Arthur “Jack” Elliot was killed 40 years ago on Dec. 29, 1968, at the age of 35. A fifth generation native of Thomaston, Lieutenant Commander Elliot was leading a PBRs (Patrol Boat River) squadron when he was hit by a B-40 rocket, which killed him instantly. PBR’s or “Swift Boats” had a shallow draft, which enabled them to traverse rivers, streams and even swamps, as they attempted to stem the flow of arms and ammunition coming from China and Cambodia into North and South Vietnam.
Elliot grew up in a seafaring family. Both his father and grandfather were owners of the Dunn & Elliot boatyard in Thomaston. Jack’s paternal grandfather, Arthur James Elliot, was a schooner captain who had his captain’s license at 19. He also launched Edna Hoyt in 1920, the last five-masted schooner ever built. Dunn & Elliot had begun as a sailmaking business in the mid-19th century. Starting in the 1880, however, the firm expanded into shipbuilding and launched 30 vessels, including Hattie Dunn, which was sunk off the coast of Massachusetts by a German submarine in 1917
Dunn & Elliot was just one of several shipyards in the Thomaston area when Elliot was born in 1933. Growing up in Thomaston Jack came to love the sea. He worked in the family yard, and was taught to sail and fish by his father and grandfather, “Captain Arthur.” As a teenager he was a counselor at nearby Camp Medomak, a boys’ camp where he taught sailing.
The oldest of three boys, Jack graduated from Thomaston High School in 1950 and Gorham State Teachers College in 1955. The following year he made repeated applications to Officers Candidate School (OCS) in Newport, Rhode Island, but was rejected each time due to bad eyesight. When the Navy finally lifted its restriction on glasses, Elliot was accepted in June 1956. Four months later he was commissioned an Ensign in the Naval Reserves.
For the remaining 12 years of his life Elliot sailed all over the world, starting as a deck officer on the Bath-built destroyer Lyman K. Swenson until 1959. He served on ships in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans as well as in the Mediterranean, until 1968 when he volunteered for duty in Vietnam.
When Elliot was named commanding officer of PBR “Swift Boat” Squadron 57 in the Mekong Delta area, the United States was not at war with Cambodia. The conflict, however, had escalated to the point where U.S. Admiral Elmo Zumwalt saw the need to interdict the flow of arms and troops from Cambodia into South Vietnam. The Mekong Delta was laced by 3,000 miles of rivers, canals and small streams and Zumwalt realized that whoever controlled the waterways controlled the heart of South Vietnam. Thus the “Brown Water Navy” was born. For almost a year Jack Elliot participated in this river war and contributed to the planning and execution of major campaigns including “Giant Slingshot” and “Parrot’s Beak”.
Commander Elliot was killed when he was returning with his squadron of 20 boats from a mission on the Vam Co Dong River, one of the many streams in the Mekong Delta. The trip up the river, which was densely forested on both sides, was uneventful but they had been spotted by the Viet Cong and on their return the patrol ran into an ambush. When the squadron entered one of the many small lakes through which the river flowed, they came under a fierce attack. It was the perfect place for an ambush, since the thick jungle foliage made it difficult to spot the enemy, and the downstream exit point was not visible from the lake.
As Viet Cong shells rained down on his command, Elliot’s patrol boat circled the lake desperately seeking the exit point. When he found it he stationed his boat in a position to direct the rest of his flotilla out of the area. His boat was the last to leave when he was mortally wounded by a rocket. Fortunately his crew and the other boats made it back to their base safely. Ironically Elliot’s tour of duty had officially ended, but his replacement had requested a postponement. Sadly Lt. Peterson, his relief, was also killed in the action.
Elliot was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star with Combat “V”. It should be noted that most Bronze Stars do not have a “V” attached, denoting Valor. The “V” is awarded in particular instances of combat heroism. The citation read: “To Lieutenant Commander Arthur James Elliot II, for heroic achievement and display of professional skill and courage, he immediately directed accurate and effective return fire while his boat was breaking contact and clearing the danger area…. His inspiring leadership, courage and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest tradition of the United States Naval Service.”
On Oct. 15, 1973, the keel of a Spruance-class destroyer was laid by the Ingalls yard in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Less than two years later Jack’s mother Helen, christened the ship USS Elliot in honor of her son. It was the first ship in the Navy to be named after a hero from the Vietnam War. Elliot’s brother John told me recently that, “half the town of Thomaston went to Mississippi for the ceremony.”
Following extensive shakedown training, USS Elliot was commissioned Jan. 22, 1977. Before joining the Pacific fleet, however, she stopped in Rockland Aug. 25-28, 1977. During the four-day stay the ship hosted several thousand visitors and took 650 guests on a six-hour cruise. USS Elliot remained in active service as a member of the U.S. Pacific fleet until decommissioned Dec. 2, 2003.
USS Ellliot’s coat of arms is a crest composed of a mainmast and mainsail with a pine tree emblazoned on the sail, symbolizing the Elliot family’s long association with the nautical heritage of the state of Maine. The ship’s motto, “Courage, Honor, Integrity” is representative of the values which characterized Lieutenant Commander Elliot throughout his distinguished career.