Doris Miller at Pearl Harbor

Born and raised in Waco, Texas, Doris Miller (top), known as “Dorie,” earned The Navy Cross for his heroism during the Japanese attacks on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. Miller, a Ship’s Cook Third Class, was helping the wounded aboard the USS West Virginia when he manned an anti-aircraft machine gun. Above: Adm. Chester W. Nimitz personally awards Miller the Navy’s second highest award. Middle: Miller is shown on Jan. 7, 1943, talking with other sailors and a civilian at the Naval Training Station in Great Lakes, Ill. (Official U.S. Navy photographs, now in the collections of the National Archives)