Edwin Bickford Hooper
Vice Admiral, U.S. Navy

Edwin Bickford Hooper was born on 26 February 1909 in Winthrop, MA.

Hooper graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1931 and served for seven years on the cruiser USS Pensacola and the Destroyer USS Cushing. In 1938 he attended MIT and received an MA in Electrical Engineering.

In 1942, he was a Gunnery Officer on the Battleship USS Washington, participating in the Solomons and Gilbert Campaigns, then on the staff of Commander Service Force, Pacific. In 1945 he was the Officer in Charge of Ordnance, Maintenance and Improvement on the Staff of Commander Service Force, Pacific.

In 1947, Hooper was named to the newly established U.S. Atomic Energy Commission serving in the Military Applications Division. He played a key role in developing new programs for nuclear weapons and planned the first Eniwetok Atoll tests. During a tour of duty in 1950 with the Bureau of Ordnance and Atomic Energy Commission, he initiated development of the first nuclear anti-submarine weapon. Later, as the Assistant Chief of Bureau and Ordnance, he was involved with development of ASROC and ASW torpedoes. In 1959 he became the first Director of the Institute of Naval Studies at the Naval War College.

In 1962 he was appointed Commander Amphibious Group 1 in the Far East. By 1965 he became the Commanding Officer, Commander Service Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet. As the principal logistics agent for the Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, Hooper commanded over 46,000 personnel who manned more than 115 ships, 14 overseas shore activities including Naval Support Activity, Saigon and numerous other mobile support units and staffs of the Pacific Service Force.

In Retirement

After retiring from the Navy, he became the Director of Naval Historical Center until 1976. In order to honor his memory and service to the Center the "Edwin B Hooper" Research Grant was established.

Death and Burial

Vice Admiral Edwin Bickford Hooper died on 12 September 1986 in MD. He is buried at the U.S. Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis, MD.