Norman Scott was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on 10 August 1889. Appointed to the U.S. Naval Academy in 1907, he graduated four years later and received his commission as Ensign in March 1912. During 1911-13, Ensign Scott served in the battleship Idaho, then served in destroyers and related duty. In December 1917, he was Executive Officer of USS Jacob Jones when she was sunk by a German submarine and was commended for his performance at that time. During the rest of World War I, Lieutenant Scott had duty in the Navy Department and as Naval Aide to President Woodrow Wilson. In 1919, while holding the temporary rank of Lieutenant Commander, he was in charge of a division of Eagle Boats (PE) and commanded USS Eagle # 2 and Eagle # 3.
During the first years of the 1920s, Norman Scott served afloat in destroyers and in the battleship New York and ashore in Hawaii. From 1924 to 1930, he was assigned to the staff of Commander Battle Fleet and as an instructor at the Naval Academy. He commanded the destroyers MacLeish and Paul Jones in the early 1930s, then had further Navy Department Duty and attended the Naval War College's Senior Course. After a tour as Executive Officer of the light cruiser Cincinnati, Commander Scott was a member of the U.S. Naval Mission to Brazil in 1937-39. Following promotion to the rank of Captain, he was Commanding Officer of the heavy cruiser Pensacola until shortly after the United States entered World War II in December 1941.
Captain Scott was assigned to the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations during the first months of 1942. After becoming a Rear Admiral in May, he was sent to the south Pacific, where he commanded a fire support group during the invasion of Guadalcanal and Tulagi in early August. Rear Admiral Scott continued to lead surface task units for the next three months, as the campaign to hold Guadalcanal intensified. On 11-12 October 1942, he commanded a cruiser-destroyer force in the Battle of Cape Esperance, the U.S. Navy's first surface victory of the campaign. A month later, on 13 November, he was second-in-command during the initial night action of the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. In that wild and brutal fight, Rear Admiral Norman Scott was killed in action when his flagship, the light cruiser Atlanta, was fatally damaged by gunfire and a torpedo. For his "extraordinary heroism and conspicuous intrepidity" in the October and November battles, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.
USS Norman Scott (DD-690), 1943-1973, and USS Scott (DDG-995), 1981-____, were named in honor of Rear Admiral Scott.
This page features all our views of Rear Admiral Norman Scott.
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Photo #: 80-G-20823 Captain Norman Scott, USN Probably photographed while he was Commanding Officer of USS Pensacola (CA-24), circa 1940-41. Note the white strap on his binoculars. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Online Image: 80KB; 600 x 765 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system. |
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Photo #: KN-10864 (Color) Rear Admiral Norman Scott, USN Oil on canvas, 28" x 26", by McClelland Barclay, USNR (1891-1943). Painting signed and dated by the artist, 1942. It includes a depiction of the Medal of Honor, which was posthumously awarded to Rear Admiral Scott for "extraordinary heroism and conspicuous intrepidity" during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, 13 November 1942. Painting in the U.S. Naval Academy Museum Collection. Gift of Mrs. Norman Scott, 1949. Official U.S. Navy Photograph. Online Image: 67KB; 605 x 715 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system as Photo # 428-KN-10864 |
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Photo #: NH 102454 Rear Admiral Norman Scott, USN Halftone reproduction of a 1942 photograph, published in "Medal of Honor, 1861-1945, The Navy", page 257. Rear Admiral Scott was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for "extraordinary heroism and conspicuous intrepidity" during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, 13 November 1942. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Online Image: 111KB; 600 x 715 pixels |
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Photo #: NH 94541 U.S. Naval Mission to Brazil Officers of the Naval Mission staff, at Rio de Janeiro, August 1938. They are (from left to right, seated): (from left to right, standing): Collection of Rear Admiral Paulus P. Powell, USN U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Online Image: 112KB; 740 x 555 pixels |
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Photo #: NH 94542 U.S. Naval Mission to Brazil Officers of the Naval Mission staff, at Rio de Janeiro, upon the relief of the Mission Chief, 24 February 1939. They are (from left to right): Collection of Rear Admiral Paulus P. Powell, USN. Names of those present and other details were written on the photograph by Rear Admiral Powell. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Online Image: 104KB; 740 x 580 pixels |
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Medal of Honor citation of Rear Admiral Norman Scott (as printed in the official publication "Medal of Honor, 1861-1949, The Navy", page 257): |
If you want higher resolution reproductions than the "Online Library's" digital images, see: "How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions." |
Page made 22 December 2001
Link added 4 January 2002