This Ribbon is presented to individuals and ships that are fired on or attacked sufficiently to require that person or ship to return fire in their defense. In the 90s this medal was made retroactive to Dec 7, 41.

DeHaven may have become eligible for this medal on numerous occasions, but there is no doubt that she earned it on 1 Feb 44.

[Link to 469-727 history, Loss of DeHaven]

This campaign medal was created on 7 Dec 1941 by executive order 9265 issued by President Roosevelt. Originally issued as the American Theater Ribbon, the decoration was intended to recognize service members who performed duty in the American Theater of Operation during WW-II. To earn the Medal a service member had to perform one year of consecutive duty within CONUS, or 30 days of consecutive/ 60 days non-consecutive duty outside the border of the U.S. but within the American Theater of Operation which included most of the Atlantic, part of Alaska, and a small portion of the Pacific bordering California and Baja California. Eligibility dates are 7 Dec 41 to 2 Mar 46. Service Stars were authorized for actual engagement in combat with Axis forces within the American Theater of Operation.

Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal: This campaign medal was awarded to any member of the United States Military who served in the Pacific Theater from 1941 to 1945. There were 48 Navy/Marine campaigns. Of those 48 campaigns there were hundreds of various possibilities of earning an "Engagement Star". DeHaven is listed as being in 3 "Engagements", but those engagements are sorted into groups for which DeHaven earned one "Engagement Star".

World War II Victory Medal: This medal is a decoration which was created by an act of Congress in July 1945 to commemorate military service during World War II and is awarded to any member of the United States military, including members of the armed forces of the Government of the Philippine Islands, who served on active duty or as a reservist, between 7 Dec 41 and 31 Dec 46.

The following is not part of the Ribbon Bar, but is general information for those members of the crew of USS DeHaven DD- 469 that are entitled to wear the Purple Heart Medal because they were wounded during the attack on DeHaven on 1 Feb 44.

Purple Heart Medal

1. Authorization. E.O. 9277 of 3 December 1942, E.O. 10409 of 12 November 1952, E.O. 11016 of 25 April 1962 as amended by E.O. 12464 of 23 February 1984, 10 U.S.C. 1129, and Public Laws 98-525, 104-106, and 105-851.

2. Eligibility Requirements: Awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States who, while serving under competent authority in any capacity with an Armed Force of the United States after 5 April 1917, have been killed or wounded in action against an enemy of the United States.

The original Purple Heart, designated as the Badge of Military Merit, was established by George Washington—then the commander-in-chief of the Continental Army—by order from his Newburgh, New York headquarters on August 7, 1782. The actual order includes the phrase, "Let it be known that he who wears the military order of the Purple Heart has given of his blood in the defense of his homeland and shall forever be revered by his fellow countrymen."