U.S. Navy veterans who were crew members aboard the submarine U.S.S. John Marshall will reunite at 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 11, when they gather at Marshall University to honor their ship’s bell, which is on display in the John Marshall Dining Room on MU’s Huntington campus.
The bell was presented to Marshall on Oct. 8, 1994, by the U.S. Navy and Virginia Military Institute. It is one of two remaining pieces of the nuclear-powered, fleet ballistic missile submarine.
Eight former shipmates, many of whom haven’t seen each other in more than four decades, are expected to gather at Marshall to pay tribute to the bell. Doug Smith of Frederick, Md., a Torpedoman’s Mate 1st Class aboard the John Marshall, said the veterans connected through Facebook.
“Even though we’ve aged, our feelings for each other and the boat haven’t changed,” Smith said. “It was the best boat I ever served on.”
The John Marshall’s keel was laid in April 1960 and the ship was commissioned on May 21, 1962. The submarine was decommissioned in July 1992.
Smith plans to present a painting of the U.S.S. John Marshall, commissioned by the United States Submarines Veterans Inc. national artist Tom Denton, to Marshall University.
WHO: Former crew members of the submarine U.S.S. John Marshall
WHAT: U.S.S. John Marshall shipmates gather to pay tribute to their famed ship’s bell
WHEN: 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 11
WHERE: John Marshall Dining Room on the second floor of the Memorial Student Center on MU’s Huntington campus
The media are invited to cover the event.
