WWI naval veteran Stone dies (Last surviving veteran of both World Wars)

ITN ^ | January 12, 2009

[presidio9]

One of the four remaining British veterans of the First World War has died, his family has said. Skip related content

William "Bill" Stone, 108, took part in the 90th Anniversary of the Great War Armistice in London in November 2008.

Mr Stone's daughter, Anne Davidson, said: "William had a remarkable, long, healthy and happy life.

"He thoroughly enjoyed going to events, meeting people and, whenever possible, regaling those around him with his fund of Naval stories and jokes.

"He loved singing, knew most hymns by heart and had an amazing repertoire of old-time songs - often with alternative words.

"He was a very determined character both in his Naval career and in civilian life and, no doubt, this contributed greatly to his longevity. He was a man of great faith and his recipe for long life."

Veterans Minister Kevan Jones said: "I am saddened to learn of the death of William Stone who was the UK's last surviving veteran from both the First and Second World Wars.

"We owe a great deal to the men and women who served this country with such distinction during those wars to protect our liberty.

"William was a man who represented the courage, spirit and determination of his generation. He was an inspiration to us all."

Mr Stone joined the Royal Navy on his 18th birthday and followed his three older brothers by serving as a Stoker.

During the Second World War as Chief Stoker of HMS Salamander, Mr Stone took part in the evacuation of Dunkirk, making five trips to pick up troops from the beaches.

Mr Stone also served in the Sicily landings of 1943 with

[presidio9]

[Reagan Man]

All things must pass ...

RIP Mr.Stone.

[FreeReign]

Do you have a date of that picture?

[razorback-bert]

an amazing repertoire of old-time songs - often with alternative words

Just tease me.

[Red6]

Sad,

[ConservativeMind]

What a guy!

I hope he was able to pass on great values to his descendants.

[gimme1ibertee]

Bless his heart!
God brought another hero home to rest.
Another piece of history is gone.

[Deo volente]

There are only seven veterans of World War I still alive:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surviving_veterans_of_World_War_I

[gridlock]

Mr Stone joined the Royal Navy on his 18th birthday and followed his three older brothers by serving as a Stoker.

During the Second World War as Chief Stoker of HMS Salamander, Mr Stone took part in the evacuation of Dunkirk, making five trips to pick up troops from the beaches.

Remarkable that in twenty years he only rose from Stoker to Chief Stoker.

[Merta]

They are dropping like flies ::sigh:: I wish that I could meet one of them. Not only may they be some of the oldest people alive but they are part of the old world. Oh well, reminds me of wanting to meet the WWI veteran who Jeb Bush gave an award to and than finding out that he died only a few days or a week later.

I found it interesting that one of them is in West Virginia near the State that I was born(Maryland). Still I’ll probably never meet one of them, unfortunately. And I will probably see a day where WWII veterans face the same endangerment. Oh well.

[fieldmarshaldj]

RIP.

[judicial meanz]

I was lucky enough to have a WWI veteran for a grandfather. he told me about going into the Marine Corps, how the Spanish Flu struck them while they were there ( he survived it) and a million other stories, all of which captivated me as a kid.

I hope you get to talk to one...they were a truly remarkable generation.

[Merta]

I am very young, so my grandfather was a WWII veteran, however I didn’t get to know his wartime experiences too well. Nor my D-Day Granduncle where that segment was revealed around the time of his death. As it seems I don’t know very many veterans in general, and the ones I knew were from WWII or Korea.

Thanks but I don’t think I will ever see one as one lives quite far away from Maryland, where I sometimes go, and unless I can tell my aunt about it I don’t think there would be very much encouragement as it is like meeting a stranger. My aunt lives in West Virginia and is a PR person but I doubt it. I wish though.

It is a shame as the history of that period is fascinating what with the Kaiser and all of the old world Empires, like Russia and the Ottoman Empire(it is like a different world at that time period). Any WWI veteran alive would find it interesting about the Panama Canal, the selling of it, and the buying by China. And the expansion of government from Woodrow Wilson to FDR to LBJ. The German reaction to the Treaty of Versailles and Russia’s reaction to WWI would also be compelling to discuss about.

[naturalman1975]

Not in Royal Navy terms. At that time ‘Chief Stoker’ - or rather Chief Petty Officer for any rate - was the highest NCO rank in existence. It’s not like the USN with multiple grades of Chief - there was only one.

[SunkenCiv]

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