EDWARD D. ROBERTSON, LCDR, USN

Edward Robertson '35

Date of birth: January 7, 1913

Date of death: December 2, 1943

Age: 30

Lucky Bag

From the 1935 Lucky Bag:

EDWARD DUNBAR ROBERTSON

Chester, Virginia

"Eddie"

EDDIE is a member of the F.F.V. and proud of it (you would be too if you were one). His favorite exercise is sleep and it makes him strong and robust. He drags only his O. A. O. and bothers about no other woman. He spends most of his time writing letters, but the Academics never worry him. Eddie is well liked by all and he is a real friend. It isn't easy to know him well, but once you do you'll find that you don't know of many that beat him. His disposition is one of the best and he likes a job at all times. He is a fine man and he will make an excellent officer.

Company Soccer 2. Trident Business Staff 2. M.P.O.

EDWARD DUNBAR ROBERTSON

Chester, Virginia

"Eddie"

EDDIE is a member of the F.F.V. and proud of it (you would be too if you were one). His favorite exercise is sleep and it makes him strong and robust. He drags only his O. A. O. and bothers about no other woman. He spends most of his time writing letters, but the Academics never worry him. Eddie is well liked by all and he is a real friend. It isn't easy to know him well, but once you do you'll find that you don't know of many that beat him. His disposition is one of the best and he likes a job at all times. He is a fine man and he will make an excellent officer.

Company Soccer 2. Trident Business Staff 2. M.P.O.

Loss

Edward was lost when USS Capelin (SS 289) was lost in early December 1943, possibly to a mine or surface attack. He was the boat's executive officer.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

“Sned” graduated in 1930 from Chester High School. “Be strong by choosing wisely what to do; Be Strong by doing well what you have chosen.” Poe Literary Society 1, 2, 3, Greene Literary Society 4, Secretary 4; Athletic Association 1, 2, 3, 4; Class Play 3, 4; Annual Representative 3; Annual Staff 4. Telegrams Received in 1945 Over Station C. H. S.: The “Virginia” will be launched from Otey Ship Yard today. –Capt. Ed. Robertson.
Edward also attended St. John’s College. His wife, the former Margaret Clarke, was in Edward’s class at Chester High School. They had two children Edward, Jr., and Meredith.
His parents were George and Margarette Robertson. His father was an inspector for a street car company. His brother George was a warrant officer with the Army Air Forces.

His wife was listed as next of kin.

Photographs

From his high school yearbook
Edward and Margaret

Navy Directories & Officer Registers

The "Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps" was published annually from 1815 through at least the 1970s; it provided rank, command or station, and occasionally billet until the beginning of World War II when command/station was no longer included. Scanned copies were reviewed and data entered from the mid-1840s through 1922, when more-frequent Navy Directories were available.

The Navy Directory was a publication that provided information on the command, billet, and rank of every active and retired naval officer. Single editions have been found online from January 1915 and March 1918, and then from three to six editions per year from 1923 through 1940; the final edition is from April 1941.

The entries in both series of documents are sometimes cryptic and confusing. They are often inconsistent, even within an edition, with the name of commands; this is especially true for aviation squadrons in the 1920s and early 1930s.

Alumni listed at the same command may or may not have had significant interactions; they could have shared a stateroom or workspace, stood many hours of watch together… or, especially at the larger commands, they might not have known each other at all. The information provides the opportunity to draw connections that are otherwise invisible, though, and gives a fuller view of the professional experiences of these alumni in Memorial Hall.