Norman Scott

Born	10 Aug 1889
Died	13 Nov 1942
Nationality	United States
Category	Sea

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

Norman Scott was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. He was appointed to the Naval Academy in 1907 and graduated four years later. After serving aboard battleship Idaho and several destroyers, he entered WW1 as the executive officer of destroyer Jacob Jones. In Dec 1917, the destroyer was sunk by a German submarine, and Scott was transferred to the Navy Department as Naval Aide to President Woodrow Wilson. In 1919, he commanded a division of Eagle Boats.

During the inter-war years, Scott had both extensive sea-going experience as well as land duties. He took part in the naval mission to Brazil in 1937-1939 aboard light cruiser Cincinnati. When the United States entered WW2 in Dec 1941, Scott held the rank of captain.

During the first months of 1942 Scott was assigned to the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. In May, he was given the war time rank of rear admiral and was sent to the South Pacific. In that role, he supported the invasion of Guadalcanal and Tulagi in Aug 1942. In Oct 1942, despite several potentially disastrous mistakes, he emerged the victor of the Battle of Cape Esperance and became a hero in the theater. A month later, in the early hours of 13 Nov 1942, his ship cruiser Atlanta was struck by enemy shells near the bridge, which took his life. Atlanta eventually sank. Scott was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. The citation read as follows:

"For extraordinary heroism and conspicuous intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty during action against enemy Japanese forces off Savo Island on the night of 11-12 October and again on the night of 12-13 November 1942. In the earlier action, intercepting a Japanese Task Force intent upon storming our island positions and landing reinforcements at Guadalcanal, Rear Adm. Scott, with courageous skill and superb coordination of the units under his command, destroyed 8 hostile vessels and put the others to flight. Again challenged, a month later, by the return of a stubborn and persistent foe, he led his force into a desperate battle against tremendous odds, directing close-range operations against the invading enemy until he himself was killed in the furious bombardment by their superior firepower. On each of these occasions his dauntless initiative, inspiring leadership and judicious foresight in a crisis of grave responsibility contributed decisively to the rout of a powerful invasion fleet and to the consequent frustration of a formidable Japanese offensive. He gallantly gave his life in the service of his country."

Sources: Naval Historical Center, the Struggle of Guadalcanal, Wikipedia.

Photographs

Scott and other officers, Rio de Janeiro, Aug 1938

Scott and other officers, Rio de Janeiro, 24 Feb 1939

Scott, captain of cruiser Pensacola, circa 1940

If you have enjoyed this biography,
you may also be intererested in:

Benjamin (Jr.) Davis
Charles Yeager
John Crace

Share this article with your friends:

		Delicious
		Digg
		Facebook

		Reddit
		StumbleUpon
		Twitter

Stay updated with WW2DB:

Subscribe to RSS Feeds

Advertise on ww2db.com

Visitor Submitted Comments

Wayne VanDerVoort says:
22 Jan 2007 12:48:28 PM

The navy built a (fletcher) destroyer USS Norman Scott DD in 1943 named after the Admiral Norman Scott. The destroyer later became quit famous. The navy made a documentary called This is America - Navy Yard after she was attacked at Tinian on July 24, 1944. Later in the War the Norman Scott was 1 of 6 surface ships first to bomb the Japanese homeland on July 15, 1945.

All visitor submitted comments are opinions of those making the submissions and do not reflect views of WW2DB.

Search WW2DB & Partner Sites

Your Name
Your Email
	Your email will not be published
Your Comments
Security Code