Cotten, John Henderson, 1913-1982

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John Henderson Cotten was a United States Naval Academy graduate and career naval officer. He commanded a destroyer in the Pacific in World War II and taught at various naval schools in the 1950s.

From the description of John Henderson Cotten papers, 1928-1968 [manuscript]. WorldCat record id: 23848780

Elizabeth Brownrigg Henderson was born in Salisbury, N.C., on 4 August 1875, the daughter of John Steele and Elizabeth Cain Henderson. She spent her childhood in Salisbury and in Washington, D.C., while her father served in Congress, 1885-1895. She graduated from St. Mary's School in Raleigh, N.C. Elizabeth Henderson and Lyman A. Cotten, a naval officer from North Carolina, were married in 1908. During Captain Cotten's naval career, Lyman and Elizabeth lived in the United States, China, Turkey, and Japan. While in the United States, Mrs. Cotten was active in the women's suffrage movement. Elizabeth Cotten moved to Chapel Hill, N.C., in 1926, following the death of her husband. In 1932, she began working at the Southern Historical Collection of the University of North Carolina Library. She also served as the first executive secretary of the Friends of the Library. She died on 3 February 1975.

John Henderson Cotten was born in Karulzawa, Japan, in 1913 to Lyman A. Cotten, naval attache, and Elizabeth Henderson Cotten. In 1935, Cotten was graduated from the United States Naval Academy. He served on convoy duty with the United States Navy in the Atlantic until the outbreak of World War II. As commander of the U.S.S. Charles J. Badger, a destroyer, he was involved in the bombardment of the Gilbert Islands, Okinawa, and other Pacific Islands. Cotten was awarded the Bronze Star in 1945. Following the war, Cotten held several assignments, chiefly in Washington, D.C. He served at a number of service schools, including the Armed Forces College in Norfolk, Va. (1952); the Fleet School in Key West, Fla. (1953); and the Naval War College in Newport, R.I. (1956-1957). Cotten acted as naval liaison officer to the Eighth Army in South Korea in 1954. He also saw duty on naval vessels such as the Des Moines (1948-1950); the Compass Island (1959-1960); and the Galveston (1961). Cotten died at the Bethesda Naval Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland, in 1982.

(Elizabeth Cotten information adapted from the Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, edited by William S. Powell.)

From the guide to the John Henderson Cotten Papers, 1928-1968, (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.)

Archival Resources
Role Title Holding Repository
referencedIn Cummings, E. E. (Edward Estlin), 1894-1962. Papers, 1870-1969 Houghton Library
referencedIn Lyman A. Cotten papers, 1927-1995. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
referencedIn Cummings, E. E. (Edward Estlin), 1894-1962. Additional papers, 1870-1969. Houghton Library
creatorOf Cotten, John Henderson, 1913-1982. John Henderson Cotten papers, 1928-1968 [manuscript]. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
creatorOf John Henderson Cotten Papers, 1928-1968 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection
referencedIn Lyman A. Cotten (1909-1991) Papers, 1927-1995 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection
referencedIn Cotten, Lyman A., 1909-1990. Lyman A. Cotten photographic and printed material collection, circa 1870s-1960s. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Role Title Holding Repository
Relation Name
associatedWith Cotten, Elizabeth Henderson. person
associatedWith Cotten family. family
associatedWith Cotten, Lyman A., 1909-1991. person
correspondedWith Cummings, E. E. (Edward Estlin), 1894-1962 person
correspondedWith United States. Navy corporateBody
associatedWith University of North Carolina (1793-1962). Library corporateBody
Place Name Admin Code Country
Okinawa Island (Japan)
Chapel Hill (N.C.)
North Carolina
Subject
Families
Occupation
Activity

Person

Birth 1913

Death 1982

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