D. W. "Mush" Morton, a World War II hero, spent his early youth and attended elementary school in Nortonville and high school in Madisonville. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., in 1930 and became commanding officer of the submarine Wahoo. Morton received his first Navy Cross for extraordinary heroism during action against enemy forces in the Pacific. Under his command, Wahoo sank 31,890 tons of Japanese shipping. Wahoo left Pearl Harbor Sept. 9, 1943, headed for the Sea of Japan, but was lost through enemy action. Morton was awarded four Navy Crosses and the Army Distinguished Service Cross, and his submarine won the Presidential Unit Citation for outstanding performance in combat.