh Burke came to Seattle. You may remember him, he was known as "31 knot Burke" and commanded a squadron of DD's, I believe it was DesRon23 and was known as the "Little Beaver" squadron. When the Admiral was presented the three Puget Sound Reserve ships, Whitehurst, Brannon and Watts at Pier 91 Supply base in Seattle he stated at a news conference (TV) that they reminded him of his "Little Beaver" squadron. And then he said that they could also be a "Little Beaver" squadron. As the Whitehurst was the flag ship at the time with George Fliflet as Commander and T. J. Skewes a four striper as the Commodore they got to paint the Little Beaver on the stack. It was still there when she was mothballed in 1967. Tim Dorgan. June 2015 the Little Beaver Plaque Resurfaces. Plaque image is 6.75" high. Base 7.25" x 10" Story received from Harry Morris and Larry La Grandeur and complied by Max Crow, Yeoman/Web Master, USS Whitehurst Assn. In early June 2015, I received e-mail from Navy veteran, Harry Morris of Wooster, Ohio, asking if I'd be interested in a the Little Beaver Plaque which was awarded to Whitehurst. He was not trying to sell it. He realized that the Plaque represented a significant bit of Whitehurst History and just wanted to give it to the group of veterans who can appreciate it most. Harry Morris Harry Morris BM3, served on the USS Pocono AGC-16, Communications and Command ship of Admiral John McCain, after which he was transferred to an LST in a Squadron of COMLANSHIPRON Two in Sasebo, Japan, for operations in Vietnam along with CDR Larry La Grandeur. Although Harry is not a Whitehurst vet, he served with CDR La Grandeur, who, later, served on Whitehurst during the last two years before it was struck from the Navy's Ship List. Larry and Harry remained in contact though Harry lived in Ohio and Larry lived in Washington state. A "few years ago" La Grandeur, who had collected a fair amount of Navy memorabilia, offered to send some of the mementos to Harry because he was "downsizing". When the box arrived, Harry found the Whitehurst's Little Beaver Plaque among other plaques in Larry's collection. La Grandeur had been serving as a Department Head on Whitehurst. The Plaque was given to him when he left the ship. I'm sorry we don't have a photo of CDR La Grandeur. We certainly owe him our appreciation for preserving this bit of Whitehurst history and for passing his mementos on to Harry Morris, who was dedicated to returning the items to veterans who had some association with them. Harry searched the Internet, found the the Whitehurst Web site, my e-mail address, and contacted me to offer the Little Beaver Plaque Plaque. In a very short time, the plaque was in my hands. It will be photographed, shared, and storied among Whitehurst vets, several of whom were onboard when it was awarded. Some of them may have participated in painting the image on the stack. Bravo Zulu to you Harry. Our thanks and appreciation go out to you for your determination to put the plaque "back onboard". You can say with pride, "Mission accomplished!" mc The story posted earlier on the Little Beaver Patch indicates that other ships serving in the reserve training mission may have also received similar plaques with their ship's name and number, however; in multiple searches of the Internet, I have not been able to find any such record. If any of our readers have additional information on the Little Beaver Award, please write to me. crowmax@aol.com Web master, USS Whitehurst Assn. The Plot Thickens!** Shortly after story of the Little Beaver Plaque was posted, Harry Morris contacted me again to send a link to and e-bay item that he had just uncovered. It appears that our plaque, on the left, may be a replica of the plaque seen in the e-bay ad. This begs the question, "who made the replica?". We know it was displayed on Whitehurst in the 1960s. Perhaps some day a reader will contact us with the rest of the story. We are also left to wonder where the plaque on e-bay came from. There is, perhaps, a clue in the ad. The plaque is offered by Portland Antiques. The memento could have been from an estate sale. The last Commanding Officer of the Whitehurst lived in Portland and he died a few years ago. Of course this is just a possibility. It was both natural and common for men to take memorabilia from a ship they had worked on and devoted years of their lives to. When a ship is struck from the Navy List, it is usually sold for scrap, sent to a foreign Navy, or just left to rust in an inland river somewhere. Items taken for memories' sake have no value to anyone except the men who worked around them during their service. Could the e-bay plaque actually be the one presented as an award? Perhaps. mc
"Navigational Guesser" Patch *By Rodger Clement QM3, served aboard Whitehurst* in the early 60s We (the Quartermasters) were always kidding each other about throwing a dart to get the ships position for the 08, 12 & 20 reports. The leading QM would have each of us obtain our own ships position and then we would compare them with his and the navigators. There were times when one of us was so far from everyone else that the comment was made like "You must have thrown a dart to get that one and your aim wasn't very damn good". We had fun, the comment was made jokingly. The leading QM was a very jovial guy, he expected you to do your job and he was a good teacher. The center is a dart vertically with a question mark and the ships wheel. Probably no more than 6 of these patches were ever made.**


Squadron Patch "DesRon 27" Special thanks to Ron Bravo, crewmember of USS Brannon 63-64, who provided these patch images and the impetus for building this web page. max crow site author *During the 60s, DEs Whitehurst, Brannon, McGinty,* and Watts, a DD, were used as reserve training ships operating out of Seattle's pier 91 and Tacoma . They were DesRon 27.**
Plaque		Patch
Kenneth Davis ICC (SW) USN Ret, provided these Viet Nam Era Patches. Worn in 1962 when Whitehurst was charged with training the South Viet Namese Patrol boat crews. The patches are for Whitehurst's Escort Division, 7.1, and her Engineering Department.



Whitehurst DE-634 & Brannon DE-446 were in the same division in 1962. While the ships were exchanging movies, Ken Davis photographed the Brannon with the Division Patch painted on the stack. If you look thru the clutter you can make it out in the picture below.



Asiatic-Pacific Area Service Medal Earned by Whitehurst



*As result of her WWII operations in the Pacific, Whitehurst* earned seven battle stars on the Asiatic-Pacific Area Service medal for the following actions: (1 star each action) Asiatic-Pacific Raids -- 1944 Palau, Yap, Ulithi, Wolei raid -- 30 March - 1 April 1944 Consolidation of the Solomon Islands, Consolidation of the Northern Solomons -- 15, 22 June - 26 October 1944 Hollandia Operation (Aitape, Humboldt Bay-Tanahmerah Bay) 26 April -29 May 1944 Western New Guinea Operations Toem-Wadke-Sarmi area operation 17-21, 23-25 May 1944 Biak Island operation -- 27 May - 7 June 1944 First anti-submarine assessment (pacific) 28 October 1944 Leyte operation Leyte Landings -- 21 - 30 October, 12-26 November 1944 Okinawa Gunto operation Assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto -- 25 March - 15 April 1945**
	American Campaign Medal & Ribbon

	Victory Medal

Philippine Liberation Medal

PHILIPPINE LIBERATION MEDAL
Whitehurst earned one Battle Star with this medal
The Philippine Embassy in Washington DC, through the Defense and Armed Forces Office, is inviting anyone who served in battles/campaigns for the liberation of the Philippines from October 17, 1944 to September 3, 1945, or for at least 30 days service in the Philippines or its territorial waters. For eligibility, a form will be mailed out upon request, which will include name, rank/grade, SS#, name of organization or unit, date of service and date of discharge. Present address and phone # and next of kin. Authenticated copies of discharge papers, certificate of awards, DD214 or other service records which detail service in the Philippines during WW II. Letters have been mailed out to Veterans of Foreign Wars offices in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and the VA Hospital, to Charles Sykes a radio personality and various community organizations in Milwaukee to solicit the widest participation as possible. His Excellency, Ernesto M. Maceda, Philippine Ambassador to the US, will come to Milwaukee to present the awards. For veterans residing in Wisconsin, please request forms from P. Emraida K. Kiram, Philippine Center, 3195 S. Superior Street, Milwaukee, WI 53207 or call 414-229-277. Replacement Certificate Replace Philippine Liberation Medal The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed, while serving, on or after April 5, 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, which took the form of a heart made of purple cloth, the Purple Heart is the oldest military award still given to U.S. military members. from the Wikipedia... mc
Web site for ordering Navy WWII Medals http://www.patriotsofamerica.net/WWIINavyMedals.html

*Some of the Ribbons worn by Whitehurst* WWII Veterans Ens. Fred Mielke in 1944 and circa 2005**

note: All who served on Whitehurst during the Pacific War were eligible to wear the Campaign Ribbons shown above.		Thanks to Neal Mielke, Fred's son, who provided the display of his father's decorations. mc

note: In April 2015, after his father died, Neal Mielke offered pictures of his dad's Purple Heart, Campaign Ribbons, and souvenirs of the sinking of the Japanese Cruiser Submarine I-45. Click link to see the photos. http://www.de634.org/subsunk.htm
Korean War Era Medals Earned by Many Whitehurst Vets
For her Korean Service Whitehurst earned the Korean Service Medal (21 February-19 September 1951) with Three Battle Stars for the following engagements: First U.N. Counter Offensive --25 February - 21 April 1951-- Communist China Spring Offensive --22 April - 8 July 1951-- U. S. Summer Fall Offensive -- 9 July - 13 September 1951-- National Defense and Korean Service Medals
National Defense & Korean Service		Obverse

United Nations Medal for Korean War

Instituted: 1951 Criteria: Service on behalf of the United Nations in Korea between 27 June 1950 and 27 July 1954. Notes: Above date denotes when award was authorized for wear by U.S. Military personnel



Republic of Korea War Service Medal

Republic of Korea War Service Medal

In 1951 the South Korean Government established the "Republic of Korea War Service Medal" (RKWSM). It took the Republic of Korea nearly 50 years to persuade Defense Department officials to accept its offer to award this medal to ... veterans of the war." from the El Paso Times 17 July 2000

		RKWSM Obtain RKWSM

Insignias, Patches etc can be obtained at the following web site. http://www.usmedals.com/default.aspx

Medal for Viet Nam Service The following excerpt is from The Viet Nam section of this web site. USS Whitehurst on “Battle Patrol” off Viet Nam

By Bill Mulcahy Torpedoman 2^nd

I was a crewman, Torpedoman 2^nd, during 1961-1962. In February of 1962 Whitehurst was underway for WestPac along with Escort Division 71. For about 60 days we operated officially in the South China Sea and the Gulf of Siam. In reality we were on "junk" patrol along the coast of Vietnam and were conducting training of Vietnamese naval officers... *See the following link, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal , and you'll agree that Whitehurst* did indeed earn at least one medal for the Viet Nam Era.**
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal

Excerpted from the above link. "The Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal can be earned through U.S. military operations in direct support of the United Nations and U.S. operations of assistance to friendly foreign nations."
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