Francis Harold Pottinger enlisted in the Navy in May 1943, entering the war at the age of 17. Shortly after boot camp he joined the Calvert in Norfolk VA and he was assigned to the 2nd Deck Division. During his first year Harold spent his time as a general deck worker, including in his words, “scraping lots of paint.” He eventually struck for Yeoman and ultimately joined the ship’s office.

Harold passed away on December 9th, 2014 at the age of 89. His obituary is available here.

Here are pictures that Harold provided from his time ashore in Hawaii in 1945:

Harold can also be seen in the front row of the 2nd Division crew photograph.

Harold was released from the Calvert in May, 1946 and was discharged from the Navy, returning to Louisville, KY. A frequent attendee of the Calvert reunions throughout the years, Harold enjoyed sharing his experiences during his time aboard the Calvert and of his fond memories of his shipmates. His niece, Judy, is currently capturing his story and his family’s history in a series of books.

Reference to Harold’s oral history recording is available here.

Patrick Troiano, originally from Carey, Ohio, enlisted in the Navy in August 1942. He attended boot camp near Great Lakes Naval Base, Illinois, and reporting for duty aboard the Calvert on October 1st, 1942. He was aboard for the Calvert’s commissioning, making him a plank owner. During his time aboard he served as a Fireman (F) and Motor Machinist (MOMM). According to John Regan, a fellow shipmate, Patrick served in the A division and had the nickname “Gizmo.” Patrick departed the Calvert in early 1946 and joined the USS Oneota (AN-85) in San Diego.

As part of the Navy Reserve Pacific Fleet in San Diego he continued to serve aboard the USS Oneota (AN-85) and was honorably discharged in July 1948.

After the war Patrick returned to Galion, OH where he began building his own house, and maintained a farm. He married Margaret Martin, his high school sweetheart, and they had two children, Michael and John. He farmed, golfed, rode motorcycles, fished, and traveled.

According to his family he didn’t speak much about his time served during the war, only to say that he wasn’t going to waste his life away knowing that others died and he didn’t. He said that if he had died in action, he would want those who survived to live life to the fullest.

Sadly, Patrick passed away in 2010. His obituary is available here: http://www.masfh.com/obituary/Patrick-J-Troiano/Galion-OH/804586

Patrick’s granddaughter, Natalie, provided the above information above as well as all of the photographs below.

Although it is uncertain if any of the pictures below were taken aboard the Calvert, they are posted here in the spirit of his service aboard the Calvert and his service to our country when we needed him the most.

According to the Navy History Department these are two of very few known pictures of the USS Oneota (AN-85). These are from Patrick’s personal photograph collection, taken while he served aboard her after the war.

Here are pictures of Patrick, his shipmates and his friends from his time in the Navy. Although it is uncertain if any of these were taken during Patrick’s time aboard the Calvert, please let me know if you recognize any of the other men in these photographs.