by Karen Yvonne Hamilton, June 2025

Junius Otto Posey was born on June 21, 1916, in Murphy, North Carolina, to Olga Inez Hood (1895-UNKNOWN) and Benjamin ‘Ben’ Posey (1883-1959).

Olga HOOD Posey with sons, Junius and Paul
Olga HOOD Posey

SIBLINGS

  • Paul (1919-unknown)

Posey served in the military in 1935, when he was 19 years old and in 1939, when he was 23 years old.

Junius Otto Posey lived in Asheville, North Carolina, on August 10, 1947.

Junius Otto Posey
Junius Otto Posey

MARRIAGE

Junius Otto Posey married Florinda Marie GOMES in Florida on October 14, 1947, when he was 31 years old.

CHILDREN

Junius Sr, Junius Jr, and Florinda Gomes

Posey served in the Navy with the Fleet Reserve in the submarine service from 1947-1958. He was stationed out of Key West. Some of the ships he was on include the U.S.S. Chanticleer the U.S.S. Howard W. Gilmore, and the U.S.S. Bushnell where he worked as a master diver. 

USS Chanticleer (ASR-7) was the lead ship of her class of submarine rescue ships in the United States Navy. She served from 1942 to 1973 and was scrapped in 1974. Arriving at Key West, Florida, 18 February 1946, Chanticleer operated to Cuba, and along the east coast until June 1950, when she was transferred to the Pacific Fleet. (Wikipedia)

He states that “I was on a repair ship. We would go out every two months, go out for about four days. Just operate off the Key West area then back into port.”

USS Howard W. Gilmore (AS-16) was a Fulton-class submarine tender in service with the United States Navy from 1944 to 1980. She was scrapped in 2006. After a short stay in New London, Connecticut, the Howard W. Gilmore steamed to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to load torpedoes, then sailed to her new home port, Key West, where she arrived 25 January 1946. Serving Submarine Squadron 4, the ship was to stay in Florida for the greater part of the next 13 years, serving submarines on their training and readiness duties. (Wikipedia)
USS Bushnell (AS-15) was a Fulton-class submarine tender in service with the United States Navy from 1943 to 1948 and from 1952 to 1970. She was finally sunk as a target ship in 1983. Bushnell was recommissioned on 21 February 1952. After intensive training along the west coast, she departed for the Atlantic on 7 May. She transited the Panama Canal on 21 May and proceeded to Key West, Florida for duty with SubRon 12. Since that time, she operated from Key West, tending the boats of SubRon 12 as well as conducting brief periods of service at Norfolk and short cruises in the Caribbean. During that time she appeared in the backdrop of the ending of the comedy film Operation Petticoat. (Wikipedia)

In 1950, Posey lived with his wife and sons at 913 Watson St. in Key West, Florida. Living nearby was Clara Dena KNOWLES Lariz, whose granddaughter, Josephine would later (1955) marry his step-son, Ernest.

While in Key West, Posey would help his wife with church functions by rigging up wire and lighting systems. 

Posey went back and forth from Murphy, where he owned a home, to Key West, where his wife and children lived. He sent money to them every month. He lived for some time with his brother, Paul who worked as a welder and rigger. In a deposition taken in 1964 after his wife’s death, Posey indicates that “I drift around, welding, rigging, go where the work is.” 

LOSSES

  • His father Benjamin ‘Ben’ passed away on May 31, 1959, in Murphy, North Carolina, at the age of 75.
  • His wife Florinda Marie passed away on July 26, 1964, in Palm Beach, Florida, at the age of 54. They had been married 16 years.
  • His son Junius Otto passed away on February 24, 1971, in Alachua, Florida, at the age of 22.

DEATH

Junius Otto Posey died on September 10, 1984, in Atlanta, Georgia, when he was 68 years old. He was laid to rest in Murphy, Cherokee County, North Carolina.

SOURCES

Muster rolls of U.S. Navy ships, stations, and other naval activities, 1939-1949; U.S. Census Records; Personal records and photos of Florinda GOMES Posey