Biography of
GMMC John S. English, USN Retired
Born in the small
town of Baynesville, Baltimore County, Maryland. John graduated from Towson
High School of Baltimore County, Maryland. Employment prior to his
enlistment was farming. John enlisted in US Navy March 1948. Upon completion
of Basic Training at Great Lakes, Illinois, he was ordered to NATTC, Memphis
Tennessee for training. It was then he was ordered to USS Mississippi EAG128
in 1949 as a seaman. After running Liberty Launches in the dead of winter
John became a Gun Striker and rose to the rank of GM1 in four years.
Mississippi was decommissioned in 1956.
John was then
transferred to USS Sigourney DD643 from January 1956 to May 1956 and rode
out some terrific hurricanes during that time. He was in the first Lebanon
invasion. John was then transferred to USS Nantahala AO60 from May 1956 -
May 1959. He became Shellback during that time.
In June 1959 he
was Instructor of Special Weapons and the Mk 13 Guided Missile System at
Great Lakes, Illinois. During this time he was promoted to GMMC until May
1963. He then served aboard USS Joseph P Strauss DDG16 from July 1963 until
he was ordered to be part of the commissioning crew of USS Waddell DDG24 in
January 1964.
He is a proud
Plank Owner and was designated as the Chief Master at Arms on Waddell. He
qualified a majority of the crew in shooting the .45 caliber Pistol until he
used up a one year supply of ammunition.
In January 1968
GMMC English retired from the Navy and returned to his home in Parkville,
Baltimore County, Maryland with his wife Hazel and children, John, Jr.,
Charles and Janet. He was employed by RCA as a Television Technician for
eight years after which he was employed by Baltimore County Schools as a
Technology Education Field Representative until his final retirement in
1992. He is involved in Free Masonry, Antique cars and Amateur Radio.
