The Wilmington morning star., 1943-09-30
ESCORT LAUNCHED
AT QUINCY YARDS
Honors Wilmington Lieu
tenant Killed Aboard
USS Hornet

QUINCY, Mass, Sept. 29.-The
U.S.S. Gillette, which was named
in honor of a former Wilmington
boy, Lieut.. Donald w. Gillette,
who lost his life aboard the ar
craft carrier Hornet in the battle
of Santa Cruz islands, was
launched Saturday under the
sponsorship of Mrs. Pearl M. Gil
lette, his mother. 1t was the lat
est destroyer escort to near com,
pletion at the Bethlehem steer
company's Fore River shlpyaros'
The ceremony was attended by
Governor Leverett W. SaltonstaA'
of Massachusetts; Mayor Maurice
J. Tobin, of Boston; Major Cen
eral Sherman Miles, commanding
general of the First Service com
mand; Major General Kenneth L.
Blood. commanding general OF the
New England sector, and other
high ranking Army and Navy Or
ficialS.
Lieut.. (sg) Robert Noone, of
Auburndale, Mass, injured during
the final battle of the U. S. S.
Hornet and a close friend of Lieut.
jg) Douglas Wiley Gillette, was
the guest of Col. and Mrs. George
W. Gillette, parents of the young
Naval officer.
Included in the launching party
we're DR.. and Mrs. J. D. Free
man, prominent Wilmington, N. c.,
physician; Mayor Charles A. Ross,
of Quincy; Lieut.. Col. and Mrs.
Bruce D. Rindlaub, Boston dis
trict engineer; Mr.. and Mrs. Clay
ton L. Havey, counsel to the gov
ernor, and other close friends of
the family.
The Destroyer Escort is 3D.
foot, five and one half million
dollar craft, intended to relieve
destroyers employed on convo..
assignments for more active COM
bat duty. She is equipped 10 bat
tie submarines as we'll as planes.
These vessels have already
brought fame on themselves and
the U. S. S. Gillette carries a
name well known in military his.
tory.
! Lieut.. Gillette was at his battle
station on the U. S. S. Hornets
third deck when a Japanese plane,
in suicide dive, crashed on the
carrier with one thousand
pound demolition bomb. The en-.
listed men in the group had been
ordered to take cover and most
of them escaped serious injury.
Later that same day, a mass for.
nation of Japanese planes again
attacked the carrier and dealt the
mortal blows, sinking 1t in the
afternoon of October 26. The Aor-
net had been in four major en-
gagements and is famed as the
carrier from which General James
Doolittle's planes took off for the
now historical bombing of Tokyo.
Colonel Gillette is at present the
New England division enginee
and is in charge Of Army con-
struction, real estate, river and
harbor improvements and flood
control in the New England area.
On September II, 1918 he was
awarded the citation and silver
star for extraordinary herolsm
during the second Battle OF the
Somme. This was the same day
on which Lieut.. Gillette was born
in Wilmington, N. c.
Colonel Gillette has been an Of
ficer in the Corps of Engineers
for rs years. stationed at various
times in all parts of the world.
He was Wilmington, N. c., Dis
trict Engineer from 1898 to 1910,
leaving there to become Execu-
tive Officer at the Engineer Re-
placement center at Fort Belvoir,
Va. From 1886 to 1888 he was in
charge of the Construction divi-
sion in the Office of the Chief of
Engineers. On December 10, 1912
he became the New England Di-
vision Engineer.
Lieut.. Gillette is survived by his
father and mother, Colonel and
Mrs. G.. w. Gillette, one brother,
Lieut.. q. g. George Gillette, Jr.,
Civil Engineers, U. S. N, and one
sister, Mrs. John A. Miller, wife
of Major Miller, Corps of Engi-
neers, Fort Belvoir, Va.