RICHARD S BULL DE 402
Ship Name and Designation History
This section lists the names and designations that the ship had during its lifetime. The list is in chronological order.
Keel Laid 18 August 1943 - Launched 16 November 1943 |
 Richard Salisbury Bull, Jr., USN |
Naval Covers
This section lists active links to the pages displaying covers associated with the ship. There should be a separate set of pages for each name of the ship (for example, Bushnell AG-32 / Sumner AGS-5 are different names for the same ship so there should be one set of pages for Bushnell and one set for Sumner). Covers should be presented in chronological order (or as best as can be determined).
Since a ship may have many covers, they may be split among many pages so it doesn't take forever for the pages to load. Each page link should be accompanied by a date range for covers on that page.
- USS Richard S. Bull DE-402 Covers Page 1 (DATE RANGE)
Postmarks
This section lists examples of the postmarks used by the ship. There should be a separate set of postmarks for each name and/or commissioning period. Within each set, the postmarks should be listed in order of their classification type. If more than one postmark has the same classification, then they should be further sorted by date of earliest known usage.
A postmark should not be included unless accompanied by a close-up image and/or an
image of a cover showing that postmark. Date ranges MUST be based ONLY ON COVERS IN
THE MUSEUM and are expected to change as more covers are added.
>>> If you have a better example for any of the postmarks, please feel free to replace the
existing example.
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Postmark Type |
Postmark Date |
Thumbnail Link To Postmark Image |
Thumbnail Link To Cover Image |
|---|
|
Locy Type |
1946-04-15 |
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Note:
Other Information
USS RICHARD S. BULL earned the Combat Action Ribbon, the American Campaign Medal, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (w/ 4 Battle stars), the World War II Victory Medal and the Philippine Liberation Ribbon (w/ 1 star) during her Naval career.
NAMESAKE - Lieutenant, Junior Grade Richard Salisbury Bull, Jr., USN (6 January 1913 - 8 May 1942) Bull was born in Wilkinsburg, Pa. In 1930, he graduated from Wilkinsburg High School where he was in the National Honor Society and played left tackle on the varsity football team. Attending the US Naval Academy beginning in 1932, he graduated and was commissioned an Ensign in the US Navy on 4 June 1936. In July of 1936 Ensign Bull reported aboard USS Indianapolis CA 35, remaining on board until July 1939 when he reported to NAS Pensacola for flight training. Upon completion of flight training and promotion to Lieutenant, Junior Grade, Bull was assigned to Scouting Squadron (VS) 41 aboard USS Ranger CV 4. He later served as a naval observer assigned to the American Embassy in London, England.
Reporting for duty as a fighter pilot on board USS Lexington CV 2 on 27 December 1941, he joined Fighting Squadron Two (VF-2). He participated in aircraft carrier operations against the Japanese in February and March 1942. In the Battle of the Coral Sea on 7 to 8 May, Richard was lost when his aircraft was shot down on 8 May. He was the 5th Division Leader of Fighting Squadron (VF) 2 and was "escorting the group commander" when he was lost. He earned the Distinguished Flying Cross Medal, and also was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart Medal in 1943.
The ships sponsor was Mrs. Richard S. Bull, Sr., mother of Lieutenant, j.g. Richard Bull.
If you have images or information to add to this page, then either contact the Curator or edit this page yourself and add it. See Editing Ship Pages for detailed information on editing this page.
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