Ships
- USS Johnston (DD-557) Captain, 27 October 1943 – 25 October 1944
Commander Ernest E. Evans was the only captain Johnston had. Seattle-Tacoma launched her on 25 March 1943. He commissioned her on 27 October 1943.
On the morning of 25 October 1944 a Japanese force of battleships, cruisers, and destroyers came out on the escort carriers east of Samar. Evans did not wait for the order. Johnston made smoke and closed. She fired her 5-inch guns, then all ten torpedoes. The usual account is that one torpedo hit the heavy cruiser Kumano and tore off her bow. Kumano left the fight and was not sunk that day.
Heavy gunfire hit Johnston while she was still in the fight. The ships that hit her are not pinned down. Evans was badly wounded and kept command. At 9:45 he ordered the crew off. She rolled over and sank at about 10:10. Of 327 men, 141 were saved. Evans was not among them. He was awarded the Medal of Honor.