William M. Carpenter papers

Captain William Milner Carpenter (1916-2006), USN was born 13 November 1916 in Mooresville, Indiana to Denzel B. Carpenter and Mary E. (Milner) Carpenter. He married Mary Alice Comer and they had four children: Richard, Katherine, Suzanne, and John.

Carpenter attended the former Indiana Central College until he was accepted into the United States Naval Academy in 1936. Upon his graduation in 1940, he was assigned to the USS Oklahoma (BB-37) at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, he was subsequently assigned to the USS San Juan (CL-54) and served the rest of World War II in the Pacific theater. The San Juan entered Tokyo harbor after the Japanese surrender, and Carpenter served in Japan during the occupation.

In 1946, he received a master's degree in meteorology from the Naval Postgraduate School. He later took command of the USS Wadleigh (DD-689). Carpenter then became Associate Professor of Naval Science at the University of Rochester. In 1958, he was assigned to an anti-submarine task force aboard USS Wasp (CVS-18). He served next at the Pentagon in the CNO Politico-Military Affairs Office and the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs. One of his assignments during this period was to attend the Geneva Conference on Laos as a military adviser to Ambassador Averell Harriman.

In 1964, Carpenter took command of the Japan-based USS Castor (AKS-1). After that tour, he returned to the Pentagon. He retired from the Navy in 1966 after 26 years of active service.

For the next 30 years, Carpenter worked for SRI International as Assistant Director of the Strategic Studies Center and later as a consultant. He was also president of the American-Pacific Sealanes Security Institute. He published and taught seminars on Southeast Asian politics and international relations at the Quantico officer training school as well as other colleges and universities. He died 1 July 2006 in Stafford, Virginia.

1916

Born in Mooresville, Indiana

1936-1940

Attended and graduated from U.S. Naval Academy

1940

Commissioned as an Ensign

1940-1941

USS Oklahoma (BB-37)

1942-1946

USS San Juan (CL-54)

1944

Promoted to Lieutenant Commander

1946

Postgraduate School, U.S. Naval Academy

circa 1946-1951

Naval Weather Service

1951

Promoted to Commander

1953-1955

CO, USS Wadleigh (DD-689)

circa 1955-1958

Associate Professor of Naval Science, University of Rochester

1958

USS Wasp, Staff, Carrier Division 14 (Antisubmarine task force)

1959

Promoted to Captain

circa 1959-1964

Pentagon, CNO Politico-Military Affairs Office (Asian Affairs) Office of the Assistant Sec. of Defense for International Security Affairs

1964-1965

CO, USS Castor (AKS-1)

circa 1965-1966

Pentagon

1966

Retired from U.S. Navy

2006

Died in Stafford, Virginia