Celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month - Capt. Marion Frederic Ramirez de Arellano, first Hispanic submarine CO

Marion Frederic Ramirez de Arellano is the first Hispanic submarine commanding officer who received two Silver Stars, the Legion of Merit and a Bronze Star for his actions against the Japanese Imperial Navy during WWII.

He was born in Puerto Rico August 5, 1913 and graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy 1935.  He was commissioned as an ensign to the aircraft carrier USS Ranger.  After attending Submarine School at Groton, Connecticut he was assigned as Division Officer aboard the submarine USS Pickerel, which was in the Philippines and was attacked by the Japanese December 8, just 10 hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Marion Frederic Ramirez de Arellano participated in war patrols throughout the Pacific.  In April 1944, he was named Commanding Officer of the submarine USS Balao. He led the rescue of three downed Navy pilots in the Palau region.  He engaged and sunk a Japanese cargo ship Daigo Maru January 8, 1945.

After the war, he was named CO of the Submarine base on Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.  He retired from the Navy in 1961 and passed away in May 1980.