Arthur Edward Loeser was born on 17 April 1903 at Rahway, New Jersey

Rahway, New Jersey

Rahway is a city in southern Union County, New Jersey, United States. It is part of the New York metropolitan area, being 15 miles southwest of Manhattan and five miles west of Staten Island...

; appointed to the United States Naval Academy

United States Naval Academy

The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...

 on 15 August 1923; and commissioned ensign

Ensign (rank)

Ensign is a junior rank of a commissioned officer in the armed forces of some countries, normally in the infantry or navy. As the junior officer in an infantry regiment was traditionally the carrier of the ensign flag, the rank itself acquired the name....

 on 2 June 1927.

After serving from 1927–29 in the aircraft carrier

Aircraft carrier

An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...

 USS Saratoga

USS Saratoga (CV-3)

USS Saratoga was the second aircraft carrier of the United States Navy and the fifth ship to bear her name. She was commissioned one month earlier than her sister and class leader, , which is the third actually commissioned after and Saratoga...

 (CV-3), from 1929–32 in the destroyer

Destroyer

In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...

 Hopkins

USS Hopkins (DD-249)

USS Hopkins was a Clemson-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. She was the third ship named USS Hopkins and the second named for Esek Hopkins....

 (DD-249), in the cruiser

Cruiser

A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...

 Rochester (CA-2) in 1932, in the gunboat

Gunboat

A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.-History:...

 Asheville

USS Asheville (PG-21)

USS Asheville was a gunboat that served in the United States Navy during the early days of America's participation in World War II...

 (PG-21) in 1933, and in Chicago

USS Chicago (CA-29)

USS Chicago was a Northampton-class heavy cruiser of the United States Navy that served in the Pacific Theater in the early years of World War II. She was the second US Navy ship to be named after the city of Chicago, Illinois...

 (CA-29) in 1934, Loeser completed two years of postgraduate work at the Naval Academy. Two years in the battleship

Battleship

A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...

 Mississippi

USS Mississippi (BB-41)

USS Mississippi , a , was the third ship of the United States Navy named in honor of the 20th state, and the second battleship to carry the name. Commissioned in 1917, too late to serve in World War I, she served extensively in the Pacific in World War II, for which she earned eight battle stars...

 (BB-41) were followed by two in Sampson

USS Sampson (DD-394)

The second USS Sampson was a Somers-class destroyer in the United States Navy. She was named for William Thomas Sampson.Sampson was laid down on 8 April 1936 by Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine; launched on 16 April 1938; sponsored by Mrs. Louisa Smith Thayer; and commissioned at the Boston Navy Yard...

 (DD-394) as engineering officer. From June 1940 to August 1941 he served with Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Bath, Maine

Bath, Maine

Bath is a city in Sagadahoc County, Maine, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 9,266. It is the county seat of Sagadahoc County. Located on the Kennebec River, Bath is a port of entry with a good harbor. The city is popular with tourists, many drawn by its...

.

On 2 September 1941 Lieutenant Commander Loeser reported aboard light cruiser

Light cruiser

A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...

 Atlanta

USS Atlanta (CL-51)

USS Atlanta of the United States Navy was the lead ship of the Atlanta class of 11 light cruisers. She was the third Navy ship named after the city of Atlanta, Georgia. Designed to provide anti-aircraft protection for US naval task groups, Atlanta served in this capacity in the naval Battles of...

 (CL-51) as engineering officer.
Lieutenant Commander Loeser was killed in action on 13 November 1942 when enemy torpedo

Torpedo

The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...

es crippled Atlanta in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal

Naval Battle of Guadalcanal

The Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, sometimes referred to as the Third and Fourth Battles of Savo Island, the Battle of the Solomons, The Battle of Friday the 13th, or, in Japanese sources, as the , took place from 12–15 November 1942, and was the decisive engagement in a series of naval battles...

.

Namesake

In 1943, the destroyer escort

Destroyer escort

A destroyer escort is the classification for a smaller, lightly armed warship designed to be used to escort convoys of merchant marine ships, primarily of the United States Merchant Marine in World War II. It is employed primarily for anti-submarine warfare, but also provides some protection...

 USS Loeser

USS Loeser (DE-680)

USS Loeser was a Buckley-class destroyer escort of the United States Navy, named in honor of Lieutenant Commander Arthur E. Loeser ....

(DE-680) was named in honor of Lt.Cmdr. Loeser, sponsored by his widow, Mrs. Marion Loeser.