Ormond R. Simpson
Ormond Ralph Simpson | |
---|---|
6th Marine Regiment | |
Battles/wars | |
Awards | Distinguished Service Medal (2) Legion of Merit (4) Bronze Star Medal Navy Commendation Medal |
Ormond Ralph Simpson (March 16, 1915 – November 21, 1998) was a highly decorated officer of the
Early career and World War II
Ormond R. Simpson was born on March 16, 1915, in
He was ordered to
Following the promotion to the rank of captain in December 1941, Simpson was appointed regimental adjutant and sailed with 8th Marines to the Pacific area in mid June 1942. He was then stationed at American Samoa as a part of the Samoan Group Defense Force under Major General Charles F. B. Price. Simpson was appointed regimental assistant operations officer in August 1942 and promoted to the rank of major for his new billet.[2][5]
In March 1944, Simpson was attached to the Landing force within
Simpson was subsequently ordered back to the Pacific area and attached to the headquarters of
Postwar career
Upon his return from Japan in March 1946, Simpson was attached to the staff of Marine Corps Schools, Quantico under Brigadier General Oliver P. Smith and served for next three years as an instructor within Logistics section. He was detached from Quantico in June 1949 and ordered to the Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington, D.C., as special assistant to the director of plans and policies under Brigadier General Edwin A. Pollock. While in this capacity, Simpson was promoted to the rank of colonel in November 1951.[1]
General Pollock subsequently assumed command of
Simpson proved to be outstanding officer and when General Pate was ordered to
In February 1954, he was relieved by Colonel William K. Jones and transferred to the 1st Marine Division staff as assistant chief of staff and operations officer. Simpson left Korea in July 1954 and received the Bronze Star Medal for his service in that country.[5]
Following his return to the States, Simpson attended Army War College at Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and graduated in June 1955. He was then ordered to the Headquarters Marine Corps and attached to the Policy Analysis Division, before he was appointed secretary to the General Staff in October of that year.
At the beginning of January 1956, Simpson's old superior, General Pate was appointed Commandant of the Marine Corps and Simpson was appointed his Military Secretary. In this capacity, he served as the senior advisor and task manager and ran the day-to-day operations of the Office of the Commandant, supervised the schedule of the commandant, and performed other duties as the commandant may direct.
Simpson was succeeded by Colonel Roy L. Kline in July 1958 and then was ordered to the staff of Marine Corps Schools, Quantico under Brigadier General Merrill B. Twining. He spent next two years in this assignment, before he was appointed commanding officer of the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps unit and Professor of Naval Science at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, in July 1960.[2][1]
Upon the promotion to the rank of
He resumed his duties with 3rd Marine Division on Okinawa at the beginning of August 1962 and left for the United States in November of that year. Simpson was subsequently appointed assistant director of personnel at Headquarters Marine Corps and served as deputy to Major General Lewis J. Fields until April 1965. He demonstrated great administrative skills while in this capacity and received Navy Commendation Medal.[5]
Simpson assumed command of 2nd Marine Division at Camp Lejeune on April 12, 1965, and shortly thereafter was tasked with the handling of the situation in Dominican Republic during the Communist-attempted coup. He authorized the activation of 6th Marine Expeditionary Unit in size of 1,700 Marines and this unit was tasked with the securing of International Security Zone in Santo Domingo. Simpson was later decorated with his second Legion of Merit for his part during Dominican crisis and promoted to the rank of major general in January 1966.[2][5]
During the period September – December 1966, he also concurrently served as commanding general of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, before new base commander, Major General Joseph O. Butcher was designated. Simpson was succeeded in command of 2nd Division on November 21, 1967, and assumed command of Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island one day later. In this capacity, he was responsible for the training of new recruits for units serving overseas, primarily in South Vietnam and received third Legion of Merit.[5]
Vietnam War
Simpson received orders for deployment to Vietnam shortly before Christmas 1968 and arrived at Da Nang, where he relieved Major General Carl A. Youngdale on 21 December. The First Marine Division was tasked with the defense of Da Nang area at the time.[8][2]
Simpson later commented:[9]
"The 1st Marine Division was, far beyond all else, tied to the defense of the Da Nang Vital Area. This was exactly as it should have been. Da Nang was clearly a textbook example of a `Vital Area.' Here were military headquarters, political headquarters and officials, a great seaport, a splendid airfield, a vast array of logistical support apparatus including supplies of every variety, equipment, medical establishments, to say nothing of nearly one million Vietnamese. U.S. Forces could not have operated in I Corps Tactical Zone without Da Nang." Therefore, the division's infantry units and supporting arms were to be "disposed to provide maximum security for the Da Nang vital area, installations and Lines of communications of greatest political, economic and military importance."
The large mountainous area west of Da Nang was suspected as a region of major enemy base camps and infiltration routes, which were threat to the Da Nang Vital Area. Simpson subsequently ordered the search and destroy Operation
Simpson then commanded the 1st Marine Division during Operation Pipestone Canyon, which was planned for the destruction of Go Noi Island area, south of Da Nang. Go Noi Island was site of PAVN/VC base camps and infiltration routes, which was assaulted by Marine forces several times in 1968, but PAVN/VC forces always returned to the area following the U.S. withdrawal. General Simpson chose 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines and 1st Battalion, 26th Marines for the first phase of the assault and launched the operation on May 26. They met only little resistance and subsequently secured blocking positions on May 30.[9]
On May 31, Simpson launched the second phase of the operation and ordered the
General Simpson was succeeded by
Later service and retirement
Following his return stateside, Simpson was appointed commanding general of Marine Corps Supply Center, Albany, Georgia and held this command until summer of 1971. He received his fourth Legion of Merit for his service at Albany.[2]
He was then ordered to the Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington, D.C., and appointed director of personnel under Commandant Robert E. Cushman. Following the redesignation of that assignment in 1972, Simpson was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general and appointed deputy chief of staff for manpower. He served in this capacity until his retirement on May 1, 1973, after 37 years of active service. Simpson also received his second Navy Distinguished Service Medal during his retirement ceremony.[2][1][7]
Simpson then returned to Texas and settled in College Station, with his wife Marjorie E. Simpson with who they had two children. He then worked at his alma mater, Texas A&M University, as assistant vice president for student services and the head of the School of Military Sciences until his second retirement.[4]
Lieutenant General Ormond R. Simpson died on November 21, 1998. He is honoured by the
Decorations
Here is the ribbon bar of Lieutenant General Ormond R. Simpson:[2][7]
1st Row |
Navy Distinguished Service Medal with one 5⁄16" Gold Star
|
Legion of Merit with three 5⁄16" Gold Stars | Bronze Star Medal | |||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2nd Row |
Navy Commendation Medal | Marine Corps Expeditionary Medal | American Defense Service Medal | American Campaign Medal | ||||||||||||||
3rd Row |
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with three 3/16 inch service stars
|
World War II Victory Medal
|
Navy Occupation Service Medal | National Defense Service Medal with one star | ||||||||||||||
4th Row |
Korean Service Medal | Vietnam Service Medal with four 3/16 inch service stars | Vietnam National Order of Vietnam, Knight | Vietnam Army Distinguished Service Order, 1st Class | ||||||||||||||
5th Row |
Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm
|
Armed Forces Honor Medal 1st Class | Vietnam Choung My Medal, 1st class | Philippine Liberation Medal with one star | ||||||||||||||
6th Row |
Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation | Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation
|
United Nations Korea Medal
|
Vietnam Campaign Medal |
See also
- 1st Marine Division
- 2nd Marine Division
- Operation Pipestone Canyon
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Ormond R. Simpson Papers – USMC Military History Division". USMC Military History Division. Archived from the original on 1 August 2013. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Who's Who in the Marine Corps History – LTG Ormond R. Simpson". usmcu.edu. United States Marine Corps University Websites. Archived from the original on 26 January 2017. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ "Marine Corps Oral History Collection" (PDF). USMC Military History Division. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 January 2017. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ a b c "Texas A&M University – Corps of Cadets". corps.tamu.edu. Texas A&M University Corps of Cadets Websites. Archived from the original on 7 May 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island: Platoon 3002 – Yearbook 1968" (PDF). USMC Military History Division. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ "Texas A&M University Yearbook 1936". Texas A&M University. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Valor awards for Ormond R. Simpson". valor.militarytimes.com. Militarytimes Websites. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ "U.S. Marines in Vietnam: The Defining year 1968" (PDF). USMC Military History Division. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ a b c d "U.S. Marines in Vietnam: High mobility and stand down – 1969" (PDF). USMC Military History Division. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
- ^ "Standard Order" (PDF). corps.tamu.edu. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps.