Birth name Lyal Ament Davidson | Years of service 1912–1946 | |
Born December 2, 1886Muscatine, Iowa ( 1886-12-02 ) Allegiance United States of America Battles/wars World War IWorld War II Place of burial Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, United States | ||
Lyal Ament Davidson (2 December 1886 – 29 December 1950) was a Vice admiral of the United States Navy who served in World War I and World War II. He was a two time recipient of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal and the Legion of Merit. He was also the namesake of USS Davidson (FF-1045).
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Biography
Lyal Ament Davidson was born 2 December 1886 in Muscatine, Iowa to Colonel Joseph T. Davidson (US Army) and Judith (Ament) Davidson. After attending Muscatine High School, he was appointed a Midshipman in 1906. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1910 and was commissioned as an Ensign in 1912, after two years at sea.
Assigned to USS New Hampshire (BB-25), Davidson received a commendation for service while on the landing force during the Battle of Vera Cruz in 1914.
During World War II, Davidson took command of Cruiser Division 8 using USS Philadelphia (CL-41) as his flagship. He received one Navy Distinguished Service Medal for his leadership during the November 1942 invasion of North Africa, in Morocco.
He received a Legion of Merit for command of a task force during the invasion of Italy in 1943.
He received a second Navy Distinguished Service Medal for command of Task Force 86, aboard USS Augusta (CA-31), during the 1944 invasion of Southern France.
He received a second Legion of Merit for his exceptionally meritorious service in World War II.
After October 1944, he served in the office of the Chief of Naval Operations and then the State-War-Navy Coordinating Committee. He retired as a Vice admiral in June 1946 and lived in Washington DC. He died after a lengthy illness at Bethesda Naval Hospital on 29 December 1950. He was survived by his wife and three children. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery on 4 January 1951, section 2, grave 4695-A. His wife Carolyn was buried there as well, after her death in 1980.