Thomas Hinman Moorer

Admiral, U.S. Navy

Thomas Hinman Moorer was born on 9 February 1912 in Mount Willing, AL, the son of Dr. R. R. Moorer and Hulda Hill Hinson Moorer, a school teacher. His father, a dentist, named his son for his favorite Professor at Atlanta-Southern Dental College, Dr. Thomas Hinman. Moorer was raised in Eufaula, AL; and then went on to the U.S. Naval Academy graduating in 1933. After completing Naval Aviation training at Pensacola Naval Air Station, FL, in 1936, he flew with fighter squadrons based on the aircraft carriers USS Langley, Lexington and Enterprise.

In addition to his fighter experience, Moorer also qualified in seaplanes and flew with a patrol squadron in the early years of World War II. Serving with Patrol Squadron Twenty-Two at Pearl Harbor, HI, when the Japanese attacked in December 1941, his squadron subsequently participated in the Dutch East Indies Campaign in the Southwest Pacific where he flew numerous combat missions. Moorer received a Purple Heart after being shot down and wounded off the coast of Australia in February 1942 and then surviving an attack on the rescue ship, which was sunk by enemy action the same day. Moorer also received the Distinguished Flying Cross for his valor three months later when he braved Japanese air superiority to fly supplies into, and evacuate wounded out of, the island of Timor.

On 26 June 1964, Moorer was promoted to the four-star rank of Admiral and served as Commander-in-Chief U.S. Pacific Fleet (CINCPACFLT) from 1964-1965. He then served as Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic/Commander in Chief, Atlantic Command/Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet (SACLANT/CINCLANT/CINCLANTFLT), from 1965-1967. He was the first Navy officer to have commanded both fleets.

He served as the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) between 1967 and 1970, at the height of U.S. involvement in Vietnam. He also served as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) from 1970 until 1974.

He retired from the Navy in 1974.

Note: Moorer believed that the 1967 Israeli attack on the USS Liberty was deliberate and that President Lyndon B. Johnson ordered the cover-up to maintain ties with Israel.

Medals and Awards

Defense Distinguished Service Medal (2 Awards)
Navy Distinguished Service Medal (5 Awards)
Silver Star Medal
Legion of Merit
Distinguished Flying Cross
Purple Heart
Military Order of Aviz (Portugal)
Silver Star Medal, First Class (Greece)
Order of Double Rays of the Rising Sun (Japan)
First Class of the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun (Japan)
Precious Tripod (Pao-Ting) Medal (Republic of China)
Order of Cloud and Banner (Yun Hui) with Special Grand Cordon (Republic of China)
Legion of Honor, Rank of Commander (Philippines)
Order of the Naval Merit, Grande Official (Brazil)
Gran Estrella al Merito Militar (Chile)
Order of Naval Merit 1st Class Venezuela (Venezuela)
Order of National Security Merit, 1st Class (Republic of Korea)
Grand Cross, Order of Orange-Nassau with Swords (Netherlands)
Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit (Federal Republic of Germany)
Knight of the Grand Cross (Italy)
Grand Cross of Navy Merit (Spain)
Grand Cross of the Order of St. Olaf (Norway)

Civilian Awards

Stephen Decatur Award for Operational Competence by the Navy League of the United States (May 1964)

Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree awarded by Auburn University (1968)

General William Mitchell Award, Wings Club of New York City (February 1968)

Member, Alabama Academy of Honor (August 1969)

Honorary Doctor of Humanities Degree awarded by Samford University (May 1970)

Frank M. Hawks Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Development of Aviation by the American Legion Air Service Post 501, New York City (January 1971)

Moorer received the Gray Eagle Award as the most senior active naval aviator. It was presented at the Washington Navy Yard on 29 June 1972 and held it until his retirement in 1974.

The National Football Foundation Gold Medal (1990)

Honors

• A middle school in Eufaula, AL, is named for Admiral Moorer.

• The National Guard Armory (Fort Thomas H. Moorer Armory) in Fort Deposit, AL, is named for Admiral Moorer.

Death and Burial

Admiral Thomas Hinman Moorer died on 5 February 2004 at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Bethesda, MD, at age 91. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, VA.