Rear Admiral Richard N. Antrim, 1931-1954

Assigned to battleship New York, cruiser Portland, and destroyers Crowninshield, Bittern, and Pope.  As Damage Control Officer of Pope, attached to the Asiatic Fleet at the outbreak of World War II, participated in the Battles of Makassar Strait, Badoeng Strait, and Java Sea. While escorting two British ships, encountered four Japanese heavy cruisers and four Japanese destroyers in the Java Sea.  Although the British ships were sunk ships, Pope was eventually destroyed by Japanese aircraft, with Antrim receiving the Navy Cross. As Prisoner of War, he earned the Bronze Star Medal when he was forced to construct slit trenches for the Japanese POW’s for bomb protection: he constructed them in a fashion to spell out from the sky “U.S.”, which the Japanese never realized but, if they had, would have resulted in his beheading.  Also as POW, he earned the Medal of Honor when another POW was near death from being subjected to a frenzied clubbing and kicking by four Japanese guards before the entire Japanese guard force; he stepped forward and told them he would take the remainder of the punishment in place of the officer, so stunning the Japanese that the officer was spared, gaining new respect for all POW’s that resulted in improved camp living conditions.  After the war, was Commanding Officer of Turner and transport Montrose

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