Richard Preston Molpus was born Aug. 14, 1902 at Increase in Lauderdale County, Mississippi. His mother, Mattie Walker Molpus, was a homemaker who died in October 1918. His father, Lewis Molpus, was a farmer.

In 1910 the family was still living in rural Lauderdale County. Young Mr. Molpus was living in the county seat — Meridian — when he enlisted in the Navy on Aug. 14, 1919. He re-enlisted several times, once in 1923 when he was serving on the Denebola, a destroyer tender then in the Mediterranean. The re-enlistment paperwork included his  averages, on a scale of one to four. He scored 3.31 for proficiency at his job as a moulder, and perfect 4s for sobriety and obedience.

He was a metalsmith and chief petty officer on the U.S.S. Arizona when he was killed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941.

He married Bertha Weisenborn Molpus in September 1933 in Yuma, Arizona. It was a popular place for Navy men to marry because, unlike California, Arizona had no waiting period. By the time of his death, his family included a step-daughter and a son, William Richard, who went on to serve in the Merchant Marine.

Sources: The Wilmington (California) Press Journal; the News-Pilot of San Pedro, California; the Clarion-Ledger of Jackson, Mississippi; Census; Arizona marriage license; grave markers; Defense Department; Navy enlistment records. This profile was researched and written on behalf of the U.S.S. Arizona Mall Memorial at the University of Arizona.