Alvin Chester Cockrell, Jr. was born in Hazelhurst, Mississippi, on September 18, 1918, and was enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve on May 1, 1937.

Navy career

Cockrell served as an enlisted man until accepting an appointment as 2d lieutenant, USMCR, on June 25, 1940. Over the next two years, Cockrell served at Marine barracks at Quantico

Marine Corps Base Quantico

Marine Corps Base Quantico, sometimes abbreviated MCB Quantico, is a major United States Marine Corps training base located near Triangle, Virginia, covering nearly in southern Prince William County, northern Stafford County, and southeastern Fauquier County...

, Guantanamo Bay

Guantanamo Bay Naval Base

Guantanamo Bay Naval Base is located on of land and water at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba which the United States leased for use as a coaling station following the Cuban-American Treaty of 1903. The base is located on the shore of Guantánamo Bay at the southeastern end of Cuba. It is the oldest overseas...

, Parris Island

Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island

Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island is an military installation located within Port Royal, South Carolina, approximately south of Beaufort, the community that is typically associated with the installation. MCRD Parris Island is used for the training of enlisted Marines...

, and New River

Marine Corps Air Station New River

Marine Corps Air Station New River is a United States Marine Corps helicopter base in Jacksonville, North Carolina, in the eastern part of the state. In 1972, the airfield was named McCutcheon Field for Brigadier General Keith B. McCutcheon, one of the fathers of Marine Corps helicopter aviation...

. He was appointed a 1st lieutenant on December 2, 1941. Ultimately assigned to Company "B", 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, Fleet Marine Force, he landed with the 7th Marines on Guadalcanal

Guadalcanal

Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...

 on his 24th birthday, September 18, 1942.

Guadalcanal service

Within a week, the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, was to conduct a reconnaissance

Reconnaissance

Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....

 in force of the region between the Matanikau River

Matanikau River

The Matanikau River of Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, is located in the northwest part of the island. During the World War II Guadalcanal campaign, several significant engagements occurred between United States and Japanese forces near the river.-References:...

 and the village of Kokumbona

Kokumbona

Kokumbona is a village on the island of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands.It was a Japanese base during World War II and the site of a United States Marine Corps amphibious landing on 19 August 1942....

, led by Lieutenant Colonel Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller

Chesty Puller

Lieutenant General Lewis Burwell "Chesty" Puller was an officer in the United States Marine Corps. Puller is the most decorated U.S...

, USMC

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

, and departed the perimeter of the marine defenses on September 23,. The point of Puller's battalion surprised elements of the Japanese

Empire of Japan

The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...

 Oka Detachment as they were sitting down cooking rice on the slopes of Mount Austen (Mambulo), late the following afternoon, September 24, south of Lunga Point

Lunga Point

Lunga Point is a promontory on the northern coast of Guadalcanal, the site of a naval battle during World War II. It was also the name of a nearby airfield, later named Henderson Field....

. The sound of firing having alerted the enemy's main body, a brisk battle ensued; as it developed, 1st Lt. Cockrell led his platoon in assaulting a strongly held Japanese position against heavy machine gun and rifle fire. He was killed in the ensuing action, one of seven marines who died in the engagement.

Namesake

USS Alvin C. Cockrell (DE-366)

USS Alvin C. Cockrell (DE-366)

USS Alvin C. Cockrell was a acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War II. Decommissioned several times, in addition to serving in the World War, she also served during the Berlin Crisis of 1961....

 was named in his honor. She was laid down on May 1, 1944 at Orange, Texas

Orange, Texas

Orange is a city in Orange County, Texas, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 18,643. It is the county seat of Orange County, and is the easternmost city in Texas. Located on the Sabine River at the border with Louisiana, it is part of the Beaumont–Port Arthur...

, by the Consolidated Steel Corp.; launched on June 27, 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Jim Alice Perkins, the sister of the late 1st Lt. Cockrell; and commissioned on August 7, 1944 at her builder's yard, Lt. Comdr. Merrill M. Sanford, USNR

United States Navy Reserve

The United States Navy Reserve, until 2005 known as the United States Naval Reserve, is the Reserve Component of the United States Navy...

, in command.