WWII Navy Vet, James J. Doherty, Jr., of Warwick, Passes at 94
Frank P Trainor & Sons Funeral Home
WWII Navy Vet, James J. Doherty, Jr., of Warwick, Passes at 94
Born in Providence, a son of the late James J. and Margaret (Brennan) Doherty, he had been a Warwick resident for forty-two years before moving to East Greenwich five years ago.
Mr. Doherty was a service technician for the Providence Gas Company for over forty years before his retirement in 1986. He was a member of the Warwick ELKS.
Mr. Doherty proudly served in the United States Navy during WWII. He served aboard the Destroyer escort Pillsbury, a member of the convoy that successfully captured the German U-Boat U 505 of the coast of Western Africa on June 4, 1944. Depth Charges had damaged the outer hull of the submarine and her captain, believing that his boat was doomed, surfaced and ordered the crew to abandon ship, which they did while the engines were running. Pillsbury lowered a boarding party and set about collecting two Enigma coding machines, codebooks, charts, and papers, tearing out delayed-action demolition charges, closing valves, and plugging leaks. The U-boat's captain, five officers, and fifty-three of her crew were rescued, taken prisoner, then held incommunicado to keep the boat's capture a secret. U-505 was towed 2,500 miles to Bermuda and revealed some of the German Navy's most guarded secrets. The U-505 is now permanently displayed at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry.
He leaves a daughter, Maureen A. Casey of Warwick, and a son, Michael J. Doherty of New Haven, CT. He was the father of the late Carolyn Doherty and brother of the late Thomas Doherty and Marguerite Healy.
Relatives and friends are invited to a Mass of Christian Burial in Saint Gregory the Great Church, Cowesett Road, Warwick on Thursday at 10 AM. Facial coverings and social distancing required.
In lieu of flowers donations in his memory to the charity of your choice will be appreciated.
Burial with military honors will be in Saint Ann Cemetery, Cranston.
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