IRVINGTON—Lawrence Penfield “Larry” Treadwell Jr. died on March 29, 2023, at Rappahannock Westminster-Canterbury in Irvington. He was 94 years old.
A graveside service was held April 4 at Christ Episcopal Church Cemetery, Kingston Parish, Mathews.
Larry was born on April 10, 1928, in Newport, Rhode Island, the son of Captain L.P. Treadwell, USN (Ret.), and Marian Ruth Merz. He lived in Washington, D.C., California, and grew up in Portsmouth and Norfolk. He graduated from Severn School, Severna Park, Maryland, in 1945.
Following graduation, he enlisted in the Navy. In 1947, he entered the Naval Academy with a Fleet Appointment. At the Academy, Larry was a member of the varsity football (N*) and lacrosse teams. Larry graduated with the Naval Academy Class of 1951.
Larry served on active duty for the next 30 years as a surface warfare officer. Following initial sea duty in the famous battleship, USS Missouri (BB-63), with deployment to Korea in 1952 during the Korean War, Larry served in destroyers, a destroyer flotilla staff, cruisers, and the Service Force. His seagoing career was highlighted by sea service in the Korean War, the 1958 Beirut Operation in command of USS Mattabasset (A0G-52), 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis as Executive Officer USS Charles H. Roan (DD-853 ), and service in Vietnam 1967-1968 as Commanding Officer USS Tutuila (ARG-4).
Larry attended the Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California, earning a bachelor’s in operations research. In 1974, he received a master’s in systems management from George Washington University, Washington, D.C.
Larry served in the Bureau of Naval Personnel, the office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the NATO Military Headquarters SHAPE, in Belgium. Promoted to captain in 1972, he served in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, and Staff, Commander-in-Chief, Atlantic.
Following retirement in 1980, he and Ellen moved from Virginia Beach to Mathews County. Larry served on the vestry of Kingston Parish, joined the Mathews County Historical Society and Gloucester-Mathews Job Referral Service. He was a founding member of the Mathews Retired Officers’ Association.
Ellen died from cancer in 1994. Larry moved to Melbourne, Florida. He married Elsie Ward Ernst of Mathews. In 2003, Elsie and Larry moved from Mathews to Rappahannock Westminster-Canterbury. Elsie passed away in 2014.
Larry is survived by three children, Elizabeth R. Treadwell, of Eden, N.C., Lawrence P. Treadwell III, of Sheridan, Or., and Christopher D. Treadwell of Belleville, Ill.