Everard H. Eaton

Everard H. Eaton was born in Hingham, Massachusetts on September 3, 1924. He served in the United States Navy in World War II from February 1942 to December 1945. He reached the rank Aviation Machinist’s Mate Second Class.

Eaton was the oldest of nine siblings, including four brothers and four sisters. His Canadian aunt and uncle both served in World War One in the British Expeditionary Forces. In World War II, all four of Eaton’s brothers had served, one of them involved in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. He had a brother named Ronald Dow Eaton, who served in the Korean War (1950-1953). Tragically, Ronald’s helicopter unit (Mission 1890) were shot down in a rescue attempt. The tragic event has been remembered as possibly the most dangerous and costly Korean War helicopter rescue mission. A book was published detailing the rescue. It is titled, Baited Trap: The Ambush of Mission 1890 by Tracy Daniel Connors. Eaton honored Ronald by wearing on his cap the wing insignia of the military unit that his brother was part of. Ronald went (MIA) Missing in Action on June 25, 1952. 

Everard enlisted in Massachusetts to serve in World War II. When asked about why he joined the Navy, Eaton responded, “I like to eat. I like to sleep in a sack. I don’t like crawling in the mud on my face or going under barbed wire, and I had an interest in aviation.” He went for training in Newport, Rhode Island, and later to Jacksonville, Florida Naval Air Station for Aviation Mate School to become an aviation mechanic. At Norfolk, Virginia, Eaton was part of CASU 21, Carrier Aircraft Service Unit. He drove a Liberty truck fuel truck and serviced the aircraft. Eaton was at the Naval Lighter Than Air Station Richmond, which was a southern Florida military installation, as well as Key West, Florida. He was transferred to Trinidad, which was then part of the British West Indies, where he assisted in 18-hour patrols over the Atlantic Ocean, looking for submarines. A B-25 went into the jungle; if not found within 24 hours, the jungle swallows up the path.

Eaton was then stationed in Kaneohe, Hawaii and was assigned to the Admiral Staff. Bullet holes from the Japanese attack ‘were still in the hangar doors’ on the Marine base. He was responsible for carrying everything of military importance, except top secret files. Following his time in Hawaii, Eaton was sent back to Boston aboard the new aircraft The Ranger and discharged from the military. He had lost a lot of boot camp friends in the Pacific War. One was lost on the Calhoun that was bombed.

Eaton chose to not reenlist.

“I told them I knew what time to get up in the morning…when to eat…when to sleep.”

He married and had seven children, most of whom earned college degrees. When Eaton first got out of the military, there were no jobs available in the field of aviation, which he preferred. Instead, he worked in a grocery store. Eaton used his GI Bill benefits to attend Teterboro School of Aeronautics.

“I had aced my propeller test.”

He joined a non-profit organization called the American Legion, which is aimed at promoting patriotism through its veterans.

Eaton’s veteran oral history interview was conducted at American Legion Jersey Boys State 2011 on the campus of Rider University. Everard H. Eaton lived to the age of 99, until January 2, 2024, when he passed away with his family at his side.