Obituary of Captain Carl James Boyd
Captain Carl James Boyd, (USN Ret.) died peacefully on October 7, 2018, at Covenant Place.
He was born on August 7, 1925, in Stuart Hughes County, Oklahoma, to Rudolf D. Boyd and LaVerne Boone Boyd. His beloved wife, Mildred Lynette McGill Boyd, passed away on January 30, 2018. Their son, Stan, died in 1974.
A beloved father, grandfather and great-grandfather, he is survived by his daughter, Sharon Boyd Young and husband, Kenneth R. Young, Jr. of Sumter; two grandchildren, Stanley Boyd Young and his wife Laura Wood Young of Columbia, SC and Jennifer Young Pierce, M.D. and husband, Christopher Ross Pierce of Mobile, AL; and four great-grandchildren, Marion Fahy McGill Pierce, Elizabeth Ross Lynette Pierce, Stanley James Young, and Everest Ann Young.
Carl Boyd was accepted into the B-12 program after graduating from high school. The Navy sent him to the Montana School of Mines for two years. He was then sent to The University of Notre Dame to finish his B.S. in Electrical Engineering and also received his Naval Commission as Ensign from Notre Dame. He later achieved his M.S. in Electrical Engineering at the U.S. Naval Post Graduate School. Captain Boyd served on various naval ships and shore establishments in the rank of Ensign through Commander. Highlights include Main Propulsion Assistant and Electrical Officer on an aircraft carrier, Fire Control Officer of the USS Boston CAG-1 and Assistant for Surface to Air Guided Missiles in the Office of Chief of Naval Operations.
In 1964-1967, Captain Boyd commanded the U.S. Naval forces in the initial naval offensive operations off the coast of Vietnam. From 1967-1970, Captain Boyd directed the testing and the production of the MK-46 used by the Navy’s lightweight anti-submarine torpedo. Captain Boyd served from 1970-1971 as Commander of the Sixth Fleet aboard the USS Springfield home ported in Gaeta, Italy. He established a liaison with the Italian elite police, Carabinieri, and for the first time in U.S./Italian history the Carabinieri shared their facilities with the U.S. Shore Patrol.
After retirement, Captain Boyd was recalled by the Navy to complete the development of the Surface Effect Ship Project. During that time, he testified before select congressional committees about the design and construction of the Surface Effect Ships. The ships attained a speed in excess of 100 miles per hour and fired a guided missile at that speed for the first and only time setting a world record.
Upon his second retirement, he joined the Honeywell Corporation and was responsible for the concept formulation, advanced design building and the testing of the Navy’s first torpedo that was designed from the ground up. He later became responsible for the design, development, and manufacture of all system and component subsystem testers required for successful testing of the MK-50 Torpedo.
Captain Carl Boyd will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date.
Visitation will be at the home of Ken and Sharon Young on Tuesday, from 5:30 P.M. to 7:00 P.M.
Memorials may be made to First Presbyterian Church, 9 W. Calhoun Street, Sumter, SC 29150.
Online condolences may be sent to www.sumterfunerals.com
Elmore Hill McCreight Funeral Home & Crematory, 221 Broad Street, Sumter, is in charge of the arrangements (803) 775-9386.