Time stands still when a World War II veteran steps onto the decks of the Fighting Lady. We were blessed, today, to take Bryce Thornton of the Army’s 104th Infantry Division on a special tour of the ship. As it happens, Pat Waters (grandson of General Patton) was here for a meeting and able to speak to him as well. Mr. …
The US Coast Guard this month has requested that Patriots Point Development Authority register the USS Yorktown as a Permanently Moored Vessel. This certification will mean that the Coast Guard would not need to inspect the Yorktown, since it was removed from navigation years ago. Of course, it has been common knowledge that the Yorktown is permanently moored, but the …
On Monday, July 11th, SC Governor Henry McMaster announced his intention for “a complete remediation and removal of hazardous materials from the hull of the USS Yorktown, including hundreds of thousands of gallons of old petroleum, polluted ballast waters, and polychlorinated biphenyl compounds, or PCBs that were not removed from the ship’s 428 vessel tanks and compartments by the Navy.” …
Yorktown Day commemorates the victory of General George Washington’s Allied American and French troops over Lord Cornwallis’ troops at Yorktown on October 19, 1781. This victory essentially ended the American Revolution and paved the way for our freedom from Great Britain. Yorktown Day 2022 occurs on Wednesday, October 19 in historic Yorktown, Virginia. The agenda for the 18th and 19th …
1922 – 2022 William T. Watkinson Jr. (Bill) passed away peacefully at home, surrounded by family on Wednesday, May 25, 2022. Born on January 23, 1922 in Blawnox, PA, he was predeceased by his wife of 65 years, Gladys, and by Peter Moyer for whom he was a guardian. He is survived by three sons, Tom, Ted (Ed) and Drew, …
Our Next Reunion: October 5 – 7, 2023 Grab the family! Call your shipmates! Plan to gather again in the fall of 2023. It’s only the best time to be in Charleston, afterall. The flowers are blooming, the humidity is low, and the temps are just right for exploring our favorite aircraft carrier. Be on the look out for more …
Attendees wearing their reunion name tag/badge will get 20% off merchandise in the Patriots Point Gift Shop (landside by the parking lot) during the reunion. There will be lots of fun items to bring home to friends and family!
On Veterans’ Day, crewmember Joe Zaccaro (OE Division, 1964-1966) visited with his daughter, Laura’s, second grade students at a New Jersey elementary school to speak about his service on the ‘Fighting Lady.’ The students had lots of questions for him. “Besides the size of the ship and how many people on board and were any of them women,” Zaccoro said, …
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We Honor Him Above is a framed letter sent to the Syfrett family on the occasion of Rev, Harold’s Memorial Service. Below is a copy of the letter. You can also see his obituary in our In Memoriam section of the website. Dear Reverend Harold Syfrett’s family, Rev. Harold in the Rev. Harold Syfrett Chapel aboard the USS Yorktown …
Since the signing into law of the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act (referred further here as the “Blue Water Law”) on June 25, 2019, your Yorktown Association leadership has been busy trying to determine as best we can what this law may mean to those of you who are USS Yorktown CVS-10 Vietnam War Veterans, or descendants of deceased …
After several months of preparation and planning, the 2019 USS Yorktown Crew Reunion is over after just a few days. The Yorktown Association hosted over 300 guests for a three-day event with about 120 of those guests being Yorktown veterans. The 71st Yorktown Reunion centered around the theme of the Apollo 8 splashdown that the Fighting Lady assisted with during …