John V. Smith ’51

John was born May 12, 1930, to Capt. Robert H. Smith and Frances B. Smith.

John graduated from the Severn School and spent a year at Princeton, where he was a member of Whig Clio, Theatre Intime, and the fencing squad. He entered the Naval Academy in 1948 and graduated in 1952.

He married Ellen Trevor Nov. 6, 1954, in Key West. John attended the Naval Submarine School, earned a master’s degree in chemistry from the Naval Postgraduate School, and attended the Guided Missile School and the Armed Forces Staff College. His first assignments were on surface ships, after which he went into submarines.

His later assignments included staff command in Norfolk, Va., from 1967 to 1969; staff command in Charleston, S.C, from 1969 to 1971; Naval Ordnance Systems Command from 1971 to 1975; commanding officer at Keyport Naval Station from 1975 to 1977; commanding officer at Charleston Naval Base from 1977 to 1979; and the Air War College faculty at Maxwell Air Force Base from 1979 to 1982. John retired with the rank of captain.

He died June 17, 2012, of natural causes in Bremerton, Wash. He is survived by Ellen; sons E. Trevor Smith and C. Andrew Smith; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. His son John Jr. predeceased him.