R 311952Z JAN 25
ALMAR 002/25
MSGID/GENADMIN/CMC WASHINGTON DC//
SUBJ/DEATH OF GENERAL THOMAS R. MORGAN, 21ST ASSISTANT COMMANDANT OF
THE MARINE CORPS (MODIFIED COPY)//
REF/A/GENADMIN/SECNAV/311851ZJAN25//
NARR/REF A IS ALNAV 015/24, PASSING OF GENERAL THOMAS R. MORGAN,
21ST ASSISTANT COMMANDANT OF THE MARINE CORPS (CORRECTED COPY).//
GENTEXT/REMARKS/1.  It is with great sadness that I announce the 
death of General Thomas R. Morgan, U.S. Marine Corps, Retired, the
21st Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps.  General Morgan 
passed away on 6 December 2024.
2.  General Morgan served as the Assistant Commandant of the Marine
Corps from June 1986 until his retirement on 1 July 1988, after
completion of more than 36 years of active service.
3.  General Morgan was born on 6 January 1930, in Allentown,
Pennsylvania. He completed high school in Slatington, Pennsylvania,
in 1948, and entered Colgate University, Hamilton, New York, where
he attained a B.A. degree in History and Political Science in 1952.
He also earned an M.A. degree in Counselor Education from the
University Of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, in June 1973.
4.  He was commissioned as a second lieutenant on 6 June 1952 and
entered the Basic School, Quantico, Virginia. Following the Basic
School, he was ordered to flight training at Naval Air Station 
Pensacola, Florida, and was designated a Naval Aviator in August 
1954. Ordered to El Toro, California, he served Assistant 
Maintenance Officer of Marine Night Fighter Squadron 542, Marine 
Aircraft Group 15, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing.
5.  In July 1955, he was ordered to the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing in
the Western Pacific and served as Personnel Officer of Marine Night
Fighter Squadron 513, Marine Aircraft Group 11, and subsequently as
Aide-de-Camp to the Commanding General of the wing. He was promoted
to captain in August 1955. He returned to Hawaii for duty as Aide to
the Deputy Commander, FMF, Pacific, from July 1956 to July 1957 and
was then assigned as Assistant Operations Officer of Marine Attack
Squadron 214, Marine Aircraft Group 13, at Marine Corps Air Station,
Kaneohe Bay.
6.  In January 1959, General Morgan was ordered to Naval Air Station
Olathe, Kansas, as a flight instructor in the Navy's Jet 
Transitional Training Unit. Following the unit's disestablishment in
October 1959, he reported for duty to Marine Aircraft Group 32, at 
Marine Corps Air Station, Beaufort, South Carolina. He served as
Personnel Officer and Aircraft Maintenance Officer of Marine Fighter
Squadron 333 until November 1961. He then served in WestPac as
Executive Officer, Headquarters and Maintenance Squadron 11, Marine
Aircraft Group 11, Naval Air Station Atsugi, Japan, until January 
1962.
7.  From January 1962 to July 1965, he served as the Fleet Liaison 
Officer at Marine Corps Air Station, Yuma, Arizona, coordinating
aviation weapons training. He was promoted to major in July 1963 and
subsequently completed the Command and Staff College course at 
Quantico in June 1966.
8.  General Morgan was ordered to Marine Aircraft Group 32, 2d 
Marine Aircraft Wing, at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South 
Carolina, in July 1966, where he served as Group Operations Officer
and later as Commanding Officer, Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 312.
He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in July 1967. In August 1968,
he reported to Marine Aircraft Group 13 at Chu Lai, serving as Group
Operations Officer and then as Officer-in-Charge of the Da Nang DASC
in Vietnam.
9.  He returned to the United States in September 1969 and was
assigned as Executive Officer of Marine Corps Air Station, Quantico,
and later as G-3, Marine Corps Base Quantico. From July 1971 until
July 1973, he served as Executive Officer of the Naval Reserve 
Officers Training Corps unit at the University of Virginia.
10.  Promoted to colonel in July 1973, General Morgan was ordered to
the U.S. European Command Headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany, where
he served as Chief of the War Plans Branch, J-5. He then served as
Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff for Requirements and Programs, 
Headquarters Marine Corps. Selected for promotion to brigadier 
general in February 1977, he assumed duty as Assistant Division
Commander, 3d Marine Division, on Okinawa from April 1977 to April
1978.
11.  He subsequently served as Assistant Chief of Staff C-5, 
Combined Forces Command, Seoul, South Korea, and as Deputy 
Commander, FMF, Pacific, at Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii. Promoted to
major general in May 1981, he served as Deputy Chief of Staff for
Requirements and Programs, Headquarters Marine Corps. In June 1985,
he was advanced to lieutenant general and assumed duties as Deputy
Chief of Staff for Plans, Policies and Operations.
12.  General Morgan was nominated by the President to the grade of
general and assignment as Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps
in March 1986.  Upon advancement to general on 1 June 1986, he
assumed his final assignment.
13.  General Morgan's personal decorations include the Defense 
Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, 
Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal, and Navy Commendation Medal.
14.  Per the reference, all Marine Corps installations will 
half-mast the National Ensign on 4 February 2025 until sunset the
same day.
15.  Funeral and burial: On Tuesday, 4 February 2025, the family
of General Morgan will have a small private ceremony limited to 
close friends and family.  The interment ceremony with military 
funeral honors is open to the public and will begin at 1300 
aboard Quantico National Cemetery.
16.  Eric M. Smith, General, U.S. Marine Corps, Commandant of the
Marine Corps.//