Naval History and Heritage Command

Samuel Eliot Morsion received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1912 and enjoyed a prolific career writing maritime and United States history.  Following the outbreak of WWII, Dr. Morison requested the approval of President Franklin Roosevelt to write an operational history of the U.S. Navy from the inside.  President Roosevelt and Secretary of Navy Frank Knox valued the idea and Dr. Morison received commission as Lieutenant Commander, U.S. Navy Reserve. He immediately went on active duty. Upon his retirement in 1951, he was promoted to Rear Admiral.  Morison saw combat on various Navy vessels in all major theaters of World War II.  By 1958, the fifteenth, and final, volume of his History of United States Naval Operations in World War II was published. Throughout his distinguished career, he earned Pulitzer Prizes, Bancroft Prizes, the Legion of Merit, and a Presidential Medal of Freedom.  Dr. Morison advocated preserving the unique vernacular of naval history and for writing readable history. 

USS Samuel Eliot Morison (FFG-13) is named for Rear Admiral Morison.

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