EDMUND B. TAYLOR, JR., CAPT, USN
Edmund Taylor, Jr. '53
Lucky Bag
From the 1953 Lucky Bag:
EDMUND BATTELLE TAYLOR, JR.
Alexandria, Virginia
Ted's claim to fame was that he missed all those wonderful plebe summer days filled with rowing and sailing . . . and the first showing of "The Magic of Steam". He did manage to make it the other two times. Although a casual student, he learned things quickly and easily. A great lover of sports, he spent most of his time playing Batt football, basketball, and being player-manager of the third class Binky Dink softball team. On the athletic field, in his room, or at a party, he was always relaxed and at ease. This ability to just be himself coupled with a heartwarming smile made him welcome company at all times.
He was also a member of the Brigade staff for the winter set.
EDMUND BATTELLE TAYLOR, JR.
Alexandria, Virginia
Ted's claim to fame was that he missed all those wonderful plebe summer days filled with rowing and sailing . . . and the first showing of "The Magic of Steam". He did manage to make it the other two times. Although a casual student, he learned things quickly and easily. A great lover of sports, he spent most of his time playing Batt football, basketball, and being player-manager of the third class Binky Dink softball team. On the athletic field, in his room, or at a party, he was always relaxed and at ease. This ability to just be himself coupled with a heartwarming smile made him welcome company at all times.
He was also a member of the Brigade staff for the winter set.
Loss
"Ted" was lost on May 8, 1972 when the helicopter he was aboard crashed near USS Providence (CLG 6).
Other Information
From Find A Grave:
Memorial services for Navy Capt. Edmund B. (Ted) Taylor Jr., chief of staff to Rear Adm. Rembrandt C. Robinson, were held Friday at Naval Air Station North Island Chapel.
Taylor is the nephew of Richard B. Taylor of 1602 Shawnee Rd. and the son of a Lima native, retired Vice Adm. and Mrs. E. B. Taylor of Virginia Beach, Va.
Capt. Taylor was aboard a helicopter which developed engine trouble and crashed as it attempted to land on the cruiser Providence in the Gulf of Tonkin. Adm. Robinson, commander of a cruiser-destroyer flotilla in Tonkin Gulf, was killed in the helicopter crash, and Taylor was at first listed as missing.
Taylor, 40, was commissioned as an ensign June, 1953, and was named chief of staff for Flotilla 11 on Jan. 28, 1972.
A resident of Coronado, Calif., he is survived by his wife, Joan, and four children.
(published in The Lima News, Monday, May 15, 1972)
From the July-August 1972 issue of Shipmate:
Capt. Edmund B. Taylor, Jr., USN, was killed in a helicopter crash in the Gulf of Tonkin on 8 May. The helicopter was attempting a night landing aboard the USS Providence.
Born in Baltimore, Md., he was a 1953 graduate of the Naval Academy. For two years after graduation he served in the USS Macon. Duty in the USS Beale as gunnery officer and later operations officer preceded his assignment as Aide and Flag Secretary to COMCRUDIV 2.
In December 1958 Capt. Taylor was ordered to the Naval Ordnance Missile Test Facility at White Sands, N. M. Two years later he joined the staff of ComOne as weapons officer. He transferred as weapons officer of the USS Luce at her commissioning in May 1961. In August 1962 he became XO, USS Sampson.
Capt. Taylor had duty in OpNav as Assistant to Head, Special Weapons Branch, Strategic Plans Division, beginning in November 1963. He next had instruction at the Naval War College. In March 1967 he assumed command of the USS Benjamin Stoddert. He had been Chief of Staff to COMCRUDESFLOT 11 since June 1969.
Surviving are his widow, Joan, 908 "J" Ave., Coronado, C A 92118; two sons, Stephen David and Edmund B. III; two daughters, Cynthia Reed and Leslie Valiant; and his parents, VAdm. Edmund B. Taylor, Sr., USN (Ret.) '25, and Mrs. Taylor. He is also survived by his widow's parents, BGen. Alfred R. Pefley, USMC (Ret.) '25, and Mrs. Pefley.
From Coronado News:
Ted was born in Baltimore, Maryland on Sept. 12, 1931, to Vice Admiral E. B. (Whitey) Taylor and Elizabeth Fay Taylor (neé Valiant). Taylor followed his father into the United States Navy where he served with valor and ultimately gave his life in the service of his country.
Taylor completed high school and then attended the University of Hawaii and the United States Naval Academy, where he graduated with the class of 1953. Classmates remember Taylor as a casual student who learned things quickly and easily. He was a great lover of sports, who spent time playing battalion football, basketball, and being player-manager of the third-class Binky Dink softball team. On the athletic field, in his room, or at a party, he was always relaxed and at ease. This ability to just be himself coupled with a heartwarming smile made him welcome company at all times.
Taylor’s naval record follows his illustrious career from 1953 to his death on May 8, 1972.
His career began aboard USS Macon (CA 132) as CIC division officer and 5”/38 battery officer. As a lieutenant (junior grade) he was the gunnery officer and later the operations officer on the destroyer USS Beale (DDE 471). After completing his tour on the Beale in 1956, Taylor next served as aide and flag secretary to commander Cruiser Division Two. In late 1958, he reported to the U.S. Naval Ordnance Missile Test Facility, White Sands, New Mexico and assumed the duties of fire control officer for the Talos Missile Project.
The year 1961 found Taylor serving as the weapons officer in the commissioning crew of the frigate USS Luce (DLG 7), homeported in Mayport, Florida. Ordered back to Norfolk he assumed the duties of executive officer of the USS Sampson (DDG 10). Having achieved the rank of Lieutenant Commander, in mid-1965, he began a two-year tour in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations and became the assistant head of the Special Weapons Branch, Strategic Plans Division.
For his work in nuclear weapons development Taylor was awarded the Secretary of the Navy Achievement Medal. He was promoted to the rank of commander in April 1966 and in July 1966 departed Washington DC to attend the Resident Naval Warfare Course at the Naval War College.
On July 21, 1967, Taylor assumed command of the guided missile destroyer USS Benjamin Stoddart (DDG 22) in the Gulf of Tonkin while the ship was employed in Operation Sea Dragon.
Taylor was relieved in October 1969 and reported to commander Cruiser-Destroyer Group Eleven as chief of staff to Rear Admiral Rembrandt C. Robinson.
Taylor was participating in the coordination of the destroyer attack on the Do Son Peninsula (scheduled for May 8-10, 1972) when on May 8, 1972, while returning to the flagship USS Providence (CLG 6), at approximately 2245, the helicopter in which he was a passenger, attempted a night landing on the fantail of the Providence. The helicopter suffered an engine failure, causing its right wheel to snag in the off-deck safety net. The helicopter then toppled overboard and into the Gulf of Tonkin.
Crewmen escaped after it settled into the sea, but Rear Admiral Robinson and two of his staff officers, Taylor and Commander John M. Leaver, were killed in the incident. Taylor and Leaver were unaccounted for and presumed trapped in the wreckage when it sank. An extensive search resulted in the recovery of the body of Robinson. Five other persons aboard the aircraft were picked up safely by rescue units. A briefcase containing operational materials was the only personal item recovered.
Taylor died at age 41. He and his family were residents of Coronado at the time of the crash. He was survived by his wife, Joan Taylor (neé Pefley) and their four children, Stephen D., Edward B., (Ted) III, Cynthia R., and Leslie V. Taylor.
In addition to the admiral, Commander John M. Leaver, Jr. was also lost in the crash.
Edmund has a memory marker in Arlington National Cemetery.
Photographs
Remembrances
From Wall of Faces:
My dad was a great Naval Officer. He loved what he was doing and very proud of it. I was 15 when our family learned of him missing. To this day, 29 years later, I think of him every day and miss him immensely. I wish he was here to see all the beautiful grandchildren that he has now. I love you dad, Ted EDMUND TAYLOR, III, TEDRO2@JUNO.COM, 11/8/01
My Captain when I served aboard USS Benjamin Stoddert, DDG-22. A strong leader and a mans man. M.K. HOFFMAN, 4/7/01
Bronze Star
Unable to find a citation, but Ted is pictured wearing the Bronze Star. Suspect it is related to his actions while commanding officer of USS Benjamin Stoddert (DDG 22) in 1967.
Memorials
Ted is among those names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. As his loss was not due directly to hostile action, though, he does not appear in the Vietnam War section of the Killed In Action panel in Memorial Hall.
Missing Status
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency lists Ted as "unaccounted for."
Family
Ted's father graduated with the Class of 1925 and retired as Vice Admiral. He was awarded the Navy Cross for action in WWII.
The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.