Paul H. Carr

Gunner's Mate 3rd Class Paul Henry Carr

Paul Henry Carr (13 February 1924 - 25 October 1944) was a U.S. Navy Gunner's Mate Third Class who received a Silver Star posthumously for his actions aboard USS Samuel B. Roberts (DE 413) at the Battle off Samar during World War II. Carr served as the gun mount captain of the Roberts aft 5-inch gun. In the ship's final action, Carr led his gunmount team to fire 324 rounds in 35 minutes. As he was dying, he was found at his station gripping the last unfired round.

The Navy named the guided missile frigate USS Carr (FFG-52) for him.

Carr came from Checotah, Oklahoma. He had married Goldie Lee Johnson of Checotah on 23 October 1943, leaving her a widow a year and two days later. He was also survived by eight sisters, who kept an active interest in the ship named for their brother, USS Carr.

Silver Star citation

“

The President of the United States of America takes pride in presenting the Silver Star (Posthumously) to Gunner's Mate Third Class Paul Henry Carr (NSN: 8497679), United States Naval Reserve, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity as Gun Captain of a 5"/38 Mount on the U.S.S. SAMUEL B. ROBERTS (DE-413), in action against enemy Japanese forces off Samar Island during the Second Battle of the Philippine Sea, on 25 October 1944. With the power of the rammer lost and mechanical failures in the ammunition hoist, Gunner's Mate Third Class Carr manned his station steadfastly in the face of continuous close-range fire of enemy guns during an attack by a numerically superior Japanese surface force on the SAMUEL B. ROBERTS. By his outstanding technical skill and courageous initiative, Gunner's Mate Third Class Carr was instrumental in causing rapid and heavy fire from the gun to inflict damage upon an enemy heavy cruiser. Although mortally wounded by the premature detonation of a powder charge, fired by hand, Gunner's Mate Third Class Carr tried unassisted to load and ram the only projectile available to that mount after order to abandon ship had been given. His aggressive determination of duty reflected the highest credit upon Gunner's Mate Third Class Carr and the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.

”

External links

• Official US Navy site for FFG-52, USS Paul Henry Carr
• Official US Navy site for on Paul Henry Carr
• The Battle Off Samar - Taffy III at Leyte Gulf by Robert Jon Cox
• No Higher Honor: Saving the U.S.S. Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf
• Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame

Books

• Cox, Robert Jon (2010). The Battle Off Samar: Taffy III at Leyte Gulf (5th Edition). Agogeebic Press, LLC. ISBN 0-9822390-4-1. 
• Hornfischer, James D. (2004). The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors. Bantam. ISBN 0-553-80257-7. 
• Willmott, H. P. (2005). The Battle Of Leyte Gulf: The Last Fleet Action. Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-34528-6. 
• [|Wukovits, John F.] (2013). For Crew And Country: The Inspirational True Story Of Bravery And Sacrifice Aboard The USS SAMUEL B ROBERTS. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 978-0-312-68189-0.