Lawson P. Ramage “Ramages Rampage”

Lawson P. Ramage went on a ship sinking rampage one night in 1944. While setting up a strike on a Japanese convoy of troops and oil tankers, Lawson had to direct the attack from the surface in the conning tower of the sub. With machine gun fire and Japanese escort ships trying to ram his sub, he directed his crew (who he sent below for safety) as he fired torpedoes into Japanese ships left and right in close proximity.

One Japanese gunboat tried to ram the USS Parche (Lawson’s sub) but missed them by 50 feet as Lawson doged them. With enemy ships barraging his sub with machine guns, cannon, and flares, Ramage fired the last of his torpedoes into troop transports killing 2500 Japanese troops headed for the South Pacific. Lawson managed to avoid getting gunned down as he directed his ship during the attack and was later awarded the Medal Of Honor.

Wanting to share the Honor of his award with his fellow sailors, Ramage created a special certificate for each sailor on board that night that emphasized his thought that all shared in the Medal Of Honor he had received.

It takes Valor to put yourself at risk in a fight and Honor to share the rewards.