Dudley W. Morton
Encyclopedia
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
commander of the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He was commander of during its third through seventh patrols. Wahoo was one of the most-celebrated submarines of World War II, sinking at least 19 Japanese ships, more than any other submarine of the time. Morton and Wahoo disappeared in 1943 during a patrol near La Perouse Strait
La Perouse Strait
La Pérouse Strait is a strait dividing the southern part of the Russian island of Sakhalin from the northern part of the Japanese island of Hokkaidō, and connecting the Sea of Japan on the west with the Sea of Okhotsk on the east....
, and was ultimately declared deceased three years later.
A native of Owensboro, Kentucky
Owensboro, Kentucky
Owensboro is the fourth largest city by population in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is the county seat of Daviess County. It is located on U.S. Route 60 about southeast of Evansville, Indiana, and is the principal city of the Owensboro, Kentucky, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's...
, Morton graduated from the 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...
in 1930. There he received the nickname "Mushmouth", after a character in the cartoon strip Moon Mullins
Moon Mullins
Moon Mullins, created by cartoonist Frank Willard , was a popular American comic strip which had a long run as both a daily and Sunday feature from June 19, 1923 to June 2, 1991. Syndicated by the Chicago Tribune/New York News Syndicate, the strip depicts the lives of diverse lowbrow characters who...
whose large square jaw and prominent mouth resembled Morton's. The nickname was shortened to "Mush", by which he was known for much of his life.
Career
Prior to the beginning of World War II, he served in the , , , , and the submarines and .Promoted to Commander October 15, 1942, he was in nominal command of while it underwent extended repairs at Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
. He was relieved to make a war patrol in between November 8 and December 26 as prospective commanding officer, a supernumerary position to prepare him for command of a fleet boat. Morton took command of Wahoo on December 31 in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Australia. Between January 26, 1943 and October 11, he carried out four offensive patrols,during which Wahoo was responsible for sinking 19 cargo and transport ships for a combined total of 55,000 tons.
During Wahoos third war patrol, Morton was responsible for an incident which resulted in shipwrecked soldiers in about twenty lifeboats of sunken Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese transport Bunyo Maru being fired on while in the water. O'Kane, who was on Wahoos bridge when the incident took place, likened to attacks on small craft made during the Dunkirk evacuation, and for the same reason: to prevent an enemy from recovering a body of troops that would shortly fight again. However, the Hague Convention of 1907 bans the killing of shipwreck survivors under any circumstances.
Controversy still attaches to this action, since survivors in the water may have been deliberately targeted. Vice Admiral
Vice admiral (United States)
In the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard, the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps, and the United States Maritime Service, vice admiral is a three-star flag officer, with the pay grade of...
Charles A. Lockwood
Charles A. Lockwood
Charles Andrews Lockwood was an admiral of the United States Navy. He is known in submarine history as the legendary commander of Submarine Force Pacific Fleet during World War II...
, the contemporary COMSUBPAC
ComSubPac
Commander Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet is the principal advisor to the Commander, United States Pacific Fleet for submarine matters. The Pacific Submarine Force includes attack, ballistic missile and auxiliary submarines, submarine tenders, floating submarine docks, deep submergence...
, asserts survivors were army troops and turned machinegun and rifle fire on Wahoo while she maneuvered on the surface, and such resistance was common in submarine warfare. Morton's exec, Richard O'Kane
Richard O'Kane
Rear Admiral Richard Hetherington “Dick” O'Kane was a United States Navy submarine commander in World War II, who received a Medal of Honor for his service on the...
, stated fire from Wahoo was intended to force the troops to abandon their boats and no troops were deliberately targeted. Clay Blair
Clay Blair
Clay Blair, Jr. was an American historian, best known for his books on military history. He served on the fleet submarine Guardfish in World War II and later wrote for Time and Life magazines before becoming editor-in-chief of The Saturday Evening Post. He assisted General Omar Bradley in the...
states Morton opened fire first and the shipwrecked returned fire with handguns.
Whatever the case, Morton and O'Kane had mis-identified the survivors as Japanese. In fact, they were mainly Indian POWs of 2nd Battalion, 16th Punjab Regiment, plus escorting forces from the 26th Field Ordnance Depot. Of 1,126 men aboard Buyo Maru, just 195 Indians and 87 Japanese died in all, including those killed in the initial sinking. The low number suggests O'Kane's defense, that Morton fired only on the boats, may be correct. It proved a rare occurrence, in any event.
Unlike German submariner Heinz-Wilhelm Eck
Heinz-Wilhelm Eck
Heinz-Wilhelm Eck was a German U-Boat commander of the Second World War, who was tried, convicted, condemned and executed postwar for ordering his crew to shoot the survivors of a Greek merchantman sunk by .-Service history:...
, who was executed as a war criminal for ordering the killing of civilian shipwreck survivors, Morton did not face any criminal liability for his alleged actions. O'Kane believed this event prevented Morton from being awarded the Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
.
After three arduous war patrols, Morton was given the highly dangerous assignment of penetrating the Sea of Japan
Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, between the Asian mainland, the Japanese archipelago and Sakhalin. It is bordered by Japan, North Korea, Russia and South Korea. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it has almost no tides due to its nearly complete enclosure from the Pacific...
. Commander Morton was reported missing in action in December, when his submarine was presumed lost. After the war, it was determined from Japanese records that, on October 11, in the time frame in which the Wahoo was expected to exit through La Perouse Strait
La Perouse Strait
La Pérouse Strait is a strait dividing the southern part of the Russian island of Sakhalin from the northern part of the Japanese island of Hokkaidō, and connecting the Sea of Japan on the west with the Sea of Okhotsk on the east....
, an antisubmarine aircraft found a surfaced submarine and attacked, dropping three depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
s.
Declared deceased on January 7, 1946, Morton had been awarded the Navy Cross
Navy Cross
The Navy Cross is the highest decoration that may be bestowed by the Department of the Navy and the second highest decoration given for valor. It is normally only awarded to members of the United States Navy, United States Marine Corps and United States Coast Guard, but can be awarded to all...
, three gold stars in lieu of a second, third, and fourth Navy Cross, and the Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
Distinguished Service Cross
Distinguished Service Cross (United States)
The Distinguished Service Cross is the second highest military decoration that can be awarded to a member of the United States Army, for extreme gallantry and risk of life in actual combat with an armed enemy force. Actions that merit the Distinguished Service Cross must be of such a high degree...
.
In popular culture
In 1960 Vice Admiral Charles A. Lockwood, Jr., ComSubPac during the war, was asked to write the foreword for former Wahoo crewmember Forest Sterling's book, Wake of the Wahoo. He wrote about Morton, "When a natural leader and born daredevil such as Mush Morton is given command of a submarine, the result can only be a fighting ship of the highest order, with officers and men who would follow their skipper to the Gates of Hell…. And they did." Added Lockwood, "Morton lined up an impressive number of 'firsts' during the short ten months that he commanded Wahoo: first to penetrate an enemy harbor and sink a ship therein; first to use successfully a down the throatDown the throat
Down the throat typically refers to a term used by United States Submariners in World War II, in reference to a type of torpedo attack angle used usually against attacking destroyers or anti-submarine craft. A "down the throat" shot would be any shot in which the target craft was presenting a...
shot; and first to wipe out an entire convoy
Convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...
single-handed."