Ray K. Edwards
Encyclopedia
Ray K. Edwards was a United States Marine Corps
corporal
who received a posthumous Silver Star
for his actions in the Guadalcanal campaign
during World War II
.
. He enlisted in the United States Navy
on 16 June 1941, then was transferred to the U.S. Marine Corps at his own request and was rated corporal on 23 February 1942.
Edwards lost his life during World War II while receiving an important radio
message during a Japan
ese aerial bombardment
on Guadalcanal
on 12 September 1942.
posthumously.
USS Ray K. Edwards (DE-237) was named for Corporal Edwards. During construction, she was converted into the high-speed transport USS Ray K. Edwards (APD-96)
, and was in commission
as such from 1945 to 1946.
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
corporal
Corporal
Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4....
who received a posthumous Silver Star
Silver Star
The Silver Star is the third-highest combat military decoration that can be awarded to a member of any branch of the United States armed forces for valor in the face of the enemy....
for his actions in the Guadalcanal campaign
Guadalcanal campaign
The Guadalcanal Campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by Allied forces, was a military campaign fought between August 7, 1942 and February 9, 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific theatre of World War II...
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...
.
Biography
Ray Keith Edwards was born on 11 November 1923 at Chicago, IllinoisIllinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. He enlisted in 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...
on 16 June 1941, then was transferred to the U.S. Marine Corps at his own request and was rated corporal on 23 February 1942.
Edwards lost his life during World War II while receiving an important radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
message during a 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 aerial bombardment
Strategic bombing
Strategic bombing is a military strategy used in a total war with the goal of defeating an enemy nation-state by destroying its economic ability and public will to wage war rather than destroying its land or naval forces...
on Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...
on 12 September 1942.
Awards
For his action on Guadalcanal on 12 September 1942, Edwards received the Silver StarSilver Star
The Silver Star is the third-highest combat military decoration that can be awarded to a member of any branch of the United States armed forces for valor in the face of the enemy....
posthumously.
Namesakes
The U.S. Navy destroyer escortDestroyer 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 Ray K. Edwards (DE-237) was named for Corporal Edwards. During construction, she was converted into the high-speed transport USS Ray K. Edwards (APD-96)
USS Ray K. Edwards (APD-96)
USS Ray K. Edwards , ex-DE-237, was a United States Navy high-speed transport in commission from 1945 to 1946.-Construction and commissioning:...
, and was in commission
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
as such from 1945 to 1946.