William Comrie Gibson – Commander, United States Navy

From a contemporary press report

Commander William Comrie Gibson, U.S, Navy (Ret.), 81, of Chatham, Chester County, Pennsylvania, died on Friday, August 30, 2002 at his home following a battle with cancer. He was the husband of Elizabeth Gates Gibson, with whom he shared 18 years of marriage, and his first wife, the late Frances Graves Gibson, with whom he shared 39 years of marriage.

A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, class of 1944, he served aboard the USS Morris (DD-417) which received 15 battlestars during World War II. After the war, he attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he received a Masters degree in Naval Architecture and Engineering. In 1958, he returned to the Naval Academy as Instructor and Chairman for the Engineering Faculty. He also served as resident supervisor of shipbuilding in Newport News, Virginia, and at the Maryland Shipbuilding and Drydock Co. He retired from the U.S. Navy in 1964 and began a career with several defense corporations until 1985.

He is survived, in addition to his wife, by three daughters, Mary Gibson Smith of Annapolis, Maryland, Patricia Gibson Gorman of Watertown, New York, Elizabeth Tippett Gibson of Washington, D.C.; two sons, William Comrie Gibson, Jr. of Metarie, Louisiana, and Henry King Gibson of Orange Park, Florida; nine grandchildren; nieces and nephews.

Graveside services will be held on Friday, September 20, 2002 at 3 p.m. at Arlington National Cemetery. Family and friends attending are asked to report to the Cemetery Administration Building by 2:30 p.m.

Relatives and friends are also invited to attend a memorial service on Saturday, September 21, 2002 at 11 a.m. from the Faggs Manor Presbyterian Church, 506 Street Rd., Cochransville, PA. Memorial donations may be made in his memory to the Neighborhood Visiting Nurse Association, North Hills Medical Office Building, 795 E. Marshall St., Suite 204, West Chester, PA 19380-4412.

Michael Robert Patterson

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