Richard Alexander McClean
Richard Alexander McClean, 84, of Florida, passed away on April 11, 2008.
He was born May 23, 1923, in… Richard Alexander McClean, 84, of Florida, passed away on April 11, 2008.
He was born May 23, 1923, in Uniontown, Pa.
After graduation from Uniontown High School, he entered the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York, earning his degree in 1944. He then entered the Navy and served on several ships during World War II and the Korean War. After leaving the Navy, he earned a degree from the University of So. California in Trade and Transportation.
While living in San Diego, he married Eveline Kittilson, a Navy nurse, and they have been married for 54 years.
In 1958, he became a Panama Canal Pilot, where he guided ships through the Panama Canal for 12 years. In 1969, he was recruited to become Tampa’s first Harbormaster. After five years, he returned to the sea, first transporting grain to Russia, finally as captain of a supertanker transporting oil from Alaska, to various ports throughout the United States.
After retirement, he and his wife moved to Hensdersonville, N.C.; then to Uniontown, Pa; to Chula Vista, Calif.; Summerfield, Fla.; and finally to Tampa, Fla.
He was a Mason and member of the Syria Shrine of Pittsburgh, Past President of the Panama Canal Pilots Association, Member of the Marine Engineers Beneficiary Association, the Third Presbyterian Church in Uniontown, Pa., and the Panama Canal Society.
He is survived by his wife, Eveline; daughter, Katherine Basiliere in Birmingham, Ala.; and grandson, Adam Basiliere in San Diego, Calif.
A Memorial Service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 24, 2008, in the Third Presbyterian Church in Uniontown.