Forrest Percival Sherman was born in Merrimack, New Hampshire, on 30 October 1896. He entered the U.S. Naval Academy in 1914, graduating in June 1917 with the Class of 1918. During and shortly after World War I, he served in European waters as an officer of the gunboat Nashville and destroyer Murray. In 1919-21, Sherman was assigned to the battleship Utah and destroyers Reid and Barry, serving as Commanding Officer of the latter. Following duty as Flag Lieutenant to Commander Control Force, Atlantic Fleet, he received flight training at Pensacola, Florida. Designated a Naval Aviator in December 1922, Lieutenant Sherman was assigned to Fighting Squadron TWO until 1924, when he returned to Pensacola as an instructor. Study at the Naval War College was followed in 1927 by service in the aircraft carriers Lexington and Saratoga. While in the latter ship, he commanded Scouting Squadron TWO and was Flag Secretary to Commander Aircraft Squadrons, Battle Fleet.
Promoted to the ranks of Lieutenant Commander in 1930 and Commander in 1937, during that decade Sherman served at the Naval Academy, commanded Fighting Squadron ONE, had charge of the Aviation Ordnance Section of the Bureau of Ordnance, was Navigator of the aircraft carrier Ranger, and had duty on a number of flag staffs. In 1941-42, he served with the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations and was a member of the Permanent Joint Board on Defense, Canada-United States. In May 1942, after reaching the rank of Captain, Sherman took command of the carrier Wasp, taking her through the first month of the Guadalcanal Campaign.
After Wasp was sunk in September 1942, Sherman became Chief of Staff to Commander Air Force, Pacific Fleet. In November 1943 Rear Admiral Sherman was assigned as Deputy Chief of Staff to the Pacific Fleet commander, Admiral Chester W. Nimitz. He held that position for the remainder of World War II, playing a critical role in planning the offensives that brought victory in the Pacific, and was present when Japan surrendered on 2 September 1945. Following a short tour as a carrier division commander, in December 1945 Vice Admiral Sherman became Deputy Chief of Naval Operations.
Sherman's next assignment, beginning in January 1948, was to command the Navy's operating forces in the Mediterranean Sea. He was recalled to Washington, D.C., at the end of October 1949 to become Chief of Naval Operations, with the rank of Admiral. During the next sixteen months, he helped the Navy recover from a period of intense political controversy and oversaw its responses to the twin challenges of a hot war in Korea and an intensifying cold war elsewhere in the World. On 22 July 1951, while on a military and diplomatic trip to Europe, Admiral Forrest Sherman died in Naples, Italy, following a sudden series of heart attacks.
USS Forrest Sherman (DD-931), 1955-1992, was named in honor of Admiral Sherman.
This page features selected views of Admiral Forrest P. Sherman.
If you want higher resolution reproductions than the "Online Library's" digital images, see: "How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions." |
Click on the small photograph to prompt a larger view of the same image.
Photo #: NH 58253 Rear Admiral Forrest P. Sherman, USN Portrait photograph, taken circa 1945. The original print bears the inscription: " For Fleet Admiral Nimitz with deep affection and appreciation of his inspiring example during both war and peace ... Forrest Sherman". Collection of Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Online Image: 81KB; 580 x 765 pixels |
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Photo #: USA C-5848 (Color) Admiral Forrest P. Sherman, USN, Chief of Naval Operations At his desk in the Pentagon Building, 10 November 1949. Photographed by Master Sergeant Wingfield, U.S. Army. Photograph from the Army Signal Corps Collection in the U.S. National Archives. Online Image: 80KB; 585 x 765 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system. |
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Photo #: 80-G-421847 Admiral Forrest P. Sherman, USN, Chief of Naval Operations At his desk, circa 1950-51. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Online Image: 84KB; 585 x 765 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system. |
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Photo #: NH 91719 Permanent Joint Board on Defence, Canada-United States Meeting at Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, 26 August 1940. Those present are (seated around the table, from left): J.D. Hickerson, Joint Secretary (USA); Dr. H.L. Keenleyside, Joint Secretary (Canada); Air Commodore A.A.L. Cuffe, RCAF; Captain L.W. Murray, RCN, Deputy Chief of Naval Staff; Brigadier K. Stuart, Deputy Chief of General Staff, Canada; O.M. Biggar, Joint Chairman, Canada; Fiorella L. LaGuardia, Joint Chairman, USA; Lieutenant General Stanley D. Embick, U.S. Army; Captain Harry W. Hill, USN; Lieutenant Colonel J.T. MacNarney, U.S. Army; and Commander Forrest P. Sherman, USN. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Online Image: 95KB; 740 x 600 pixels |
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Photo #: 80-G-16543 Captain Forrest P. Sherman, USN, former Commanding Officer of USS Wasp (CV-7) Describes the loss of Wasp, which was torpedoed on 15 September 1942, during an interview at Pearl Harbor, circa October-December 1942. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Online Image: 98KB; 595 x 765 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system. |
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Photo #: NH 58049 Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, USN, Commander in Chief, Pacific Fleet and Pacific Ocean Areas, (center) Confers with Admiral William F. Halsey, Commander Third Fleet (at left), on board a U.S. Navy ship in the Pacific, 1945. Also present, at right, is Nimitz' Chief of Staff, Rear Admiral Forrest P. Sherman. Collection of Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Online Image: 88KB; 740 x 535 pixels |
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Photo #: 80-G-701293 Surrender of Japan, Tokyo Bay, 2 September 1945 Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, USN, signs the Instrument of Surrender as United States Representative, on board USS Missouri (BB-63), 2 September 1945. Standing directly behind him are (left-to-right): General of the Army Douglas MacArthur; Admiral William F. Halsey, USN, and Rear Admiral Forrest Sherman, USN. Many of the other officers present are identified in 80-G-701293 (Complete Caption)". Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Online Image: 113KB; 740 x 615 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system. |
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Photo #: 80-G-401568 Lieutenant General James A. Van Fleet, U.S. Army, (left-center) and Vice Admiral Forrest P. Sherman, USN, Commander Sixth Task Fleet (right-center) Watch a parade in honor of the 128th anniversary of Greek Independence with senior officers of the Greek Army and other high-ranking officials, at Athens, Greece, March 1949. In top hat, just to right of Admiral Sherman, is China's Ambassador to Greece, Wen-Yuan Wing. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Online Image: 96KB; 740 x 610 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system. |
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Photo #: 80-G-431253 Admiral Forrest P. Sherman, USN, Chief of Naval Operations On the bridge of USS New Jersey (BB-62), during a visit to the Korean War zone. He is watching as the battleship's 16-inch guns fire on enemy targets in North Korea. Photo is dated 30 June 1951. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Online Image: 82KB; 600 x 765 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system. |
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Photo #: NH 81908 Admiral Forrest P. Sherman, USN, Chief of Naval Operations (at right) Shares a light moment with Vice Admiral G. Lemonnier, French Naval Deputy to General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower, at Orly Airfield, Paris, France, in July 1951. Courtesy of Captain H.H. Smith-Hutton, USN (Retired), via Captain Paul B. Ryan, USN, 1975. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Online Image: 88KB; 740 x 595 pixels |
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Photo #: 80-G-431943 Admiral Forrest P. Sherman, USN, Chief of Naval Operations Holds a press conference at the Hotel Excelsior, in Naples, Italy, circa 21 July 1951, shortly before his death. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Online Image: 98KB; 740 x 610 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system. |
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If you want higher resolution reproductions than the "Online Library's" digital images, see: "How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions." |
29 December 2001