| Don Pardee Moon | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 18, 1894 Kokomo, Indiana |
| Died | August 5, 1944 (aged 50) |
| Place of burial | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Service/branch | United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1916–1944 |
| Rank | Rear Admiral |
| Commands held | USS John D. Ford |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Don Pardee Moon (18 April 1894 - 5 August 1944) was a Rear Admiral of the United States Navy, who fought in the invasion of Europe. He was born in Kokomo, Indiana, USA. He married and had four children.
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Moon entered the United States Naval Academy and graduated in June 1916, being particularly efficient in gunnery. He was assigned to the battleship Arizona (BB-39) and while there developed several instruments to improve gunnery. He later served in the battleships Colorado (BB-45) and Nevada (BB-36) before returning to shore in 1926.
By 1934 he was commanding officer of the Asiatic Fleet destroyer John D. Ford (DD-228). He was put in command of a destroyer division in 1940 and became a captain in 1941. He took part in the invasion of North Africa in 1942. In 1944 he was promoted to rear admiral. During the 6 June 1944 invasion of Normandy he directed the landings on Utah Beach from Bayfield (APA-33). For three weeks the Bayfield was in position off Utah beach and officers and men were on four hour rotating shifts for this entire time. Shortly afterwards the Bayfield was sent to Naples to for the invasion of Southern France. However on 5 August 1944, Moon shot himself with his .45 caliber pistol. His suicide was blamed on battle fatigue.
He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.[1] He was survived by his wife Sibyl, and his four children, Meredith, Don, David, and Peter.
Moon was depicted on a 2004 postage stamp issued to mark the 60th anniversary of D-Day by Sierra Leone.[2]
This article incorporates public domain material from the Naval History & Heritage Command document "Rear Admiral Don P. Moon" (retrieved on 6 September 2010).