Bio researched and written by P. A. White, JD
2015-2022 for @NewWorldAncestry – All Rights Reserved
Subject's relation to author: Husband of 4th cousin 1x removed (Mary Hazel Hoge (1889–1956)
See also https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/MPKS-RMW
Special thanks to FG Contributor James Windsor (47024650) for his discovery of a very informative Los Angeles Times obituary (appended below)
◙ ◙ ◙ ◙
Francis Thornton Chew was born on January 28, 1887, in St. Louis, Missouri, to Mary Willie Chew, age 36, and Francis Thornton Chew Sr., age 45. (The unusual family name may be English, from a place in Somerset named Chew Magna, or from Chew in West Yorkshire.)
LINEAGE
DAR lineage records indicate that Francis had at least three ancestors who served faithfully in the American Revolution. Francis Thornton (1734-1795) was a member of the Spotsylvania County (Virginia) Committee of Safety. Samuel Wade Magruder of Maryland (1722-1792) commanded a company of militia in 1776 and 1777. And Benjamin Winslow (1741-1803), also of Spotsylvania County, served as an ensign of the 5th Virginia Regiment in 1776.
Francis's father, Francis Thornton Chew Sr., was a Tennessean by birth and a resident of the hotly contested Missouri when the Civil War erupted. He chose to side with the South and took a commission in the Confederate States Navy from May 8, 1861. Francis was taken prisoner out of the destroyed ironclad CSS Louisiana in April 1862 on the Mississippi River, but was evidently paroled. Chew went on the serve in the CSS Palmetto, CSS Shenandoah, and CSS Resolute.
He mustered out as a 1st Lieutenant at the end of the war.
YOUTH
The Chews had married in 1872 in Lafayette County, Missouri, but settled in St. Louis where Francis Sr. did clerical work. However, Francis Sr. died on January 11, 1894, the cause being "congestion of the brain." He was only 52, and young Francis was just 6 years old when he lost his father.
After the death of her husband, Mary Chew took her children to live in her hometown of Lexington, Missouri. There Francis Jr. obtained a congressional appointment from Rep. Courtney Walker Hamlin (D-7th) to the U.S. Naval Academy at in Annapolis, entering with the Class of 1908 in June 1904.
Coincidentally, arriving in 1904 in Lexington was the family of William McGuffy Hoge, who had bought a half-interest in the Wentworth Military School, then moved his wife and three children to Lexington to take over the school's day to day operations as associate to the superintendent.
We do not know if their paths crossed in Lexington—perhaps Francis Chew was a student at Wentworth?—but Superintendent Hoge's daughter, Mary Hazel, would become Francis's wife in 1911.
Francis's Annapolis demerit-filled student record, which runs to several pages, suggests the young man was not a by-the-book model midshipman. But he graduated in June 1908 nevertheless, and was commissioned an ensign in the U.S. Navy on July 1, 1908 when he was 21 years old.
ADULTHOOD; MILITARY
Francis married Mary Hazel Hoge in Lafayette, Missouri, on April 26, 1911, when he was 24 years old. In doing so, Francis was marrying into a family of devoted Army men. All three of Mary's brothers attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. But her brother, William "Bill" Hoge, would have a truly extraordinary Army career, attaining the rank of 4-star general, and serving valiantly in both World Wars and in Korea.
Among other things, Bill Hoge directed the building of the Alaska-Canada (ALCAN) Highway in 1942, commanded an amphibious brigade group during the landing of American troops on OMAHA Beach on D-Day 1944, led an armored combat command in the valiant defense of Saint Vith during the Battle of the Bulge in December 1945, and captured the famous Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen in March 1945 to secure the first bridgehead over the Rhine into Germany. And if that weren't enough, Bill Hoge played a key part in driving the Communist Chinese from Seoul and back into the north during the Korean War. One has to wonder if Francis felt like he was living under his amazing brother-in-law's shadow all during his own military career.
Francis and Mary had a son, Francis Thornton "Frank" III (or Jr.), born on December 22, 1913 in Long Beach, California.
Francis's obituary reported that he served in the Fisrt World War, but we do not know the details of that service.
In 1924 Mary obtained a passport for herself and their son to accompany Francis to to Japan, China, and the British Possessions as part of his naval duties as a Lieutenant Commander.
Back stateside the couple lived in San Diego, Bremerton, and Berkeley while Francis was on active duty.
RETIREMENT; WORLD WAR II
On July 1, 1936, Francis retired from the Navy with a permanent rank of Commander (O-5) when he was 49 years old. The Chews moved to Laguna Beach, California, which in those bygone days was far more rural than ritzy.
Both Francis and Mary were registered as Republican voters in 1942, notwithstanding strong support nationwide for FDR following the Great Depression and during the war with the Axis powers.
The couple's only son, Frank, enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces in November 1940. He served throughout the war, attained the rank of Staff Sergeant, and was released from active duty in August 1945.
Francis was recalled to active duty during World War II, but still did not rise above the rank of Commander. His wartime duties are not known.
The Chews lived for a time in La Jolla, California, but then returned to Orange County where Francis died on December 17, 1951 when he was 64 years old.
Francis was buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego, his grave marked by one of the many thousands of VA-provided white marble headstones that make up neat rows and files there.
◙ ◙ ◙ ◙
THE LOS ANGELES TIMES, Los Angeles California, 19 December 1951, p. 6 Part II, column 2, Retired Navy Man Dies at Laguna, "Laguna Beach, Dec. 18—Comdr. Francis T. Chew, 64, U.S.N. ret., died unexpectedly of a heart attack last night in a local service station while awaiting repairs to his car. — Graduated from the U. S. Naval Academy in 1908, Comdr. Chew was a veteran of World Wars I and II. He had been a resident here for the last 14 years. He leaves his widow, Mary, and sister, Mrs. W. K. Stannard of St. Louis."
2015-2022 for @NewWorldAncestry – All Rights Reserved
Subject's relation to author: Husband of 4th cousin 1x removed (Mary Hazel Hoge (1889–1956)
See also https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/MPKS-RMW
Special thanks to FG Contributor James Windsor (47024650) for his discovery of a very informative Los Angeles Times obituary (appended below)
◙ ◙ ◙ ◙
Francis Thornton Chew was born on January 28, 1887, in St. Louis, Missouri, to Mary Willie Chew, age 36, and Francis Thornton Chew Sr., age 45. (The unusual family name may be English, from a place in Somerset named Chew Magna, or from Chew in West Yorkshire.)
LINEAGE
DAR lineage records indicate that Francis had at least three ancestors who served faithfully in the American Revolution. Francis Thornton (1734-1795) was a member of the Spotsylvania County (Virginia) Committee of Safety. Samuel Wade Magruder of Maryland (1722-1792) commanded a company of militia in 1776 and 1777. And Benjamin Winslow (1741-1803), also of Spotsylvania County, served as an ensign of the 5th Virginia Regiment in 1776.
Francis's father, Francis Thornton Chew Sr., was a Tennessean by birth and a resident of the hotly contested Missouri when the Civil War erupted. He chose to side with the South and took a commission in the Confederate States Navy from May 8, 1861. Francis was taken prisoner out of the destroyed ironclad CSS Louisiana in April 1862 on the Mississippi River, but was evidently paroled. Chew went on the serve in the CSS Palmetto, CSS Shenandoah, and CSS Resolute.
He mustered out as a 1st Lieutenant at the end of the war.
YOUTH
The Chews had married in 1872 in Lafayette County, Missouri, but settled in St. Louis where Francis Sr. did clerical work. However, Francis Sr. died on January 11, 1894, the cause being "congestion of the brain." He was only 52, and young Francis was just 6 years old when he lost his father.
After the death of her husband, Mary Chew took her children to live in her hometown of Lexington, Missouri. There Francis Jr. obtained a congressional appointment from Rep. Courtney Walker Hamlin (D-7th) to the U.S. Naval Academy at in Annapolis, entering with the Class of 1908 in June 1904.
Coincidentally, arriving in 1904 in Lexington was the family of William McGuffy Hoge, who had bought a half-interest in the Wentworth Military School, then moved his wife and three children to Lexington to take over the school's day to day operations as associate to the superintendent.
We do not know if their paths crossed in Lexington—perhaps Francis Chew was a student at Wentworth?—but Superintendent Hoge's daughter, Mary Hazel, would become Francis's wife in 1911.
Francis's Annapolis demerit-filled student record, which runs to several pages, suggests the young man was not a by-the-book model midshipman. But he graduated in June 1908 nevertheless, and was commissioned an ensign in the U.S. Navy on July 1, 1908 when he was 21 years old.
ADULTHOOD; MILITARY
Francis married Mary Hazel Hoge in Lafayette, Missouri, on April 26, 1911, when he was 24 years old. In doing so, Francis was marrying into a family of devoted Army men. All three of Mary's brothers attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. But her brother, William "Bill" Hoge, would have a truly extraordinary Army career, attaining the rank of 4-star general, and serving valiantly in both World Wars and in Korea.
Among other things, Bill Hoge directed the building of the Alaska-Canada (ALCAN) Highway in 1942, commanded an amphibious brigade group during the landing of American troops on OMAHA Beach on D-Day 1944, led an armored combat command in the valiant defense of Saint Vith during the Battle of the Bulge in December 1945, and captured the famous Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen in March 1945 to secure the first bridgehead over the Rhine into Germany. And if that weren't enough, Bill Hoge played a key part in driving the Communist Chinese from Seoul and back into the north during the Korean War. One has to wonder if Francis felt like he was living under his amazing brother-in-law's shadow all during his own military career.
Francis and Mary had a son, Francis Thornton "Frank" III (or Jr.), born on December 22, 1913 in Long Beach, California.
Francis's obituary reported that he served in the Fisrt World War, but we do not know the details of that service.
In 1924 Mary obtained a passport for herself and their son to accompany Francis to to Japan, China, and the British Possessions as part of his naval duties as a Lieutenant Commander.
Back stateside the couple lived in San Diego, Bremerton, and Berkeley while Francis was on active duty.
RETIREMENT; WORLD WAR II
On July 1, 1936, Francis retired from the Navy with a permanent rank of Commander (O-5) when he was 49 years old. The Chews moved to Laguna Beach, California, which in those bygone days was far more rural than ritzy.
Both Francis and Mary were registered as Republican voters in 1942, notwithstanding strong support nationwide for FDR following the Great Depression and during the war with the Axis powers.
The couple's only son, Frank, enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces in November 1940. He served throughout the war, attained the rank of Staff Sergeant, and was released from active duty in August 1945.
Francis was recalled to active duty during World War II, but still did not rise above the rank of Commander. His wartime duties are not known.
The Chews lived for a time in La Jolla, California, but then returned to Orange County where Francis died on December 17, 1951 when he was 64 years old.
Francis was buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego, his grave marked by one of the many thousands of VA-provided white marble headstones that make up neat rows and files there.
◙ ◙ ◙ ◙
THE LOS ANGELES TIMES, Los Angeles California, 19 December 1951, p. 6 Part II, column 2, Retired Navy Man Dies at Laguna, "Laguna Beach, Dec. 18—Comdr. Francis T. Chew, 64, U.S.N. ret., died unexpectedly of a heart attack last night in a local service station while awaiting repairs to his car. — Graduated from the U. S. Naval Academy in 1908, Comdr. Chew was a veteran of World Wars I and II. He had been a resident here for the last 14 years. He leaves his widow, Mary, and sister, Mrs. W. K. Stannard of St. Louis."
Bio researched and written by P. A. White, JD
2015-2022 for @NewWorldAncestry – All Rights Reserved
Subject's relation to author: Husband of 4th cousin 1x removed (Mary Hazel Hoge (1889–1956)
See also https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/MPKS-RMW
Special thanks to FG Contributor James Windsor (47024650) for his discovery of a very informative Los Angeles Times obituary (appended below)
◙ ◙ ◙ ◙
Francis Thornton Chew was born on January 28, 1887, in St. Louis, Missouri, to Mary Willie Chew, age 36, and Francis Thornton Chew Sr., age 45. (The unusual family name may be English, from a place in Somerset named Chew Magna, or from Chew in West Yorkshire.)
LINEAGE
DAR lineage records indicate that Francis had at least three ancestors who served faithfully in the American Revolution. Francis Thornton (1734-1795) was a member of the Spotsylvania County (Virginia) Committee of Safety. Samuel Wade Magruder of Maryland (1722-1792) commanded a company of militia in 1776 and 1777. And Benjamin Winslow (1741-1803), also of Spotsylvania County, served as an ensign of the 5th Virginia Regiment in 1776.
Francis's father, Francis Thornton Chew Sr., was a Tennessean by birth and a resident of the hotly contested Missouri when the Civil War erupted. He chose to side with the South and took a commission in the Confederate States Navy from May 8, 1861. Francis was taken prisoner out of the destroyed ironclad CSS Louisiana in April 1862 on the Mississippi River, but was evidently paroled. Chew went on the serve in the CSS Palmetto, CSS Shenandoah, and CSS Resolute.
He mustered out as a 1st Lieutenant at the end of the war.
YOUTH
The Chews had married in 1872 in Lafayette County, Missouri, but settled in St. Louis where Francis Sr. did clerical work. However, Francis Sr. died on January 11, 1894, the cause being "congestion of the brain." He was only 52, and young Francis was just 6 years old when he lost his father.
After the death of her husband, Mary Chew took her children to live in her hometown of Lexington, Missouri. There Francis Jr. obtained a congressional appointment from Rep. Courtney Walker Hamlin (D-7th) to the U.S. Naval Academy at in Annapolis, entering with the Class of 1908 in June 1904.
Coincidentally, arriving in 1904 in Lexington was the family of William McGuffy Hoge, who had bought a half-interest in the Wentworth Military School, then moved his wife and three children to Lexington to take over the school's day to day operations as associate to the superintendent.
We do not know if their paths crossed in Lexington—perhaps Francis Chew was a student at Wentworth?—but Superintendent Hoge's daughter, Mary Hazel, would become Francis's wife in 1911.
Francis's Annapolis demerit-filled student record, which runs to several pages, suggests the young man was not a by-the-book model midshipman. But he graduated in June 1908 nevertheless, and was commissioned an ensign in the U.S. Navy on July 1, 1908 when he was 21 years old.
ADULTHOOD; MILITARY
Francis married Mary Hazel Hoge in Lafayette, Missouri, on April 26, 1911, when he was 24 years old. In doing so, Francis was marrying into a family of devoted Army men. All three of Mary's brothers attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. But her brother, William "Bill" Hoge, would have a truly extraordinary Army career, attaining the rank of 4-star general, and serving valiantly in both World Wars and in Korea.
Among other things, Bill Hoge directed the building of the Alaska-Canada (ALCAN) Highway in 1942, commanded an amphibious brigade group during the landing of American troops on OMAHA Beach on D-Day 1944, led an armored combat command in the valiant defense of Saint Vith during the Battle of the Bulge in December 1945, and captured the famous Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen in March 1945 to secure the first bridgehead over the Rhine into Germany. And if that weren't enough, Bill Hoge played a key part in driving the Communist Chinese from Seoul and back into the north during the Korean War. One has to wonder if Francis felt like he was living under his amazing brother-in-law's shadow all during his own military career.
Francis and Mary had a son, Francis Thornton "Frank" III (or Jr.), born on December 22, 1913 in Long Beach, California.
Francis's obituary reported that he served in the Fisrt World War, but we do not know the details of that service.
In 1924 Mary obtained a passport for herself and their son to accompany Francis to to Japan, China, and the British Possessions as part of his naval duties as a Lieutenant Commander.
Back stateside the couple lived in San Diego, Bremerton, and Berkeley while Francis was on active duty.
RETIREMENT; WORLD WAR II
On July 1, 1936, Francis retired from the Navy with a permanent rank of Commander (O-5) when he was 49 years old. The Chews moved to Laguna Beach, California, which in those bygone days was far more rural than ritzy.
Both Francis and Mary were registered as Republican voters in 1942, notwithstanding strong support nationwide for FDR following the Great Depression and during the war with the Axis powers.
The couple's only son, Frank, enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces in November 1940. He served throughout the war, attained the rank of Staff Sergeant, and was released from active duty in August 1945.
Francis was recalled to active duty during World War II, but still did not rise above the rank of Commander. His wartime duties are not known.
The Chews lived for a time in La Jolla, California, but then returned to Orange County where Francis died on December 17, 1951 when he was 64 years old.
Francis was buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego, his grave marked by one of the many thousands of VA-provided white marble headstones that make up neat rows and files there.
◙ ◙ ◙ ◙
THE LOS ANGELES TIMES, Los Angeles California, 19 December 1951, p. 6 Part II, column 2, Retired Navy Man Dies at Laguna, "Laguna Beach, Dec. 18—Comdr. Francis T. Chew, 64, U.S.N. ret., died unexpectedly of a heart attack last night in a local service station while awaiting repairs to his car. — Graduated from the U. S. Naval Academy in 1908, Comdr. Chew was a veteran of World Wars I and II. He had been a resident here for the last 14 years. He leaves his widow, Mary, and sister, Mrs. W. K. Stannard of St. Louis."
2015-2022 for @NewWorldAncestry – All Rights Reserved
Subject's relation to author: Husband of 4th cousin 1x removed (Mary Hazel Hoge (1889–1956)
See also https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/MPKS-RMW
Special thanks to FG Contributor James Windsor (47024650) for his discovery of a very informative Los Angeles Times obituary (appended below)
◙ ◙ ◙ ◙
Francis Thornton Chew was born on January 28, 1887, in St. Louis, Missouri, to Mary Willie Chew, age 36, and Francis Thornton Chew Sr., age 45. (The unusual family name may be English, from a place in Somerset named Chew Magna, or from Chew in West Yorkshire.)
LINEAGE
DAR lineage records indicate that Francis had at least three ancestors who served faithfully in the American Revolution. Francis Thornton (1734-1795) was a member of the Spotsylvania County (Virginia) Committee of Safety. Samuel Wade Magruder of Maryland (1722-1792) commanded a company of militia in 1776 and 1777. And Benjamin Winslow (1741-1803), also of Spotsylvania County, served as an ensign of the 5th Virginia Regiment in 1776.
Francis's father, Francis Thornton Chew Sr., was a Tennessean by birth and a resident of the hotly contested Missouri when the Civil War erupted. He chose to side with the South and took a commission in the Confederate States Navy from May 8, 1861. Francis was taken prisoner out of the destroyed ironclad CSS Louisiana in April 1862 on the Mississippi River, but was evidently paroled. Chew went on the serve in the CSS Palmetto, CSS Shenandoah, and CSS Resolute.
He mustered out as a 1st Lieutenant at the end of the war.
YOUTH
The Chews had married in 1872 in Lafayette County, Missouri, but settled in St. Louis where Francis Sr. did clerical work. However, Francis Sr. died on January 11, 1894, the cause being "congestion of the brain." He was only 52, and young Francis was just 6 years old when he lost his father.
After the death of her husband, Mary Chew took her children to live in her hometown of Lexington, Missouri. There Francis Jr. obtained a congressional appointment from Rep. Courtney Walker Hamlin (D-7th) to the U.S. Naval Academy at in Annapolis, entering with the Class of 1908 in June 1904.
Coincidentally, arriving in 1904 in Lexington was the family of William McGuffy Hoge, who had bought a half-interest in the Wentworth Military School, then moved his wife and three children to Lexington to take over the school's day to day operations as associate to the superintendent.
We do not know if their paths crossed in Lexington—perhaps Francis Chew was a student at Wentworth?—but Superintendent Hoge's daughter, Mary Hazel, would become Francis's wife in 1911.
Francis's Annapolis demerit-filled student record, which runs to several pages, suggests the young man was not a by-the-book model midshipman. But he graduated in June 1908 nevertheless, and was commissioned an ensign in the U.S. Navy on July 1, 1908 when he was 21 years old.
ADULTHOOD; MILITARY
Francis married Mary Hazel Hoge in Lafayette, Missouri, on April 26, 1911, when he was 24 years old. In doing so, Francis was marrying into a family of devoted Army men. All three of Mary's brothers attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. But her brother, William "Bill" Hoge, would have a truly extraordinary Army career, attaining the rank of 4-star general, and serving valiantly in both World Wars and in Korea.
Among other things, Bill Hoge directed the building of the Alaska-Canada (ALCAN) Highway in 1942, commanded an amphibious brigade group during the landing of American troops on OMAHA Beach on D-Day 1944, led an armored combat command in the valiant defense of Saint Vith during the Battle of the Bulge in December 1945, and captured the famous Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen in March 1945 to secure the first bridgehead over the Rhine into Germany. And if that weren't enough, Bill Hoge played a key part in driving the Communist Chinese from Seoul and back into the north during the Korean War. One has to wonder if Francis felt like he was living under his amazing brother-in-law's shadow all during his own military career.
Francis and Mary had a son, Francis Thornton "Frank" III (or Jr.), born on December 22, 1913 in Long Beach, California.
Francis's obituary reported that he served in the Fisrt World War, but we do not know the details of that service.
In 1924 Mary obtained a passport for herself and their son to accompany Francis to to Japan, China, and the British Possessions as part of his naval duties as a Lieutenant Commander.
Back stateside the couple lived in San Diego, Bremerton, and Berkeley while Francis was on active duty.
RETIREMENT; WORLD WAR II
On July 1, 1936, Francis retired from the Navy with a permanent rank of Commander (O-5) when he was 49 years old. The Chews moved to Laguna Beach, California, which in those bygone days was far more rural than ritzy.
Both Francis and Mary were registered as Republican voters in 1942, notwithstanding strong support nationwide for FDR following the Great Depression and during the war with the Axis powers.
The couple's only son, Frank, enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces in November 1940. He served throughout the war, attained the rank of Staff Sergeant, and was released from active duty in August 1945.
Francis was recalled to active duty during World War II, but still did not rise above the rank of Commander. His wartime duties are not known.
The Chews lived for a time in La Jolla, California, but then returned to Orange County where Francis died on December 17, 1951 when he was 64 years old.
Francis was buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego, his grave marked by one of the many thousands of VA-provided white marble headstones that make up neat rows and files there.
◙ ◙ ◙ ◙
THE LOS ANGELES TIMES, Los Angeles California, 19 December 1951, p. 6 Part II, column 2, Retired Navy Man Dies at Laguna, "Laguna Beach, Dec. 18—Comdr. Francis T. Chew, 64, U.S.N. ret., died unexpectedly of a heart attack last night in a local service station while awaiting repairs to his car. — Graduated from the U. S. Naval Academy in 1908, Comdr. Chew was a veteran of World Wars I and II. He had been a resident here for the last 14 years. He leaves his widow, Mary, and sister, Mrs. W. K. Stannard of St. Louis."
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