States. After stops at Guam, in the Marshalls, and at Pearl Harbor, the ship reached San Pedro, California, on 9 May 1946. On the 18th, she resumed her voyage east and arrived at Philadelphia, Pa., on 3 June. By 5 July, she was in the Charleston (S.C.) Navy Yard undergoing inactivation overhaul. Decommissioning and fate In mid-October 1946, the high-speed transport was towed to Green Cove Springs, Florida where she was placed out of commission on 15 November 1946. Tatum remained out of commission, in reserve, until 1 June 1960 when her name was struck from the Navy List. On 8 May 1961, she was sold for scrap to the Southern Scrap Metal Co., New Orleans, Louisiana Namesake Laurice Aldridge Tatum was born on 7 December 1894 in Chambers County, Alabama. He enlisted in the Navy at Atlanta, Georgia, on 29 June 1917 as a hospital apprentice. Following training at San Francisco, he served at the Naval Hospital in Fort Lyon, Colorado, and in the receiving ship at Norfolk, Virginia. On 15 October 1918, he was transferred to , on which he served until 28 May 1919. Pharmacist's Mate 2d Class Tatum completed his enlistment at the Naval Hospital in Philadelphia and was honorably discharged at Atlanta, Ga., on 18 August 1919. During the ensuing nine years, he attended Atlanta Southern Dental College, Atlanta, Georgia, and received his degree as a doctor of dental surgery. On 9 August 1928, Dr. Tatum was appointed an assistant dental surgeon in the United States Naval Reserve. Late in August 1940, Lieutenant Commander Tatum reported to Naval Air Station Norfolk, Virginia, for active duty. He was serving on on 15 September 1942, as that aircraft carrier and were covering the movement of reinforcements from Espiritu Santo to Guadalcanal. When Wasp was torpedoed by an Imperial Japanese Navy submarine, Lt. Comdr. Tatum was among those trapped in the carrier's forecastle, cut off from the rest of the ship by raging flames. Rather than trying to save himself by jumping overboard, Tatum remained in the carrier to aid and comfort the wounded. He apparently went down with the ship when she sank. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star. Awards USS Tatum'' earned two battle stars during World War II. References Buckley-class destroyer escorts Charles Lawrence-class high speed transports Ships built in Orange, Texas 1943 ships