John Jerome Herrick (June 23, 1920 – August 2, 1997) was an officer in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

who was commander of the U.S.S. Maddox during the Gulf of Tonkin Incident in August 1964. Herrick gave the order to return fire on three Viet Cong patrol boats. In 2005, however, an internal National Security Agency historical study was declassified; it concluded that Maddox had engaged the North Vietnamese Navy on August 2. The report stated, regarding the first incident on August 2, that "at 1500G, Captain Herrick ordered Ogier's gun crews to open fire if the boats approached within ten thousand yards. At about 1505G, Maddox fired three rounds to warn off the communist boats. This initial action was never reported by the Johnson administration, which insisted that the Vietnamese boats fired first." Herrick was born in Warren, Minnesota, son of James Orival Herrick and Lillian (Cowley) Herrick, where his father was depot agent for the Soo Line Railroad. He attended University of Wisconsin - Superior before entering the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) 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 ...

. At the academy, his nickname was Jiglig. On May 1, 1948, in La Jolla, California, he married Geraldine Kane (1921-2003), the daughter of a retired Navy dentist. They had three sons and a daughter. He was a commander of landing ships (medium rockets) during the Korean War. Herrick died in 1997 and was buried at

Santa Fe National Cemetery Santa Fe National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery in the city of Santa Fe, in Santa Fe County, New Mexico. It encompasses , and as of 2021, had 68,000 interments. Administered by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, it ...

in New Mexico. Herrick's older brother Curtis J. Herrick (1909-1971, USMA 1931) was a general in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

.Warren Sheaf, August 5, 1964, p. 1A.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Herrick, John J. 1920 births 1997 deaths People from Warren, Minnesota People from Superior, Wisconsin 20th-century American naval officers University of Wisconsin–Superior alumni United States Naval Academy alumni United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War Military personnel from Wisconsin Military personnel from Minnesota