From a contemporary press report:
Francis Edmond Wilson, 91, a retired Navy captain and veteran of World War II and the Korean War, died of congestive heart failure October 25, 1998 at Vinson Hall retirement community in McLean, Virginia. A former Washington and Virginia Beach resident, he had lived at the retirement home since 1995.
Captain Wilson joined the Navy as a midshipman, graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis in 1930. He served on the battleship Mississippi and later the destroyer Paul Jones.
At the outbreak of World War II, he was in the North Atlantic as executive officer of the destroyer Dickerson. He then assumed command of the destroyer when its commanding officer was killed in action. His other assignments during the war included command of the destroyer Stevenson, which participated in attacks on the Admiralty Islands in the Pacific.
During the Korean War, he commanded a storage ship and served as chief of staff to the commander of a service squadron in Japan and Korea. Following his military retirement in 1960, he had a 12-year career with United Services Life Insurance Co., spending part of that time as the company’s representative in Germany.
Survivors include his wife of 57 years, Josephine O’Mara Wilson of McLean; three children, Francis E. Wilson Jr. and John T. Wilson, both of Bethesda, and Marylinda Hishmeh of Kensington; a brother; and six grandchildren.
ILSON, FRANCIS EDMOND (Age 91)
CAPTAIN, USN (Ret.)
On Sunday, October 25, 1998, of McLean, VA, formerly of Virginia Beach, Virginia; beloved husband of Josephine O.M. Wilson; loving father of Francis E. Wilson Jr., Marylinda Hishmeh and John T. Wilson; grandfather of six. Also surviving is his brother, Robert Louis Wilson of Chesterfield, Missouri.
Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Thursday, November 5 at 9:45 a.m. at The Fort Myer Old Post Chapel, Fort Myer, Virginia.
Interment Arlington National Cemetery.
Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.
Reviewed by: Michael Howard