Chester William "Chet" Nimitz Jr. (February 17, 1915 – January 2, 2002) was an American submarine commander in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

and the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top: ...

, and a businessman. He was awarded the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...

and three

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an ...

s for valor in battle. He was the son of U.S. Navy Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz.

Early life

Nimitz was born to

Chester William Nimitz Sr. Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Local ...

and Catherine Vance (née Freeman) Nimitz at the

Brooklyn Navy Yard The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex located in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York (state), New York. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a ...

Hospital in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, behi ...

, while the couple, with their daughter Catherine Vance "Kate" (born the year before), lived at 415 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, and Nimitz Sr. was working on the at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Nimitz attended the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of ...

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...

, graduating with the class of 1936. Nimitz married Joan Leona Labern at the

Mare Island Naval Shipyard The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates ...

on 18 June 1938.Potter. p. 166. She was born in

León, Nicaragua León () is the second largest city in Nicaragua, after Managua. Founded by the Spanish as Santiago de los Caballeros de León, it is the capital and largest city of León Department. , the municipality of León has an estimated population of 2 ...

in 1912 to British parents, William Oscar Stonewall and Frances Mary (née Wells) Labern. With her parents she returned to England at the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

in 1914, and was raised in England. Joan came to the United States in 1938 to study dentistry at the University of California Dental School in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, and met Chester at a cocktail party at Mare Island. She made news in 1944 when she failed her test to become a United States citizen; two days later she did become an American citizen. The couple had three daughters, Frances Mary,Potter. p. 417n. Elizabeth Joan, and Sarah Catherine.

Naval career

Commands

* Served aboard the heavy cruiser * Served aboard the submarine during the

Philippines campaign (1941–1942) The Philippines campaign ( fil, Kampanya sa Pilipinas, es, Campaña en las Filipinas del Ejercito Japonés, ja, フィリピンの戦い, Firipin no Tatakai), also known as the Battle of the Philippines ( fil, Labanan sa Pilipinas) or the Fa ...

* Commanded the U.S. Navy Submarine and inflicted 14,756 tons of shipping losses upon the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

during the period of August 22, 1944 – September 21, 1944 * Commanded the U.S. Navy Submarine * Commanded Submarine Squadron 6 based in Norfolk, Virginia * Commanded the

submarine tender A submarine tender is a type of depot ship that supplies and supports submarines. Development Submarines are small compared to most oceangoing vessels, and generally do not have the ability to carry large amounts of food, fuel, torpedoes, and ...

from August 11, 1956, to July 25, 1957

Later life

Chester Nimitz Jr. retired from the navy as rear admiral in 1957. He joined

Texas Instruments Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) is an American technology company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, that designs and manufactures semiconductors and various integrated circuits, which it sells to electronics designers and manufacturers globa ...

, and spent four years there. He later joined Perkin-Elmer Corporation, a manufacturer of scientific instruments based in

Norwalk, Connecticut , image_map = Fairfield County Connecticut incorporated and unincorporated areas Norwalk highlighted.svg , mapsize = 230px , map_caption = Location in Fairfield County and Connecticut , coordinates ...

. He became president, chief executive officer (CEO) and a director in 1965, and was elected chairman of the board in 1969, serving until retirement in 1980. Nimitz was an honorary trustee and honorary member of the corporation of the

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI, acronym pronounced ) is a private, nonprofit research and higher education facility dedicated to the study of marine science and engineering. Established in 1930 in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, i ...

Death

The health of Nimitz and his wife, Joan, deteriorated in their later years. Joan was blind, and Nimitz had lost due to a prolonged stomach disorder. He was also suffering from

congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, ...

. On January 2, 2002, Chester Nimitz Jr. committed voluntary

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...

with his wife Joan by ingesting a quantity of

sleeping pills Hypnotic (from Greek ''Hypnos'', sleep), or soporific drugs, commonly known as sleeping pills, are a class of (and umbrella term for) psychoactive drugs whose primary function is to induce sleep (or surgical anesthesiaWhen used in anesthesia ...

in their home at a retirement residence in

Needham, Massachusetts Needham ( ) is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts. A suburb of Boston, its population was 32,091 at the 2020 U.S. Census. It is home of Olin College. History Early settlement Needham was first settled in 1680 with the purchase of a ...

. He left a note stating:

Awards and decorations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nimitz, Chester W. Jr. 1915 births 2002 suicides United States Navy personnel of the Korean War United States Navy personnel of World War II American people of German descent Military personnel from New York City People from Clinton Hill, Brooklyn People from Needham, Massachusetts Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) Recipients of the Silver Star Drug-related suicides in Massachusetts United States Navy rear admirals United States Naval Academy alumni Joint suicides Military personnel from Massachusetts