Creed Cardwell Burlingame (February 27, 1905 – October 21, 1985) was a

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star " admiral" rank. It is often rega ...

in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. He served as a submarine commander in the

Pacific Theater The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

Early life

Burlingame was born in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana borde ...

, on February 27, 1905 and grew up in the Midwest.

Naval career

In June 1927, Burlingame, along with Eugene Lindsey and William Brockman, graduated from the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of ...

as an ensign and served aboard the battleship . He subsequently graduated from the

Submarine School A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut. It was one of the world's three busiest whaling ports for several decades ...

, in 1930. He served as a submarine officer in service with the Asiatic fleet, and served aboard one of the few United States submarines stationed at the China station. Submarine-related commands immediately prior to and during World War II included captain of the from 8 May 1936 to 1 January 1939, duty at Submarine Base New London from 1 July 1939 to 1 July 1940, captain of the from 31 August 1940 to 7 December 1941, commissioning and first commanding officer of the from 15 December 1941 to 20 July 1943, commander of Submarine Division One Hundred Eighty Two from 1 November 1943 to 15 July 1945, and acting commander of Submarine Squadron Eighteen from 17 December 1944 to 8 January 1945. After the Japanese

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawa ...

, Burlingame was immediately transferred to the USS ''Silversides'' for its commissioning at

Mare Island, California Mare Island (Spanish: ''Isla de la Yegua'') is a peninsula in the United States in the city of Vallejo, California, about northeast of San Francisco. The Napa River forms its eastern side as it enters the Carquinez Strait juncture with the east ...

on 15 December 1941. It was his sixth submarine and third command. After a brief shakedown off the California coast, he sailed ''Silversides'' for Hawaii, arriving at Pearl Harbor on 4 April 1942 and left for his first combat patrol on 30 April. He was promoted to commander on 10 September. Burlingame commanded ''Silversides'' for a total of five patrols, sinking eight enemy ships for a total 44,000 tons. While commanding the ''Silversides'', the ship and crew received a presidential citation and Burlingame earned two

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an ...

s and three

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...

es. As commander of the 182d Submarine Division in the Pacific, he was awarded the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

. Following World War II, Burlingame served in various assignments, including command of from 15 September 1953 to 3 March 1955. He retired in 1957, at the rank of rear admiral.

Awards and decorations

Navy Cross citations

First

Second

Third

Silver Star citations

First

Second

Legion of Merit citation

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burlingame, Creed C. 1905 births 1985 deaths United States Navy personnel of World War II Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) Recipients of the Silver Star United States Navy rear admirals (lower half) United States submarine commanders Military personnel from Louisville, Kentucky