Gordon D. Gayle

Gordon Donald Gayle (September 13, 1917 – April 21, 2013) was an American officer in the

He later served as chairman, Long Range Study Panel which was tasked with the developing of concepts for the Marine Corps operational, organizational, logistical and Research and Development needs for the 1985 period. The study was a catalyst in forming a coherent Marine Corps vision of its future.[2]

Early career

Gordon D. Gayle was born on September 13, 1917, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, as the son of businessman with the oil-field equipment, Maurice Rowe Gayle and his wife Frances Madge. He completed the grammar school in Shreveport, Louisiana, in summer 1930 and subsequently graduated from the Sunset High School in Dallas, Texas in June 1934. Gayle then enrolled the Southern Methodist University in Dallas, but left after one year, when received appointment to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland.^[3][2][1]

During his time at the academy, Gayle was active in Reception Committee, Quarterdeck Society, Radio Club or Boat Club and graduated on June 1, 1939, on the outset of the world war II. Following his graduation, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps and ordered to

He returned to the mainland with the 5th Marines Regiment, which had been part of the 1st Marine Brigade but during this period became an element of the newly formed 1st Marine Division. The division began training in New River (later named Camp Lejeune), North Carolina in September 1941 and was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant in November 1941, several weeks before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.^[1]

World War II

Following the United States entry into World War II, the 1st MarDiv began intensive training and preparation for combat deployment. Gayle was promoted to the rank of captain in May 1942 and left with the division by navy transport the Pacific, en route evading German torpedo attack and then transitting the Panama Canal and continuing to New Zealand, while other elements of the 1st MarDiv left the United States for New Zealand by sea from San Francisco. One month later, in Wellington, the division reloaded its ships for amphibious assault and was then ordered under its commanding officer Major General

Gayle was appointed operations officer of

Following heavy ship losses during the Battle of Savo Island, Vice Admiral Richmond K. Turner temporarily withdrew naval forces from the immediate Guadalcanal area, including the transports holding key undelivered Marine supplies and equipment. Until naval units, under the inspirational leadership of Admiral William "Bull" Halsey returned to continue their ultimately successful but heavily contested and heroic support for the 1st Marine Division on Guadalcanal, the only means of long-range communication available to the hard-pressed Division was the Japanese radio Gayle had identified and safeguarded.^[2]

Gayle participated in the grueling fighting for control of Guadalcanal which continued throughout the fall and winter of

After few months of training in Australia, Gayle sailed with 5th Marines to the staging area at Milne Bay, New Guinea at the end of September 1943, where he took part in advanced combat training, emphasizing shore-to-shore operations and utilizing terrain closely resembling that on New Britain – the future 1st Marine Division objective.

Gayle landed on

His battalion was then ordered to Pavuvu, Russell Islands in June 1944 for rest and refit, but the island of Pavuvu, which at that point had not been prepared to receive troops, was anything but a paradise. The island was rain-soaked and rat-infested and instead of participating in a gradual rehabilitation-training program, the 5th Marines had to construct bivouac areas from scratch. Soon morale reached a low point, for with all the work, there was little material for rebuilding the mental and physical strength of Gayle's Marines. The food consisted mostly of rations similar to those consumed in New Britain campaign and visits to sick call became more numerous.^[7]

In the early morning of September 15, 1944, Gayle and his battalion (2/5) sailed for

Upon his arrival to the United States in November 1944, Gayle was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel and attached to the staff of Marine Corps Schools, Quantico, where he served under former 1st Marine Division commander, Major General William H. Rupertus as an instructor at the Command and Staff School. Gayle taught in that capacity until February 1945, when he was assigned to the Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He graduated in May of that year and returned to the teaching staff of Marine Corps Schools, Quantico.^[2][1][11]

Postwar career

In May 1947, Gayle became military plans and assistant operations officer on the staff of the commander, Amphibious Group One and Transport Squadron One, in San Diego, California, and served in this capacity until December 1948. Gayle was then ordered to Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington, D.C., and served with the Division of Plans and Policies until June 1949, when he was appointed assistant director of Marine Corps History Division and deputy to Brigadier General Clayton C. Jerome. During his service in this capacity, he wrote the Marine Corps official history of the Peleliu battle and several other history publications. He also authored in later years the Marine Corps official monograph Bloody Beaches: The Marines at Peleliu,^[2][1]

Korean War

Following the outbreak of

Upon his return stateside, Gayle was ordered to Dallas, Texas, for duty as executive officer, Southern Recruiting Area and served in this capacity until February 1953, when he was transferred to Washington, D.C., for duty as officer in charge, Recruiting Branch and later as acting assistant director, 5th Marine Corps Reserve and Recruitment District.^[1]

In May 1953, Gayle was ordered to Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, where he assumed duty as an instructor at the Marine Corps Educational Center. While there he was promoted to colonel in June 1955 and was appointed head of tactics and operations instruction at the Marine Command and Staff College, Quantico. Gayle was ordered to Headquarters Marine Corps in July 1956 and appointed assistant head, Plans Branch. He later became branch head and served in this capacity until assigned as a student to the National War College, Fort McNair, Washington, D.C., in August 1959.

He graduated in July 1960 and departed for

Gayle was ordered to Little Creek, Virginia on April 1, 1965, where he became commanding general, Landing Force Training Command, Atlantic. In this capacity, he was responsible for the amphibious training for troops of Atlantic Fleet; Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic and other units on the East Coast.^[1]

In February 1967, Gayle reported back to Headquarters Marine Corps and assumed his final duties as assistant chief of staff for operations (G-3) and deputy chief of staff for administration. He retired from active service on January 31, 1968, after 29 years of Marine Corps service and received his second Legion of Merit for his service at Headquarters Marine Corps.^[8][1]

Retirement

Following his retirement from the military, Gayle settled in Washington, D.C., and worked for Center for Strategic and International Studies at Georgetown University for several years. He later taught calculus at Harker Preparatory School in Potomac, was a member of the Army-Navy Club, was active in the Marine Corps Historical Foundation; and was long an active member and later president of the board of trustees to the Marine Military Academy in Harlingen, Texas. During the latter months of his life, Gayle lived with his son Dr. Robert Gayle in Norfolk VA and later near his daughter Ms. Susan Gayle Needham in Farnham, Virginia. He died in Farnham of intracerebral hemorrhage on April 21, 2013.^[2][9]

Gayle is buried in Plot One Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia, near the old Ft. Myer Chapel, alongside his eldest son David Donald Gayle (died 1971). His wife, Katherine Louise Frank Gayle (1916–2004) is buried at the nearby Columbia Gardens Cemetery, also in Arlington. Gordon and Katherine had four children, David Donald Gayle (died 1971), Susan Louise Gayle Needham, Dr. Robert G. Gayle, M.D., and Michael A. Gayle ^[2]

Decorations

Here is the ribbon bar of Brigadier General Gayle:^[8]

References

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