Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

William Herman Brockman Jr. (November 18, 1904 – February 1, 1979) served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Biography

Brockman was born at

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

. Enlisting in the Naval Reserve in 1922, he was appointed to the

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

a year later and graduated in 1927.

Creed Burlingame Creed Cardwell Burlingame (27 February 1905 – 21 October 1985) was a Rear Admiral in the United States Navy. He served as a submarine commander in the Pacific Theater during World War II. Early life Burlingame was born in Louisville, Kentucky, ...

, Eugene Lindsey, and John Thatch were some of his classmates. He specialized in

submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...

s from 1929 onward and commanded the

submarine rescue ship A submarine rescue ship is a surface support ship for submarine rescue and deep-sea salvage operations. Methods employed include the McCann Rescue Chamber, deep-submergence rescue vehicles (DSRV's) and diving operations. List of active su ...

in 1938-39. Lieutenant Commander Brockman was commanding officer of during the June 1942

Battle of Midway The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II, Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of t ...

and in subsequent operations, earning the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Naval Service's 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 equivalent to the Army ...

with two gold stars for himself and the Presidential Unit Citation for his ship during this period. After a year with the Submarine Force, Atlantic Fleet, Brockman was a submarine division commander from September 1944 to December 1945, receiving promotion to the rank of captain in March 1945. He commanded until February 1946, then served in

Seventh Fleet The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of th ...

and Navy headquarters staff positions until retiring in November 1947. Promoted to rear admiral upon retirement, Brockman was active in business for many years thereafter. Brockman died at

Boca Raton, Florida Boca Raton ( ; ) is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 97,422 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and it ranked as the 23rd-largest city in Florida in 2022. Many people with a Boca Raton Address, ...

, aged 74. Admiral Brockman was a recipient of the

with two gold stars,

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 a ...

, Navy Presidential Unit Citation, Second

Nicaraguan Campaign Medal The Nicaraguan Campaign Medal is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, campaign medal of the United States Navy which was authorized by Presidential Order of Woodrow Wilson on September 22, 1913. A later medal, the Second Nicara ...

American Defense Service Medal The American Defense Service Medal was a United States service medals of the World Wars, military award of the United States Armed Forces, established by , by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, on June 28, 1941. The medal was intended to recogniz ...

, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, and

World War II Victory Medal The World War II Victory Medal was a service medal of the United States military which was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945. Histo ...

Navy Cross Citation

The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Lieutenant Commander William Herman Brockman, Jr. (NSN: 0-61342), United States Navy, for extraordinary heroism and distinguished service in the line of his profession as Commanding Officer of the U.S.S. NAUTILUS (SS-168), in the Battle of Midway. On 4 June 1942, Lieutenant Commander Brockman aggressively developed a contact with major enemy forces and doggedly pushed home a torpedo attack on a screened aircraft carrier against determined and repeated enemy counter measures by gunfire barrage, depth charging and bombing from the air. The attack culminated successfully and Lieutenant Commander Brockman is credited with closing and sinking of a 10,000 ton enemy aircraft carrier. His skill, determination, courage and fortitude were in keeping with the highest traditions of the Naval Service.

In Popular Culture

Brockman, credited as the commander of the ''Nautilus'', appeared in Camel cigarette advertising in 1955.1955 Camel ad in The Saturday Evening Post, at graphic-design.tjs-labs.com
/ref> Brockman was portrayed by

James Carpinello James Anthony Carpinello (born August 13, 1975) is an American actor who came to national attention with his appearances in Tori Spelling's VH1 sitcom ''So Notorious''. He also portrayed Stacee Jaxx in the Broadway production of the musical ''Ro ...

in the 2019 film '' Midway''.

References

Attribution

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brockman, William Herman Jr. 1904 births 1979 deaths United States Navy personnel of World War II Military personnel from Baltimore People from Boca Raton, Florida Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy rear admirals United States submarine commanders Burials at Arlington National Cemetery