| United States Navy Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz (February 24, 1885 – February 20, 1966) and United States Navy Admiral William F. “Bull” Halsey Junior (October 30, 1882 – August 16, 1959) on the deck of fast battleship USS Missouri (BB-63), the flagship of 3rd Fleet. After her shakedown in Chesapeake Bay in November, and fitting out as a fleet flagship in San Francisco through December 14, USS Missouri arrived in Pearl Harbor at 1731 Hours on December 24 and moored in Berth F2 at 1923 Hours after a day of battle practice. She spent Christmas Day docked, awaiting orders to continue battle practice exercises on December 27. On Christmas Day, Admiral Nimitz was piped aboard USS Missouri with appropriate honors for his newly won 5th star; he was elevated to Fleet Admiral on December 19. He brought a Christmas tree to raise war-weary morale, although Halsey declared that even if Santa Claus were seen descending 1 of Missouri’s enormous stacks, he doubted it would rouse real holiday spirit. Halsey himself was away from home for his 4th Christmas because of the war. Halsey, worn after months of combat, was preparing to turn over command of the Pacific Fleet to Spruance for strikes on Japan in February. Missouri sailed for Ulitihi, arriving on January 13, 1945, and Admiral Raymond A. Spruance (July 3, 1886 – December 13, 1969) flew his flag as 5th Fleet Commander-in-Chief. | |
| Image Filename | wwii1637.jpg |
| Image Size | 185.84 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 1200 x 971 |
| Photographer | |
| Photographer Title | Charles E. Kerlee |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | December 25, 1944 |
| Location | Pearl Harbor |
| City | Oahu |
| State or Province | Hawaii |
| Country | United States |
| Archive | Charles E. Kerlee |
| Record Number | |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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