Awards & Recognition
MCRD San Diego Parade Review

Reviewing Officers

Two legendary Marine marksmen, retired Lieutenant Colonel William W. McMillan and retired Captain James E. Hill review today's recruit graduation parade.

Born in Frostburg, Maryland in 1929, LtCol. McMillan enlisted in 1946. After graduating from boot camp at Parris Island, S.C. he served with the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, Cherry Point, N.C. and Marine Barracks, Brooklyn Naval Shipyard. He was commissioned in 1953 after attending The Basic School in Quantico, Va.

He served two tours of duty in the Republic of Vietnam and was the commanding officer of Weapons Training Battalion at both Edson Range, Camp Pendleton, Calif., and Quantico.

LtCol. McMillan retired in 1974 after a quarter of a century of service to the Corps. He is best known for his remarkable shooting abilities with both the rile and pistol.

He competed in his first shooting matches in 1949 and won his first gold medal with the pistol at the Eastern Division Matches. The following year he became a distinguished pistol shooter. In 1951 he began to compete internationally. He was a member of the United States Olympic Team in Helsinki, Finland. Although only 22 years old and facing seasoned opponents, he placed seventh in the competition. This was to be the first of his six Olympiads.

He became distinguished with the rifle n 1954 and won the Host Match at the World Championships in Caracas, Venezuela. Eventually firing in six World Championships he triumphed on two occasions. He also competed in four Pan American Games, capturing the gold in 1967.

In 1956 and 1957, he was the National Pistol Champion and was World Champion in 1958. At the 1959 Marine Corps Matches he became the first person to win the McDougal Rifle Trophy and the Walsh Pistol Trophy in the same year, a feat that has remained unequaled. In the 1960 Olympics in Rome, Italy he won a gold medal with the pistol in a shoot-off with Finland and the Soviet Union. Through the years he has competed in every major rifle and pistol event imaginable.

In 1979, the Marine Corps established a National Pistol Shooting Trophy in his honor. The "McMillan Trophy" is awarded to the Marine, regular or reserve who attains the highest aggregate score in the National Individual Pistol Matches held at Camp Perry, Ohio.

Captain James E. Hill joined the Marine Corps in July 1948. In 1949 he served as a military policeman and rifle marksmanship instructor at the Marine Barracks Guam. Subsequent tours included U.S. Naval Retraining Command, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Marine recruiter, Decatur, Ill., platoon sergeant, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines in Japan and scheduling non-commissioned officer with Schools Demonstration Platoon, Quantico, Va.

It was at Quantico that Capt. Hill, then a staff sergeant, began a distinguished shooting career. From 1956 to 1964 he participated in and won medals in numerous rifle matches around the world. After earning his distinguished marksman badge in 1956 he went on to win the National Service Rifle Championship at Camp Perry. Changing from service rifle shooting to international shooting, he earned a place on the 1960 U.S. Olympic Shooting Team headed for Rome where he won the silver medal with the rifle and was awarded the International Distinguished Shooting Badge.

In 1962 he travelled with the U.S. Shooting Team to the World Shooting Championships held in Cairo, Egypt, winning a silver and bronze medals with the rifle. Returning to Camp Perry in 1964, he won the National Smallbore Rifle Championship.

He was commissioned a warrant officer in 1962. As an officer he served in various billets including, base range officer, Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton, commanding officer and executive officer, Supply Battalion, 3rd Force Service Regiment, Okinawa, S-4 officer, Force Logistics Unit, Dong Ha, South Vietnam, commanding officer, Ordnance Maintenance Company, 5th Force Service Regiment, Camp Pendleton, ordnance officer 4th Marine Division and ordnance officer 4th Marine Division and ordnance advisor to the Vietnamese Marine Corps, South Vietnam.

In 1974, he received a special assignment to Jordan where he organized, equipped, and trained an International Shooting Team for King Hussein and coached the team in the World Shooting Championship held in Switzerland.

Capt. Hill retired in 1978. He returned to Camp Perry in 1984 after a 20 year absence and became the National Civilian Service Rifle Champion. In 1986, he earned his Distinguished Pistol Shot Badge, becoming the 20th person in the shooting sport ever to ear the designation at "Triple Distinguished." At at 62, Capt. Hill resides in Oceanside and still actively competes with the service rifle.

MCRD Chevron, July 24, 1992