Herman Nickerson Jr. (30 July 1913 – 26 December 2000) was a highly decorated officer of the United States Marine Corps with the rank of lieutenant general. A veteran of several wars, he distinguished himself during the Korean War as commanding officer, 7th Marine Regiment and received the Distinguished Service Cross, the second highest military award that can be given to a member of the United States Armed Forces for extreme gallantry and risk of life in actual combat with an armed enemy force.[1]
Herman Nickerson Jr. was born on 30 July 1913 in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Herman and Emma Nickerson. He attended the high school in Arlington, Massachusetts, and enrolled at Boston University, where he was a member of ROTC unit for four years. Nickerson graduated in June 1935 with a bachelor's degree from the business school[3] and also was commissioned Reserve second lieutenant in June 1934.[1][2]
Nickerson was ordered for instruction to the Army Coast Artillery School at Fort Monroe, Virginia and completed the course in May 1941. He then rejoined 2nd Defense Battalion under Lieutenant Colonel Raymond E. Knapp and sailed for American Samoa in January 1942. Nickerson participated in the anti-aircraft defense of Samoa until July 1943 and served consecutively as Battery commander, group executive officer and group commander, Three Inch Antiaircraft Artillery Group. He was meanwhile promoted to the rank of major in May 1942.[1]
Upon his return to the United States, Nickerson was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel and attached to the staff of Marine Corps Schools, Quantico as commanding officer of Ordnance School. He later attended the Command and Staff School and following the graduation in February 1945, he was attached to the 4th Infantry Training Regiment at Camp Pendleton, California.[1][2]
Following the deactivation of 4th Marine Division in November 1945, Nickerson joined the staff of III Marine Amphibious Corps under Lieutenant General Keller E. Rockey. He served again as Ordnance officer and took part in the occupation of North China in Tianjin during the Chinese Civil War. After the dissolving of III Marine Amphibious Corps in June 1946, Nickerson was attached to the staff of 1st Marine Division under Major General Samuel L. Howard and served as Division Ordnance Officer and Division Legal Officer, respectively, until January 1947, when he was ordered back to the United States. For his service in China, Nickerson was decorated with the Bronze Star Medal.[1][2]
Upon his return, Nickerson was ordered to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, South Carolina and served consecutively as assistant operations officer, Recruiting Training Battalion Commander, Weapons Training Battalion Commander, and assistant chief of staff for operations under Major General Franklin A. Hart.[1]
Nickerson was subsequently ordered to the Far East, where meanwhile the Korean War broke out after the Korean People's Army (KPA) invaded South Korea. He was ordered to Tokyo and attached as advisor on Marine Corps Matters to the General Headquarters, Far East Command under General of the Armies, Douglas MacArthur. He was subsequently attached as liaison officer to the 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division and took part in the Battle of Inchon and subsequent recapture of Seoul in September 1950. Nickerson distinguished himself during the crossing of Han River, when he exposed himself to the KPA's direct fire to move from one company to another to obtain information vital to the successful continuation of the drive against the KPA. He received the Silver Star for his gallantry in action.[6][2]
Nickerson as commanding officer, 7th Marines in Korea.
In April 1951, Nickerson succeeded Colonel Homer Litzenberg as commanding officer, 7th Marine Regiment and led it during the counteroffensive while his troops pushed north after the retreating KPA. The Chinese People's Volunteer Army (PVA) and KPA units launched their Spring Offensive on 22 April and the PVA first smashed through the Republic of Korea Army (ROKA) sector and attacked 7th Marine Regiment's positions. Nickerson and his regiment were forced to retreat and enemy penetrated 30 miles (48 km) behind the defense line. He led defense combats until mid-May, when 1st Marine Division under Major General Gerald C. Thomas launched a counteroffensive and inflicted heavy casualties on the Chinese and North Koreans forces.[7]
Nickerson received orders to secure the high ground dominating the vital road junction near the town of Yanggu on 31 May 1951. His regiment advanced under heavy enemy mortar and after learning that two of his battalions were heavily engaged and that the enemy was grouping for a counterattack, Nickerson unhesitatingly left the comparative safety of his command post and moved forward over rugged mountainous terrain, under intense enemy mortar and artillery fire, to the most forward element of his command. Unmindful of his personal safety, he advanced to an exposed vantage point under heavy enemy fire and, guided his troops in repulsing the ferocious counterattack, taking the offensive and overwhelming the enemy to secure the high ground dominating the vital road junction of Yanggu. His regiment seized the town by nightfall and also its airfield and the hills surrounding the town.[6][7]
For his leadership and gallantry in action, Nickerson was decorated with the Army Distinguished Service Cross, the second highest military award that can be given to a member of the United States Armed Forces for extreme gallantry and risk of life in actual combat with an armed enemy force.[6]
His regiment was subsequently ordered to the reserve for a brief period, before returned to the defensive line north of Seoul soon thereafter. Nickerson and his marine enjoyed almost two months of relatively calm service, before they were ordered to relieve American and ROKA troops in the Punchbowl mountainous region of east-central Korea. Nickerson and his Marines spent three weeks hard fighting, before finally capturing several important defensive positions.[2][8]
They were ordered back to reserve on 16 September 1951 and Nickerson left the regiment four days later with the orders for new assignment. For his service with 7th Marine Regiment, he was decorated with the Legion of Merit with Combat "V" and also received Air Medal for participation in the reconnaissance flights over the enemy lines.[6]
Nickerson was subsequently ordered to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii for duty as Inspector, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific under Lieutenant General Lemuel C. Shepherd Jr. and served in this capacity until March 1952. He was then transferred to the Marine Corps Schools, Quantico, under his old commanding officer, Clifton B. Cates, and was appointed director, Advance Base Problem Section. Nickerson served in this capacity until June 1954, when he was appointed director of the Senior School, which served as the training facility for senior marine officers in the field of amphibious warfare.[1]
In July 1956, he was ordered back to Pearl Harbor for duty as assistant chief of staff for operations (G-3), Fleet Marine Force, Pacific under Lieutenant General Edwin A. Pollock and following the transfer of Pollock to the Command of Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic at Norfolk, Virginia in December 1957, Nickerson followed him in the same capacity.[1]
He was transferred to Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington, D.C., in September 1958 and assumed duty as special assistant to the Fiscal Director. Nickerson was promoted to the rank of brigadier general on 1 January 1959 and assumed duty Fiscal Director of the Marine Corps in April of that year. While in this capacity, he was also appointed president of the American Society of Military Comptrollers and held this title until 1960.[1][2]
Nickerson served at Headquarters Marine Corps until the end of May 1962, when he was ordered to Camp Pendleton, California and assumed command of 1st Marine Division on 15 June 1962 from MG James M. Masters, Sr. For his new billet, he was promoted to the rank of major general on 1 July 1962.[1][2]
He relinquished command of 1st Marine Division on 9 April 1963 to MG William T Fairbourn, when he assumed command of Marine Corps Supply Center Barstow, California.[9] In this capacity, Nickerson was responsible for the logistics support of the Marine Forces in the Pacific until he assumed command of Camp Lejeune in June 1965. While in this capacity, he was responsible for the training of troops designated for combat deployment to South Vietnam.[1][2][10]
Vietnam War
First tour
Nickerson was ordered to South Vietnam in September 1966 and succeeded Major General Lewis J. Fields in command of the 1st Marine Division with temporary additional duty as deputy commander, III Marine Amphibious Force (III MAF) under Lieutenant General Lewis W. Walt. His tactical area was increased to 1,536 square miles and one his first orders was to move his headquarters from Chu Lai to Da Nang, which was closer to the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone. He then established the Kit Carson program, whose members were former Viet Cong combatants, who now worked with the Marines as scouts.[11]
Nickerson receives his three-star flag during his promotion to lieutenant general by Commandant Leonard F. Chapman Jr., March 1968.
His tactical area of responsibility consisted of the three southernmost provinces of I Corps: Quang Nam, Quang Tin, and Quang Ngai. This area was important for diverse reasons. It contained a large population, was a rich rice-producing basin, and was a major source of salt, which had traditionally been a medium of barter and a taxable commodity in Vietnam. Furthermore, the tree-covered foothills of the Annamite Mountains jutting into the coastal plain and the numerous rivers provided the enemy with natural access to the area.[11]
The increasing activity of Viet Cong in Nickerson's area of responsibility, forced him to took action. During the first three months of the year, for example, the 1st Marine Division carried out 36,553 company-size operations, patrols, and ambushes in the Da Nang Tactical Area alone.[12]
According to the joint Vietnamese-U. S. 1967 Combined Campaign Plan in which III MAF troops were to relieve Army of the Republic of Vietnam units from outpost duty so that they could be employed more effectively elsewhere in the Revolutionary Development Program. Operation Desoto in Đức Phổ District commencing late January 1967 was the first one of these relieving operations. The Marines under Nickerson's command assumed defense of the district, but participated in the skirmishes with Viet Cong until the early April of that year and suffered 76 dead and 573 wounded. The Marines claimed 383 Viet Cong killed.[12]
During the previous operation, Nickerson received several intelligence reports indicating the presence of People's Army of Vietnam and Viet Cong units in the Quế Sơn Valley. In order to prevent the enemy forces launched major attack, Nickerson approved the Operation Union in mid-April 1967, the search and destroy mission to eliminate these enemy units. The fighting lasted until mid-May of that year and Marines killed 865 People's Army and Viet Cong combatants.[12]
Upon his return to the United States, Nickerson was attached to the Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington, D.C., as the deputy chief of staff for manpower. In this capacity, he served as the principal advisor to the Commandant of the Marine Corps, Leonard F. Chapman Jr., and the chief of staff, William J. Van Ryzin, on all manpower matters for regular, reserve, both active and inactive, and civilian personnel, as well as the individual training and education of military personnel. His responsibilities included the planning, direction, coordination, supervision, and implementation of over 300,000 active duty personnel, approximately 170,000 Marine Corps Reserve personnel, and cognizance over some 25,000 civilian personnel.[6]
Following the reorganization of the Headquarters Marine Corps in early 1968, Nickerson's billet was redesignated director of personnel/deputy chief of staff for manpower, and he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general on 15 March 1968. He remained in this capacity until the end of March 1969, when he received orders for his second deployment to Vietnam. For his service at the Headquarters Marine Corps, Nickerson received his third Legion of Merit.[6][1][2]
Second tour
LTG Herman Nickerson Jr. (left) inspects Honor Guard at Camp Horn, III MAF headquarters in Da Nang accompanied by outgoing III MAF commander Lieutenant Robert E. Cushman Jr., 9 March 1969
Nickerson returned to Vietnam and assumed command of III MAF in Da Nang succeeding his former superior, general Cushman. In this capacity, he was responsible for the 172,000 marine, navy, and army personnel within the defense of 10,000 square miles of I Corps Tactical Zone. His command consisted of 1st, 3rd Marine Divisions and 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.[13][14]
However the new policy of Vietnamization led to the reduction of US forces in South Vietnam. In mid-1969, Nickerson oversaw the redeployment of 3rd Marine Division, which was detached from his command and transferred to Okinawa within Operations Keystone Eagle and Keystone Cardinal. Throughout the rest of 1969, he oversaw the planning and execution of several search and destroy operations (including Oklahoma Hills, Pipestone Canyon) and his units inflicted severe losses on the enemy and capturing over 17,000 weapons and tons of enemy munitions, supplies, and foodstuffs.[13]
He was subsequently ordered back to the United States and retired after 35 years of active service on 31 March 1970. Following his retirement, Nickerson worked as chairman, National Credit Union Administration and the newly created National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund until 1976. He then settled with his wife Phyllis in Jacksonville, North Carolina, and wrote the book Leadership Lessons and Remembrances from Vietnam in 1988 about his experiences from Vietnam War. They later moved to Belfast, Maine, where Nickerson was active in the Marine Corps History Program.[17]
Nickerson was awarded a Certificate of Appreciation by then-Commandant of the Marine Corps Robert H. Barrow for his contributions to the Oral History Program.[18] Lieutenant General Herman Nickerson Jr. died on 27 December 2000 in Belfast, Maine.[2]
Decorations
A complete list of the general's medals and decorations include:[6]
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