Click On Image For Full Size Image	Size	Image Description		Contributed By And/Or Copyright
	48k	Johnnie David Hutchins was born in Weimer, Tex., 04 August 1922 and enlisted in the Naval Reserve at Houston 17 November 1942. He underwent landing craft training and in April 1943 was assigned to USS LST-473. During the assault on Lae, New Guinea, 04 September 1943, the LST's were under heavy air attack. As the ship approached the beach, a torpedo was spotted heading directly for it. Just then a bomb struck the pilot house, dislodging the helmsman before he had a chance to turn away. In the words of his posthumous citation: "... Hutchins, although mortally wounded by the shattering explosion, quickly grasped the wheel and exhausted the last of his strength in maneuvering the vessel clear of the advancing torpedo. Still clinging to the helm, he eventually succumbed to his injuries, his final thoughts concerned only with the safety of his ship...." For his extraordinary gallantry Seaman First Class Hutchins was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. During WW II, the United States Navy awarded only 57 Medals of Honor. Johnnie’s Medal was presented to his mother at Sam Houston Coliseum in downtown Houston, on 15 September 1944, just a little over a year after Johnnie earned it. His mom, dad, five sisters and brother were all in attendance. Johnnie's body was buried outside Morobe Bay, New Guinea along with the bodies of 7 other crew members. After the war, his body was returned to the United States and he was buried in the family plot at Lakeside Cemetery in Eagle Lake, Texas. USS Johnnie Hutchins (DE 360) (1944-1958) was the first ship to be named in his honor. (Photo and biography from The USS LST-473 Association Web Site thanks to Mike Guarino)		Bill Gonyo Downey, Cal.
	175k	02 May 1944: Orange, Texas - USS Johnnie Hutchins (DE 360) launching at the Consolidated Steel Corporation. (U.S. Navy Photo #80-G-268366 from the United States National Archives)		Mike Green Port Angeles, Wash.
	13k	undated wartime image		Robert K. Lamb USS Johnnie Hutchins 1944 - 1946
	157k	.. December 1945: Pearl Harbor, Hi. - USS Johnnie Hutchins (DE 360) leaving Pearl Harbor for the mainland USA. (U.S. Navy Photo #80-G-495929 from the United States National Archives)		Mike Green Port Angeles, Wash.
	101k	undated peacetime image		Robert K. Lamb USS Johnnie Hutchins 1944 - 1946
	43k	early 1950's: New York Harbor		Carmen J. Costa
	171k	1952: Boston, Mass. - USS Johnnie Hutchins (DE 360) docking at the Boston Navy Yard. With a skeleton crew supplemented by Naval Reservists, the destroyer escort made regular training cruises during the next few years, visiting Montreal, Quebec, and many Caribbean ports. (Photo from the John Leslie Collection at the Boston Public Library)		Mike Green Port Angeles, Wash.
0636008	286k	November 1971: Philadelphia, Pa. - ex-USS Johnnie Hutchins (DE 360) in mothballs at the Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility, U.S. Naval Shipyard, Philadelphia. (Heilenday photo #II 0203A from the Heilenday Collection)		Mark Heilenday Virginia Beach, Va, Captain, USN (ret.) June 1974 - July 2004

Contact information is compiled from various sources over a period of time and may, or may not, be correct. Every effort has been
made to list the newest contact. However, our entry is only as good as the latest information that's been sent to us. We list only
a contact for the ship if one has been sent to us. We do NOT have crew lists, rosters, or deck logs available. Please see the
Frequently Asked Questions section on NavSource's Main Page for that information.

Additional Resources

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Tin Can Sailors
The U.S. Navy Memorial
The Destroyer Escort Historical Museum
The Destroyer History Foundation
Tin Can Sailors Shipmate Registry - USS Johnnie Hutchins

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