Capt. C. Robert Clark Jr., 90
EGREMONT, Mass. â€' Retired Navy Capt. Charles Robert "Bob" Clark Jr., 90, of North Egremont died Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2008, at Sharon (Conn.) Hospital, after a long struggle with Lou Gehrig's disease.
Born on May 28, 1918, son of Mr. and Mrs. Charles R. Clark Sr., he was raised in Plattsburg, N.Y., and attended the Virginia Military Institute in 1934 before being appointed to the U.S. Naval Academy, graduating in 1939. He had split his time between his home in southern Spain, which he built in 1972, and North Egremont after retiring. He moved to North Egremont full time in 2004 and had resided at Noble Horizons in Salisbury, Conn., since June.
A veteran of World War II, Capt. Clark served in the Navy for nearly three decades at sea, as an instructor and as a naval attache.
His first assignments were on the cruiser USS San Francisco, the destroyer USS Fairfax and the battleship USS Texas. In December 1941, he was assigned to the Submarine School in New London, Conn., and served a year each on the USS 0-2 and USS Dace and was ordered to the commissioning detail of the USS Sennet as executive officer. He made three combat patrols on the submarine before being named commanding officer for a final patrol.
He took the Sennet through minefields in the Sea of Japan to sink four Japanese ships. He was awarded the Navy Cross for this action.
After the war, he set up the Submarine Sonar School in Key West, Fla., and he was CO of the submarine USS Quillback, which was assigned to the Navy Underwater Sound Laboratory in New London. He then spent a year in the Office of Naval Research in Washington, D.C., before going back to sea as CO of the destroyer USS Hawkins. He returned to the Destroyer Force Atlantic Staff in Newport, R.I., for two years then was assigned to Havana, Cuba, as naval attache from 1957 to 1960.
Capt. Clark was in Cuba throughout the revolution, including almost two years under Fidel Castro's rule. Just before the United States broke relations with Cuba, he was assigned as CO of the destroyer tender USS Tidewater in Norfolk, Va. After one year, he was ordered to the staff of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. While in the Intelligence Section, he predicted the location where the Soviet missiles would be found in Cuba and received the Joint Service Commendation Medal for this contribution. His last active duty was 3 1/2 years as naval attache in Madrid.
After retiring, he worked for Merrill Lynch as a financial consultant for 16 years, retiring in 1983.
He was active in the Navy League of the United States, serving as national treasurer for two years and assistant treasurer for eight years. While on active duty, he had founded the first Overseas Council of the Navy League in Havana. He and his wife, the former Edith "Micky" Bartholf, took three-month, round-the-world cruises each winter from 2004 to 2007.
Besides his wife, he leaves a son, Robert Louis Clark of McLean, Va., and two daughters, Anne Copeland Clark of Bedford, N.H., and Edith Campbell "Dibby" Clark of Falls Church, Va.
FUNERAL NOTICE â€' Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Saturday, Dec. 20, at 11 a.m. at St. Joseph's Church in Stockbridge. Capt. Clark will be buried in Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors. The family will receive friends on Friday, Dec. 19, from 4 until 7 at Finnerty and Stevens Funeral Home in Great Barrington.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the U.S. Naval Academy Foundation through the funeral home, 426 Main St., Great Barrington, MA 01230. Remembrances, memories and reflections may be sent to the family through www.finnertyandstevens.com.