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DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER
901 M STREET SE -- WASHINGTON NAVY YARD
WASHINGTON DC 20374-5060

Online Library of Selected Images:
-- PEOPLE -- UNITED STATES --

Lieutenant Milton Ernest Ricketts, USN, (1913-1942)

Milton E. Ricketts was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on 5 August 1913. Graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1935, he subsequently served in USS Ranger (CV-4) and USS Yorktown (CV-5). On 8 May 1942, during the Battle of the Coral Sea, Lieutenant Ricketts was in charge of a damage control party on board Yorktown. When a Japanese bomb exploded among his group, he successfully undertook fire-fighting measures despite having received mortal wounds. For this act of heroism, Lieutenant Milton E. Ricketts was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

USS Ricketts (DE-254) was named in his honor.

This page features our only view of Milton E. Ricketts.

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Photo #: NH 95297

Lieutenant Milton Ernest Ricketts, USN (1913-1942)

Halftone photograph copied from Medal of Honor, The Navy.
Lt. Ricketts was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism during the Battle of Coral Sea, 8 May 1942.
He was in charge of a USS Yorktown (CV-5) damage control party that suffered many casualties from a bomb explosion. Despite mortal wounds, Lt. Rickets deployed a fire hose and successfully contained the resulting fire before he died.

U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.

Online Image: 172KB; 640 x 765 pixels

 



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4 May 1999